eBay Watch: August 2010

Well I’m really excited about the selection again this month. July was an awesome month for 80s decks, but I think that August was just as good. A little more varied perhaps, but still as good, and I hope you agree. I decided that I was going to go with quality and not quantity this month. I had probably another 20 items in the maybe pile, but I decided that I was just going to go with decks that I felt strongly about and not worry about how much they sold for. Not that there’s not some big hitters this month, because there is. There are lots of decks that break the $1000 barrier, and to me that’s the real dividing line. Overall I think things are looking up after a few down months there at the beginning of the summer. People were complaining back then that the pickings were getting pretty slim on eBay, but July and August have seen bunches of very desirable decks hitting the market. Some have gone high, and some have been pretty reasonable, but nobody can complain that there hasn’t been a great variety.

This months BayWatch is brought to you by the album File Under Black by the New Jersey hardcore band None More Black. I know, it’s been out since 2003, and in truth I’ve had it for years, but I’ve never really gotten around to listening to it much before. Now I can’t stop playing it. None More Black are from New Jersey, and grew from the ashes of the awesome hardcore band Kid Dynamite. Lead singer and guitarist Jason Shevchuk left that band to finish school, but soon started playing again with his roommate, and soon they had a band. They play a more melodic brand of hardcore than Kid Dynamite, with longer songs and actual melodies, but they still rock just as hard. The songs have more hooks than a Pirates gathering, and although I have no clue what they are singing about, I love them all the same. The name is taken from Spinal Tap, and lots of their song titles are taken from Seinfeld, so you know they don’t take themselves too seriously. Do yourself a favor and check them out, because I think you will like them.

60s, 70s, early 80s.

First up this month is this Santa Cruz from the early 80s. I know it’s in the 70s section, but the first Salba was introduced in 1979, and this is really just a blue version of that, without the Salba name. So here it is. This one has a strange wear pattern around the back truck area even though it’s never been mounted etc. It almost looks like somebody has been doing some carpet skating on this! I could do a mean shove-it on the carpet. It sold for $650.

Here’s a glorious Hobie “Competition” fiberglass deck, complete with ACS 500s and Hobie wheels. The board has been ridden a couple of times, but is basically as new looking as the day it left Sears! The colors are still super bright, and the trucks are clean and unmarked. It sold for $168.

Now here’s one you don’t see every day! It’s a 1978 Kryptonics Foam Core deck. It’s totally mint, coming from a worker who worked at the factory in Boulder Colorado (at Boulder Boards) where they made these decks. It’s one of the first decks to use this manufacturing technique, and it measures 8×30, so it’s not unlike a modern popsicle. Of course, at $1,270 you wouldn’t want to skate on this.

And here’s a similar Kryptonics deck, but this one is from a couple of years later, so it’s not as rare. Notice that the deck is significantly wider. It comes complete with ACS Lite II trucks (with some grind marks!) and super bright red Kryptonics wheels. I bet this complete rode like a dream, and it probably cost a pretty penny when it was first put together. I have to mention the very early lapper on there: it’s basically just a long piece of metal that screws in under the back truck bolt, and it helps with hang-ups on the coping. It sold for $559 with 11 bids.

Here’s a G&S Doug “Pineapple” Saladino “Pine Design” deck from 1978. It’s certainly been setup and ridden, so it has some scratches and dings, but is basically in very good condition. The griptape and sticker up top looks almost minty clean, and while the bottom graphic is a little faded, it doesn’t hurt it too much. It sold for $810 on a massive 43 bids, so this is clearly a deck that a lot of folks are after. So if you have one, take note.

So for every 70s classic that I show I feel that I have to show a 70s toy store deck too. So here you are. It’s a 70s Aluminum complete by the Pipeline Skateboard Co out of San Diego. The wheels are Pipeline Pacers, and I have to assume that the trucks are Pipeline too. There are 2 strips of griptape up top, which look nice and sporty on the bright green deck. Man, the kid that bought this snazzy complete probably thought he was the dog’s bollocks when he rolled down the street on this. Until he sliced his ankle on the aluminum edge that is… It sold for $81.

