National in Atlantic City 2016

[geoff]

Could not make it to the National 2016 but would love to see some pickups any forum member bought at the show. I would have thought there would have been a National thread but there was not.

[TNTtoys]

Geoff,

I was thinking the same thing -- this was probably the first year in which there was not a National thread here. I probably would have started one myself, but it would have been negative, so I didn't.

The show was very disappointing from a game used perspective... anything worthwhile seeing was either at an auction house's booth (i.e. not for sale) or grossly overpriced (the mom & pop card store's table with 2 or 3 game used items on display).

Several of the usual bat and jersey dealers set up shop there but didn't bring items of the local teams with them, which was mind blowing to say the least.

The venue was tremendous in size, but deceptive, as it was so spread out that far fewer tables were there than the place would have been able to hold.

I think my son and I covered the entire show from 11am to about 2:30pm (with breaks in the middle for a late morning snack and for lunch). This was the second year in a row where I did not buy anything.

No incentive for me to go next year...especially since it's back in Chicago, the place in which I didn't find anything last year...

Nick

[BirdsOnBat]

I think my son and I covered the entire show from 11am to about 2:30pm (with breaks in the middle for a late morning snack and for lunch). This was the second year in a row where I did not buy anything.


Replace son with wife and this is exactly how my visit went.

[sox83cubs84]

I didn't go myself, but a friend of mine who has set up at virtually every National provided a candid assessment, saying that it was one of the five worst Nationals he ever held a table/booth at.

Dave Miedema

[GoCrazyFolks76]

Not much at all with regards to game used stuff. Saw a fake Brett Hull jersey that the dealer claimed was game used, but only wanted $400 for it (and seemed willing to negotiate), saw a fake Pujols rookie jersey that the guy claimed came directly from a sports writer that follows the team.

The only productive part of the show was finding a game used bat for a buddy.

Other than that, the show was a complete bust.

[GameBats]

I enjoyed the National. I walked the show on Thursday with my sons. I wish we could have spent one more day. It was a pleasure speaking with dealers and collectors I see every few years.

I've been to Nationals in NJ, Baltimore and Chicago. I can't say I prefer one venue over another.

In terms of the selection of items...I see the same items at each venue.
I'm fairly sure the selection will continue to remain the same, only the scenery will change

[slab0meat]

I didn't even know it was happening, as I'd like to try going for once.

Guess "maybe next year" rings true yet again.

[yankees506]

Nice cards at the National but in terms of game used, everything was ridiculously overpriced. I wanted to buy a cano gamer at the national but was quoted something ridiculous. About two weeks later i see the same dealer at a local card show and buy the same bat for 1/3 of his original price at the national. I Don't understand why people would do that just to sit on stuff. The overall experience at the national however, was definitely worth checking out for collectors.

[BirdsOnBat]

The overall experience at the national however, was definitely worth checking out for collectors.

Agreed. I still love the fact that after 13 years or something, it came back to AC. Even if I did not see anything to purchase that intrigued me. It was still a good excuse to go out to dinner and gamble.

[sox83cubs84]

Nice cards at the National but in terms of game used, everything was ridiculously overpriced. I wanted to buy a cano gamer at the national but was quoted something ridiculous. About two weeks later i see the same dealer at a local card show and buy the same bat for 1/3 of his original price at the national. I Don't understand why people would do that just to sit on stuff. The overall experience at the national however, was definitely worth checking out for collectors.

Sounds like a dealer with the "New York Crowd" mentality.

I saw this back before the first Atlantic City National in 1987, when I ran across
a couple of card dealers from Iowa, a husband/wife team, busily repricing cards behind their table during the slow moments of a Sunday afternoon at a regional show. Asking about it, the wife eagerly told me that all their card prices were being doubled for the National, justifying this move by declaring, "This is the New York crowd. They'll pay anything."

As it happened, the '87 AC National was panned largely, much of which had to do with sluggish dealer sales, and the Iowa couple was among the loudest complainers about said sluggish sales. I guess the New York crowd wouldn't pay "anything".

Dave Miedema