Twins Top 10 List - #3

I've blogged about the top 3 bobbles previously.  I picked the Kent Hrbek Outdoors bobble as my number 3 because it's a bit easier to find than either of the top 2 bobbles, but still extremely difficult to find.  These bobbleheads were table centerpieces during the 2007 ALS Gala where Carrier was the guest of honor.  Hrbek, the spokesman for Carrier loved the idea of a bobblehead and coupled with his past with the Twins and his Outdoors show, a bobblehead was born.  Good luck finding them, as they are extremely difficult to track down.  

2015 Yearly Recap - Part 1

In my previous blog I mentioned doing a yearly recap.  This will be a blog series as there are a few different stories I want to share.  Some good, some bad, some good and bad!  I try really hard to keep track of all the bobbleheads I come across, but honestly...its tough.  Sometimes I just forget to update my spreadsheet and other times I update it, but not 100% accurately because I wait a few days and forget everything about a deal.  Luckily for me...it's not imperative that everything is 100% complete!

The first garage sale I went to...a random drive by on my way home from work netted me a Hrbek/Gant 1991 World Series bobblehead.  That might have been a bit of foreshadowing of what was to come in 2015.  When it comes to bobbleheads that you might find (not super rare ones) the Hrbek/Gant is about the best you can get.  The bobblehead(s) itself was in great condition. Unfortunately there was no box.  For most collectors this is somewhat of a dealbreaker, especially when it comes to the Hrbek/Gant bobblehead as it comes with a picture box and styrofoam packaging.  I already had my own so this was to trade or sell, which limited my market as I wasn't going to ship this one without the proper packaging.  Sometimes tho, when it comes to great bobbles like this...you still pick it up because it was well worth it!

Here's the Hrbek/Gant bobblehead along with the box, which has value in itself!

I've had some bad buys too at garage sales.  Some people are very good and making a garage sale ad seem extremely appealing.  Several times I've wasted my time in going to sales that appear (on paper) to be exactly what I'm looking for, just because there is an "S" on the end of bobblehead, doesn't mean there will be 10 or 20 of them (of course at times it does).  So just remember, garage sales in general are very hit and miss!

2014 Spring/Summer Finds #1

The top spot on my 2014 Spring/Summer Finds list is all about one lucky day.  I went to a few garage sales and thrift stores late this summer.  The first one I stopped at, I found this Josh Willingham bobblehead.  No, not the "hammer" bobblehead, the red base, season ticket holder one.  Definitely the most valuable Willingham bobblehead!

At the very next stop, I found one of the most popular recent Twins bobbleheads.  Kent Hrbek and Ron Gant from the 1991 World Series.  

And lastly I found these 2 bobbleheads at my last stop.  Quite the haul for me!  Easily my biggest haul in terms of value when you consider there were only 4 bobbleheads total.  Chi Chi Rodriguez and Maya Moore from the Lynx.  Luck certainly one out that day!

2014 Spring/Summer Finds #2

Number 2 on my 2014 Spring/Summer Finds list is a moving sale I found earlier this summer.  The gentleman that was moving, was truly getting rid of everything.  He wasn't necessarily a collector but had lots and lots of bobbleheads as well as a ton of other sports memorabilia.  We had emailed a couple times and he told me the names of guys he had.  I knew he had some good bobbleheads, but wasn't sure just how good they were.  When names like Puckett, Hrbek and Killebrew get thrown out there, I'm sure everyone hopes for the first year bobbleheads.  But we all know that each player has several bobbleheads and really the first year (both SGA and STH) are the ones worth good money.  

Knowing he wanted to move them, I was intrigued, so I went to the sale and bought several bobbleheads.  I had a great time chatting with him and learning more about his "collection" even tho he repeatedly said he wasn't really a collector.  

I came away with about 14 bobbleheads.  Below is a picture of the best set.  

That's right, Kirby Puckett, Tony Oliva, Kent Hrbek and Harmon Killebrew.  On top of those 4, I also picked up a couple of the 1965 Ecumen bobbleheads and a complete set of the 2001 SGA set that includes Kirby Puckett, Rod Carew, Bert Blyleven and Dave Winfield!  Sometimes its better to be lucky than good.  On that summer day, I was 100% lucky.  