OK, so let’s finish this section up with another classic. Here is the Dogtown Jim Muir Triplane, and even though the photo shows it as being complete with Trackers and blue conicals, they are not included in the auction, which I find slightly misleading. You do get the Z-Flex rails and the Powell nosebone though, so at least your deck won’t have holes in it. It’s in very good used condition. For some reason the skid plate was removed, so the tail does have some slight wear, but the graphics below are very clean, and more importantly the top graphics is still nice and bright below the clear pizza grip. I didn’t show a picture of the top because the original photos are terrible with huge glare spots that mask out the graphic. It sold for $995.

Mid 1980s

Now I love this graphic, but most of the time the colorway doesn’t do it any favors, but this one is just awesome. It’s a G&S Steve Claar “humpback whales” from 1988. The red stain is nice, but what makes this one is the multitude of fluorescent colors in the graphic itself. From the lime green with pink and blue accents in the G&S behind the whales to the aqua of the whales themselves, this thing is totally unique, and it all works. Like I said, this graphic can look flat sometimes because of the choice of colors, but this one is exquisite. It sold for $278.

So the big seller from July was still at it in August, and here we have two mint Blockhead Sam Cunningham decks from 1988. If you are a Blockhead collector then you must have a much smaller bank balance now, because so many great looking Blockheads went off in July and August. At first glance these two Cunninghams look the same, but they are actually different: look at the top of the graphic above the circle. There is no top flame on the white one. They are both the same size, so I have to assume that one was an earlier version than the other, and I’d say the white one because of the shape. It looks like the notch nose shape from 1987. The grey stain has a slightly more streamlined shape. The white one sold for $194, while the grey sold for $217.

Here is a Dogtown “Street” team deck from 1986. Most Dogtown decks from this period are very collectible, but this one seems to get ignored for some reason. This particular model is in a black dip, and despite having some scuffs and age marks it looks fantastic overall. It’s never been mounted, never been gripped. It sold for $375.

Now here’s one of my favorite completes of the last few years back again! It sold originally in February 2010 for $178, and for some reason the buyer is letting it go already. It’s a first gen Vision Gator in the classic black and white swirl colorway, but what really makes this one is the white and black Gullwings, black rails and two tone Sims 63 wheels in white and black. As a complete it is close to perfection, and the fact that it has some wear on it makes it even more so. It is totally awesome, and it sold for $250 this time around.

Of all of the many mid-80s Alva decks, this one, the John Gibson street deck might be the most common. So why am I showing it this month? Because of the colorway silly! Most of the time you see this deck in one of the classic Alva fades, so to see it in a solid dip is unusual, and to see it in this baby blue is super rare! This colorway really is bright and cheery, and that makes it very unusual for most Alva decks in this period. It really stood out to me, so here it is. It sold for $138.

Here is a Santa Cruz Claus Grabke “Holding Back Time” from 1989. It is mint in shrink and in an excellent colorway. Sometimes this deck can look odd because of the wacky colors in the graphic, but this one is spot on. The purple stain recedes, allowing the blue and gold of the graphic to appear front and center. It’s subtle, effective and very handsome. It sold for $243.

For all of you Vision/John Grigley fans out there, here are two outstanding Grigley “mask” decks. First is the Vision Grigley “Mask I” from 1987. It’s in a red dip, and has never been gripped or mounted. It does have the standard storage scuffs etc, but looks to be in great shape, and the colorway is clean and outstanding. Note the shape, which ahs all of the standard money bumps etc that were so common in that era. It sold for $258. Below that we have the Vision Grigley 3 ‘Mask II” from 1988. This one is in a very rich green stain, which allows the bright yellows and orange in the graphic to really pop. It’s a very attractive deck that could easily be the most attractive one on your wall. The shape is cleaner and more streamlined, which suits this graphic for some reason. It sold for $179.

So back to the big name seller again. Last month he sold two GSD ‘Pterodactyl” decks, and this month we have another, but this one is in a better colorway than either of the ones last month. It’s NOS, and the white dip with green and orange pterodactyls looks superb. Again, this could be the centerpiece of any smaller collection, and was won for the very reasonable price of $305. Man, there’s been some good stuff going off recently.

