Japanese Sumo Wrestling Cards and Menko: Bruce Lee

Showing posts with label Bruce Lee. Show all posts

Thursday, July 1, 2021

2021 Mid-Year Report Card

Well, with the year half over I thought I would do a quick review of where I stand on my 2021 Collecting Goals. Not going to lie, this has been a tough year with work and COVID-19. Oddly, my time to even blog has been drastically reduced due to inefficiencies of teleworking and having to spend more time "at work" to make up for the time lost trying to coordinate everything virtually.

I know there are a fair amount of collectors that don't like to do collecting goals...However, I'm one that likes to lay out the year to help me focus and to generally guide my collecting habits. I seldom vary from my larger collection so I don't have a ton or random collections that are half-started...just expanding my normal collections and then maybe tackle one or two more. Anyway, let's see how I am doing.

Goal #1: Blog 60 posts this year! - (26 as of this post) - Current Grade - "C"

This goal has been a little rough these past few months, but I feel like I should be able to catch up and get in a rhythm as things have quieted down at work some. I think I stand a good chance of getting to 60 and maybe a few more as I have a stack of blogging material waiting....really it is stuff to catalogue for my book and some eye candy for the blog.

Goal #2: Publish the 5th Edition of the Sumo Menko and Card Checklist. - Current Grade - "C"

I am making some good progress on the 5th Edition and really do think I can get it finally published and out the door. Work should slow down for me later this year for a little bit and if I can get 2-3 hours a week devoted to this goal I should easily crush this. We'll see how the next few months goes though.

Goal #3: Get to the halfway point with my 1973 Calbee set - Current Grade - "D"

Ugh, I have not focused on the Calbee cards too much this year so far. Prices for the high-numbers are expensive and I have focused my efforts on the other goals thus far. I think I can pick up 3-4 more and really get back on track to 50% completion by the end of the year. It all takes money and that would solve a lot of my problems here. Ha!

Goal #4: Relabel my Binders/Sets and Pass Along Excess "Stuff" - Current Grade - "C"

I'm getting there are relabeling binders and tidying up...it seems like it is a never ending process. I seem to clean up two piles and another one appears. I am getting a small stack of cards and menko ready for eBay too which will be great to put a bit of extra money in my pocket!

Goal #5: Expand my 1980s/1990s Japanese Telephone Card Collection - Current Grade - "B"

This goal is part of my alt-collection and something fun as I am browsing for sumo auctions. I have picked up a decent amount of telephone cards so far and am waiting for them arrive from Japan shortly.

Goal #6: Do Something with my Yukata Card/Bolt Collection - Current Grade - "F"

Still have no idea what I am going to do with these......but they are cool!

Goal #7: Continue Giving my Non-Sumo Collections Some Love - Currrent Grade - "C"

Amada Nintendo (NES)/Famicon Mini Cards

No real progress here.....

1983 Myojo Noodle Mechanical (Meca) Cards

I have picked up a crap ton of these cards and lost count how many new ones I now have.

2014-2020 Airport Trading Cards

Still haven't found one of the "Dirty Five" yet. Although I missed out on one recently as if flew under the radar before I saw it.

1974 Japanese Yamakatsu Bruce Lee "The Way of the Dragon"

No joy here....

Radio Shack Zip Zap Cards

I have managed to get a few more of these....not too shabby.

Brandon Laird and Yuta Tabuse Cards

Not really making any progress here as new cards rarely pop up that I need.

Goal #8: Get out at least 1 Care Package a month - Current Grade - "F"

Ummm, I suck...sorry everyone!

Goal #9: Get to The National! - Current Grade - "A+"

VIP tickets purchased, plane tickets in hand, and hotel booked. Here we go!

Goal #10: Maintain/Improve Google/Yahoo/Bing Search Engine results for Sumo Card(s) & Menko

- Current Grade - "A+"

Sumo Card: Bing #1, Google #2, Yahoo #1

Sumo Cards: Bing #1, Google #2, Yahoo #1

Sumo Menko: #1, Google #1, Yahoo #1

Sumo Wrestling Card: Bing #3, Google #3, Yahoo #3

Sumo Wrestling Cards: Bing #2, Google #2, Yahoo #2

I think I am doing well on this one and hopefully my hiatus these past few months doesn't hurt my metrics.

Thanks for being loyal readers and I hope everyone had a safe 2021 so far and I hope your collection keeps growing.

Friday, January 1, 2021

2021 Hobby Goals

Happy New Year! As I have mentioned several times in the past, I love reading about how collectors did with their past year's collecting goals and their goals for the upcoming New Year. I like to do them to help me focus my purchases and hobby time to help give me focus. 2020 was good hobby year for me, but just like everyone else I had to overcome all the challenges living under a pandemic. I have a feeling most of 2021 is going to look like 2020 and am hopeful we can get back to normalcy by the end of the summer. Thanks to all my readers and here are my 10 collecting goals this year:

Goal #1: Blog 60 posts this year!

