Set collectors: which school of thought do you subscribe to?

[wonkaticket]

I tend to go for quality over qty and I'm always upgrading. But I tend to use this with anything I collect where I can. Now I will define that quality to me is the best looking card I can find not always the highest graded I have 4's that I replaced 6-7's in my set of T206s. It's about the overall look of the card and uniformity that makes a set for me.






Also I think you mean 4 Ruth's and 2 Gehrig's for the 1933 Goudey.

Cheers,

John

[E93]

John,
Your set is absolutely stunning....and there is no doubt it will sell for a premium if you ever do sell it.

I am with John, with a set like T206, I go for overall eye-appeal and consistency throughout my set.
JimB

[ullmandds]

Historically...I was never a "vintage" set collector...I was always more of a type collector.

The first vintage set I completed was e90-2...a tiny tiny set of 10...took me about a year. I then went after E94...which has always been a favorite of mine.

For me...consistency of grade/eye appeal is most important, regardless of actual # grade. This can be especially challenging Esp with a set like e94 which is not readily available in any grade!

[wonkaticket]

Thanks Jim, that Bender & Davis are super nice. And that Matty wow!

[ullmandds]

That's a commonly employed tactic w/t206...going after the hof'ers/high buck cards first...as they will maintain their value so when you grow tired of throwing thousands of dollars at common players you could care less about and decide to let the monster beat you...you can resell and maybe even make $$$$!!!!!

[3-2-count]

John and Jim sensational cards, each and every one of them. Eye appeal over all else without doubt!! I would suggest tackling set collecting using this very same philosophy as well.
The slab should be looked upon as protection for the card only, not determining it's value.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by wonkaticket

Thanks Jim, that Bender & Davis are super nice. And that Matty wow!

+1. They certainly are!

Originally Posted by ullmandds

That's a commonly employed tactic w/t206...going after the hof'ers/high buck cards first...as they will maintain their value so when you grow tired of throwing thousands of dollars at common players you could care less about and decide to let the monster beat you...you can resell and maybe even make $$$$!!!!!

I might take a break from the monster, but I don't think I'd ever sell unless I'm looking to upgrade, which I will with my Johnson portrait at some point in the near future. I really love the set, and if I can knock out the costly cards, I don't think buying a few commons a month along with the other cards I really want will be too tough on the old budget.

[Leon]

When I very first started collecting I had to make the decision on how to collect (as everyone does). I went for the best eye appeal but usually not high grade. That way I could/can afford more. I will leave, for the most part, the technically high grade cards for other collectors. I would rather own one that looks like those but has some tiny flaw that usually can't be seen. That is a perfect card for me.

[g_vezina_c55]

For my part, for my goudey set i go with sgc 40-50 cards. Eyes appeal verry important now .
I also buy graded auth or 1-2 cards if the eyes appeal is ok for me.

John, your collection is amazing

[frankbmd]

I like eye appeal just as much as John and JimB, but would add that a complete Monster is more frequently sold at Napa Auto Parts than in a Lamborghini show room. Therefore although uniformity presents nicely, I enjoy having many nice cards in my set and don't mind having a few stragglers as well. Like Wonka and others, I am continually upgrading at this point (at the 518 plateau) to improve the overall appeal of my set, but I do not foresee selling my EXMT examples for the sake of uniformity. Regardless of the condition level you select, if you shop patiently, you shouldn't lose. My set covers the condition gamut from Poor- to NM+, averaging VG+ currently. The advantage of having 518 VG+ cards matters not to me. My Cobbs are EX+, VGEX+, Fair and Authentic. I like them all and all will ultimately sell for more than I paid for them (but perhaps over my dead body).

[conor912]

Originally Posted by wonkaticket

I will define that quality to me is the best looking card I can find not always the highest graded I have 4's that I replaced 6-7's in my set of T206s. It's about the overall look of the card and uniformity that makes a set for me.

+1

I just replaced a ton of 5's with 4's, which is great because it frees up a nice chunk of cash. Quality is very often not defined by the grade.

At the end of the day, you should want the cards to be uniform, not the slabs.

[T3s]

Hi,
I think another aspect to keep in mind is how you acquire the cards. For instance, one by one on Ebay or BST, or in large lots from an auction house. Tactically speaking, you can generally get a decent value and fill a lot of holes in your set by finding a nice T206 lot in an auction house. Whatever duplicates you obtain can be sold, therefor reducing your cost basis on the lot. I can easily recall (as I'm sure many on the board can) buying a large lot, keeping a bunch of cards, then selling the dupes and cards I've upgraded for as much as I paid for the whole lot. Free cards!

Being a seller as well as a buyer is one of the keys to building a set quicker and cheaper. I've always been focused on building sets and have always used this strategy. It's also quite fun when the box arrives and you're able to go through stacks of cards. You can't keep them all, but it's cool and a valuable experience.

Hope that helps.

Happy Collecting,
Craig

[drmondobueno]

I started collecting again last year after a 25 year hiatus. And of course I started in on the monster. I began buying ungraded cards but found I was running into a number of issues- trimmed/altered cards, ooor presentation, etc. I also found my eyesight to be changing and insufficient to be discerning, so I went for graded cards and focused on the HOFers. Somewhere down the line I realized I also liked backstamped and beater cards, so I have a number of those in my set, personal preference. As my focus has expanded, I am settling for lower graded cards with nice presentation to finish the set. And the t201 set bit me. My focus there are higher graded cards; a much smaller set with more reasonable prices. Try getting an Sgc 84 Cobb bat off for 1500 bucks. This s a nice hobby, has displanted my other sickness of building bamboo rods in the winter...most of the time...

And the upgrading continues on the Monster, of course...