Now here’s a “common” deck that I normally wouldn’t feature, but it’s so popular and these two colorways are really nice, so I decided to show the, It’s the Powell Peralta Tony Hawk ‘Screaming chicken skull” graphic on the bottle-nose shape. You see at least 10 of theses go off every month, but that hasn’t stopped this classic from going up and up in value. The top one is in a yellow dip, 7-ply full size, still in shrink. Everything you could ask for really. The yellow is a fun colorway, and brightens up any wall. It ahs the red ripper top, and it sold for $941. The bottom one is in the black dip with purple, a much more muted and adult colorway. It’s 7-ply and full sized and in shrink too. The ripper logo up top is gold. It sold for $1,025. Basically you can’t go wrong with either of these decks.

Here we have a Santa Cruz Christian Hosoi ‘Hammerhead collage” from 1988. It’s mint in shrink, not warped at all, in a deep purple stain. It’s a “museum quality” deck according to the seller, but I wish he could have taken a better picture, one where the tail isn’t completely lost due to the glare. Move it out of the sun for heaven’s sakes! It does look beautiful in the close-ups however. The colors are stunning: bright and vivid. It sold for a very large $1,425

Now here’s one that popped up right at the tail end of August, after I thought I was done selecting decks for the month. I like the colorway so much that I couldn’t keep it out! It’s a Santa Cruz Jeff Kendall “Graffiti” from 1986. Actually, this doesn’t have the “Pro Series 86” tail graphic that they originally came with, so it might be a slightly later model, maybe from 1987. It’s not in shrink but is as clean as they come, and is in a stunning royal blue with classic 80s fluorescent colors for the main graphic. It ahs a couple of scuffs, but that’s it really. It just might be the nicest version of this deck that I’ve ever seen. It sold for $1,025.

Here we have a Walker Skateboards Mark Lake “Nightmare” from 1986. It’s one of the most experimental shapes of all time, but supposedly the radical side cuts had a purpose: for locking in your hands during grabs on airs. Hmm. I’m not sure about that, but I do know that along with the Zorlac Gargoyle it might be the most phallic skateboard of all time. Put it this way. If you go to a collector’s house and they have this and the gargoyle on the wall, and they suggest getting in the hot tub, I would think twice about that. Unless you’re into that of course. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It sold for $510.

Some decks seem plain, but are really just totally classic and don’t need fancy shapes or fluorescent colorways. This is a case in point. It’s a Powell Peralta Mike McGill “Skull” pig from 1984. The red stain is understated, and allows the simplicity and power of the graphic to come through. It’s in NOS condition, with no major defects of any kind. You don’t see the pig version that much, as the bottlenose version came out a couple of years later and sold millions. This one has an elegant simplicity though, and the wheel wells are ace as always. The deck sold for $935.

It seems like I seem to show this deck every month, so this might be the last time for awhile. It’s the Dogtown Aaron Murray “tsunami” deck from 1988. Actually, this might be a little earlier because it’s got front wheel wells, a thing you don’t see too often on this deck. It’s in a blue stain with a little fading around the tail, but it’s never been gripped or mounted. The graphic looks superb, with bright clean colors and crisp screen work. It has some scuffs, but nothing that really detracts from the value. It sold for $510, and this deck does seem to be on an upward climb dollarwise.

Talk about a deck that ahs skyrocketed in value, this Sims Eric Nash “Bandito 2” has gone through the roof! This used to be a $200 deck, but has exploded recently, especially in this colorway. It does look excellent: the white dip allows the greens and browns to really stand out. It looks very clean, bright, and is a real head-turner. It’s never been gripped or mounted, and is in NOS condition. It sold for $910 on 45 bids.