2014 Spring/Summer Finds #3

Earlier this summer one of the first good finds I had was at a garage sale in Farmington.  They had several bobbleheads, mainly Twins, but a few othe random ones as well.  There are a couple reasons that this sits at #3 on my top 5 Spring/Summer Finds list.  The first, I was able to add a couple bobbleheads to my collection.  One (or should I say 2) is a bit more rare than the others.  This one was extremely cheap, actually a bit cheaper than great garage sale prices!  So I lucked out on it!  This is a retail AGP Minnie and Paul bobblehead set.  They are shaking hands (held together by magnets).

I bought several and there was a Twins nesting doll set that was intriguing.  Because I love to wheel and deal, before I accepted the sellers price for all of the ones I was buying I asked him to throw in the nesting doll set.  He had no problem doing it.  I had 2 thoughts - it was cool and possibly rare/unique.  The cool factor meant that at the very least I'd keep it for my own collection.  I hadn't ever seen one like it before but I don't really search for things other than bobbleheads.  I did a little google research and that turned up zero, which was either good news or terrible news.  I went to a local sports collectibles store and talked to the owner.  He said he had seen them before but not for quite a while and offered me $50 cash for it.  At that point I knew I had something that was somewhat unique and valuable.  Add to it that it contained the biggest of big Twins names (Kirby Puckett, Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Kent Hrbek & Gary Gaetti) I knew I'd eventually sell it on eBay.  

2014 Spring/Summer Finds #5

I'm doing a 5 part series counting down my 5 best finds from the 2014 Spring and Summer.  At times I won't be able to tell you where I found the specific item, not because I don't want to, but because I don't remember!

Coming in at #5 is a Joe Mauer Autographed bobblehead.  This was a bittersweet find.  I had went to an estate sale with some knowledge that several bobbleheads would be for sale and for pretty good prices.  Notably, first year SGAs of Puckett, Hrbek, and possibly Killebrew.  I knew for a fact the Puckett and Hrbek were there and had heard the Killebrew was also for sale as well as 15-20 other Twins bobbleheads.

If you haven't been to an estate sale, they can be quite frustrating.  Not knowing where anything is located, the mad rush of people trying to get in to find those special treasures they value and at times unhelpful people who run the sale.  At other times, estate sales are wonderful.  This one fell somewhere in between.

I was lead to believe the bobbleheads were displayed (which to me, they would have been easily noticeable).  This was not the case at all.  They ended up being in their plain white boxes within another larger box, on the floor AND under a table.  A few were displayed but not the ones I was hoping to snag.  I scoured the house for 5-7 minutes before walking out.  When I was about to leave I saw the box.  There were about 10 bobbleheads left.  Another guy had spotted it before me (obviously) but the one he didn't take was a Mauer Autograph bobblehead (seen below).  I fully believe the guy saw Mauer and didn't take it out of the box to look at it.  Once I saw the auto, I knew I was buying it.  I bought a couple others for a decent price and went on my way.

This was a nice find, but I was hoping for more so I did leave a bit disappointed.

Minnesota Twins - 1st Edition SGAs vs 1st Edition STHs

I've had several people ask me about the difference between SGAs and STHs.  For the most part its super easy to tell, green base bobbleheads are the giveaways while red base bobbleheads were given to season ticket holders.  However, one major hurdle is the 1st Edition of each set, as they both had green bases.

Harmon Killebrew, Kent Hrbek, Tony Oliva and Kirby Puckett make up each set.  The SGA set was given out in 2000 while the STH set was given out the following year.  There are a couple great features with both sets.  This is by far the best quality set the Twins did, both in terms of the quality of the bobblehead specifically as well as the uniqueness of each one.  Each player has different jerseys (where as most of the more recent sets - the same jerseys appear with the only difference being a red base vs. a green base).

The hard thing is remembering the exact jersey of each player to tell if its a SGA or STH.  There is a much easier way to tell the difference of each.  The base of the SGA says "Mountain Dew" (they sponsored the set) while the base of the STH says the last name of each player. THAT is the best way to tell which edition of bobblehead you are viewing.  Below is a comparison picture, on the top is the SGA set while the STH set on the bottom.

