Last week there was a lot of 69 Gum Inc. & Goudey cards on Ebay with a BIN of $75.00. The cards came in today's mail and in the group were these 2 cards, HOW Nos. 277 & 281:


Net cost $1.19 per card.
Included in the group were 28 more HOW cards, a USHD Hi No. (No. 99) and other World In Arms, War News Picture, Uncle Sam, Gum Inc. War News & Goudey Action Gum cards.
The best buy I ever had on Ebay.
So please share that great bargain that you snared on Ebay.

My best ebay buy happened a few years ago when I was able to pick up two thirds of the Roy Rogers Pop-Ups cards at a low ball price. I really think this happened because Dan didn't see it and I snuck in. I've had other good buys but these cards were nearly perfect and I had the remaining one third already in my possession to fill my set!

Nice pickups Jerry. I had a lot of nice eBay pickups back in the Wild West days (late 90's and early part of this decade). Seemed like only a few people back then were vigilant about seeking out nonsports stuff. I wish I had written some of the nice deals down. Three I remember were the R32 Comic Gum display box (Jim may remember that one, I think he was ready to big bid but something happened to the technology on his end in those pre-sniping service days); my two War News Pictures window banners and my set of Heinz Aviation premiums. Probably big money for all those now, but I think I spent less than $500 on all that stuff.

Not really an NS buy...but I bought a book for $2 one week and then sold it for $800+ the next week. Turned around and used the $800 to buy NS tobacco cards, so in my mind I got these cards for $2. At least that's how I rationalize it in my twisted mind...

double post sorry

My best Ebay buy had to do with stamps, one of my other collections. With all you guys watching Ebay, little chance to do really well on cards ☺

A few years ago, one of the major dealers has a "dealers stock book" of stamps from a country that I collect. There were about 6 terrible pictures, but I was able to almost guess from the pictures that I thought I recognized a few stamps that I still needed that would make up the $250. minimum bid. So I bid the minimum and waited out the 7 days. Obviously, no one else could tell anything from the pictures, and I got the lot. Called with a credit card, and about 3 days later received the lot.

All of the stamps were really nice condition (most were mint never-hinged), and I was right on the few that I thought I recognized. Put the collection aside until the weekend, and then "dug in". Imagine my surprise and delight, when I found a page of stamps having several others that I had only dreamed of ever owning, one of which alone catalogued more than 10 times my investment! Needless to say, I then went through the collection with the proverbial fine-toothed comb.

Now, if you guys would just let me find something like that in cards......☺

Jon.

There are two parts to a good deal. It ain't a good deal until you've sold it.
So Chuck, until you sell me the Comic Gum box, it ain't a good deal.

Jim: I just bought a house built in 1850. If you've ever seen the film The Money Pit, you can figure that I'll be looking to complete that deal sooner or later.

Chuck

One time on Ebay, I spotted a 'card album' for sale. The picture showed a little peak inside of some cards that were only
vaguely refered to, but that I recognized. When the package arrived and I opened it up, there was about 1/2 set of the salmon backed Target Moon, about 3/4 of Wings and about 3/4 of 1956 Adventure. I sold all of them for a nice gain.

Another time, I found 6 Tip Top Space cards mislisted and got them all (incuding an especially rare one) for a small price.
I slapped them into my own collection of that set and sold the doubles.

One time I was swimming around a tiny cay off the coast of an off-of-the-beaten pathway island off Honduras and found that a gringo had found a treasure chest there only about a year before after a hurricane. (true story)

I don't know about best buy,best miss was Jerry's win,just as I was going to pull the trigger warhound bought it from under my nose,snooze you lose!!!!!!

I remember that R32 Gum Box coming up on Ebay years ago - I think it went for $75? I was going to pull the trigger but something happened - perhaps I forgot when it was ending, who knows. I checked the Search feature on here and found a decent thread on that set. Interesting that it was put out by Gum Inc. of Philly, which was Blony and Bowman Gum as well, until being sold off to Topps in early 1956.

Jeff: I think that box went for a bit more than that, maybe $125? Wow, it sounds like more people than Jim had technical malfunctions on that auction. Perhaps the nonsports gods were giving me some sort of payback for all the great items I was second bidder on in those days...(right, Ralph and Don?) LOL

I have complete recollection of the incident. The box went for $225. The seller knew how rare it was and had it on reserve, but a measly $200. It was an unorthodox 5 day listing. Discussing it makes me feel like a pet died.

I typically hope to get the value which I pay for in my transactions, and most of the time I do. Once tho, I bought a small lot of junky cards ... box cut outs, strip cards and the like ... the best of the bunch would rate a G. But actually several of them had some value, so my money was well spent. But one of them was only issued in individual servings of cereal available through Hotels or Trains. And this one was called a Wheaties Series 15 Joe Medwick. And I knew it going in. This is a $300+ card. The seller hadn't even listed the baseball card along with his n/s offering. I got lucky and won the lot for $20. At first I felt a bit guilty. But now, I've been taken so many times, that this was simply payback upfront. I didn't need the Medwick, so I sold it within a month for $350.

Great topic by the way. I bought a near complete set of the 1888 Scrapps baseball set. It was glued into an album with a bunch of other non sports stuff for 225 dollars. I carefully removed it from the album and sold it 2 weeks later for 4500. MOre importantly its rare that i get cards like that and it was nice to look at them close up........ the money didnt hurt either

Steve Schwartz,

Could you give us the story on the Uncle Sam 121-144 high numbers you snagged a few months back, would love to hear the details, thanks.