1948-1955 Bowman - Series by Series breakdown and identification

[G1911]

Originally Posted by pingman59

Great Super Sleuth work on these Bowmans. My experience with collecting the 1950 set is that the first 36 cards are tougher than the next 36. It seems that nicer condition cards (EX-MT or better) #1-36 are harder to find. #73 on up are definitely easier.

I put my set together without any real regard for condition, and can't say I noticed a scarcity difference. Perhaps it was two series instead of 1, I'm not aware of any direct evidence that the first series was one of the 'double length' series Bowman issued occasionally. It seems to be a long standing assumption I have always heard, and the fact that the first 72 are notably tougher than 73-252 hints that it may have been the traditionally assigned single series. I would love to find out for sure, if anyone has a sheet or has opened a pack