HOF as a “set” collectors - how many of us are out there?

[davidb]

I started my Baseball HOF "playing days" collection back in 1994 with cards I could afford and more importantly liked. I am always searching for the four 19th century players I am missing however the price tags and rarity make it a challenge to complete. In addition I have nearly completed a Baseball HOF collection with modern day cards of each HOFer. Cards include cut signatures, patches, bat cards and I especially enjoy the Helmar cards. The newer variations allow me to honor the Negro League HOFers which I have not collected in my playing days collection. I also have a small collection of potential Hall of Famers ready to go when announcements are made in January and all cards are displayed in my den in large displays cases so I can enjoy daily. Good Fun!

[tram4hof]

Awesome thread.

I am also in the process of HOF collecting. I focusing on players only, so no managers or execs. Excluding Negro Leaguers right now (due to difficulty) unless they happened to also play in MLB later in their careers and are in a mainstream set.

As to what card to acquire - I also like to get a card of the player on their primary team (according to Hall website). For more modern players, I try to get a card of the player 'at the peak of their powers'. I do this by looking at season WAR totals. But I also try to select the card so that I have a good distribution of sets represented - I don't necessarily want 10 1965 Topps cards.

To make the project more manageable for me, I've tried to collect all HOFers by position at a time. I usually give myself a year to work on a position. I've completed 3B, 2B (minus McPhee), C, and 1B. In 2021 I'm working on LF. Obviously, I still have a long way to go! But it has been a lot of fun so far, and I've also enjoyed learning about a lot of the pre-war stars that I knew very little about.

[bcbgcbrcb]

With the explosion in prices during recent times for HOF rookie cards, I’m very surprised to have not heard anyone mention a HOF rookie card collection or a spin-off of the same, earliest card of each HOF’er. This can or can not include the previously discussed managers, executives, umpires and Negro Leaguers.

[triwak]

Originally Posted by bcbgcbrcb

With the explosion in prices during recent times for HOF rookie cards, I’m very surprised to have not heard anyone mention a HOF rookie card collection or a spin-off of the same, earliest card of each HOF’er. This can or can not include the previously discussed managers, executives, umpires and Negro Leaguers.

I do believe Derek mentioned his... although, I know you're well aware of Derek's amazing collection! I would say, the majority of my more recent acquisitions COULD be counted as "rookies." But when I began this project, I wanted to include my childhood cards, of which most were simply career-contemporary. Also, there's the added expense, as you know! But if the price is not too prohibitive, I will generally opt for the earliest card I can find.

[Exhibitman]

I collect the HOF...The International Boxing Hall of Fame. Not an easy collection to complete as the earliest fighters in the HOF predate the actual creation of cards by about 100 years. I too try for career-issued items over items issued in tribute or ATG type sets. My earliest career-contemporary piece is this one:



A copper plate etching from 1824 of HOFer Dick Curtis. Looks pretty good for nearly 200 years old.

And from the Class of 2021:



i am roughly 6-10 fighters away from completion (depends on whether you count female inductees and inductees who were fighters but inducted as referees, trainers or other categories). I suspect some will never be found as cards and I will have to go with a photo.

[h2oya311]

Originally Posted by triwak

I do believe Derek mentioned his... although, I know you're well aware of Derek's amazing collection! I would say, the majority of my more recent acquisitions COULD be counted as "rookies." But when I began this project, I wanted to include my childhood cards, of which most were simply career-contemporary. Also, there's the added expense, as you know! But if the price is not too prohibitive, I will generally opt for the earliest card I can find.

Thanks Ken! Much appreciated. I tried clicking into your site and only found two cards...one of which is the ridiculously overpriced (but necessary for those HOF completionists) card of John Schuerholz. I'd love to see the others in your collection!

[triwak]

Try it now, Derek. Should be every HOFer, in order of induction. Four pages, total.