T206 verses N224 - scarcity question

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Posted By: Chuck R

I have a quick question for the T206 experts out there. I have been collecting the N224 Kinney Military set put out in the late 1880's by Sweet Caporal for a number of years. It is about a hundred cards bigger than the T206 set at 622 cards. Like T206 it has a number of cards that are very tough to find.

To my knowledge, no one has ever completed this set. I currently have 611 of the 622. I was stuck at 610 for a long time but managed to pick up one of my wanted cards on eBay a couple of years ago. Martin Murray of Murray Cards in England has 618 and the Edgar Tiger-Wharton collection in the British Museum has 621. Both of those collections are missing the card I managed to pick up, the Hussar of France.

For the other 11 cards I need, my lack of success in obtaining them has not been due to being outbid. I have never seen them for sale in the time I've been searching or even in looking back at old auction catalogs. Since the British Museum has them, they must exist. My question for the T206 experts is this: How often do the toughest cards in that set come up for sale? Once a year? Three times a decade? Ten times a year? I'm just trying to get a perspective on how quixotic my task is on this N224 set.

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Posted By: JimB

I would say that the Wagner card comes up about once a year. The Plank comes up about the same and the Magie error a bit more frequently. The Ty Cobb/Cobb back seems to be offered every two or three years which make sense since there are only 12 or 13 of them and about 50-60 Wagners and Planks. The toughest card is the Doyle N.Y. Natl'. I suppose it is considered a verified card now. It has been offered publically for auction twice in the last six years or so, but I don't think it was publically offered before those two. Maybe somebody can correct me on this. There are only 5 or 6 known examples of this. Supposedly two reside in the personal collection of (I am forgetting his name) in Wisconsin, but I don't know if anybody has verified those.
JimB

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Posted By: andy becker

i think jim is reffering to larry fritsch (sp?). he was back in the 80's buying all the doyles he could get.
he knew of the variation before the masses.
i believe larry had more than one, not sure if he still does.

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Posted By: JimB

Yes, I was referring to Larry Frisch. Thanks for jogging my memory.
Jim

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Posted By: scgaynor

Chuck, is there a list somewhere of which cards are really tough in that set?

Is there a good online nonsport card reference site?

Scott

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Posted By: Chuck R

Scott: The appendix of the American Card Catalog by Burdick has a listing of the tougher cards in the set...that's also where you'll find the 1960 going rate for the T206 Wagner at $50 (T206 commons are listed at 10 cents)

Chuck

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Posted By: ty_cobb

A T206 Wagner is much easier to acquire than an N224
shortprint in terms of quantity available. Its the monetary output
that keeps the average collector from acquiring the Wagner,
not the scarcity.
Re: N224s I've got wantlists from everybody and they are
not consistent. that means between about five of you a set
CAN be put put together. In fact,the only consistency of
missing cards I can see is the military medals.
N224s do not follow a pattern of rarities like T206 to
my knowledge (unless you include T80 cards inserted with
T206 in your analysis.) For example N224s appear to have
shortprints in the later series. In T206 there are numerous
shortprints in the early 150 series. I'm doing some analysis
of T206 and T80s issued together in the 460 series but I'm
mystified as to the rarity of T80 Old Mills
as they are quite common in T206. I'm cetain T206 and T80s
were issued concurrently with Uzit and Tostoi brands, but
the T80s I got in Old Mill came from Australia...

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Posted By: dan mckee

Larry has 3 Doyle's

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Posted By: Joe P.

He found the first Doyle error in a lot that he had purchased around 1980, or there abouts.

He got the second Doyle error from a Huggins auction around 1987, or there abouts.
At the time of the auction, Larry was the only one that knew that another one existed, and he was the one that had it.

Where did Larry get the third, and from who?
Joe

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Posted By: Joe P.

Are you there?

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Posted By: jay behrens

ok, this seems an appriate thread to ask this, I ahve 2 military cards that are die cut like Batter Up cards. They were issued by Recruit. One is Colonel US Army and the other Officer of the Line Italy. Any of you guys ahve interest in these? They are taking up space and I have no need for them.

Jay

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