Set collecting and you.

[Archive]

Posted By: Patrick McHugh

Thought this might be a great topic for everyone regardless of years in the hobby. When deciding on a set to collect best to buy one card to see if you like it? Decide and jump in and buy a large lot? Buy HOF players first and then chase the rest? For me i like to buy one card first and then decide if to go for it. Do you stay the course with one set until done or try a few at once? Discuss!

[Archive]

Posted By: Jason L

the behavioral aspects of collecting are interesting...

I just recently started on vintage...

I bought a couple T206 raw to see what I thought...liked them, and decided just to go after my favorite team, to try and keep it managable.

I have started with the commons to keep me interested and moving along from the beginning, leaving the expensive HOFers til the end, that way I know I must finish because of the critical mass and sunk costs!!!

The costs are generally prohibitive from keeping me from tackling larger vintage sets, so future targets will be smaller sets or subsets of larger ones...

[Archive]

Posted By: Bob

Patrick- I generally tend to collect sets when I have purchased a card or two in that series and decide whether or not I really like them and whether the cost is prohibitive. I am working on a couple of sets that meet that description, the D311 and 1911 Zeenut sets, knowing that I most likely will never complete the first and probably will never complete the second, although I am getting closer. The sets like T206 I consider complete (in my mind) when I have them all with exception of cost-prohibitive cards. For instance my T206 set lacks the Big 4 and my T205 set has all variations except the Hoblitzell no stats (have the other 3 Hobbys).
There are some sets I collect which I know if I were wealthy I could fairly easily complete like the E90-1 (missing Jackson) and the M116 (missing Wood and the pastel Wagner) plus the two aforementioned sets, but then there are those sets like the 1911 Zeenuts where a Bohen just doesn't exist right now on the market at any cost and the D311s I need which aren't around at any cost.
I get a little fixated on completing sets (duh!) but on the other hand I have grown to appreciate what I have and just enjoy the 60% of the D311s I do have. Kind of the glass half full theory. It's hard, but I try
Bob

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Posted By: Ted Zanidakis

Very simply, find a set you like and start off by acquiring a large lot (33 to 67 %) of the set's commons.

You can always find the Stars on Ebay and at Shows. You will go "nuts" trying to piecewise 200 to 400
commons.
And, consider the added shipping cost x "N" # of commons when you try to accumulate them individually.

TED Z

[Archive]

Posted By: Joe D.

I purchase many cards here on the BST or eBay that I am not too familiar with / and maybe am not sure I would want to keep... but I buy them to look at them and see how much I like them. So testing it out with one card sounds like a good idea to me.

For the only set I have - I purchased my first card at a show... and was immediately hooked.
After that - at any opportunity to pick up a card from the set - I jumped at it.

The hunt is fun.


As far as one set at a time... or multiple sets....
at all times - every item in my collection has a certain rank. So even if I am going after more than one set at a time... I may give up on lower 'ranked' ones to help complete the higher ranked one.

[Archive]

Posted By: warshawlaw

Depends on the set. Some cards I've not had much of an interest in until I stumbled into a group and then figured what the heck, why not finish it. Other sets I've decided to put together card by card and have been working for years. Still others are sets that have grown on me over the years.

[Archive]

Posted By: leon

As a focused type collector there are a few sets I really like....the D303's and the e104's in particular. I have mulitples on those and am going for the D303 Mothers and General Baking sets, with respect to the backs.......each seperately. Shameless plug .

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Posted By: peter chao

Patrick,

Sometimes it is more fun just establishing the limits of your own set. Like Leon is going after a pre-war type set. You can go after a card of each pre-war Giant (or whatever your favorite team is). Lots of people are going after a card of each pre-war Hall of Famer. Decide on your own paramaters and go for it. The most important thing is to have fun doing it. With pre-war you really can't go wrong, over time the value of the cards will go up.

Peter