Putting more then one set together
 

I have been reading other posts and signatures seeing collectors are doing more then one set at a time, I thought of the same thing!! The sets I thought of starting were 1961 and 1962 Topps. But my question is that is it more time consuming putting 2 or more sets together or more fun then just one??

I have one main set that gets most of my attention, and a few smaller side projects that I turn to when the main one stalls out. It’s been several months since I saw a signed 1953 Topps I needed, so in the meantime I’ve been working on my signed early 1950s Bowman Red Sox run, and a couple other projects I picked up along the way. I like having the variety in my collection, and there’s always something popping up for one of them.

cool, that 1953 Topps autographed set I bet is awesome looking, my main project is 1960 Topps, Yankees, other vintage sets/singles, but been getting into common cards more lately

I started 1952-1972, all at the same time. It means I can be very picky and bargain hunt for what I need, but also have a steady stream of cards coming in. I'm building about 50-75 total sets at any given time. When someone builds one set, they are almost inevitably over paying to finish on-schedule so they can start something else instead of waiting forever for the lat ~10 cards. I've found the "everything I like all at once" approach is a lot cheaper. It takes me a long time to finish any individual set, but I'm always making progress and doing my sets at very low total prices.

I used to do the one set at a time thing when I was working on the mid to late 1970s sets that were issued in one series. However, once I got to the early '70s sets that had high number series I started having multiple sets in the works at a time. I am a budget collector, so those high number series tend to take a really long time to complete affordably. So, it is good to have another set where you can chip away at the lower series at the same time.

Additionally, there are some sets that have really expensive cards that may impede progress. As an example, I am working 4 sets right now: 1955, 1960, 1965, and 1968. I am only two cards from finishing '68, one of which is the Ryan rookie card. I haven't been able to find that card where my desires for condition matched my available funds. So, that has been sitting incomplete for almost two years. If I only worked one set at a time, that would be a pretty long dry spell.

very good points and ideas all, i may start my 1961 and 1962 Topps sets!!

Great points by all. I always work on 3 to 4 sets at a time...if your focused on just one you'll miss out on deals that you would never have noticed. It takes longer but your range is much wider....and as someone said earlier, if your stuck on a few tough to get or expensive stars while only doing one it can be super draining with no cards coming in. If I work on more than 4, my lack of focus of decreasing my lists is demotivating as well...

Good luck with your 61 and 62! Fun sets to put together...

+1 I do the same - though the number of sets that I'm chasing is a little smaller. For example, when I was building my 55T set, I'd come upon really good deals for 55 Bowman or 56T or 1970 Kelloggs....so I'd pick those up in the knowledge that I want to build those sets too.

I do tend to focus on a smaller number of core sets. There are times when I'll walk away from nice cards because they're not in my core target sets.

Like G1911, I'm happy to wait a long while to complete the set. I'm more interested in finding the right cards at the right price. That's been a little tougher these days.

I'm working on approximately 50 different sets at once between hockey,football and baseball. It is easier to find bargains when not restricting myself to one or 2 sets at a time.

On the down side, at my current pace I should have everything complete by the year 2090. I'm probably going to run out of time.

Well said. I used this approach to build my Topps set run....I am still using this approach to finish many other non-Topps sets (IE. Fleer, Bowman, Playball, Goudey, Post, etc). The savings gained from using this approach has been astronomical as there always seems to be a good deal on card(s) from one of the sets I am working.

It's often best to spread out your current interests a little. If you're only building one set, then it's easy to get impatient and take more very mediocre deals.

But when you have the attitude of "no rush....whenever the right deal comes up for something I need, I'll try and nab it", then you'll probably find yourself making better buys for the buck.