What a month!

I've had wonderful luck over the past month or so.  Easily the best month of my extremely short collecting career.  I've also been able to replenish a dwindling stock of bobbleheads to sell - gotta pay for the collecting side somehow, right?  I've blogged about a few of the bobbleheads I've picked up.  I plan on blogging about a couple others in the very near future.  A quick estimate would say I've added nearly 50 bobbleheads to my collection over the last several weeks while I've added about 60 bobbleheads to sell.  Obviously my hope is that I can sell the 60 for enough to pay for themselves as well as the almost 50 bobbleheads I'm keeping!  Ideal, but ideal doesn't always work.  And sometimes it takes months and months to sell everything.  So we'll see how things go!

Here are a couple pictures of a few I've blogged about recently.  More to come soon!  Also an updated want list!  

Kent Hrbek Carrier Outdoors ALS Bobblehead

I’ve been doing research on this bobblehead for quite some time.  The blogs and message boards I have read have had some information about it, but I always run into some type of roadblock.  People always talk about how cool the bobblehead is.  The lucky ones who own it post pictures, but the story behind the bobblehead has never been shared.  It’s more of a dead end than a roadblock!  And as you know, part of my passion is the story that accompanies the bobblehead.  I’ve had several great stories but this might be my best.  After exhausting all resources of research (at least the ones that I could come up with or google) I went looking for the proverbial needle in the haystack. 

Much to my surprise, I found the needle.  And honestly – growing up on a farm, I’ve played in plenty of haystacks and finding a baseball much less a needle is incredibly difficult.  So I’m chalking this one up to pure luck and maybe a bit of resilience on my part. 

I got in touch with a great person at Stay Comfy MN.  Click the link to be redirected to their website.  I was able to ask several questions and learn more about the history of this unique bobblehead.  Here’s the story!

Kent Hrbek has been the spokesman for Minnesota Air &Carrier since 1985.  Minnesota Air & Carrier was the guest of honor at the 2007 ALS Gala.  (Click the following link to learn about about the Minnesota Chapter of the ALS Association or here to learn more about ALS in general)  In preparation for the event, Minnesota Air & Carrier approached Hrbek about doing a cross promotional item (between them and Hrbek’s TV Show “Kent Hrbek Outdoors”).  Hrbek loved the idea of a bobblehead and with the cross promotion theme it was designed as such and shows the relationship between Hrbek, Minnesota Air, Carrier and the TV show.  The Minnesota Twins also lent a helping hand in the bobblehead process.  Obviously they had years of experience with bobbleheads and their help was greatly appreciated by Minnesota Air and Carrier as well as Kent Hrbek Outdoors.  The bobbleheads were displayed on the tables at the ALS Gala and not surprisingly with the exceptional design and cross promotional features, tons of people made positive remarks about them!  People can still enjoy these bobbleheads today as some Carrier Dealers have them displayed in their showrooms along with other Kent Hrbek memorabilia. 

This is easily one of the most unique bobbleheads in Minnesota.  I see other teams (San Francisco Giants) do pretty cool designs for their bobblehead giveaways, but this Hrbek Outdoors bobblehead is probably my all-time favorite.  Check it out for yourself!

Does size matter?

Apparently when it comes to bobbleheads, it doesn't.  They came in all sorts of shapes and sizes. I've definitely been a bit surprised by their size (or lack thereof) in the past.  It's difficult to realize the height (if its not the standard 7 inches) unless pictured next to others that are a different size and/or height.  As you can tell by the picture below - they truly come in all sorts of different heights!

Pictured left to right: Doug Mientkiewicz, Crunch (Boyscout version), Wayland Noland, Miguel Sano, Kent Hrbek and Rod Carew.  Dougie baseball is roughly 3.5 inches tall while Carew is about 9 inches tall!  The 3 on the far left I'd classify as "mini" bobbleheads.  Hrbek is the standard, which leaves Sano and Carew. I'm not sure what to call either of them other than non-standard bobbleheads.  

A rare Herbie bobblehead!

