What Forum For Vintage Autographs?
 

Is the memorabilia side of Net54baseball the best place on the web to share info on pre-war autographs? Is there another place I should also be checking?

This is the place as far as I'm concerned.
Friendly knowledgeable people always looking to show their stuff or answer questions.
Welcome

Mark

I suppose this is the best one. Most of the message boards on the web like signingshotline.com, sportscollectors.net, sports card forum, etc,... all discuss current TTM and/or in person. Maybe there might be a thread on
1950's/1960's players' autographs on occasion. But for what you're looking for, I don't think a specific forum exists.

I've always felt like I'm in the right place with my collection on Net54. But my obsession with signed pre-war cards doesn't always line up with the discussions on here. I thought maybe there's a place where it's "all signed pre-war; all the time" but most people who collect signed stuff are talking post-war/modern shiny/in person stuff.

I'd say this is the place. Autograph discussions are varied here, but may I suggest you start a few topics and see where they lead? I, for one, collect all across the board and tend to talk more about what I'm collecting at that moment (although I have an interest and passion for all baseball autographs). Are there certain players you're most interested in, or all pre war players?

As many of you know, I collect signed pre-1917 baseball cards. My collection of cards are showcased on my website www.T206Collector.com. My newest addition is a signed T206 card of Cy Young.

But what I'm most after is an autographed pre-war card of Ty Cobb -- preferably from the Morey collection or just a nicely signed T206, but I'm not picky. Anyone have any leads? I'm prepared to pay a nice finder's fee.... Seriously!!

I primarily collect pre-WWII baseball autographs . . .
 

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. . . but also tend to limit my interest to former Detroit Tigers/Wolverines ballplayers and such.

Not to say that afew non-Tigers, or more recent autographs don't find their way into my binders from time to time.

Tigers Cards
 

I've got Davy Jones' signature on T202, T205 and T206 cards. I've heard of Boss Schmidt and Donie Bush as well on T206 cards. Would love to get my hands (or at least eyes) on those!

Over the years, I have collected autographs of old-time players, but it was guys that I wrote to, who of course, were still alive at the time. I'd ask them about their life in & out of baseball, for example. But, I really hoped to get a letter or correspondence back from them answering my questions. I just wasn't into wanting their autograph on their baseball card. But, that's just me.

The collectors, nowadays, almost always wants a player's autograph on their baseball cards, even if they collect 1950's & 1960's guys.

Autographs
 

I have a collection of autographs of players who appeared in the T206 set. I have 86 different players so far. None are on cards.

I got my first few through the mail when I was in grade school by writing to the players. Players such as Doyle, Marquard, Davy Jones, Nap Rucker, Snodgrass wrote back. By trading with my friends acquired a few more and went on from there. I've enjoyed learning about the players' careers as I collected the autographs.

Ron R

I think the problem may be that Pre-War Autograph collecting is a very small niche and your passion is an even smaller niche of that. I love 19th century autographs of ballplayers but that (like yours) maybe only has 10-20 collectors in the entire world. I dont think there is a better place to post your questions or pickups, it is just that there arent many collectors that have experience with that type of stuff. DO NOT Mistake what I said for a weak market because the market for Rare Pre-War autographs is strong, it is just a thin market. However, that also makes finding a great deal possible whereas if you are looking for a T206 card, good luck finding one for a good price since everyone and their Mother seems to be collecting those now.

Rhys

T206collector, I really like your website. I've always loved the T206 cards and Cracker Jack cards, and one day...when I complete a couple of my other projects, I would love to begin collecting them, even if it's on a limited basis. The one thing I really like about them is that they can be graded as poor, but still look like a beautiful piece of art. I know there are a lot of quality minded collectors, but to me the lesser quality cards look just as nice.

That is a nice thing about small markets -- a lot of the time, there are just 1 or 2 extant signed T206 cards of a certain player or pose, so condition is basically irrelevant. Sure, I'd love a cleaner signature on my Cy Young, but he may not have signed any others!

For a Cobb, go over to sportscollectors.net and PM a guy with the user id of lutherlaffy He has a couple Cobb signed T206's that are PSA/DNA slabbed already. You might have better luck then I've had getting him to sell them. I've been told he won't sell them singly but will offer them as part of his large collection only if/when he decides to get rid of them.

I don't care for a finder's fee, but if you have any leads on any other available signed HOF T206's, I'd appreciate an email to navarro@flash.net

Take care and good luck,

Mike

PS- If you'd like a forum to show your signed prewar cards and to shoot the breeze some, I enjoy hanging out at collectorsuniverse.com forums. There are some good guys there that love autographs and enjoy seeing the old stuff. Like any board, it has its ups and downs, but I enjoy it for autographed stuff.

Thanks. I am familiar with those Cobbs, and I showcase them on my "Signed T206 Wantlist" page on my website.

well
 

Well Mike, I am biased, but while recommending other forums you might learn a little more about vintage if you post here more ? There are some good guys on here too!! I venture to guess there is more vintage information on this board, by a long long shot, than any other board on the net. So, go to the others for the new shiny stuff and come on over here for the Pre-WWII vintage stuff.

In fairness, I was the one who was exploring the idea of an autographed card forum someplace else with this thread. I just thought there might be something more specific someplace else that I should check out.

I have never come across another board where vintage sigs is the main topic.
There are many boards, including this one, which have a smattering of everything.
I recently did join the Sports collectors.net website for the addresses to get some TTM sigs. In my searches, the vintage stuff, akin to what you are interested in, is few and far between.
I think Net54 is about as good a place as any to discuss and show off your interests, but I do think that you need to network far and wide to find new additions for your passion.
Mark

Exactly! :D

I hear ya Leon. I do some research on here from time to time, but don't have the pre-WWII knowledge that a lot of the guys here do so my posts would add very little, if any value to others here. I have a lot to read here before I start posting a lot. I'm not like a lot of posters that like to venture in and start blowing wind on things they have no idea about. I didn't mean to commit a faux pas by recommending another board if that's not allowed, but since T206 Collector obviously has spent some time here and was still looking for a little different avenue for his/her interest on this one, I was just throwing another option out there. I know a lot of your posters over here, and you are right, there ARE some good guys on here too!

Take care,

Mike

no worries
 

Hey Mike
No worries. I belong to a few other forums too. It's not a big deal and I know there are other good ones out there. I applied for the CU one quite a while ago but Carol told me they didn't want other board owners/moderators there. Actually, I think it was just me but that's ok :). I do read it occasionally.

As far as laying low on Net54 until you have more knowledge or get your feet a little more wet, I agree. It seems almost every day we have a new member (Mathew today) that comes in like a bull in a china shop and then I have to let them know they need to understand the etiquette and rules. It always works out one way or another. As I always say, "all collecting is good collecting." Take care and thanks again for your participation.