I barely hit my blogging goal last year with posting on average once a week, but this year I want to challenge myself to get 60 posts. Blogging is more therapy than anything and I hope I can provide a brief bit of information, knowledge, and entertainment as well to the larger collecting community. I won't be short of things to blog about and am hoping the rest of my life can cooperate.

Goal #2: Publish the 5th Edition of the Sumo Menko and Card Checklist.

This is it! This is the year to get the next edition of my book self-published. The 4th Edition was completed way back in 2017 and there have been numerous updates and additions ready to be captured in the 5th Edition. To help me get motivated, I created a draft of the cover already....let's hope this is the year.

Goal #3: Get to the halfway point with my 1973 Calbee set

The 1973 set is a monster in terms of cost to complete. With cards ranging anywhere from $50-$200 or higher, this 36-card set is a monster to put together. It takes time and definitely resources to whittle away to completion. Crazy enough, this is the most expensive sumo set in existence....it even eclipses the sets made in the 1890s....yes 1890s not 1980s...as well as the ultra-rare pre-war sets. Because of supply and demand, prices have been elevated for a while now, but I am feeling lucky this year to get to the 50% completion mark.

Goal #4: Relabel my Binders/Sets and Pass Along Excess "Stuff"

The majority of my Japanese card collection is in binders, but needs a bit of TLC to properly relabel each of my sets and relabel my binders. Since my collection has grown from when I first started, I am continually organizing the sets within the binders but wanted to wait until it had settled out a bit before I went back in there and put more permanent labels on everything. I also need to get into my misc. cards and make sure everything is tidied up and pass along some of my excess in care packages. Not to mention I need to get my desk stacks incorporated into my collection. This is the year I'd like to get that done. Speaking of organizing, look at this binder carousel! I have my binders on shelves, but this carousel is no joke.

Goal #5: Expand my 1980s/1990s Japanese Telephone Card Collection

I have been totally enamored recently with holographic cards. Doing some browsing on Yahoo Japan Auctions, there are some legitimate and awesome looking Japanese holographic telephone cards. I plan on picking up some here and there to complement my sumo wrestling telephone card collection. Speaking of which, my sumo wrestling telephone card collection was sadly put on the backburner for the past several years, but this is the year I am going to start expanding it. I used the word "expand" since I don't know which direction I want to take both the hologram and sumo telephone cards yet, but defining them and growing them will be this year's goal. The real question is, how do I take good quality photos of holographic cards since scanning does not do them any justice?

Goal #6: Do Something with my Yukata Card/Bolt Collection

I spent a good amount of energy this past year collecting Japanese indigo yukata bolts with their attached cards....so much in fact that there are very few left out there that are coming up for auction. It's weird...you used to be able to find them on every street corner, now they are almost non-existent. Anyway, I need to take the 40 or so I have to the next level. I'll probably try and establish some sort of catalogue system for them and publish them on my blog.

Goal #7: Continue Giving my Non-Sumo Collections Some Love

I'm collecting specific non-sumo sets and want to continue working towards completion of them. Each one is in a different stage of completion so I have specific goals this year of inching ever closer to 100%.

Amada Nintendo (NES)/Famicon Mini Cards

This 360-card set was issued in 6 different series and is so much fun to chase down. These cards depict game art as well as actually screen shots from different NES games that were popular in the mid-1980s. Right now I have only 170 of the cards leaving me a little over 47% complete. My goal is to see if I can bump the total up by 10% to around 57% which means I need to add about 35 cards to my collection this year.

1983 Myojo Noodle Mechanical (Meca) Cards

Back in 1983, Myojo issued 9 different series of cards depicting different types of mechanical machines: Series 1 - World Steam Locomotives, Series 2 - World Racing Cars, Series 3 - World Classic Cars, Series 4 - World Ships, Series 5 - World Jets, Series 6 - World Motorcycles, Series 7 - World Space Machines/Meca, Series 8 - World Dream Cars, Series 9 - Star Wars Machines/Meca. Each of these series has 30 cards for a total of 270 cards. I only have 55 of the cards at the moment (20%), but am looking to boost that total up to 33%, or another 35 cards. I have confidence that I can do that this year, no doubt!

2014-2020 Airport Trading Cards

I first heard about this set while I was flying through Chicago back in 2015. I was instantly hooked and have made it my goal to try and collect them all. No one knows how many there actually are in the master set. I have it pegged at 156 cards, but I am likely a few short. Back in October I talked about the "Dirty 5"....these are the 5 toughest cards to get out of the set and my goal this year is to get at least 1 of the Dirty 5!

