Personal Pre-War Set and Collector Survey

[jefferyepayne]

Great reading through this thread! I'm mostly a football guy but have dabbled in baseball through the years if I see something that strikes my fancy. If I was going to pick two sets I don't currently have a card from that I'd really like to have they would be: Turkey Red and Rose Postcards.

Also have a project to collect baseball cards of pre-war professional football players (Thorpe, Neale, Nevers, Abbaticchio, Charlie Berry, Walter French, Paddy Driscoll, Pat Flaherty, etc.) which is a lot of fun.

Here are the answers to your questions

1. How long have you been collecting pre-war cards?

I picked up my first pre-war baseball card as a kid in 1978 (t206 common and a 1927 strip card). Didn't collect between 1983 - 2008 before getting back into the hobby in 2009. Been active ever since.

2. What is the approximate largest number of pre-war cards/items you've
ever owned at any one time?

I'm at around 400 pre-war baseball items at this point. Over half are t206 cards as I'm at 214 of the monster but haven't actively worked on this set for a few years now. The rest are type cards or cards of pro football players who have baseball cards.

I have cards from these sets: N172 Old Judge, N284 Buchner Gold Coin, 1889 ER Williams, 1895 Mayo, t206, t205, E92 Dockman, E90-1 American Caramel, T201 Mecca, 1914 Cracker Jacks, 1915 Cracker Jacks, 1916 M101-5, 1917 Boston Store, 1919-1930 Zeenuts, W514 strip, 1923 Willard's Chocolates, 1933 Sport Kings, 1933 Goudey, Diamond Stars, 1936 National Chicle Fine Pens, 1939 Play Ball.

Also have some RPPCs as well. Also a few Pittsburgh Pirates memorabilia items from their pre-war World Series wins. Go Bucs!

3. Approximately how many pre-war cards/items do you currently still own?

See above. I'm a hoarder, not a collector so don't sell anything ;-)

4. What is/are the most significant card(s)/item(s) you currently own?
(Not what you may have owned at one time.)

Probably one of my Thorpe cards ... but I don't track prices so don't know which one is currently the highest.

5. What complete sets or near complete sets (say 75% or more) do you
currently own? (Again, not counting sets you used to own, and only
counting the baseball cards in multi-subject sets in determining the
percentage complete. And not including as sets any issue with only 1 or
2 listed baseball cards/items in it.)

None.

jeff

[Clydewally]

1. How long have you been collecting pre-war cards?

I started off in the early 90s trying to get one of every Hall of Famer during their active playing days and got most of the way there except for some pre-1900 Hall guys and Negro Leaguers. Stopped for a while and restarted with everything Hall of Fame

2. What is the approximate largest number of pre-war cards/items you've
ever owned at any one time?

I am somewhere over 1,000.

3. Approximately how many pre-war cards/items do you currently still own?

Still over 1,000, though I did consign cards for the first time ever to LOTG and do have some plans to down size generally.

4. What is/are the most significant card(s)/item(s) you currently own?
(Not what you may have owned at one time.)

I have all the Hall of Fame Cracker Jack poses except the vertical Mathewson, so the Wagner and Cobb would be included. Also all the 33 and 34 Goudey except Lajoie, so the Ruths and Gehrigs. But I have other Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, Wagner, Johnson and Mathewson cards.

5. What complete sets or near complete sets (say 75% or more) do you
currently own? (Again, not counting sets you used to own, and only
counting the baseball cards in multi-subject sets in determining the
percentage complete. And not including as sets any issue with only 1 or
2 listed baseball cards/items in it.)

No prewar sets. Some post-war sets. With the way I collect, I consider a set complete if I have all the Hall of Famers. So I would be 75% complete, for example, by my count on T 206 (needing the Plank and Wagner that I will never own) and completed T-205, T207 and some of the E series (E93,95 and 96). As noted, I am beginning to sell, but still collecting some sets like Uncle Jack's and Worch, where I have quite a ways to go.

[BobC]

Originally Posted by Clydewally

1. How long have you been collecting pre-war cards?

I started off in the early 90s trying to get one of every Hall of Famer during their active playing days and got most of the way there except for some pre-1900 Hall guys and Negro Leaguers. Stopped for a while and restarted with everything Hall of Fame

2. What is the approximate largest number of pre-war cards/items you've
ever owned at any one time?

I am somewhere over 1,000.

3. Approximately how many pre-war cards/items do you currently still own?

Still over 1,000, though I did consign cards for the first time ever to LOTG and do have some plans to down size generally.

