Card of the Day - 2014 Topps Finest : Steve Carlton Finest Greats Autograph Blue Parallel (122/125) BGS Graded Gem Mint 9.5 AND eBay Bucks Quarterly Purchase Number One

Once again it's that time of the year but unlike every 3 months when I get to use earned eBay bucks the last quarter of the year I get to combine them with all the Christmas gift cards that I receive from loved ones. This like every year was a boon for me. Most quarters I usually just focus on one card and get that one but when there is a little more to play with then I see what I can do to spread the wealth among multiple cards. For this quarter I was able to secure 3 cards and today and the next two days I will showcase my acquisitions.

First up is actually the only card that "cost" me some money as I ended having to throw in a little to get this card even though this was the cheapest of the 3. Tomorrow's card was totally paid for with eBay bucks and Wednesday's was paid with gift cards. I locked in on those first and had finished their transactions but I had some bucks left over so I scoured the bay to see what BGS graded autograph I could get my hands on. Took a couple of days but I finally decided to concentrate on this card.

I never have had a Carlton autograph in my collection as the two times I was prepared to go to an in person signing he was scheduled to due he cancelled each time at the last minute. So Steve stayed on my to get list for the past few years and now was the perfect time to see if I could finally acquire one. A seller had this on a BIN auction for way over book but thankfully he had a best offer option attached to it. With what I had left over from the other transaction I calculated what I felt comfortable with paying out of my pocket for this card. I decided it was $10. Using that amount it would be a semi low ball offer that I would send the seller which I did. No automatic rejection but since it was sent at around 10 at night I went to bed with no answer. Woke up the following morning and had an email stating the seller accepted my offer with no counter needed. Woo Hoo.

Ten dollars out of pocket and the remaining of my earned eBay bucks was sent to the seller and I had this gem mint beauty in my hands a week or so later. Not too shabby of a return for a minimal amount of money. Snagged me a Hall of Famer's autograph.

One down two to go.

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