[conor912]

Scott,
While I collect everything 1950 and back, I am a gum set collector at the core and totally hear you. I think '41 PB is a great suggestion. From what I remember, Delongs can get pretty pricey, and there is a Gehrig in that set, which will run about $1000 in a PSA 1....not sure how condition sensitive you are. I know it's out of the box, but I surprised how much I enjoyed putting together 1950 Bowman. The artwork and size are similar to the gum sets of the 30s, the star selection is great, and the most expensive card can be had for less that $1000 in mid grade. I just think it's a really nice, underrated set.

That said, if you really want to stay in the 30s, Diamond Stars are another good suggestion, though the high numbers are tough and expensive. I'm having a really hard time finding high number HOFers. They are, however, just repeat images from cards in the lower series (ala '33 Goudey Gehrigs), so you could just not do them and do 1-96. I just finished the 1937 Goudey Thum movies, which was a fun little set, though not technically cards.... but there's only 13 so not a massive commitment either. You could always go for the Goudey wide pens or exhibits if you're cool with black and white.