Looking for cardboard investment

[Mick]

I've always had a thing for the old tobacco and caramels.

Funny that another poster said 1914 cracker jacks. I love those.

T206 are nice, but I'll never finish that one.

I was looking at the 1911 Mecca cards, E95 philly caramels, '14 crackers and those type.

I really like the old players, like Mathewson, lajoie, Cobb etc.

My budget is probably between 10 and 15 k a year.

It's a labour of love. But I want to finish whatever it is.

[Econteachert205]

I'm happy with the t205 set I completed. Any card that doesn't facially look like the player represented makes me nervous. That is what keeps me away from the Meccas and many of the caramel offerings. For investment sake, it's better IMO to collect something with a pretty strong following. The cracker jacks as previously mentioned are great but a bit out of my price range. T3s to me represent a good value for a collector with a decent budget.

[drcy]

Good buys are found at sales/auction time. You see what is underpriced and pick them up. No set or card is a good investment if you overpay.

[travrosty]

investments and having fun building a set are two different things.

investors invest in items they believe will go up in value. collectors of a set collect every card in the set, but rarely does a set sell as a set, they usually are broken up and sold piecemeal. so it ends up being each individual card as investments, but each card in a set is not the same as far as demand and price increases (see '52 mantle).

investors would buy a rock today if they believed they could sell it for double tomorrow, or next year. but if you search long and hard for that common name card in real nice condition to complete your set, and you sell it when the set is broken up and it didnt command much more than you bought it for, it's not an investment, its a hobby.

if you are collecting for fun in a hobby, don't look at it from an investment standpoint, it's fun.

[egbeachley]

Originally Posted by Mick

I was looking at the 1911 Mecca cards, E95 philly caramels, '14 crackers and those type.
.

I think you just answered your own question. With your budget you can knock off the 1911 Mecca in just a few months, no challenge there. The E95s are more expensive but with just 25 cards in the set you should be patient in picking up what you want. 1914 CJ set is larger and will take some time.

Therefore you should work on all 3 sets at once and be frugal with your purchases (i.e. you don't need to win the next available card at all costs).

[yanksfan09]

There are some very rare, and very expensive commons in the 1914 CJ set. 1915 is another option. Both are large set with some tough cards and both are a serious challenge!

[mrvster]

T206............you could put the monster together ! don't let it defeat you...

t206 has held the test of time.....wagner fuels the set.....I would suggest hofers in decent grades......or try tougher back hofers.........you will enjoy putting it together

the safe route always is mantle, ruth, mays , Gehrig, Williams rookies...

but you said a set ....look no further than t206


I have to warn you, this is an extremely biased opinion