This pared down version of the Bicycle ace of spades with no mention of Russell & Morgan Factories was issued in 1899 (revised from 1900 based on dating codes recently found on US8d aces of spades). This deck was printed with redesigned pips and face cards, an elegant slender sans serif font for the card numbers and initials, along with a slightly simplified version of the Jester Hat Joker of US8b. US8d jokers have cross-hatching for the grass and shrubs, while the earlier US8b and US8aa jokers have a more naturalistic grass and shrubbery. This deck design was not used for a long period, and is certainly more difficult to find than the more common US8c, which followed immediately after.

It is unknown why Gene Hochman designated this deck with a “D” and the following one with a “C,” which contradicts his usual alphabetical order. Perhaps he initially thought the US8c deck was issued first.

Five US8d back designs were issued with a special box that included a small image of the back design printed in green ink inside the flap, along with the name of the back:
      Auto No. 1 (aka Locomobile)
      Auto No. 2 (aka Locomobile)
      Autobike No. 1     (includes an example of the box)
      Automobile No. 1 (includes an example of the box)
      Motorcycle No. 1

Two interesting variations of the US8d ace have surfaced recently, both “Copyrighted 1900” and issued as special aces for the “Locomobile” back designs, later called “Auto No. 1” and “Auto No. 2.” Examples of both are paired with the Locomobile box, below. This is the only time I have seen a regular issue Bicycle ace of spades reference the back design. For more information, please see the Auto No. 1 page

The last image, below, is of a box consistent in style with boxes typically found with US8 or US8a decks inside. The one pictured is paired with a gold edged US8d deck, which illustrates that there are many odd combinations of cards and boxes out there, some the result of collectors pairing orphans, and others the result of packaging decisions at the original source. Hard to say which accounts for this one, but the presence of a GE deck suggests that this may well have been a factory decision.