T206 Set - Raw vs Graded

[nikobaseball]

Hey everyone,

I'm sure this is a topic that's been discussed in depth here before, but I'm new into vintage and have been doing a lot of research into the t206 set recently. A certain member here was kind enough to send me a t206 beater (my first one) and it was really incredible to see and hold.

I've always been a collector and I really like the idea of a challenge. I considered attempting one of the 1950's topps sets but barring 52, I really feel it would be too easy. I think t206 is attainable (minus big 4, tho I think I can reasonably get to 521 or 522) but would take a long enough time to feel rewarding. That said, I'm really struggling on deciding how to go about it. I don't want to start one way and then decide I like raw or a higher grade better. I also hate the idea of having some cards in a binder raw, and some cards graded separately. I'd rather just know everything is uniform (i.e. all PSA) but that would of course cost more. As someone fairly new to vintage, I feel like going raw would be significantly riskier given the amount of fakes and altered cards out there.

Any advice for someone attempting the set? I know the costs involved, and I expect to spend a min. of 20K over the years (and that would be for just 520 in the lowest grade possible). One alternative would be to commit to a really long term project of geting fairly high grade copies (PSA 5+). Obviously this is a large financial burden but more importantly to me, I would worry about quitting due to the size and difficulty of it.

Also, given that I like having a 'complete' collection, I'd want at least one of each back, and all the other non-error variations that may exist. I can settle for no Wager or Doyle, though.

Thanks for the help.

Zach