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A couple of months ago, I finished up all of the Topps sets of my childhood (1974-83). With that, I figured I'd take a crack at the non-Topps sets of my childhood, beginning with 1981 Donruss.

I hold no real attachment to '81 Donruss. It was the least desirable set of the three available when I was buying Topps, Donruss and Fleer at the corner market that year. But since then I've come to enjoy it for the exact things that I disliked at the time, the thin card stock, the static photos, the errors, the miscut cards.

It's a misfit set and I like those kinds of sets now.

But still, there's a "meh, why am I collecting this thing now?" kind of feeling. My true set-completion devotion is to the 1975 Topps mini set and 1972 Topps. That's where the excitement is. 1981 Donruss is just here to help me finish off something a little easier.

So, to get myself in the set-collecting mood with ol' thin-skinned Donruss, I requested a few dupes from the set from Bo at Baseball Card Comes To Life! Seeing cards issued during my childhood that I have never seen before will always spark me into action.

Here are the cards he sent (along with redhead Howell up there). Get ready for some bats on shoulders, some Blue Jays and a whole lot of mustache:


That was kind of fun. And it was enough to get me to compile a want list.

To put together that list, for the first time in my life, I assembled my '81 Donruss not in order by team, but by number. I discovered a couple of interesting things doing that (along with noticing that not all '81 Donruss cards are the same size). But I'll save those observations for when I have a lot more of the set.

Now, the moment you've been waiting for, my 1981 Donruss wants:

#1, #2, #3, #4, #7, #8, #9, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #24, #25, #26, #27, #28, #29, #34, #35, #36, #37, #38, #39, #42, #44, #45, #46, #47, #48, #52, #54, #55, #66, #67, #71, #75, #76, #78, #81, #84, #87, #91, #93, #94, #96, #97, #99, #101, #104, #105, #107, #108, #112, #114, #116, #117, #120, #125, #128, #131, #141, #153, #154, #157, #162, #163, #164, #171, #173, #181, #182, #183, #185, #187, #190, #191, #192, #195, #199, #201, #202, #205, #207, #211, #216, #217, #220, #222, #226, #231, #232, #236, #241, #244, #246, #247, #248, #249, #250, #251, #252, #257, #258, #259, #260, #261, #262, #267, #269, #271, #274, #276, #277, #278, #279, #280, #281, #282, #283, #284, #287, #288, #289, #290, #291, #292, #293, #295, #296, #300, #301, #302, #303, #304, #305, #306, #307, #309, #310, #311, #312, #313, #314, #317, #318, #319, #320, #322, #323, #324, #325, #326, #327, #329, #330, #331, #332, #333, #339, #341, #342, #343, #344, #345, #346, #347, #348, #349, #350, #351, #352, #353, #354, #355, #356, #358, #359, #360, #366, #371, #372, #373, #374, #381, #382, #402, #403, #406, #419, #420, #423, #424, #440, #444, #445, #455, #459, #460, #465, #466, #470, #471, #472, #475, #480, #486, #487, #503, #507, #508, #514, #526, #529, #530, #531, #533, #534, #544, #547, #550, #553, #557, #568, #571, #590, #591, #600, checklist #2, checklist #3

As you can see, I had a frustrating time attempting to complete three different sets in 1981.

I will be moving this want list to my want list page. But I don't expect anyone to run right out and ship a package of '81 Donruss to me, especially with my card-sending embargo still in effect (hopefully just one more week or two). I don't have an urgent need to cross 1981 Donruss off the list quickly.

In fact, I plan to enjoy every single blurry photo, ivy wall background and red-ribbon back as they come to me.

You don't truly appreciate misfits until you really get to know them.

Comments

Tony L. said…
If you like blurry photos, you must love 1982 Fleer!
Jason Presley said…
It's too bad all the continuity has been lost for Donruss amid all the various buyouts of the brand and assets. I'm curious if the original negatives all really looks that bad, or if most of the terrible coloring from the 1981 set was due to poor printing.
1981. The year I started collecting. We were paying 30 cents plus 2 cents tax for Topps and Fleer...when we could find it. My friend and I went to a neighboring town and found 1981 Donruss cards 8 packs for a $1. I know we each ended up $10 worth and we could not believe that we were pulling YOGI BERRA cards. Kids...
JediJeff said…
One thing I really love about 81 Fleer - most of the American League photos were taken at Comiskey Park. Buskey, Mercer, Grubb and Howell all have Sox Park behind them.