Hey folks....reprising my case for the "12 factor" in the T206 structure

[tedzan]

Some of you have heard all this before......but, to others of you this is new information. In any event, I think this is worth repeating in order to clarify.

In 2005, I became a member of Net54. As in nowadays, the T206's dominated the discussions on this forum. At that time, I had put together 2 "near"
complete sets.....1st, a 521-card (incl. Magie) set.....2nd, a 520-card set.

Furthermore, as a dealer, I had bought, sold, and traded 10's of 1000's of T206 cards (during 1981 - 2005). So, I figured I would offer my "2-cents" to
some of the ongoing Net54 discussions regarding certain aspects of the T206's.....and especially the printing of the T206 set.

It has been (and still is) my contention, that American Lithographic printed T206's, T205's, T213's, and T215's on sheets configured in columns of 12
cards by N number of rows of cards down the length of the sheet.

For example, here is my hypothetical 96-card sheet of the 12 subjects I refer to as the "Exclusive 12" in the 460-only series. For more details on these
12 guys, check out this thread......EXCLUSIVE 12


..v..................................... 19" wide x 24" long sheet .....................................v



I did not "invent" this factor of 12. The structure of the T206 series (and sub-series) speak for themselves. For instance, the first group of T206's
that were printed comprise of 12 subjects; and, we refer to them as the 150-only series. The following lists the structural make-up of the various
T206 series............

Subjects
________

12 ........... 150-only Series

144 ......... 150/350 Series

204 ......... 350-only Series

66 ........... 350/460 Series

48 ........... 460-only Series

48 ........... Southern League Series


It does not require "rocket science" to see that a factor of 12 is in play here in the formation of these various series. It was not a random process,
it was by design (most likely dictated by the size of the printing press and the size of the standard cardboard sheet).

Also, a common denominator of 6 is a significant factor in the various sub-sets (e.g. 6 Super-Prints, 6 horizontal cards, 6 Texas Leaguer's, etc).

Furthermore, this 12 factor is evident in the T205 structure....e.g. the 12 - Minor League subjects.

And, in the T213-1 issue, where there are 48 - Major League subjects.

In the T215-1 issue which comprises of 96 subjects.


If I have not convinced you of my argument with all this data, then please post your ideas here on how these various tobacco cards were printed,
otherwise.


Pardon me guys, but my engineering mind has a great appreciation for numbers....and so far, I cannot accept any of the explanations that have
been presented in the past (or currently)....as they do not mathematically jive with the established structural numbers of the T206 set.



TED Z
.

[t206hound]

I'll start off by saying I don't know how many cards there were to a row or a sheet. But the idea that I might be able to figure it out does motivate me.

So what I do is look for clues that might help tell the story. Do subsets that are multiples of 6 or 12 mean that the row size was 12? Maybe. What about those that are multiples of 17? Is that the magic number? Maybe. Could both be right? Maybe. Could neither be right? Maybe.

Numbers are only one part of the answer, because there is no way to know if cards were evenly distributed in sheets. It's easy to say that this card is a short print or that card is a double print to make nearly any number fit.

The Lash's Bitters cards are very intriguing. They, along with the Piedmont 460 overprint scraps give insight into cards that were actually adjacent (directly or indirectly). Unfortunately, there are still many missing pieces of the puzzle. I'm still working on the horizontal pieces to make sure they fit.

So, I will end as I started. I have no idea the sheet composition or size. I won't say anyone is right or anyone is wrong. I will certainly make hypotheses along the way that are wrong. I'm no expert. If someone else presents a theory, I will ask questions... And hopefully learn something. But I know that I will continue to look for clues. Hopefully we can work together as a community to figure this out.

[tedzan]

American Lithographic introduced the 350/460 series in the printing of the SOVEREIGN "apple green" cards during 1910. This series comprise of 66 subjects.

Depicted here is my simulated 72-card sheet (6 rows of 12 cards) of this series. I don't think same-name cards of any of these 60 subjects with SOVEREIGN
backs (not including 6 super-prints) have been reported; therefore, I tend to think that this 72-card format simulates a representative press run. If a same-
name card of any of these 60 surfaces, then it would suggest that a 144-card sheet (12 x 12 format) was printed.


Note
The 6 super-print cards are shown Double-Printed (D-P) on this sheet. Several large T206 surveys have indicated that these 6 super-print subjects were D-P
relative to the other 60 subjects on this sheet.



v................................................. ....... Six super-prints ............................................v












TED Z
__________________________________________________ ___________________________________
LOOKING for this T206 guy to complete my EXCLUSIVE 12 red HINDU sub-set (12 subjects)

SHECKARD (glove)
.

[tedzan]

Here again are the Exclusive 12 with SWEET CAPORAL 460, Factory #42 back advertisements.

These 12 are the only subjects in the 460-only series printed with this SWEET CAP back......proving that American Litho
formatted configurations with 12 cards across the sheet.

Stay tuned......there are more such examples that will be presented which reinforce the 12 factor premise.







TED Z
.

[t206hound]

Originally Posted by tedzan

American Lithographic introduced the 350/460 series in the printing of the SOVEREIGN "apple green" cards during 1910. This series comprise of 66 subjects.

Depicted here is my simulated 72-card sheet (6 rows of 12 cards) of this series. I don't think same-name cards of any of these 60 subjects with SOVEREIGN backs (not including 6 super-prints) have been reported;

I don't recall having seen any S350AG miscuts at all... definitely don't have any scans; Doug (Phillies*phan) has a vast collection of double-namers. I've asked him if he has (or has seen) any.

Originally Posted by tedzan

Here again are the Exclusive 12 with SWEET CAPORAL 460, Factory #42 back advertisements.

These 12 are the only subjects in the 460-only series printed with this SWEET CAP back......proving that American Litho
formatted configurations with 12 cards across the sheet.

There is actual proof that some of those cards appeared together; scraps presumably from the same sheet(s) Piedmont 350-460 factory 25. Some of them can be proven to be adjacent. All of the scrap pictured (eight subjects) are from the Exclusive 12. This image is from Chris Browne posted in a separate thread.


So, the fact that there is proof from scrap that many of those appeared together, and the exclusivity mentioned above would give credence to the probability of those 12 appearing on the same sheet.

I would not say, however, that this is proof of a 12 card row. A theory? Sure. Proof? Nope. Reality? Maybe. There could have been single prints... or double prints... or an eight card row (ABCDEFGH, EFGHIJKL, IJKLABCD)... or an eighteen card row (ABCDEFGHIJKLABCD, EFGHIJKLABCDEFGH, IJKLABCDEFGHIJKL). Maybe some or all of the super prints appeared on the sheet with those 12.

I'm not saying that SC460-42 was not printed in 12 card rows, I'm just saying that the acceptance of 12 cards appearing together doesn't prove it.

[tedzan]

It's not only the T206 issue, but also the "12 Factor" is evident in the T205 printing format. There are twelve Minor League subjects in the T205 issue. These 12 guys where printed at the tail-end
of the T205 press runs (circa late 1911). How do we know this......because the bio info on the backs of 8 of these cards reveal this timeline.







Furthermore, some of our resident Net54 T205 experts have told me that the T205 structure lends itself to formatted sheets printed in columns of 12.



TED Z
.

[tedzan]

Further proof of the "12 Factor" in the printing of these T206 cards is evident in these 12 subjects in the 460-only series, which I refer to as the "Exclusive 12".
Only these 12 guys in this series of 48 subjects were printed with the rare red HINDU back. For more detailed information regarding these T206 cards, check out
this link......EXCLUSIVE 12











TED Z
.