WALLET CARD - Buyback Beauty

I'm nearly caught up with my show & tell posts from my summer hiatus and early season card pickups.  Not too much to report on but there have been a few nice additions to various projects that have me gaining from ear to ear.

When it comes to my Oscar Gamble collection, I've been keeping things at a pretty solid simmer.  There are quite a few base cards and cheap inserts that I could very easily pick up via COMC or eBay but I'm just not in a rush to get those - I'd love to one day knock a few of those off by digging in boxes and sniffing them out.  But when it comes to the tougher, low-numbered parallels or the dreaded buyback cards, I pay closer attention.

I don't know why, but I love the buyback offerings from Topps.  As much as I enjoy new cards, new sets, I really enjoy tracking down - and hopefully snagging these foil-stamped offerings.  I've landed more than my fair share but have let a few go by due to the crazy expensive shipping costs from the States.  I just can't justify paying $12-15 US for shipping on a card that might only go for a buck or two.

Thankfully, this current find broke the mould.

2016 Topps 65th Anniversary Buyback

#505 Oscar Gamble 1977

This is my third card from the 2016 season of buybacks and my first with the black stamp.  I did a little digging and found that the black is actually the most common (standard) of stamps.  My other two #WalletCard stamps are blue which is in the "rare" category.  Nice.

I couldn't tell you what it is about the buybacks that just make me get a little more anxious or excited, maybe it's because I just never see them so that sense of rarity mixed with inexpensiveness (is that a word?) results in a fun time for me hobby-wise.

That is.....if the shipping costs aren't too crazy.

Here's the back of the card - because it's so nice.

I mentioned that this card didn't have the expensive shipping cost associated with it.  So what gives?

Well, I made a point of contacting the seller to thank him for the inexpensive shipping to Canada.  He mentioned that he'd be putting the card in a PWE (plain white envelope), thus keeping the costs to just a simple letter mail stamp.

Cool.....works for me.

Showed up in perfect shape.  It helps when the card is properly protected - even for a PWE.  Low risk, big reward.

I wish more US sellers would go this route (even with me as the buyer taking all the risk of damage). I think.....heck, I know I'd be buying more of these buybacks.  I've seen a couple more that are just too pricey right now.

Happy to cross this off the list and continue to add to the growing #WalletCard collection.