One of my collecting buddies and I were recently discussing his quest to build a 1986 Fleer Basketball set.

Something that is not an easy feat, especially with the significant increase in values across the board on 86 Fleer Basketball cards.

While Jordan rookies have experienced a bit of a dip of late, I think all collectors could use a few tips in piecing together the set.  

Thus, here is his guide for collectors looking to build the 1986 Fleer set.  

Have anything you might add to the discussion?

Feel free to add any comments below!

While the bulk of my card collecting and writing on All Vintage Cards is focused on older cards, I admittedly have had the urge to buy some modern cards while shopping at Target or Walmart in the past.

However, when I went to Target recently to pick up some household items, I was disappointed to find the shelves that used to hold sports cards galore completely barren.  So I set out to find the truth.  

Can you still buy sports cards at Walmart or Target?

Unfortunately, it’s much harder today to find sports cards at Walmart or Target, as they both have suspended the selling of many sports and trading cards. They still sell some sports cards in-store and online, however, there is a huge variation in availability based on your specific location. 

The surge in modern card pricing and the resultant ‘rise of the flippers’ has led to some not so pretty situations in these stores.  And while there are rare cases where you might find some cards, the odds are quite slim.

Let’s take a look at some of the reasons for the supply disruptions and if you still might be able to score a find at your local Walmart or Target. 

Do you know of a location that is still selling cards?  Drop a note in the comments below to let us know!

For those that have been in the hobby for a while, this might seem like a strange question.  It’s sort of just an accepted fact that a player’s rookie card is worth more than any later issued card. 

But why is this true?  There has to be a reason, right?  I wanted to get to the bottom of this.  And my findings were kind of along with what I expected. 

The excessive demand for rookie cards leads to the cards having more value than any other later-year issues for a player. 

A rookie card is a player’s first official entry into the card collecting world, and these issues are in high demand by collectors hoping for the next big thing.

Plus, the first card issued for a player is their oldest card, which collectors tend to associate as being ‘more valuable’. 

In addition, there has always been a mystique that has developed over time with player ‘rookie cards’ being more sought after by collectors.   

Let’s dive into these a bit further.

The All Vintage Cards Large Cap Basketball Portfolio is a collection of ten high-priced vintage basketball cards that we think have great long-term investment potential. 

As we discussed in our introduction piece, we are launching three portfolios for each major sport–Large Cap, Mid Cap, and Small Cap.

For those not familiar with the lexicon, this corresponds to mutual fund portfolios in the investment world.  Large-Cap within the investment space equates to a portfolio of the equity market’s largest companies.

For this All Vintage Cards Large Cap Value Basketball Portfolio we have selected ten cards, each with a value of $3000 or more.

Note that these selections are based on what we perceive as ‘relative’ value in the marketplace, meaning that we think these cards offer a good value versus other comparative cards. 

I will also note that this information is not investment advice, nor are we making any promises in relation to future performance.  Please use your own judgment and budget when accounting for any acquisitions of cards in this portfolio. 

Please also see our All-Vintage Cards Small-Cap Value and All-Vintage Cards Mid-Cap portfolios. 

The All Vintage Cards Mid Cap Basketball Portfolio is a portfolio of ten ‘mid-sized vintage basketball cards that we think have solid long-term investment potential. 

As we discussed in our introduction piece, we are launching three portfolios for each major sport–Large Cap, Mid Cap, and Small Cap.

For those not familiar with the lexicon, this corresponds to mutual fund portfolios in the investment world.  Mid-Cap within the investment space equates to a portfolio of the equity market’s mid-size companies.

For this All Vintage Cards Mid Cap Value Basketball Portfolio we have selected ten cards, each with a value between $1000 to $3000.

Note that these selections are based on what we perceive as ‘relative’ value in the marketplace, meaning that we think these cards offer a good value versus other comparative cards. 

I will also note that this information is not investment advice, nor are we making any promises in relation to future performance.  Please use your own judgment and budget when accounting for any acquisitions of cards in this portfolio. 

Please also see our All-Vintage Cards Small-Cap Value and All-Vintage Cards Large-Cap portfolios. 

The All Vintage Cards Small Cap Basketball Portfolio is a collection of ten Small-Cap (or ‘lower priced’) vintage basketball cards that we think have strong long-term investment potential. 

As we discussed in our introduction piece, we are launching three portfolios for each major sport–Large Cap, Mid Cap, and Small Cap.

For those not familiar with the lexicon, this corresponds to mutual fund portfolios in the investment world.  Small-Cap within the investment space equates to a portfolio of the equity market’s smallest companies.

For this All Vintage Cards Small Cap Value Basketball Portfolio we have selected ten cards, each with a value of $1000 or less.

Note that these selections are based on what we perceive as ‘relative’ value in the marketplace, meaning that we think these cards offer a good value versus other comparative cards. 

I will also note that this information is not investment advice, nor are we making any promises in relation to future performance.  Please use your own judgment and budget when accounting for any acquisitions of cards in this portfolio. 

Please also see our All-Vintage Cards Mid-Cap Value and All-Vintage Cards Large-Cap portfolios. 

In January of last year, we launched an ‘All Vintage Cards Value portfolio that was well received. The portfolio was designed as a diversified portfolio of vintage cards for collectors and investors that we thought had good long-term potential.  The collection of cards (listed below) has performed quite well.

One of the most common questions I get relates to figuring out the value of a collection and how it should be priced if selling it.  

This is typically a common concern for newer collectors, those that have inherited a collection, or those that are returning to the hobby after a long hiatus.

It can be quite complicated to figure out a card’s value, especially if you’ve never bought or sold a card before.

While we have provided info on valuing cards, I thought it might be helpful to take a ‘live’ look at a collection that was sent to me.  

Hopefully, this guide will help you determine accurate resale values for your cards, but if you’re still left scratching your head, feel free to shoot us an email at help@allvintagecards.com

One of the more frequent points of confusion I encounter with more novice collectors relates to card values and why most cards will never ever earn a perfect Gem Mint PSA 10 grade.  

Many collectors see news articles about big-time PSA 10 graded cards selling for millions of dollars and immediately assume that they’ve hit the jackpot.  My conversation usually involves deflating their excitement and instructing them on the nuances of card condition, grading, and the ultimate variation in card values. 

So how hard is it to actually get a perfect 10 grade from PSA (or any of the other card grading companies)? 

It’s a complicated answer, but earning a perfect 10 card grade is extremely hard.  There are many factors to consider however, including the card’s age, overall population of the card and whether there were any factory issues for that the set in question.  

In this piece we’ll examine some of the statistics relating to the odds involved with earning a perfect 10 Gem-Mint card grade. 

If you got started collecting in the 1980’s you might have kept some of your prized sports cards encased in what is commonly known as a screw-down holder. 

When protecting your cards starting becoming paramount in the ’80s the screw-down holder was viewed as the premier way to encase your card.  What better way to keep your card safe than holding it together with a big, gigantic piece of plastic held together with four tight screws.  

Although it used to be the preferred way of protecting valuable cards, screw down holders can cause significant damage to sports cards.  The pressure applied from the tightening of the screws can flatten out the card over time. 

This can make it appear as if the card has been altered, and the grading companies will often reject cards stored in screwdown holders, returning them as ‘Altered’.