Incredible condition fresh to the hobby 1955 Ashland(35)/Aetna(61) Oil Basketball Complete set of 96. Set condition break down appears to be MINT 10% NM-MT 10% NM 10% EX-MT 20% EX 20% VG-EX 15% with 15% VG or less. We sent 38 of the best looking and/or most important cards in the set to PSA for grading. 10 came back MINT PSA 9 (raising the population from 1 to 11) and 11 came back NM-MT PSA 8 (raising the population from 19 to 30) The key Head Coach of Kentucky Adolph Rupp card came back a finest known NM-MT PSA 8 (1 of 1).

Comprised of 96 cards 8 collegiate teams of 12 players each this 1955 Ashland/Aetna Oil complete set was a 6 year collecting project by its current owner. While cards from this Kentucky and West Virginia related regional set are attainable in smaller groups there are a number of collecting challenges that often present themselves when trying to complete the set. Teams featured in this set include Kentucky Louisville Western and Eastern Kentucky Morehead State Murray State Marshall and West Virginia. These are teams that maintain very loyal fan bases focused on basketball tradition. This makes collectors less willing to part with these uncommon cards. In addition cards came in perforated strips of 6 cards and were distributed by gas station attendants that likely kept these in their back pockets as they pumped gas and provided other services. Thus finding higher grade cards can often prove very difficult. Acquiring every card in the set is extraordinarily tough feat which can take years of persistent research.

Once again this set features some of the nicest quality cards you will ever find highlighted by 10 MINT PSA 9's and 11 NM-MT PSA 8's. The PSA graded cards are:

MINT PSA 9 - Baxter(1/1) Breeze(1/1) Brock(1/1) Gaunce(1/1) Laughlin(1/1) Mayabb(1/1) McBrayer(1/1) Riddle(1/1) Shumate(1/2) and Swartz(1/1).

NM-MT PSA 8 - Bibb(1/3) Bird(1/1) Burrow(1/1) Calvert(1/1) Collins(1/1) Culbertson(1/1) Floyd(1/2) Francis(1/1) Mills(1/2) RUPP(1/1) and Whitehouse(1/1).

NM PSA 7 - Steve Hamilton(1/1)(NBA player and New York Yankee pitcher) Miller and Powless(1/2).

EX-MT PSA 6 - Adkins(1/4) Brewer Fraley Grawemeyer Harned and Puckett.

EX PSA 5 - Morgan(1/2).

VG-EX PSA 4 - Diddle Fannin Rose and White.

VG PSA 3 - Hundley.

GD PSA 2 - Schaus Tolle and Tyra.

In addition 61 of the 96 cards are the more difficult Aetna Oil ad backed cards that traditionally have demanded a price premium over the slightly more common Ashland Oil ad backed cards.

The finest set in the hobby to date.