New Guy from NC

[mrvster]

YOU picked the right/best set to collect....T206 are it......inmho....we will help.....it seems a little intimidating at first, but we will all help....

check out T206resource.com is you haven't already....

we will all help you.....if you want, email or pm me anytime

Peace

Johnny V

[CW]

welcome to the board and good luck with your collecting goals!

Some basic stuff:

1. collect what you like, with emphasis on the YOU.

2. once you start off, don't be afraid or hesitant to change directions if that's where it takes you. You might start off liking a subset, but then that morphs into a new subset. Just have fun with it!

3. If you're going the graded route, two sites that can help with pricing are:

http://www.vintagecardprices.com/

http://www.cardtarget.com/

[Tobacco206]

Originally Posted by CW

welcome to the board and good luck with your collecting goals!

Some basic stuff:

1. collect what you like, with emphasis on the YOU.

2. once you start off, don't be afraid or hesitant to change directions if that's where it takes you. You might start off liking a subset, but then that morphs into a new subset. Just have fun with it!

3. If you're going the graded route, two sites that can help with pricing are:

http://www.vintagecardprices.com/

http://www.cardtarget.com/

thx, that sounds good. i'll be sure to check those sites out.. that is a big fear, overpaying for a common card or buying a fake or trimmed card.

[slipk1068]

Fun set for sure

The only advice I can give is:

1) It is a marathon NOT a sprint. Be patient and wait for the right card at the right price. Unless you start getting into tough backs, most of the set is not rare.

2) If you choose to buy graded, I find that currently a typical common in PSA/SGC graded 3 should cost in the $30-40 range. Anything less than that is a bargain.

3) Read Scot Readers work "Inside T206"

Have fun and good luck

[freakhappy]

Welcome! You will find this site very helpful information and collecting wise. I suggest using the archive to look up several topics that you might be curious about, etc.,

Everyone gave spot on advice and Chuck really hit it on the head with #1 and #2...let those two absorb because they are the truth!

Good luck on your quest and don't be shy about asking questions and such!

[Bocabirdman]

You have found THE board for all things Pre-War and T206 in specific. Welcome.

The only suggestions that I can make are:

1 Enjoy the ride.
2 Collect whatever and however YOU like

and most importantly...

3 Only chase cardboard on days that end in "Y'.

[the 'stache]

Welcome to the forum, Guy!

I think with regards to your grading vs ungraded question, it really comes down to how comfortable you feel with buying ungraded. If you've got a good feel for what the cards look like, and feel like, then by all means you can do one or the other, or both. Before I jumped into the T206 set, I spent a good amount of time learning about the ins and outs. I, too, was concerned about buying cards that were inauthentic.

The advice I give to every new collector is that you should first buy some of the tools you'll need to help you protect yourself. A good jeweler's loupe (10x is fine), a black light, and a good scanner. Get yourself a T206 card to use as your baseline, and buy it from somebody on the forum, or one of the reputable dealers listed on the links section. It doesn't have to be expensive, and if it's a little beat up, all the better. Look at it up close. Use your loupe to see what the printing technology on an authentic T206 card looks like, and whenever you buy a new card in the future, compare that card to it.

Over time, you'll become more comfortable with identifying cards as authentic. Things like uniform corner wear, slight registration issues, etc will become second nature to you. You will get a feel to pretty much look at a card, and have a good idea immediately if you're looking at something to add to your collection, or something to avoid. And if you ever have questions, scan the card, post pictures here, and ask for help. There are a lot of incredible, very knowledgeable collectors here who will help you.

Remember, too, if you buy graded cards, to buy the card, and not the grade. All a graded card is is somebody's opinion. Look at the card itself, and don't make any assumptions. Apply the same skepticism to a graded card that you would an ungraded card. If the slab says it's a PSA 4, does it exhibit the kind of wear you'd expect from a PSA 4? Check the slab for signs of tampering. Do you see any out of the ordinary frosting on the slab? Is the slab easy to bend, or is it stiff.

Figure out how you want to collect the set, and as has already been mentioned, don't worry about changing direction. Once you've been collecting a while, it's perfectly natural to change your mind. I started off buying SGC 40 graded cards, and I've discovered not too long ago that I like a little higher grade. I'll upgrade some of the ones I have later, but for now, I'm looking at a PSA 4/SGC 50 as my baseline.

