Trade Time: Bring on the Beat-up Bowman

I completed some great trades recently for some vintage Bowman cards. I'm trying to put together 1950s Bowman Tigers team sets, and I ran into two generous traders posting some key cards for these sets.

This one came from It's Like Having My Own Card. I sent him a bunch of D-Backs, and he sent over this fantastic card. And I love it. The wood-paneled background is completely absurd. Kell is playing catch in his basement den. I love the thick black outlines around Kell, too. This is a new favorite '51 Bowman card I own. Great to pick up this hall-of-famer, which would have been a really tough find around where I live. Thanks so much, Dan. I'm really happy about getting this card.

Charlie Keller came from Nick over at the fantastically well-written new blog Dime Boxes -- The Low-End Baseball Card Collector's Journey. He sent some other great cards along with this one, and I had them scanned and ready to go, but I just couldn't break up the purity of this vintage post with any modern cards.

Sure, Keller is known for being a Yankee, but I won't hold that against him. This card is awesome, with a classic split of green grass and blue skies. Keller's puckering up at the very thought of the baseball nostalgia he's stepped into.

Thanks, Nick, and thanks again, Dan. Both of these were great trades and knocked some difficult needs off my want lists.