In May 2012 I set out on a mission.
I bought eight 1st edition base set holos from E4’s very own KingPokemon. I had heard that a 1st edition Charizord was $500. To me this was a crazy amount for one card at the time. I felt I had already missed the boat and the opportunity to buy the Charizord that I had wanted for a very long time had slipped away. Having bought card from ebay back in the '00s, it was the first place I looked to price check. I saw these mysterious “PSA graded” cards that struck me as interesting. Back then there were like genuinely a dozen graded card sellers on ebay. These condition-evaluated cards really drew me in and I knew I wanted to complete a 1st edition holo set. I worked out a deal with Gary for Mewtwo [8.5], Clefairy [8], Nidoking [8], Raichu [9], Zapdos [8], Poliwrath [8.5], Venusaur [8], Chansey [8]. I believe it cost me around $600 - I remember it being about the cost of a PSA 9 Charizord at the time but I felt like I was ahead having 7 instead of 1. I remember having a conversation with my dad about the grades to buy and I opted for this mixed set because my disposable income was limited and the price on these felt right. So I started a PSA 8+ holo set and picked up a few PSA 9 base non-holos. In July 2012, I snagged a PSA 9 1st edition Gyarados for $90 and something clicked inside me and I knew a PSA 9 set was achievable and should be the goal.
I there was a lull in my purchases at that point. I joined E4 - what was then called UPCCC. In 2013 I bought a 1st ed Jungle Vaporeon [9] and Fossil Dragonite [9] for $30 each as a gift my parents could give me for xmas. This would be what I could only describe as a gateway drug down the WOTC rabbit hole. There was a long period of time where I didn’t buy graded cards. I was in my undergraduate degree, wasting money on Black&White packs. I never forgot the taste of that forbidden fruit though, as visible from this nooby post in 2015. Finally in 2017, I had a career-esque job and a address to send to in the USA - it was time to get serious. At this point I knew I wanted Base-Jungle-Fossil holos in PSA 9. These were the golden years of PWCC auctions - in July 2017 (5 years later) I finally bought my Charizord for 2.9k on PWCC. A month later I purchase a 1st ed Dark Hypno [9] for $21.17 - falling even deeper into WOTC hell. I started buying like crazy. In 2017, I’d finish 1st ed Base set - you can see my failed attempt at a buy thread here - bookending the last card intentionally as $25 grass energy from Gary. 2017 would also be my first graded Japanese card but that’s a different story entirely.
In 2018, I was still draining my account on a children’s card game. I had finished Jungle and Fossil with $41 Snorlax and a $53 Gengar. But naturally, I had already started Neo holos (jumping over the smelly gym sets). I had liked the idea of casting a big net because it allows you to be patient and hunt for low prices on many things at once. I did go back and start buying gym sets and bought a $25 Expedition Clefable in 2018. Of course I realized I had an addiction at this point. My goal had become what PSA calls the “Pokemon Wizards Holofoil Run (1999-2003)”. In 2019, I was trying to knock out the big boys including many of the shinings and crystals. For instance, Crystal Lugia cost me $390 in Oct 2019 and Shining Mewtwo was $388 in November.
In 2020 COVID hit and it ruined a lot of the fun. Actually, careful observers saw this trend in 2019 but 2020 put it on steroids. You can see where I was back in Jan 2020. I heavily prioritized e-series and started actually buying Base set 2 and Legendary Collection holos like a buffoon. Notably, I paid $4.6k (+$700cad import fee) for a Crystal Charizord and $2.9k for the T17. The last 1st ed holo was secured in Oct 2020 - Dark Espeon for $934. In 2021, there were only a handful of holos left for me to buy. The last three being Expedition Blastoise and Aquapolis Tyranitar and Houndoom. Local E4 hero mthursty hooked me up with Blastoise about a month or two ago. The last two had copies sitting on ebay forever at the $1000 range which is just too much. I finally got the Ttar at $525 on March 11th. After waiting forever, I was send a FB link from other local E4 hero parker to a Hdoom within Canada for $530. I sent over the money and after 14 days it finally arrived on April 25th 2022.