Here’s one that I bid on and was very unhappy that I didn’t win. It’s a Blockhead Notch Nose from 1987 that has been gripped but never ridden, so the graphic is perfect. The natural wood makes an attractive background for this graphic, and I really wanted it. Blockhead sponsored my friend Mike for a time, and this is one of the decks that they sent him, so I have some great memories of it. In fact he is riding it on the cover of Skate and Annoy issue 8 from 1988. The auction ended at $178 and I was pipped to the post by a sniper. That makes me mad that I didn’t bid more. One day it will be mine

Here we have a Vision Ken Park “monster egg” from 1988. Normally I wouldn’t feature this deck as I think the graphic is a total mess, but the colorway I so outstanding that I couldn’t skip it. The silver dip is simply stunning, and turns this deck from blaah to wow! The colors look as bright as if it came from the screening shop yesterday. All of the subtle (and not so subtle) colors pop like crazy, and I don’t think you’ll find this deck in a better color scheme. It’s ungripped with the regular storage scuffs etc. It went for $485 on 31 bids, and I don’t think that there’s ever been so much interest in a krapnek deck before!

I don’t think hat I’ve ever featured his deck before, or anything from this skater for that matter! It’s a Sims Pierre Andre “Stickman” from 1987, and comes complete with early Independent freestyle trucks and green Powell Bones freestyle wheels. AOS has him listed as Pierre Andre, but his real name is actually Pierre-Andre Senizergues: Andre is part of his first name, not his surname. He has a number of freestyle decks on Sims, and he was one of the best European freestylers, but he is best known for being one of the founders of Etnies, and later of Emerica and éS. This graphic looks like it was put together in about 5 minutes: “Throw in his name, blur it about a bit, and then add some clip art of a stickman skateboarder and something French!” Anyway, it’s a neat complete for a freestyle lover, and sold for $211.

Here’s a total 80s classic, but I don’t think I’ve shown it often before. It’s the Vision Psycho Stick obviously, all the way from 1986. It’s in mint condition, and the colors are vivid and bright. It’s been reissued by Vision, but the original still has a place as this one shows. It sold for $516 and is probably worth every penny.

Much like the Alva John Gibson earlier, I am showing this Alva Eddie Reategui “Warrior” from 1988 because of the colorway and the condition. I’m used to seeing this deck in a fade, so to see it in lavender dip makes it almost look like a bootleg or something. It’s never been mounted or gripped, and looks as shiny and clean as it did 20 years ago. The colorway is great, the shape is great, and the tri-tail design is great. It’s an outstanding deck for a cheap price, selling for only $280. Nice one.

And here’s a classic chunk of 80s excess. It’s a Kryptonics “Ripstik 1” from 1985! A time when the more skulls and gore you had on your deck the better it was, no matter how absurd it was! I mean, why would a skull be bleeding? And is that a baby vulture or a giant skull? I don’t know the answer, but I do know that this piece of 80s silliness is NOS. The green plastics and red diecut griptape were all factory installed. Kryptonics were in the middle of changing from a real skateboard company to a cheap toy store brand, much like Variflex before them. This instant classic sold for $300.

So I thought I was done collecting all of the decks for August when I thought I’d take one last look. It’s just as well I did because otherwise I’d have missed this one. It’s a Santa Cruz Rob Roskopp “Target 2” from 1985, and this one is as mint as you will find. Not only that, the colorway is fantastic, having a pink to blue fade inside the graphic, and if that wasn’t enough, it’s signed by Jim Phillips (the artist) on the tail. The colors are still bright, the alignment is perfect, and the signature is clear and not overpowering. This is a very special deck that will be the centerpiece of some lucky person’s collection. Not that there’s much luck in having $2,000 to win this auction, because that’s what it took.

And here’s another that you don’t see every day. It’s a Skull Skates “Hardcore” team deck from 1986. It’s also known as the “Life’s a Beach” deck, because the Bad Boy Club later used this skull logo on their line of shorts etc. It’s NOS, ungripped and unmounted, and in an unusual red and yellow colorway. It’s rare as can be, and rumor has it that Skull Skates themselves don’t even have one and are looking for it. It sold for $820.

So last month we had a ton of Sims Kevin Staab’s, and in August we had a couple of cool ones too. Here we have a mini “Mad Chemist” from 1986. It’s in a grrrreat looking silver dip, much like the Vision Ken Park we saw earlier. The fluorescent inks in the graphic really pop, and the whole package looks just exceptional. It sold for $760 on 20 bids.