1974 Japanese Yamakatsu Bruce Lee "The Way of the Dragon"

In 1974, Japan was going crazy over Bruce Lee and to capitalize on his popularity and promote his movies, Yamakatsu issued a three-series set covering 144 cards (48 per series). Series 1 was focused on the movie "Enter the Dragon", Series 2 on "The Way of the Dragon" and Series 3 on "The Green Hornet". Each Series gets progressively harder to complete and I was finally able to finish Series 1 back in September. Right now I am down to needing only 4 more card for Series 2. My goal for 2021 is to finish Series 2 "The Way of the Dragon" and then turn my focus to Series 3 "The Green Hornet" and add 5 more cards there. Even something more cool about Series 2 is that it also captures the very first trading cards of Chuck Norris on them!

Radio Shack Zip Zap Cards

Some of the very first miniaturized radio control cars that came to market were the Zip Zap cars marketed by Radio Shack. These were a huge hit and millions were sold. All sorts of accessories, upgrades, body kits, and motors were available to customize each of the cars. Included along with the cars and some of the accessories were trading cards. Right now, I have been able to track down 82 cards in the master set, but I think there are more than that out there....I have 51 of the 82 (62%) cards, but would like to get that number close to 70% by the end of the year. I need to go in and update the checklist too and try to get it reflected on the Trading Card Database.

Brandon Laird and Yuta Tabuse Cards

My three PC guys are Nolan Ryan, Brandon Laird, and Yuta Tabuse and my only goal this year is to continue adding to each of the PCs. I don't have a specific number goal, but at least for Brandon Laird my goal is to start building up his Japanese-issued cards.

Goal #8: Get out at least 1 Care Package a month

I love sending random care packages....I actually enjoy shopping for things to put in them because of the challenge of trying to help fellow collectors out. I am hoping I can get out at least 12 care packages this year!

Goal #9: Get to The National!

Assuming it is still on this year, my goal is to get out to The National. Two scenarios: 1) I can hop on a redeye from LAX, land in the morning in Chicago and then hit up the show all day and fly home late that evening, or 2) spend a couple of nights in a hotel and then I can spend a few days at the show. It all depends on my work schedule and how much time I can take off.

Goal #10: Maintain/Improve Google/Yahoo/Bing Search Engine results for Sumo Card(s) & Menko

As a repeat from the past four years, my goal has been for this blog to be the #1-at-the-very-top-of-your-browser result when you go search up Sumo Card(s) and Menko. In 2019, I was the #1 on Yahoo, almost the #1 on Bing, and the #1 to #6 on Google. Now I am in the top 3 all around! Here is where I currently stand, let's hope I can maintain that this year!

Sumo Card: Bing #1, Google #2, Yahoo #1

Sumo Cards: Bing #1, Google #2, Yahoo #1

Sumo Menko: #1, Google #1, Yahoo #1

Sumo Wrestling Card: Bing #3, Google #3, Yahoo #3

Sumo Wrestling Cards: Bing #2, Google #2, Yahoo #2

I hope everyone has great luck, fortune, and health in 2021! Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!

Sunday, December 13, 2020

You don't collect Chuck Norris...he collects you! 1974 Japanese Yamakatsu "The Way of the Dragon" Cards

When Chuck Norris goes to sleep, he checks his closet for Bruce Lee (I've used this one before, but it never gets old). Here is a short recap of one of my previous posts on this Yamakatsu set...believe it or not, these two legends met on the screen in 1972 in the movie The Way of the Dragon eventually leading to (spoiler alert) Chuck Norris', aka Colt, death. Probably the one and only time a Chuck Norris fact that doesn't play out in his favor. During the insane Bruce Lee hype that swept through Japan in the early 1970s, Yamakatsu captured these two martial artists on a set of mini trading cards leading to rookie cards of the now famous Chuck Norris. The Way of the Dragon set has 48 cards (Card #s 49-96) with some repeating images, but most of them capturing Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee in different stages of their final duel. Card #s 1-48 are from the Enter The Dragon set, and card #s 97-144 are from The Green Hornet set.

