One Card from Finishing a 1952 Team Set

James Phelan, card #122, nearly finishes my '52 Bowman Large Texans team set.

I used some eBay bucks to get this card for free. I'm a big fan of the eBay bucks now.

I really like the '52 Bowman style and the back of the card says, "He captained the 1917 Fighting Irish . . . " How many cards reference a player from the 1917 Notre Dame team?!

Now I just need to capture the elusive Jim Lansford to complete the set.

Try to Smack that Smile off Gino Marchetti's Face

Hey Rookie - What are you smiling at?

This is Gino Marchetti's 1952 Bowman Large rookie card (#23). I picked up this card on eBay for a fraction of the book value. Yes, add your own book value comment here.

I met Gino at an autograph show a few years ago. He didn't say much (unlike his HOF teammate Art Donovan), but he signed my item, and said thank you.

This is card almost finishes my 52 Bowman Large Texans team set. Two more to go!

You Say Weiner, I Say Weiner

Now this is a cool vintage card. I've noticed some of the 1952 Bowman cards are landscape instead of portrait - not all, but a handful are designed this way.

This is another one for my Dallas Texans team set. This is card #114, Art Weiner from the 1952 Bowman Large series.

1952 Bowman Large Design Fail

For the most part, the 1952 Bowman football series (large and small) looks outstanding. I've been working on a '52 Texans set for both.

There are some great action shots like Zollie Toth and Art Weiner.

And then the series has the John Wozniak card here.

1952 Bowman Large George Taliaferro

I've really enjoyed collecting this Bowman Large 1952 Dallas Texans set. It's been a great way to learn about the history of the league and get some great vintage cards for excellent prices.

This is my latest eBay deal - George Taliaferro, #89. The scan doesn't do this card justice. It's pretty well centered, one soft corner and a very minor crease in top left corner. Total eBay price: $8.00.

When Football Players Had Off-Season Jobs

The backs of vintage cards bring more than the stats.

I picked up this 1952 Bowman Large card of Dallas Texan Brad "Whitie" Ecklund. The best part of his card was the listing of his four years in the Marines seeing action at Okinawa.

I really thought it the last two sentences of the card were interesting:
"Works as a salesman during the off-season. Plans career in coaching and selling."

Sounds like the first steps to product endorsements?

A New Card Can Make it All Good

It's been a long week at work. It's going to be a long month actually, but there's something about getting a new card in the mail that just helps you get through it all.

Today I added to my '52 Bowman Large Dallas Texans team set with this Buddy Young card. I have the '52 Bowman Small set, and now I'm going large.

Buddy was a 5'4" running back for the Texans and Yanks prior to that. I paid around $8 for this card on eBay.

Now, back to work.

Vintage Football Card - New eBay Purchase

I was lucky enough to win this Art Donovan, 1952 Bowman Large card.

Were most buyers at the National when this card auction ended? It has a slight crease, but I paid less than $40 for this. I don't think I overpaid, but either way, I'm happy with the card.

My scanner is pretty horrible which is why the bottom and right borders are missing.

Dan Edwards Could Be the Old Spice Guy

This 1952 Bowman Large Dallas Texans card is my latest eBay purchase. I'm pretty happy with the condition for the price I paid.

At first, I thought Dan Edwards looked a lot like former Pennsylvania senator, Rick Santorum.

Then I noticed the tilted head, the smile, the football in one hand and the other hand on his hip. There's something senior picture-like about this card.

But the best comparison is to the Old Spice Guy. Can't your hear Dan Edwards, "look at your man, now look at me, now look at your man, now look at me . . . . I play for the Dallas Texans." -Add whistle jingle.

Mail Bag Delivers: Barney Poole 1952 Bowman Large

I added to my 1952 Bowman Large collection. I picked up Dallas Texan Barney Poole for a good price on eBay. It's not perfectly centered, but that isn't a big deal to me.

Poole began his pro football career with the New York Yankees in 1949. The Yankees moved to Dallas for the 1952 season - their only season as the Texans.

James Hammond or Hulk Hogan Leg Drop

James Hammond's '52 Bowman Large is kicking the crap out of the Wisconsin Badger.

Seriously, that is one high leg kick. And why does a Wisconsin full-back have a picture of him punting?

Or maybe he's doing the Hulk Hogan Leg Drop?

Grrrr Zollie Toth

Zollie Toth is mad as hell and he isn't going to take it anymore!

This card is great. The picture of Zollie Toth gritting his teeth and carrying the football is awesome. This is Zollie Toth's 1952 Bowman Large - Dallas Texans card.

Starting to Collect a New Team Set

I can't decided if I'm looking forward to the new challenge or wondering what I'm getting myself into. Starting to collect a new team set is exciting and fun, but can be extremely frustrating at the same time.

I recently finished my '52 Bowman Small Dallas Texans team set. I really enjoyed the look of the cards, so I've decided to do the 52 Bowman Large version of the Texans.

The Bowman Large cards are approximately the same width of a regular card, but they almost .25" taller. I had to get some taller sleeves for the binder - Chris Olds from Beckett recommended The2Buds.com - good site and I picked up some bigger pages to store these '52 Bowman Large cards.

I picked up this card of Barney Poole at the CSA Show in March.

Jim Lansford's 1952 Bowman Small Eludes Me

Jim Lansford: Why does your '52 Bowman Small cost so much?

I've been working on a Dallas Texans, 1952 Bowman Small team set for year or so now. I'm almost complete, except for Jim Lansford!

His '52 Bowman small is constantly listed at $65 on eBay, but it never sells. Apparently I'm not the only one who thinks $65 is too much. The most I've spent for any card in this current set is about $20 - it isn't graded quality, but that's a not a big deal to me for this team set.

Perhaps I should contact the seller if it doesn't sell? Is that unethical?