And here’s another Sims Staab in an excellent colorway. This one is the “Pirate” deck, and again it’s a mini deck. The deck features a lot of the characters from his other decks (the chemist is at the wheel). It’s on a natural woodstain, and again that lets the colors really scream. Of course, I feel that the graphic is far too busy, and from a distance it’s really tough to tell exactly what’s going on! It’s ungripped and unmounted, and even though it’s got the regular storage scuffs, it’s a great representation of this deck. It sold for $885.

So let’s get in the wayback machine and go back to visit this Schmitt Stix Tarampula 2 team deck from 1986. It’s NOS and in a sweet woodstain. The graphics are simplistic, but I remember it well and I have a soft spot in my heart for it. The perspective is totally messed up, and you really have to stare at it to see that the whole thing is a ramp with coping and a channel, and the spider has cast a web between the sides of the ramp. The graphic is craptastic, but excellent all at the same time. It sold for $305.

And finally from the 80s this month we have this outstanding lime green Powell Peralta Per Welinder Nordic Skull street model from 1987. By now you all know that I love the lime green dip, so you would probably have guessed that I would have loved this one. Everything just looks great on lime green! Especially this one with the blue and ivory graphic, and the age lines across the entire deck. It’s NOS, and the graphics are super bright and crisp. I would love this deck on my wall. It sold for $510 so that’s probably never going to happen!

Here’s a Santa Cruz Bod Boyle “Sick Cat” from 1991, complete with black Gullwings and G7S HIV+ (???) 44mm wheels. It’s a great historical piece actually. The deck is clearly still “of the 80s”, being large and having some shape. The trucks are old school trucks too, but attached to them are those stupid looking tiny wheels. Look how much the axles stick out of them! So it’s a hybrid complete, part of it looking backwards, and the other part looking forwards. The deck is in really nice condition. Remove the Bridgebolts sticker and you’d have a fine looking Sick Cat. And remember to take those fooking ridiculous wheels off and replace them with some Bullets would ya? It sold for $225.

OK, so here’s a World Industries Ron Chatman “Experience” from 1990. It’s from the “cool graphics, good shape, bad wood” era of World Industries, an era where the decks broke like toothpicks. It’s in a deep purple stain that really fits the graphic, and I bet that it looks epic in person. The colors are blown out in this photo, but the close ups of the tail look outstanding. The graphic has clean lines and lots of bright, vibrant colors, and overall it’s a very nice looking deck. $1.025.

Here we have another World Industries deck, but this is from a year or so later. It’s a Chris “Dune” Pastras “Industrial” deck in an amazing bright red stain. Apparently this deck was used as a screening template at the factory, and it does have some scratching on top and some smudges down below. Overall though it’s super bright and cheery, and would be a real conversation starter on any wall. Even visiting kids will love this one, which would make a nice change, because they’re normally scared of all the skulls and scary stuff, right?!! It sold for $800.

So here’s a Vision Chris Gentry “Drunk Tree” from 1991. It was the first pro deck for this Houston pro. It’s super clean, with simple yet effective graphics in a very attractive colorway. It’s a little warped, but is ungripped and unmounted. It’s a solid early 90s deck at a very attractive price: $80.

EBay is a funny thing. You can go literally years without seeing a certain deck, and then all of a sudden two will go off back to back. So it was with the New Deal Andy Howell “Tricycle Kid” from 1991. The top one in a red stain went off very early in August, while the green one went off a couple of weeks later. The red one has been gripped and mounted, but has barely been used. The graphic shows no sign of any major scratching, and the griptape looks clean up top. It was obviously mounted with Bridgebolts at one time because you can still see the imprint on the tape! It sold for $521. The lower green one is NOS, never having been gripped or set up. The colorway is nicer too, because there’s too much red in the graphic for it to work with a red background. The green stain on the other hand really allows the graphic to pop, and it looks far better. Now that being said, I think the graphic is way too busy, and bordering on the moronic, but hey, that’s just me. Anyway, the green won the day, selling for $1,051.

