Why autographs?

[thenavarro]

Originally Posted by David Atkatz

If you have to ask, you shouldn't collect.

David hit that nail right on the head. You don't sound like you'd be comfortable collecting autographs, and when you have that doubt in your head, you won't get full enjoyment from an autographed item. When in doubt, sit it out.

To me, the biggest allure I enjoy about collecting autographs, is the belief that the subject personally created that scribble, it's not a mass produced piece of cardboard that the subject had absolutely nothing to do with other then agree to let their likeness be used and in some cases not even that much involvement. Basically, when you have an autograph, you have a small moment of that person's life in your hands. When you have a piece of cardboard, you have a brief moment of a printing press, lithographer, etc,

Not knocking the card guys/gals, just different strokes for different folks.

Mike

[jgmp123]

Originally Posted by thenavarro

David hit that nail right on the head. You don't sound like you'd be comfortable collecting autographs, and when you have that doubt in your head, you won't get full enjoyment from an autographed item. When in doubt, sit it out.

To me, the biggest allure I enjoy about collecting autographs, is the belief that the subject personally created that scribble, it's not a mass produced piece of cardboard that the subject had absolutely nothing to do with other then agree to let their likeness be used and in some cases not even that much involvement. Basically, when you have an autograph, you have a small moment of that person's life in your hands. When you have a piece of cardboard, you have a brief moment of a printing press, lithographer, etc,

Not knocking the card guys/gals, just different strokes for different folks.

Mike

+1

[Frozen in Time]

Collecting anything is a learning experience. For almost all of us, this is a gradual process but one that, in the end, provides as much if not more satisfaction as does any individual item.

Once you have decided what you want to collect, and this should always be based on what really excites and/or interests you, rather than future monetary gains, start the learning process. Read as much as you can, go to shows and physically examine items, talk to various dealers, ask questions and visit this site.

In your case, start with a low-end autograph, view as many as you can, try to compare authentic vs known forgeries, etc. If you follow this type of progression not only will you be more confidant in what you buy but you will have established a growing knowledge base to build upon.

For most of us this is a long-term project and one that continues to present new challenges along the way - but that is precisely where all the fun is!!!

[mighty bombjack]

Originally Posted by Frozen in Time

Collecting anything is a learning experience. For almost all of us, this is a gradual process but one that, in the end, provides as much if not more satisfaction as does any individual item.

Once you have decided what you want to collect, and this should always be based on what really excites and/or interests you, rather than future monetary gains, start the learning process. Read as much as you can, go to shows and physically examine items, talk to various dealers, ask questions and visit this site.

In your case, start with a low-end autograph, view as many as you can, try to compare authentic vs known forgeries, etc. If you follow this type of progression not only will you be more confidant in what you buy but you will have established a growing knowledge base to build upon.

For most of us this is a long-term project and one that continues to present new challenges along the way - but that is precisely where all the fun is!!!

I agree with everything written here. I enjoy the learning aspect of autograph collecting even more than the "actually touched by the person" aspect.

[cottnat]

I'm not sure if I will have much to add that many here have already stated, but I will throw my .02 in.

I am not a huge IP grapher (I have done some shows, some stadium waiting when I was younger and some local signings). I generally don't care to bother guys when they are not intending to sign. Do I have to pay more for some of the autos I want? Yes, because otherwise they are free.

I am like most autograph collectors in that I started out all over the place and narrowed my collection down (for the most part) to autographed baseballs of Hall of Famers. Starting out, I got the guys at Twinsfest that I could get in person (Carew, Killebrew, Molitor). After that, I nabbed a couple guys in the mail that were fairly guaranteed (Nolan Ryan, Doerr). From that point on, I relied on Steiner, UDA, MLB holo, Tristar, Mounted Memories and a few select other instances for the most part. Again, I generally have to pay more for their sticker, but to me, spending an extra 10-50% (or whatever it breaks down to....depends on the player) is well worth having the extra piece of mind. Now, if it were to come out that Steiner has been selling fakes for years, then I would have a nice chunk of my HOF collection that would be considered fakes (although many come with MLB holo as well which is as rock solid as it gets). I, like you, have evolved fairly slowly being able to pick out the good from the bad and I am still learning. If we had a Mantle quiz on this board when I started, I would have gotten 3/10 just from dumb luck. Now, I think I would score in the 5/10 range or better, but it would be with reason.

If you are going to pass the reputable 1st party authenticators, then you are definitely going to have to struggle with your points you made. As far as the gurus on this board, I too would LOVE to know what they know when making opinions on just about everyone, but I understand their hesitation to spill their secrets whether it be to make a gain financially or to withhold their level of knowledge from the scum in the hobby.

At the end of the day, you work hard for your money, so just be happy with what you buy. If it hurts to spend $300 on a ball that you are worried about, don't buy it. At that point you can spend $500 and get one with a UDA hologram or you can just keep waiting for the right opportunity where you are more comfortable. You sometimes have to take stabs in this hobby too which can burn you, or pay off big time. I spent $100 (not huge money, but at the time it was a lot for me) on a Joe Mauer signed jersey off of craigslist thinking, "what a great deal, the jersey alone is worth more than that", only to find out shortly after that the jersey was a knock off and the Mauer autograph was crap. I also more recently purchased a 1927 Yankees baseball for $1,000 and it ended up being legitimate. The point being is that sometimes the thrill of the chase and to find those diamonds in a rough is just as fun, if not more than adding the item to your collection.