Variations in W516-1 set

[marcdelpercio]

Thanks to everyone for the updated input. If you have both variations in hand, you can easily see that they are printed entirely differently, rather than just missing a color pass or something along those lines.

Doug, that's interesting that somebody else was aware of the different paper stocks. I did quite a bit of searching before I posted this thread and found no mention of it anywhere. I realize that the strip card sets are not nearly as widely collected and studied as many other major sets of the era but I would have thought that a major difference like this would have at least been noted.

I imagine that with the wide variety of subcategories of the W516 family of cards, there were probably multiple different printing processes and distribution methods.

[Spike]

Bumping this old thread to note a possible W516-1 pose variation for Tris Speaker. Another collector pointed out it looks his head moves between two of them, as if taken from photos moments apart. Might be a print register difference (shifted black?), but the effect is discernible for what's otherwise a very similar print process.

What do people think? Anyone else seen similar photo (or ink) differences in other W516s?

[h2oya311]

Originally Posted by Spike

Bumping this old thread to note a possible W516-1 pose variation for Tris Speaker. Another collector pointed out it looks his head moves between two of them, as if taken from photos moments apart. Might be a print register difference (shifted black?), but the effect is discernible for what's otherwise a very similar print process.

What do people think? Anyone else seen similar photo (or ink) differences in other W516s?

Hi Matt - that was me who pointed it out anonymously. Is the #5 site/blog yours?

Doubt this will be the discovery of the year, but happy to have found the subtle difference...

[Exhibitman]

W516 has long been understood to have variations in stock, ink, numbering, lettering and font. Of which there are many. The basic set, type 1, has the cards facing the right way numbered a specific way. Other iterations reverse negatives, change numbering, reverse negatives and change numbering, reuse the image with different numbers and typefaces. And there are multiple inking schemes as well. None of the stock and ink variations are new per se, they just aren't subjects of significant collector interest and not well cataloged; let's face it, T206 this isn't. I've found them with the bright white stock as well; FWIW, I've found the white stock only with the type 1 cards and only with black ink. I think all it amounts to is a variation among print runs for type 1 cards. Some pictures:

White stock Cobb, image facing right way:



Beige stock Alexander, image facing right way:



Beige stock Johnson, image facing wrong way:



Mathewson with image wrong way, different font/numbering, blue ink:



Beige Collins, blue ink, image reversed:

[Spike]

Yes, #5 type collection is my baby. Thanks for pointing that out; it's interesting to find something so subtle on a century-old set.

[h2oya311]

Awesome! I stumble on your site at least once a month!

I think this is bigger than just a card stock / reverse image / card number subtlety as Speaker's face is definitely angled differently in the two cards. As others have said a million times, a discovery like that in the t206 set would set the world on fire!

Strip card discoveries (I've had two legitimate ones in the span of 24 hours) certainly garner zero interest. My other post about a W519 Cravath #18 (previously unconfirmed existence) has had a total of zero replies and almost as many views.

Oh well!!

[Leon]

It seems many strip card sets used different stock. There are an infinite number of varieties and differences. I think one could almost only collect W cards and make a full time hobby of it.

[Spike]

Originally Posted by h2oya311

Awesome! I stumble on your site at least once a month!

I think this is bigger than just a card stock / reverse image / card number subtlety as Speaker's face is definitely angled differently in the two cards. As others have said a million times, a discovery like that in the t206 set would set the world on fire!

Strip card discoveries (I've had two legitimate ones in the span of 24 hours) certainly garner zero interest. My other post about a W519 Cravath #18 (previously unconfirmed existence) has had a total of zero replies and almost as many views.

Thanks, glad you come by the site!

Strip cards don't catch the common eye, for sure, but they do have the cheapness working against them. Whoever first made those sets might be shocked any of them survived to the 21st century. :-)