Been a while since I checked in so thought I’d say “Hi” (or High, if that’s your thing) and remind everyone we are always on the lookout for awesome pennants (any sport!)…either to add to this site or even better buy! No collection is too big or too small, so hit the contact us button or shoot an email to Info@feltfootball.com and lets discuss.
In related news…The gallery here continues to grow…currently at 1,797 unique pennants. Not only the biggest football pennant gallery on the internet. Not only the biggest football pennant gallery in the world. But the biggest pennant gallery of any genre or type…online, hard copy, whatever…in the world. The New York Football Giants…Big Blue…G-Men…Jints…became the first team to eclipse the 100 pennant mark (currently at 102). Not surprising since they’ve existed for 100 years. They have a century’s worth of pennants to collect. Next up…Another century plus year old team, the iconic Green Bay Packers with 87 and much room to grow. It’s so hard to get good pictures of the many extremely rare Packers pennants out there…but they will be over 100 soon and we’ll be over 2,000 pennants soon as well.
Hey…How about some deep thoughts (reading time four minutes)…
On shipping…Shipping flat is rapidly becoming an obsolete practice except in rare circumstances. It’s become too expensive. It takes too much time and tape and worst of all, I’ve been told by contacts at the post office that the USPS is not a fan of long, flat packages and they don’t treat them with the attention or care they deserve. Not to mention, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out what’s inside. Why advertise you’re shipping a pennant? Any issues I’ve had with delivery over the years have been with pennants shipped flat. I’ve had them disappear for weeks. I’ve had them show up with tire tracks on them. I have received them folded and stuffed into my mailbox. It’s bad news. There are a few old school pennant guys who insist flat is the way to go, but they aren’t eating that cost. They’re spending your money to ship in a manner I actually consider slower and less safe. There aren’t many pre-1970s pennants that can’t be shipped safely, loosely rolled in 12″ x 6″x 6″ box (or 14″ x 7″ x 7″ for oversized). The key word is loosely. Imagine you’re wrapping it around a full roll of paper towel. That loose. I typically wad up some bubble wrap and roll the pennant around that. Then it slides easily and perfectly into the box. This has quickly become the preferred way of shipping among those that ship pennants regularly and as a buyer of many pennants, the way I prefer to receive them. Last thought…Bubble mailers are absolutely the wrong way to ship pennants from any time period. If you’re folding the pennant, you’re doing it wrong.
On pin holes…No question puzzles me more than “Does this pennant have pin holes?” If you can’t see them in the picture, then does it even matter? If they’re so microscopic that they don’t appear in the pictures why would anyone care? Pin holes are a non-factor anyway. A pennant without pin holes isn’t worth more than a pennant with pin holes. People who ask about pin holes tend to be baseball card collectors who think like baseball card collectors and not pennant collectors. Baseball card rules do not apply to pennants. Pennants were made to hang on walls. They’re supposed to have pin holes. If you find yourself being hung up on pin holes (no pun intended), you’re overthinking it. And if you’re passing on pennants because of it, bad for you. Good for me.
On tassels…Speaking over overthinking it. Tassels are an accessory. They are not the pennant. They’re a somewhat necessary evil but if you find yourself passing on a rare pennant because it’s missing a tassel or has mangled tassels or you think the tassels look funny…you’re definitely doing it wrong. Would you pass on a Ferrari because the wiper blades are worn out? Who cares about the wiper blades? The collectors who get hung up on tassels are the same ones who wring their hands over pin holes, loose threads (or thread color!) and describe their pennants as EX-MT. This isn’t card collecting. Pennants are all about eye appeal. There is no established grading scale. Again…Baseball card rules don’t apply. The only question that matters is…Does it look good? Yes? Great!
On size…Size matters (regardless of what you’re wife says *tish boom*). Mini pennants tend to not be as valuable as 3/4 size or full size pennants. 3/4 Size pennants tend to not be as valuable as full size pennants. There are always exceptions but this is the general rule. Another question I get regularly is on the dimensions of pennants. A 3/4 size pennant tends to be in the 21″ to 26″ range give or take. Full size is typically 27″ to 30″ and oversized is 31″ and up. Not many oversized pennants being made today, but they were the norm for the first couple decades of the 20th century…though for football, unfortunately, these were pretty much limited to college teams.
On 1980s pennants…The 1980s have some very cool, very rare (and valuable) pennant series…but very few collectors realize it. As a result they are very underappreciated and undervalued. I challenge anyone to find a pennant from this series (if you do, please sell it to me).
These are nearly impossible to find. Joe Montana, Ronnie Lott, Harvey Martin, Ed “Too Tall” Jones, Randy White and Ken Anderson are also known to exist and there have to be others. I would pay $200+ for any one of these. There are other equally rare series, but this is a topic that deserves it’s own post and I’ll get that up there one day soon. For now…If you’re just getting into the hobby, I suggest mining this decade for gems. You can find things no one else has and still get them for a reasonable price in most cases.
On pennant experts…Beware anyone who considers themselves a pennant expert. This is largely uncharted territory. There are very few pennant reference resources available, the primary reason I created this site. More on this in a second. Most of what is known today has been gleaned in the past 10 years by a small number of collectors who shared opinions, theories, pictures, experience and research with each other. As a result, there are more knowledgable people than there were a decade ago…but nobody knows everything. There’s still a lot to learn. On that note…another essential resource if you’re passionate about pennants is www.pennantfever.weebly.com…a fantastic website dedicated to the history of the most prominent pennant manufacturers in the U.S. If you’re looking to pinpoint an era or maker for your pennant or just learn more about the history of pennants in America, this is the place to go. I refer to it regularly. Great job Kyle!
Well…That does it ladies and gentlemen. Thanks for visiting and please reach out if you have questions or better yet, something to sell!
