The presented 1963 Fleer "Red Back" gridiron assembly showcases 4 of the scant 13 PSA 10 GEM MINT specimens ever graded by PSA from the issue, a whopping 67 examples in the MINT 9 category (that's over 10% of all known copies in the grade), 17 NM/MT 8s, and a PSA 7 NM example of the challenging checklist, for a final weighted GPA of 8.64, nearly a full 15 one-hundredths of a grade point above the next finest set. As the award-winning #1 Current and All-Time Finest PSA Set Registry for several years running, how could such a high-grade set stand the test of time against the hobby's most prolific set builders? Simple. According to our consignor, the set was largely pieced together in the early stages of the Set Registry concept, long before PSA's population statistics could clearly confirm what we now know to be an unmitigated truth: the fickle '63 Fleer football set is by far the most challenging of Fleer's early 60's football issues to find in top grades. Centering is a severe problem, as is chipping along its susceptible reverse red-printed edges and corners. The set features AFL players only and contains a number of key Hall of Fame rookie issues, including Lance Alworth, Nick Buoniconti, and Len Dawson. Currently, 52 of the 89 cards comprising the set report single digits in their respective grading columns at PSA, and its four PSA 10s are all Pop 1s. An even better testament to the set's difficulty is the fact that 64 of the 89 cards report 0 higher than their respective grades. PSA 10 GEM MINT: #27, 55, 71, 75. PSA 9 MINT: 2, 5, 6 Long SP, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 Gilchrist, 24 Kemp, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 34, 36 Blanda, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 48, 49, 50, 51, 53, 54, 57, 59, 60, 61, 62 Otto, 64 Dougherty SP, 65, 67, 68, 69, 70 Lincoln, 73 Mix, 74, 76 Ladd, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88 McFadden. PSA 8 NM/MT: 1 Garron, 3, 4, 10 Buoniconti, 15 Maynard, 25, 26, 33, 35, 46, 47 Dawson, 52, 56, 58, 63, 66, 72 Alworth. PSA 7 NM: Checklist SP. A silver platter offering for the advanced gridiron enthusiast looking to make some waves on the Set Registry leader board. One final note: although unconfirmed due to scarcity, several (and perhaps even all) of the set's cards can be found both with and without a thick red stripe at the reverse bottom. Examples with the stripe are believed to be far more common than those without it. For bidders who might want to consider pursuing a master set, please note that the following 8 cards from the offered set are of the scarcer, "no stripe" variety: 20, 32, 36 Blanda, 56, 60, 64 Dougherty SP, 84, 88 McFadden. Good luck!
THIS DESCRIPTION HAS BEEN REVISED AND DIFFERS FROM THE DESCRIPTION IN OUR PRINT CATALOG. THIS IS THE MOST UP-TO-DATE DESCRIPTION.
Please note that the weighted GPA of the offered set is currently 8.64 and not 8.83 as was originally reported (or 8.77 as currently listed on the PSA Set Registry). While the offered set still ranks as the #1 All-Time and Current Finest set, it now includes a PSA 7 NM example of the challenging checklist, with the PSA 9 MINT example listed in the original Set Registry (an unsurpassed Pop 2) being offered in another lot within this auction.