Today I have finally finished my nearly 10-year goal. You can view the set here www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/tcg/mega-sets/pokemon-wizards-holofoil-run-1999-2003/alltimeset/427921I happily sit under the giants of this hobby GemMintPokemon and TCAGaming on that ranking with a set rating of 8.954 apparently -despite it being all PSA 9 ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I guess I just wanted to share this milestone. You can use it as inspiration or something something dreams come true. For those curious, it ultimately cost $44.7k to complete. I can now die happy or retire from the hobby. …just don’t tell anyone that the last 20 graded cards I bought were PSA9 1st edition wotc NONHOLOS…
Congrats PFM, you are one of the people that I always silently root for in the hobby. Your posts always show thoughtfulness and a genuine passion for pokemon. I hope you are here for a long time.
@pkmnflyingmaster Dude reading your story I can relate in so many ways. I started by being cheap going for binder copies in light played to near mint condition. And only bought Shining T-Tar, Dark Porygon2, Dark Crobat and Dark Typhlosion in PSA 9. Once I hit e Series I realized that those are by far the hardest to come by Wotc cards. Skyridge ungraded holos we’re going for graded prices. Next thing you know it I find Gottaketchemall on eBay. I bought about 22 Skyridge PSA 9s off him. I got a better job and slowly started to finish Skyridge in PSA 9. (Still missing the Zard, Crystal Crobat and Golem). Then I met Can’tevencardboard on here and grabbed about 25 of the Aquapolis holos and crystals completely finishing this set. I then decided I’d stop at just my Expedition favorites and complete Neo destiny 1st edition in PSA 9 with shinings. Which I finished besides the energy which I put off. Around this time I sold all my binder cards to help fund my graded collection. PSA backlog had me selling PSA 8/9 cards I wanted to grade but no longer had interest in waiting. One of the main ones I regret selling is my Expedition Blastoise because I still haven’t replaced it.
Around this time I realized I have a slight collecting addiction haha. All my bills are always paid but I spend most of my extra money on cards. Even with price drops they sure do hurt the wallet. I just finished all my favorites from Neo Genesis, just finishing up Neo Discovery and Revelation favorites. I tell myself I’m going to slow down or stop at that point. But I feel the need to just go ahead and grab my favorites from all the Wotc sets. I also went ahead and finished all the base set 2 holos in PSA 8/9 almost all with swirls. They were so cheap I couldn’t help myself. Maybe I’ll eventually finish all the Wotc holos in PSA 8/9 most being 9s. But maybe I’ll try to call it a wrap or slow down after these neo or gym favorites. Part of my original logic was the pop reports of e series and neo destiny being so low. plus the art is by far worlds better then early Wotc sets.
Long story short it’s a hell of a journey and I’m right up there with you guys in the PSA set registry. I’ll never tie or pass some or you guys tho. Some of you wild guys like Gem Mint Pokemon or TCA gaming have all PSA 10 sets. I’ve started to settle for 8s here and there depending on price. It’s wild the ratios. Sometimes a PSA 8 is 1/3rd the 9 price. Sometimes it’s half. Sometimes it’s close to 9 price. So it’s down to weighing options because I’m not made of money.
I definitely enjoyed your story and congratulations! I love hearing other people going thru my same struggles and successes. And the fluctuating prices sure make things difficult. eBay fees. Pwcc Boomer tax etc. It’s the Wild wild west out here. Sometimes I find myself getting mad for overpaying $50 or small random amounts compared to last sold auction etc. Some sellers still want double to triple last sold price. Sometimes it becomes a headache but it’s still something I can’t help but love doing!
Huge congrats! It’s always amazing to see someone finish their big goal that they set out to achieve so many years ago (even if the real goal isn’t 100% clear from the start). It shows a lot about your compassion and dedication, and at least in my opinion that’s what makes for a great collector.
Congratulations! That was an audacious goal - one that most wouldn’t dare take on, let alone achieve. That must feel great and I tip my cap to you sir.
Good memory and/or documentation too. Your post contained 19 references to prices.
An incredible achievement and a testament to perseverance, focus, and dedication! What a journey, and I’m excited to see the next stage in your collecting!
Congrats on accomplishing such an amazing goal in just under the 10-year mark! They say it takes 10 years to master something but clearly you’re ahead of the curve
Big congrats on completing such an amazing long-term goal, Scott! It probably must have felt amazing receiving that final Houndoom to 100% complete the collection goal you’ve been working on for almost 10 years. A quote from an anime I coincidentally finished yesterday is also appropriate for this 10-year journey: “You should enjoy the little detours to the fullest. Because that’s where you’ll find things more important than what you want.” Aka, this final Houndoom to finish the long-term goal may be amazing, but the 10-year journey with all the different aspects and memories as a whole is what makes finishing this collection goal that much better. Congrats!
Congrats!