OK, so I know that some of you out there are saying that the 90s section is basically the 80s section because all I’ve featured is big decks with shape etc. Well here you go. Feast your eyes on this outrageous shape! Yes, hideously boring and dull ain’t it? No character, no flair. It may be functional, but christ, is that all there is? Anyway, it’s a Chocolate Keenan Milton “City” deck from 2001. Yes, it was part of a series of different city scenes, and these things often look great as a set, but individually they look lost. Such is the case here, but it must have its admirers because it sold for $299. Of course, there could be a number of people trying to complete the series, so it might not be selling just for the pro name or graphic.

And back to the early 90s we go with this SMA Steve Rocco “Rocco 2” from 1990. The Rocco bear has his head buried in the “Munny” jar. Indeed he did. This came in the “Jumbo size”, as seen here, and also in a “Pygmy size”. This deck is beautiful. The green stain is deep, and the greens and blues in the graphic seem to shimmer. The top of the deck is a pinky-rose woodstain with the same kind of variable coloring in the letters. It’s a truly exquisite work of art on the bottom of a skateboard deck. Breathtaking, and $950.

Assorted Crap

Now this is nice. It’s a vintage Powell Peralta “skate bones” long sleeved t-shirt from 1985. It’s still in really good condition: the colors are bright and there are no rips or tears. It does have some white paint splotches on the sleeves, probably because the owner thought the shirt was a worthless relic and suitable for getting ruined while doing the decorating. Then somebody probably clued them in that old skate stuff is worth money on eBay, and here we are! This has the small logo on the left breast and the big logo on the back. It’s a size XL, so it’s even wearable! It sold for $305, so the seller is probably glad they didn’t have any more painting to do!

Here’s a set of first generation Gullwing HPG IV trucks. They are gold and in the famous early split-axle design. They have a few scuffs and marks on them; otherwise they are NOS 70s condition. They even have the vintage riser pads and bolts that they’ve been mounted with all these years. They sold for $338.

Now this is just fricking insane. A sticker collector is really going to have to explain this kind of shit to me because I don’t get it. First things first: it’s a Powell Peralta Alan Gelfand sticker from 1983. It’s in unstuck condition so it’s rare, but it is a piece of paper at the end of the day, and a piece of paper can be copied and reissued with no noticeable differences. To spend $400 on this is simply insane in my humble opinion.

Going back to the vintage trucks, here we have a set of Strokers. They are in really good condition, with all of the original springs, washers and nuts, and there are a lot! I’ve never felt a pair of these, but I imagine that they had to weigh a ton. And how exactly did you adjust them? Were they for slalom or general use? This set sold for $709. The seller says that they are the cleanest set that he’s seen in 20 years of collecting, so there you go.

Ah yes, the old Skate watch phenomenon! If you missed the mid 1980s then you might be confused. For a period of about 2 years (1986-1988) skaters started wearing Swatch Watches; and wearing them, and wearing them… Wearing multiple watches at once became the fashion, in neon colors and designs etc. So being the savvy marketing company that they were, the Vision Corporation decided to start putting out their own cheap plastic watches. Why let somebody else get all the profit? They slapped some of their more popular graphics on the face, and there you go, instant skate watch. Other skate companies joined in too, including Tracker and G&S for awhile. I’ve still got a Tracker one, mint in a strange package that has GSD of all people on it. Anyway, this Vision Psycho watch still works apparently, which is a miracle because those things broke as soon as you looked at them. It sold for $20.

One of my favorite things in this crazy skateboard-collecting world is when I come across one of those cheap Chinese knockoffs from the 80s. You know the ones; they get a bad artist to copy a pro graphic, adorn it with some skateboard lingo, and then package it up with some crap trucks, wheels and bright plastic! Here we have two perfect examples, although the top one is a real head scratcher. It’s a copy of the G&S Danny Webster “International Calls” deck from 1988, and the graphic reads “Circle Webster”. Now, I’m not sure why they would decide to rip-off a dodgy graphic from a lesser known pro, but there you go. Underneath that we have a Rolls Racer rip-off of the Powell Peralta Ray Barbee “Ragdoll”. It’s on a generic pig shape, probably of pressed plyboard and has the cheap red wheels and generic trucks that look like Trackers. It’s fucking horrible, but fascinating all at the same time. The hat appears to read RE instead of RB, and the playing cards are generic. It sold for $26, while the Webster sold for $34.

