Trying to complete some sets

 I’ve been on a FB complete set builder group, and let me tell you, although the internet can be loaded with D-bags and flippers, there are still some good people out there who just care about completing sets and helping others out. I have seen some guys on the group who you can tell probably buy Target out of blasters who are trying to complete ‘Master sets’ and are mainly looking for inserts, but a majority of them are guys trying to finish out 2025 Topps sets and are missing the same 10-20 cards that I am because the collation sucks. 

I’ve been doing a lot of trading on that page lately. One trade I gave some 2025 Topps needs and got a 220 card lot of Rays. I had a ton of dupes, which is bound to happen being 12 cards short of the #5 Tampa Bay Rays collector on TCDB, but I got cards from sets I never had, like 2022 Topps Pristine. 

Another guy needed some random sets like 2016 Topps Chrome, 2007 Topps Heritage, and some older sets I had tons of dupes of, like ‘93 and ‘94 Topps. I sent him a good 500 count box of needs and got back a box almost as big with Topps needs ranging from 2010 to 2018. 

I got a pretty big stack of all Topps needs, and it darn near took the whole afternoon to mark them off of my paper list, computer kist, and TCDB list. 

I am darn near completing a few Topps sets from that era now, including 1998 Topps (just a John Smoltz card), 2005 Topps (Jermaine Dye), 2016 Topps Update (Robert Stephenson),2001 Topps Traded, (a 1976 Topps Traded Willie Randolph which I will accept either the reprint or the original), 2007 Topps Update (Scott Baker), 2002 Topps (Shane Reynolds), 2007 Topps (Vinny Rottino), 2005 Topps (2002 Topps Update (just a Brian Hunter SP and Eric Cyr), 2003 Topps (Carlos Pena, Mike Hampton, Jeff Kent All-Star), 2018 Topps (12 cards), 2017 Topps (42 cards), 2010 Topps Update (20 cards), 2018 Topps Update (22 cards), and 2015 Topps (55 cards).  The ‘18 Update might be tricky, as I need an Ohtani Rookie Debut and the Acuna Rookie Debut, but if I can be patient, I can probably get the Ohtani for 20 bucks or so, and the Acuna is surprisingly around 5 bucks. So all those sets are at 90% complete or more. Most of the ones missing fewer than 5 are just due to my stupidity when placing my SportLots order. I may just due a big order at some point in the next few months and try to complete some of these. I am excited that I have got so close to completing some of these Topps sets, and I can now realistically see having a complete run of Topps and Topps Update sets from 2016 to now, which will give me a run of sets for every year my son has been alive. If I really worked at it and spent a little dough and time on SportLots, I could probably fill in the holes from 2003-2015 as well. I have a few years complete in that gap as well, including (almost) 2005-2007. 2008 just needs a complete Update set, so really the only set I’m seeing that is surprisingly expensive is 2014. If I can get it for 40 or 50 bucks, I might bite, but I never see it for under 70-90, and just because it has a Jose Ramirez rookie, I still can’t justify spending that much on it. I’ll get these sets eventually and be looking at a Topps run from 1980 to now. Maybe not this year or next year, but in the next 5 hopefully. (Late Update, I found the 2018 Update Ohtani Rookie Debut for a decent price, so that set has all the toughies knocked out other than the Acuna, which I think I can get for a fiver or so). 

I’ll have 1 more package from a trade coming in this week. I helped a guy finish his 1992 Donruss set, and I have no clue what’s coming back, but I’m sure 👍🏻 I’ll be able to cross some cards off of my Topps wantlist. 

I added links to all of these sets just in case anyone wanted to see what they have and do some trading. As with John from Johnny’s Trading Spot, I’ve been trying to organize some of my dupes in order to make trading easier. I’ve done everything up through 1989, there is a big junk wax gap, and have basically everything from 2021 to 2025 in numerical order. This should make it easier to trade Topps doubles, and I can basically use TCDB for non-Topps stuff. I’ll get the 1990-2020 stuff organized at some point, and I’ll be able to know pretty quick if I can help out anyone in the FB set collectors page, or anywhere else for that matter. 

The part that is circled are the 2021 to 2025 doubles that are in numerical order. The rest of the box is is 2018 or so to 2020 sets that need to be organized. 

I basically have 4 days of work left, and then I’m off Sunday. Karen and I will travel to Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville Sunday afternoon, and she will have the stent trial on Monday, and we’ll see how it does the next few days, and I’ll basically be off the grid until Saturday when I’ll probably be back in DeLand and at work. Hopefully it will improve her breathing and we can get the mesh surgery in the coming weeks after that. I’ll probably take my laptop with me. There is a card shop in Jacksonville that my brother in law likes, but I doubt I’ll have a chance to stop by. I’ll probably make some customs on my laptop, getting to finish the 2007 Topps Rays set, and maybe finishing 2007 Update and getting some 2008 Rays done. I’ll definitely post those on FB and if I can, I’m going to try to print the 1999-2007 missing Rays customs that I’ve done and put them in with the regular set and maybe post them. Hopefully the trip will bring some new customs, a little rest, and most importantly some improvement on Karen’s health and a go-ahead for the mesh surgery.  

Thanks for checking out my latest post. 

-Jeremy