W600 Wagner Project

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Posted By: Matt

I recently picked up this trimmed W600 Wagner (thanks Alan!).



The matte has been completely trimmed away and I am thinking of finding a W600 common and taking the parts to a restoration expert to make a complete (albeit very doctored) W600 Wagner, so I can look at the full thing in my collection. I understand and share objections about restoration work done to cards, but as this is for my personal collection, I hope it will not rankle too many feathers. For those that don't know me let me be explicit that if I were to ever sell the finished product, I would certainly fully disclose the history. Hopefully being public about the process will allay some concerns that this may be sold as a fully authentic piece one day.

Jerry was nice enough to inform me that the W600 Wagner in Uniform is only ever found with the matte below (thanks for the image & Photoshop Jerry), so that's the matte I'd like to find.



Can anyone help out with any advice about the process, any recommendations for restoration experts (Bob was nice enough to suggest one) or suggestions for finding the right matte on a low grade W600?

thank you!

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Posted By: Phil Garry

Matt:

If you are successful, I have a Frank Chance that has been trimmed exactly the same as your Wagner......

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Posted By: Steve Murray

Problem you'll run into is finding an inexpensive W600 that has a decent matte. For example the Clarke that recently closed on ebay without being sold had the matte you're looking for but it was in poor shape The BIN on that one was $975.

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Posted By: Steve

It's a sensational piece Matt, congrats.

Sorry, no advice on the re-matte, just a scripted opinion


Actually, a small voice tells me to attach three missing borders;

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Posted By: Max Weder

Damn! Eugene can't even serve a greater cause through a self-sacrifice for the wagnerian good, given the bad creases extending through the matte...

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Posted By: Tom Boblitt

someone really had to be pissst at that W600 to fold it like that due to the thickness of them.

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Posted By: Matt

Thanks guys.

Phil - Jerry said these came from a larger lot all trimmed the same way that sold in 2004.

Steve M - VCP shows a number of graded W600s that have sold in the $200-$250 range, so the cost shouldn't be too bad; the challange is finding one available with the correct matte. The current B-L auction has a low grade W600, but it's the wrong matte.

Max - thanks for the thinking of me; "the Wagnerian good"

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Posted By: Paul

You might want to contact Graphic Conservation Company in Chicago. They are the ones that pieced that Just So Burkett back together. If you are willing to let them peel your photo off of its partial mount, it might be a much easier and cheaper job for them.

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Posted By: Andy Baran

I have been in contact with Matt, and gave him the good, the bad, and the ugly as it relates to restoration. I am the one who had the Just So Burkett Restored, so I know first hand.

By the way, the W600's are not true "cabinets", so you can't peel the photo away. They are just very large, thick baseball cards.

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Posted By: Bob B

Matt, In my opinion, you should get a nice card stock photocopy for the matte. Someone did this a few years ago for a group of T-4 Obak Cabinets and they looked nice. Reason Two, you will be hard pressed to find a W600 with a decent matte for under $1,000. Reason One, as rare, (and scarce) as W600's are, the Baseball Card gods will probably look harshly on anyone cutting one up, even for Wagner.