At the beginning of the year, I was down to only needing 9 more cards from this The Way of the Dragon set...today I added 4 more, and along with one other card I picked up earlier this year, I need only 4 more cards now to complete this set. A little over a year ago, I completed the Enter The Dragon set (Card #s 1-48), and now have been focused on this The Way of the Dragon set. It will be one of my collecting goals for 2021 to finish.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tuesday, January 7, 2020

2020 Collecting Goals

A lot of bloggers out there seem to hate writing their New Year Collecting Goals. It is sometimes viewed as an obligation or mandatory....something they have to do. Not me. I love setting hobby goals and this post isn't as much for my readers as it is for me...although I definitely enjoy the loyal readers who are sharing in this adventure with me. Let's hope 2020 was as fruitful and enjoyable collecting sumo wrestling menko and cards as was last year. Here are my 10 collecting goals this year:

Goal #1: Blog at least once a week - 52 posts this year!
I had a lot of stuff to blog about last year, but not enough time and bandwidth to do it all. This year, I am going to set a goal of publishing a blog post at least once a week which should be easy to achieve. Hopefully I'll be able to add a few extra blogs in the middle of the week here and there to knock this one out of the park. Thanks to my loyal readers for making this blog fun!

Goal #2: Publish the 5th Edition of the Sumo Menko and Card Checklist.

Gah, I really need to get this book out the door. There are a ton of new checklists that I have catalogued or that are in the queue. Lots of new information and several corrections. Not to mention that this I have revamped some of the sections to make it even more comprehensive and historically accurate. This is the year to do this!

Goal #3: Add 5 more Sumo World magazines from 1973-1999 to my collection.

This will be a tough one for sure as these Sumo World magazines are harder and harder to find on the secondary market. Now that I am down to basically filling in holes with my collection, finding affordable copies will be hard. Luck will have to be a factor here. For those that haven't read any Sumo World magazines, they were once the only English-language source of sumo wrestling information. People from all over the English-speaking world had subscriptions and it was the go-to guide for sumo enthusiasts. With the advent of the internet, the publication quickly became outdated, but the historical value captured inside these is second to none. A true treasure trove of information that is contained nowhere else.

Goal #4: Attend three card shows this year.

It is no secret that card shows are a dying event across the U.S. Even with a rich sports market out here in California, we can't muster up much in the way of some local shows. But I still love going and even more excited for the nostalgic euphoria that I get from the thrill of the hunt and the browsing. My goal is to make three shows this year...and hopefully one or two with Fuji with a celebratory Del Taco feast afterwards.

Goal #5: Add three more 1973 Calbee cards to my set.
If I can snag three reasonably priced cards for this set this year, it will definitely be a miracle. Acheivable, but still difficult. I need to save my dollars and yen for the really expensive cards later on....if they are around. If I can knock out 10% of the set every year, I should be done by the time 2026 rolls around. Here, just take my money now, it is not going to be cheap!

Goal #6: Keep rounding out my Japanese yukata fabric bolt & card collection.
Most of you are like, WTH? Yeah, this is one of the quirks in my collection. In the 1960s and early 1970s, Japanese cloth makers would add photo cards to bolts of indigo yukata material to help entice the buyer into buying the material to take home to make their own yukata. Say what? Yeah, hard to explain, but here are a few pictures to help give you a visual. The problem with these is not so much the price, but they are heavy and expensive to import to the U.S. Not sure what I am going to do with them all, but I'll figure it out at some point. I am assuming it will just come to me on why I have them at some point. Weird, huh?

Goal #7: Publish at least 6 BBM Card Set reviews.
I used to do a better job at this, but with limited time this one has fallen to the wayside. However, I'd like to continue with blog reviews (ideally YouTube box break reviews). I should be able to cover all the sumo wrestling releases as well as the B.League basketball sets leaving me with doing a few of the non-sport and other "fun" releases that BBM does every year. Wish me luck!

Goal #8: Add 20 more cards to my Non-Sport Collection
I am very particular with my non-sumo wrestling sets and only have a few sets that I am actively collecting: 1980s Japanese Myojo Noodle Cards, 2002-2005 Radio Shack Zip Zap Cards, 1980s Famikon (NES) Amada Cards, Airport Trading Cards, & 1970s Yamakatsu Bruce Lee Cards. Since I am whittling my sets down to singles now, large lots are hard to come by so achieving 20 cards in this category will be quite challenging.

Goal #9: Send out 10 care packages.

For those that know me, I love to give random stuff. Much like Kenny's Zaps, it feels good to give. Enough said....

Goal #10: Maintain/Improve Google/Yahoo/Bing Search Engine results for Sumo Card(s) & Menko

For a third year in a row, I want to be the #1-at-the-very-top-of-your-browser result when you go search up Sumo Card(s) and Menko. Last year I was the #1 on Yahoo, almost the #1 on Bing, and the #1-#6 on Google. This is a fun one to chase and trying to beat the search engines algorithms is always a challenge. Plus, I want to be at the top of the list so I am easy to find for all you future readers out there.

Well, there you have it again. Thanks for stopping by and sticking with this post to the end and thanks for sticking with this blog all these years. Happy New Year and best of luck collecting!