4. What is/are the most significant card(s)/item(s) you currently own?
(Not what you may have owned at one time.)

I have all the Hall of Fame Cracker Jack poses except the vertical Mathewson, so the Wagner and Cobb would be included. Also all the 33 and 34 Goudey except Lajoie, so the Ruths and Gehrigs. But I have other Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, Wagner, Johnson and Mathewson cards.

5. What complete sets or near complete sets (say 75% or more) do you
currently own? (Again, not counting sets you used to own, and only
counting the baseball cards in multi-subject sets in determining the
percentage complete. And not including as sets any issue with only 1 or
2 listed baseball cards/items in it.)

No prewar sets. Some post-war sets. With the way I collect, I consider a set complete if I have all the Hall of Famers. So I would be 75% complete, for example, by my count on T 206 (needing the Plank and Wagner that I will never own) and completed T-205, T207 and some of the E series (E93,95 and 96). As noted, I am beginning to sell, but still collecting some sets like Uncle Jack's and Worch, where I have quite a ways to go.

Quite a collection Ken, just wow!!!! And clearly you are working on sets, just as you define them though. Can only imagine some of the HOFer cards you have. The CJs you described are mind blowing all by themselves.

You said the goal was to have a HOFer's card from their active playing days, which obviously makes some of the 19th century guys super tough (and real expensive). Anyway, that gave me a few questions I wanted to ask about your HOFer collection then, and what you accept as an apprpriate part of it. Okay, here goes.

1. Just out of curiosity, what 19th century HOFers have you not been able to get a card from their playing days for yet?

2. As a follow-up to Question#1 then, would/do you go ahead and maybe use a card from a later set, after they were done playing, as a placeholder till you can eventually find a contemporary card from their playing days?

3. And what do consider as "cards" for your set? Does it have to be true cards, or can it be an Exhibit card, Post Card, pins, buttons, team cards or pictures, how about some type of premium or insert, or anything else for that matter?

4. And what about someone who got into the HOF not for when they actually played, but for their managerial or other baseball work after they were done playing? Do you still have to have a card from their playing days, or wouldn't it be more appropriate to have a contempary card while they were actually involved in what really got them into the HOF? (Connie Mack immediately comes to mind for this question.)

5. Are you also including HOF managers, umpires, and baseball exutives who may have never actually played in the majors, but did have cards (or other items) issued with them on it?

6. And when you say HOFer, does it specifically have to be Cooperstown? What about Canton? Jim Thorpe, Earle'Greasy' Neale, and George Halas iimediately come to mind from the pre-war days.

Always wanted to ask a HOF collector questions like this. Hope you don't mind. (This would probably be a good separate thread itself, but guessing it may have already been done before.)

[BobC]

Originally Posted by jefferyepayne

Great reading through this thread! I'm mostly a football guy but have dabbled in baseball through the years if I see something that strikes my fancy. If I was going to pick two sets I don't currently have a card from that I'd really like to have they would be: Turkey Red and Rose Postcards.

Also have a project to collect baseball cards of pre-war professional football players (Thorpe, Neale, Nevers, Abbaticchio, Charlie Berry, Walter French, Paddy Driscoll, Pat Flaherty, etc.) which is a lot of fun.

Here are the answers to your questions

1. How long have you been collecting pre-war cards?

I picked up my first pre-war baseball card as a kid in 1978 (t206 common and a 1927 strip card). Didn't collect between 1983 - 2008 before getting back into the hobby in 2009. Been active ever since.

2. What is the approximate largest number of pre-war cards/items you've
ever owned at any one time?

I'm at around 400 pre-war baseball items at this point. Over half are t206 cards as I'm at 214 of the monster but haven't actively worked on this set for a few years now. The rest are type cards or cards of pro football players who have baseball cards.

I have cards from these sets: N172 Old Judge, N284 Buchner Gold Coin, 1889 ER Williams, 1895 Mayo, t206, t205, E92 Dockman, E90-1 American Caramel, T201 Mecca, 1914 Cracker Jacks, 1915 Cracker Jacks, 1916 M101-5, 1917 Boston Store, 1919-1930 Zeenuts, W514 strip, 1923 Willard's Chocolates, 1933 Sport Kings, 1933 Goudey, Diamond Stars, 1936 National Chicle Fine Pens, 1939 Play Ball.

Also have some RPPCs as well. Also a few Pittsburgh Pirates memorabilia items from their pre-war World Series wins. Go Bucs!

