Welcome to the forum, Mike. I'd always been a modern collector myself up until about two years ago. I've always been interested in the history of the game, and since I knew a lot about the golden era of baseball, and I had an interest in vintage cards, I jumped in. About the same time, I also began investigating pre-war. I love them both, and now modern card collecting, while still a part of my collecting going forward, is a much smaller part. I certainly prefer the pre-war and vintage to modern, and I'll never go back to my old ways.
If you do decide to investigate pre-war cards, take some time to learn about the technology used to print cards back then. It's important to learn so you can identify authentic cards from reprints. When you decide to start looking at that, ask us for help. If you send me a message (and refresh my memory that you're looking to learn about pre-war), I'd be more than happy to help you.
Regardless of what you do-vintage, pre war, or a little of both, there are a few things you should get. You may already have them having collected modern. If not, spend a little bit now, as these items will help protect you in the long run.
You need a nice jeweler's loupe. I use a Bausch & Lomb one. It cost me under $20. You want to use a reputable company if you can, as I've found they have better quality control when it comes to optics. You can certainly find loupes for a little less, and sometimes they will be good. But the wuality tends to be a little all over the place. You want 10 x magnification. Any more than that is overkill, unless you're looking to go in on a portable microscope. As you'll learn from reading David Cycleback's excellent book on Judging the authenticity of pre-1930s baseball cards, portable microscopes help you look at cards in a way that will leave no doubt about when a card was printed. You don't need to get into that now, but you might go in on a microscope a little later. They aren't super expensive, either.
You want a good black light. A good black light, paired with a good loupe, will help you see just about any flaw that exists on a card, as well as any alteration that might have been done. If a card has been recolored, or if a card has had black marker cover up white "chips" on card edges (like on the famous 1971 Topps cards with their black borders). If paper has been added, you'll see that, too. The loupe is used more to look at the card's surface in detail, as well as corners and edges. If a card has been trimmed, you will be able to see the trim using a loupe to look at the edge. You can see more on that by reading the "detecting card alterations and reprints" link at the top of the page. That's a great primer.
You also want a good led light source to examine cards. A good ruler is a big help, too. If you're going to submit cards for grading, you might want to invest in some Card Savers. I buy both Card Saver Is and IIs (made by Cardboard Gold). Depending on how you will store your cards, you'll want to get some penny sleeves, top loaders and team bags (I love Ultra Pros stuff, personally). If you are going the box route, there are several good options. You can get boxes from your local card shop. I also like Bags Unlimited for archival supplies. I've found their bags are great for graded cards where the slabs are larger (like for T202s). If you're looking for something beyond the cardboard box, MJ Rupp boxes are outstanding if you can find them on eBay. The company went out of company a few years back. But A Box Company makes the same boxes. I love them. They offer the same boxes Rupp did, with the individual single row removable inserts inside either a wooden box, or a chipboard box. The Chipboard Boxes are about $45. The wooden boxes $90. Their website provides information on the different slabs, and how many will fit (ie SGC, Beckett and PSA). If you're a binder guy, Ultra Pro makes some great padded D ring binders. And I would never use any sheets but the Ultra Pro Platinum line. There are likely other manufacturers that are just as good, but I know Ultra Pro has exceptional quality control. I've lost track of how many one touch magnet cases I've bought of theirs (the gold magnet 35 point for my Bowman Chrome prospect autos. Those have UV protection). Their pennny sleeves and top loaders are outstanding. And they released their magnet case bags a few months back. They're a better fit than the old graded card bags I used to use.
If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. Good luck, and have fun!
Bill
BTW, some of those websites I mentioned:
http://www.cycleback.com/baseballcards/
https://www.bagsunlimited.com/c-341-trading-card.aspx
http://aboxfactory.com/
David's book on pre-1930s baseball cards is available on his website for free. I provided a link to it above. You can also buy it on Amazon, and I'm sure other online stores like Barnes And Noble. The reason I am linking it now is it provides some useful information on black light. Eventually, you'll really want to read this. If you want to get a head start, it can't hurt you to learn it now. I love the book.