Bargains!

Vision Gators are not scarce on eBay, and come in all kinds of different conditions and colorways. Despite the horrible crime he committed, his decks are still very popular, but that’s clearly more to do with the enduring epic quality of the swirl graphic, and less to do with Gator as a skater. Finding a decent looking one in a good colorway can still be expensive, but August yielded this specimen. It’s perfect for the collector on a budget. It’s a simple and yet effective colorway, and it’s in very good used condition. This would look great on a white wall, and the minimal signs of wear give it character. That was a good buy for $96.

So here’s the mandatory Blockhead Jim Grey complete. It is the “stretch” model from 1988, and measured an odd 34” long: unusual for those days. The graphic is all there, and the orange stain is decent enough. It comes complete with Gullwing trucks and OJ II wheels, and is a very solid late 80s complete. It sold for $56.

I’ll tell you the truth, If there’s one deck that I can’t get a handle on the value of, it’s the Powell Peralta Tommy Guerrero “Flaming Dagger”. Some months a mint one will go off for over a grand, and other months a similar one will go off for less than $300. I think there are a lot of them around, and there are a lot of different variations, the most obvious being the snub nose or pointy nose. The colorway is also important too, as is mini vs. full size. Anyway, this one is a full size seven ply in an eye-catching silver dip. The condition looks pretty rough in the photo, but I think that’s bad lighting and dirt. I’m betting with some cleaning up this deck looks really nice in person, well worth the $92 it sold for.

Yes, here we have a Vision Old Ghost “Guardian” from 1985 complete. The deck is in pretty rough shape, having some tail wear, nose dings and general overall wear and tear, typical of a mid 80s deck that was actually skated. Still, the graphic is all there, the colors are still bright, and it still looks great. The green Gullwings and risers help with the colorway, and the wheels are Powell Peralta IIIs. To anybody who can’t afford a deck like this mint (most of us), this will do just fine, and would only cost you $72.

This is a Santa Cruz Tom Knox “Dischord” from 1990. It has been well used, with scratching, big ass bolt-holes (what did he use to mount this board with?), and all around dirt and disrepair. However, let’s remember something here. This deck is mega rare. How rare? Well the last NOS one sold for over $1,700, and before that one sold for over $3,000. Remove the yellow stickers for this one and clean it up a bit, and you have a Holy Grail deck in pretty good shape for $100. That seems like a great bargain to me.

Ah yes, the G&S Billy Ruff “Chalice” from 1985. A graphic so crappy and cheesy that you have to love it! Actually I really like it in this nude colorway, it just feels right somehow and doesn’t have that “Nash” look that the brighter dipped ones do. The graphics are scratched up clearly, but not too badly. Overall the deck is in good used condition, and the Trackers and YoYos are in great shape. Anything under $150 would be a bargain in my eyes, and it sold for $96, so there you go.

Now this one chaps my hide. I was all ready to bid on this but got called away, so I left instructions for somebody to bid on it for me. I get back, and they “forgot”, and the deck sold for the price it had been before I left! Grrr!!! As you can see, it’s a Powell Peralta Per Welinder “Nordic Skull” deck that some numpty decided to make into a clock. It’s boneite and it’s warped, but let’s face it, it’s a wall hanger so who cares about the twist? More importantly it’s NOS (apart from the small hole in the middle of the deck) and in a great colorway for this graphic, so it was a real bargain for the discerning/poor collector. It would display beautifully, and it sold for $148. That was a great score by somebody, especially when you consider that the recent reissue sells for more than that.

And finally this month we have this Wiggley Designs “Hexagon” from 1987. You usually see this deck in white, but this is the more attractive red dip version. There’s not much to dislike about this deck. The fishtail shape is great, the graphic is simple and yet effective and the colorway is striking. It’s a great piece of mid 80s wall art for a very affordable price. $80? Are you kidding me?

See you next month.

-Neil