Just remember to have fun, and never be afraid to ask questions. I'm the biggest newbie there is on this forum, and nobody's chased me away yet Remember that a lot of the questions you'll have, others had when they started out. And they'll likely already have been discussed here. Use the search function, or Google, to find your answer. If you can't locate what you need, fire away.

Feel free to shoot me any questions you might have. I check this place once a day, and I'm happy to share the knowledge I've gained in the year since joining Net 54.

Good luck!

Bill

[Koufax32fan]

This is all really good information. Can you please give us some more information about the use of a blacklight (or point us to a good thread that has more of that information). I just spent 2 minutes on ebay and see some really inexpensive blacklights ($7 is cheap in mind - especially when people I know spend that much on a cup of coffee). If I have a blacklight - what do I look for? What is the best way to use it?

[Tobacco206]

Originally Posted by the 'stache

Welcome to the forum, Guy!

I think with regards to your grading vs ungraded question, it really comes down to how comfortable you feel with buying ungraded. If you've got a good feel for what the cards look like, and feel like, then by all means you can do one or the other, or both. Before I jumped into the T206 set, I spent a good amount of time learning about the ins and outs. I, too, was concerned about buying cards that were inauthentic.

The advice I give to every new collector is that you should first buy some of the tools you'll need to help you protect yourself. A good jeweler's loupe (10x is fine), a black light, and a good scanner. Get yourself a T206 card to use as your baseline, and buy it from somebody on the forum, or one of the reputable dealers listed on the links section. It doesn't have to be expensive, and if it's a little beat up, all the better. Look at it up close. Use your loupe to see what the printing technology on an authentic T206 card looks like, and whenever you buy a new card in the future, compare that card to it.

Over time, you'll become more comfortable with identifying cards as authentic. Things like uniform corner wear, slight registration issues, etc will become second nature to you. You will get a feel to pretty much look at a card, and have a good idea immediately if you're looking at something to add to your collection, or something to avoid. And if you ever have questions, scan the card, post pictures here, and ask for help. There are a lot of incredible, very knowledgeable collectors here who will help you.

Remember, too, if you buy graded cards, to buy the card, and not the grade. All a graded card is is somebody's opinion. Look at the card itself, and don't make any assumptions. Apply the same skepticism to a graded card that you would an ungraded card. If the slab says it's a PSA 4, does it exhibit the kind of wear you'd expect from a PSA 4? Check the slab for signs of tampering. Do you see any out of the ordinary frosting on the slab? Is the slab easy to bend, or is it stiff.

Figure out how you want to collect the said, and as has already been mentioned, don't worry about changing direction. Once you've been collecting a while, it's perfectly natural to change your mind. I started off buying SGC 40 graded cards, and I've discovered not too long ago that I like a little higher grade. I'll upgrade some of the ones I have later, but for now, I'm looking at a PSA 4/SGC 50 as my baseline.

Just remember to have fun, and never be afraid to ask questions. I'm the biggest newbie there is on this forum, and nobody's chased me away yet Remember that a lot of the questions you'll have, others had when they started out. And they'll likely already have been discussed here. Use the search function, or Google, to find your answer. If you can't locate what you need, fire away.

Feel free to shoot me any questions you might have. I check this place once a day, and I'm happy to share the knowledge I've gained in the year since joining Net 54.

Good luck!

Bill

First off, great to be here and thx to all the different guys that have jumped in and welcomed me here.

Bill, great info and yes i have tons of questions if you could cover a few out of your reply. So hope these dont sound dumb but i'll ask for the sake of knowing. i plan to take in alot of local shows here in NC and hope to attend some of the big shows.

1. should i expect to see people using loupe and blacklights at shows.
2. can you recommend a good loupe and light brand or place to find those.
3. on graded, stiff or not stiff cases? i take it you mean for tampering: but to look for what or which is good?
4. ballpark- much fake T206 raw stuff out there? at worry about at shows, internet?
5. backs- any list or order as to easy to hard to locate that is correct? should i expect to ast least be able to locate all backs ( already like the brights,Uzit,lenox, and really like the TOLSTOI )
6. in regards to graded cards,, and i dont see or understand the "AUTH" stuff. is it better than a raw but less than the asigned grades of 1,2,3,4 and so on?

i plan to start the day after Christmas and hope to log a place here as a report with every card as i pick them up. My biggest problem so far is there's way to much info to read here and a ton of other sites to get info,, head spins
thx Guy