Below is a very rare Hrbek bobblehead.  Currently this is on my top 5 want list.  I've never seen it in person and since I've started collecting, I haven't seen it online or locally.  I'm hoping at some point I can add this one...but as we collectors know - sometimes things just happen and we get lucky.  And at other times, it takes years and years to find that one missing piece!  Let me know if you have any information on this one! All I know, is its commonly referred to as the "Carrier Outdoors" Hrbek bobblehead.

Minnesota Twins ST Bobblehead Set (Part 10 - Years 2010-2013)

I'm bunching years 2010 thru 2013 into one blog post.  Why you ask, for one simple reason, there weren't many ST bobbleheads during those years.  2009 was the last year the Twins did a set of 4 bobbleheads.

2010 was the Legends of the Dome set (Kirby Puckett & Kent Hrbek).  This was produced as a set, both bobbleheads came in one box.  Then I believe in 2011 they did a Mauer/Morneau double bobblehead - which I do not have.  In 2012 they did a Josh Willingham red base bobblehead and most recently in 2013 they did one of my favorite bobbleheads, Joe Mauer wearing a powder blue jersey.  This one is also different because its on a green base instead of the normal red base for season ticket holders.

Below are some pictures...enjoy!!

Minnesota Twins ST Bobblehead Set (Part 1 - Year 2001)

In March I did a 13 part series on each SGA bobblehead by year.  I'm doing another series showing the season ticket holder bobbleheads from every year.  These bobbleheads are given to full and partial season ticket holders.  Partial season ticket holders would only get 1 or 2 of these bobbleheads while full season ticket holders could get the entire set.

2001 is the first year the Twins gave season ticket holders a set of bobbleheads.  As you can see there isn't much difference in the 4 bobbleheads when compared to the 2000 SGA bobbleheads!  Harmon Killebrew, Kent Hrbek, Tony Oliva and Kirby Puckett make up the set of 4 bobbleheads.  Much like its 2000 SGA sibling set, this is one of the hardest ST sets to complete!  Why you ask?  Mainly because of the Hrbek and Killebrew bobbleheads (just like the SGAs!).

Below is a comparison of the SGA and ST sets.  You can see each bobblehead is almost the same with the main differences being a uniform change.  Also, the easiest way to tell if any of these 4 bobbleheads are ST or SGA...ST have the players last name on the front of the base.

Minnesota Twins SGA Bobblehead Set (Part 12 - Year 2011)

2011 brought the 20th anniversary of the 1991 World Series the Twins won...and one of the most infamous plays in World Series history is depicted on the 2011 SGA bobblehead.  It shows Kent Hrbek tagging (or perhaps pulling) out Ron Gant of the Atlanta Braves.  This bobblehead hits a couple different markets.  Not only the Minnesota collectors, but the Braves bobblehead collectors as well, and not to mention World Series collectors.  I love it.  

Minnesota Twins SGA Bobblehead Set (Part 10 - Year 2009)

The Twins did something a little different for the 10th season of SGA bobbleheads.  2 of the most popular Twins players are depicted on 2 pretty cool bobbleheads.  The set is commonly known as the "Legends of the Dome" set featuring Kirby Puckett and Kent Hrbek.  I'll be doing a similar blog series on the Twins season ticket holder bobbleheads, so this set will come up again.  Also each is in a familiar pose, Puckett is leaping for a ball while Hrbek is crushing a home run.  Its a nice touch to have each in an action pose versus the standard standing with a ball/bat/glove!

Minnesota Twins SGA Bobblehead Set (Part 1 - Year 2000)

The set that started the bobblehead craze in Minnesota.  To this day, its still the toughest Twins SGA set to complete.  Harmon Killebrew, Kent Hrbek, Tony Oliva, and Kirby Puckett.  Only 5,000 bobbleheads were made for Killebrew and Hrbek, while they upped that amount to 10,000 for Oliva and Puckett.  Theoretically that means there are only 5000 complete sets out there.  This is always why the Killebrew and Hrbek bobbleheads are more spendy that Oliva or Puckett.