3. Approximately how many pre-war cards/items do you currently still own?

See above. I'm a hoarder, not a collector so don't sell anything ;-)

4. What is/are the most significant card(s)/item(s) you currently own?
(Not what you may have owned at one time.)

Probably one of my Thorpe cards ... but I don't track prices so don't know which one is currently the highest.

5. What complete sets or near complete sets (say 75% or more) do you
currently own? (Again, not counting sets you used to own, and only
counting the baseball cards in multi-subject sets in determining the
percentage complete. And not including as sets any issue with only 1 or
2 listed baseball cards/items in it.)

None.

jeff

Great collection Jeff. And even though you may not think of it in the same way of what is normally thought of as a set, I think your collection of baseball cards of football players is actually a very specialized, and unique set. Heck, I even just put a bid in on an Earle Neale card I saw online just a couple days ago myself, talk about coincidences. LOL I imagine you have a complete list of everyone in that set somewhere? Might be cool to share it with everyone if you ever feel so inclined. I'll bet you'd see more interest in it from some other collectors than you might expect. And does that unique set go all the through up to today? And if so, did Tebow ever get a baseball card of himself issued? If he did, I imagine he must be the most recent addition to your list.

And just think, you might have now passed on the idea to someone else to maybe start collecting baseball cards of basketball players. Doesn't go as far back in time as it does for football players, but right off the top of my head I can immediately think of Dave DeBusschere, Danny Ainge, and of course, Jordan. And I'm sure there are others I can't even think of.

And as for what significant cards you have, it isn't necessarily all just about the money. We've discussed that already in earlier posts of this thread.

[jefferyepayne]

Originally Posted by BobC

Great collection Jeff. And even though you may not think of it in the same way of what is normally thought of as a set, I think your collection of baseball cards of football players is actually a very specialized, and unique set. Heck, I even just put a bid in on an Earle Neale card I saw online just a couple days ago myself, talk about coincidences. LOL I imagine you have a complete list of everyone in that set somewhere? Might be cool to share it with everyone if you ever feel so inclined. I'll bet you'd see more interest in it from some other collectors than you might expect. And does that unique set go all the through up to today? And if so, did Tebow ever get a baseball card of himself issued? If he did, I imagine he must be the most recent addition to your list.

And just think, you might have now passed on the idea to someone else to maybe start collecting baseball cards of basketball players. Doesn't go as far back in time as it does for football players, but right off the top of my head I can immediately think of Dave DeBussure, Danny Ainge, and of course, Jordan. And I'm sure there are others I can't even think of.

And as for what significant cards you have, it isn't necessarily all just about the money. We've discussed that already in earlier posts of this thread.

Thanks for the feedback, Bob, and glad you like my 'set' of baseball cards of pro football players. So far I've only found a fraction of the cards I've identified but it is a fun run to work on. To answer your questions, I'm only focusing on pre-war so no Brian Jordan, Deion Sanders, or even Vic Janowicz in the set. I may expand to post-war later. For the most part I'm only looking for cards from the players playing days, so excluding coaching cards if they have them or modern tribute cards. The only exception is if a player doesn't have a card from their playing days ... then I'll look for a tribute card.

I'm always up for sharing! That's what the hobby is all about IMHO. I have this information in a table that shows the player's name, what pro football teams they played for in what years, what NL/AL teams they played for in what years, and what baseball cards I've been able to identify. I tried to upload this Word doc as an attachment to this message but it says 'invalid document type'. Maybe because it's a newer .docx format? The document is under the file size limit.

jeff

[BobC]

Originally Posted by jefferyepayne

Thanks for the feedback, Bob, and glad you like my 'set' of baseball cards of pro football players. So far I've only found a fraction of the cards I've identified but it is a fun run to work on. To answer your questions, I'm only focusing on pre-war so no Brian Jordan, Deion Sanders, or even Vic Janowicz in the set. I may expand to post-war later. For the most part I'm only looking for cards from the players playing days, so excluding coaching cards if they have them or modern tribute cards. The only exception is if a player doesn't have a card from their playing days ... then I'll look for a tribute card.

I'm always up for sharing! That's what the hobby is all about IMHO. I have this information in a table that shows the player's name, what pro football teams they played for in what years, what NL/AL teams they played for in what years, and what baseball cards I've been able to identify. I tried to upload this Word doc as an attachment to this message but it says 'invalid document type'. Maybe because it's a newer .docx format? The document is under the file size limit.

jeff

That is great Jeff. If someone is interested I'm sure they can try reaching out to out directlly and maybe have you email it to them.