Your Collecting Focus

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Finances have forced some refinements to my acquisitions but all of the above still applies. Another 'focus' of mine has been to sell off my high-grade post-war mainstream cards and replace them with low-grade raw specimens. It is like being a kid again; I can go after lots of cards of all my favorites for the same money I had tied up in plastic tombs of a few cards. And I find I enjoy them even more since I can put them in an album, sit down and follow the spirit of Jeff Burdick: “A Card Collection is a magic carpet that takes you away from work-a-day cares to havens of relaxing quietude where you can relive the pleasures and adventures of a past day - brought to life in vivid pictures and prose….Here is an ever changing mural of life, peoples, and events as they have moved across the pages of time. Splendorous pageantry of the rise and triumphs of empires, alternating with the quaint life of a small boy, the fragrance of garden flowers, and the tender love of a mother and child”

I read a similar statement of yours in another thread and wanted you to know you are not alone. I have recently started doing the same thing. I am having a great time going after lots of my all-time favorite 50s sets at a faster pace than before. I had quite a bit of dough tied up in a chosen few and, for me personally, I am having more fun now. Thanks for your posts.

[Samsdaddy]

Originally Posted by vintagebaseballcardguy

I read a similar statement of yours in another thread and wanted you to know you are not alone. I have recently started doing the same thing. I am having a great time going after lots of my all-time favorite 50s sets at a faster pace than before. I had quite a bit of dough tied up in a chosen few and, for me personally, I am having more fun now. Thanks for your posts.

In agreement with you as well. I am very happy finding cards in their "natural" state in mid grade condition too and especially now as finances are very tight until I am working again.

[Exhibitman]

Thanks, guys. For me it is a permanent change. My goal is to go into my retirement years [I hope] with a card collection that is fun and has virtually no money into it.

[Samsdaddy]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Thanks, guys. For me it is a permanent change. My goal is to go into my retirement years [I hope] with a card collection that is fun and has virtually no money into it.

Good goal and I am right there with you.

[PowderedH2O]

Throw me into that pile as well. I sold almost all of my graded cards earlier this year. For example, I had a 1954 Bowman PSA graded football set that I sold off. I was sad about selling it until I realized how much it would cost me to get an Ex-Mt set of the same (about 20 percent). My goal is ultimately to complete the Topps/Bowman football sets from 1948 to the present (minus the stupid inserts and crap) and Topps baseball from 1970 to the present, plus a few of my older favorites (1956, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1967 Topps - 1955 Bowman - 1940 Play Ball). With EVERY card being raw!!!

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

Fun thread! The last few days, I have started thinking about slowing down on the complete set building and focusing more on individual players. I'd like to start with Ted Williams. I figure I might collect him in the near future. If I hit a wall or just get restless, I can switch to Mantle, Aaron, Clemente, etc. I want to do this because it tends to take me quite a while to finish a set. I have been working on 57 and 59 Topps. I see so many other cards that I would like to have, I just start to wanting to do something else for a while. Call it collectors' ADD I guess. Ted has always been a favorite, and I have been seeing some good deals on mid grade cards lately. I used to have several of his cards but sold them. It will be fun to reacquire them and then some.