Legends of the Dome

Legends of the Dome, otherwise referred to as LOTD are 2 bobbleheads, one of Kirby Puckett and one of Kent Hrbek.  But there are 2 different bobbleheads of each player.  Both Puckett and Hrbek have green bases and are the typical SGA bobbleheads, (each also comes with a COA).  The second variation is actually a set given away to season ticket holders.  I say set because they are packed in the same box within the same styrofoam packaging and come with red bases.  For whatever reason, the sets aren't as valuable, even tho I think they tend to be more rare. Each LOTD SGA comes with its own specialized box, which to most collectors is just as important as the COA (as its not the generic white boxes most Twins bobbleheads come in).  Below are some pictures showing the differences.  I recently picked up the LOTD set from a guy who responded to a Craigslist ad I had posted.  We agreed on a fair price and I met him later that week to pick up the bobbleheads.  Continually getting closer to completing the Twins bobblehead collection!

Want List (Part 1)

Over the next week or so, I plan on displaying pictures of my most desired bobbleheads.  They will range from Twins bobbleheads to a couple the Timberwolves have given away and even some minor league bobbleheads.

Here are the final bobbleheads I need to complete my Twins SGA bobblehead collection.  Both are from the 1965 Heroes set, given away at one game.  Frank Quilici & Harmon Killebrew.  In an earlier blog post I explained the difference between the 1965 Heroes set and the Katrina set.  This is most likely the hardest set of Twins bobbleheads to complete.

Below are pictures of the red base bobbleheads from the Twins that would complete that collection. I'm not as confident about my knowledge in the red base bobbleheads as I am in the green.  But I'm looking for Zoilo Versalles, the Mauer/Morneau double bobblehead - I believe this was given out to season ticket holders purchasing large group tickets or perhaps long-standing season ticket holders, and lastly - the Legends of the Dome set of Kirby Puckett & Kent Hrbek.

A bobble-foot you say?

A few days ago a really good buddy of mine posted a picture of a bobblehead he had.  The discussion that soon followed was about how cool the Hrbek/Gant bobblehead was.  I'll blog on that specific bobblehead at a later date, but this gave me an opportunity to show a very cool bobblehead that I had.  Another really good buddy of mine mentioned within the comments about the infamous Larry Craig bobble-foot the St. Paul Saints gave out a few years ago.  I knew I'd blog about the bobble-foot, and figured this was the perfect time.  

If you don't know who Larry Craig is and/or why his foot bobbles, you really need to start reading the paper or watching The Daily Show at the very least.  Here are a few articles about the bobble-foot.  

http://www.startribune.com/politics/statelocal/19160729.html

http://www.cnbc.com/id/24844034

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/crime/its-larry-craig-bobblefoot-day

I had been looking for this bobble-foot for quite a while.  I knew eventually I'd find it but I wasn't ever going to pay eBay prices for it.  Currently there is a seller wanting $375 for this bobble-foot.  I can see $100-$200 as it is a rare bobble-foot and it intrigues plenty of different collectors.  I had come across local Craigslist postings for the bobblehead but pretty much all of them wanted $100 or more for it. Again - not a bad price, but I didn't want to pay that much for it.  I came across a garage sale posting (again, on Craigslist) that simply had one line that said "St. Paul Saints memorabilia."  As with a lot of garage sale postings they don't allow the viewer to email them but sometimes do include a phone number.  I called and the gentleman I spoke to mentioned a different assortment of Saints bobbleheads.  That's all I needed to hear, so I made the quick 15 minute journey to the sale when I had time, I think it was the 2nd day (which I knew might screw me over).  I didn't see any bobbleheads right away, so I asked and he had them stored in the garage.  I saw the Craig bobble-foot right away.  Let's face it, most people who put on garage sales just want their crap to find a new home and if they can make a couple bucks while doing so, its a win to them.  The guy was asking $50 for the bobble-foot.  Not a bad price at all, but I like to negotiate (ask my wife).  I told him, I wasn't trying to low-ball him...wait for it, wait for it...I low-balled him.  I offered $20, figuring he'd laugh at my offer and stick to something close to $50, his response, "Make it $25 and you have a deal!" I quickly agreed to that price, packed up the bobble-foot and was on my way.  I was quite happy with that deal but wouldn't consider that one of my top 5 garage sale deals - something I'll post about in the near future.  For now, check out the pictures of this one-of-a-kind and eccentric bobble-foot!