It's funny to think back about just how much ended up in the trash or otherwise lost. From a modern mindset, it's tempting to say, "Man, didn't they know that stuff was gold?" But at the same time if nobody threw it away, put it in their pockets, pinned it to their walls, etc., the value today would be far different.
Regarding the comment that "it's all speculative," YES!, that governs all of this. I enjoy the speculation, and I wouldn't want anyone to confuse the speculation with fact. When I write this stuff up I do my best to include my source data and call out the assumptions I tack on. Even then I worry some of my work could strike readers as "fake news," which it may well be sometimes.
Final point I'll respond to a bit more is the primacy of numbers today vs numbers in 1933. As a (pseudo)historian of the set, I'm actually more interested in the latter than the former, but it makes sense to me that the former would hold the greatest interest for today's buyers/sellers.
Some of you may have seen Anson Whaley's post on prewarcards.com on the disparate pop reports for the two Gehrig cards in the set. I am not ready (and probably never will be) to speculate on the actual numbers (or even proportions) of surviving Goudey cards. However, I believe Anson's article points collectors to what is probably the best bargain in the set from a rarity perspective. Prices are comparable for the pair but I believe the Sheet 6 Gehrig is at least 30% more scarce--not just back then but also now.
Jason
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