Chronicling my T206 adventure

[53toppscollector]

*warning....this is going to be too long and will probably interest no one, but I am posting it anyway*

I no longer have a blog or website, so this is really the only place where I feel like I could write about and try to chronicle my T206 adventure. This will likely be a long post, subsequent updates will be shorter, but really this is just a place for me to explain my process, make notes on my journey, talk about how the plan has changed over time, etc. It may not be interesting to anyone but me, which is okay, I just feel like typing it out will help keep things sorted in my head, and will also help me to stay motivated to continue on what is (I think) a fairly ambitious project.

Last summer, I decided to basically abandon all of my other collecting interests and focus on T206. Previously, I had assembled a near complete set of graded 1953 Topps (hence, my username), and I took about 6 months to sell off that entire set, ending up with a small profit based on where I purchased the cards. About 100 of the 274 cards were items I purchased raw and got graded myself at PSA. It was a fun process, but one that I ultimately fell out of love with. When I got down to about 10 cards left, they included 3 of the big 4 (I had the Paige in a PSA 5.5), and I just wondered if I was ready to spend $6000 on a lower grade Mantle, and another $4k for a passable Robinson and Mays.

Ultimately though, what really caused me to fall out of love with my 1953 set, was that the set was graded, the cards were just in a big BCW cardboard box, and I basically never looked at them. I spent many more hours looking at my Excel spreadsheet, seeing what I paid for each card and when, and what I still needed to collect. I had the full checklist basically memorized, but I very rarely ever just sat down and looked through my big cardboard box of graded slabs.

As I finished selling through my 1953 set, I knew that I wanted to branch out into older pre-war cards, and I knew I wanted to collect T206. In what I think is not too uncommon, I just kind of dove in. I bought 3 graded T206 cards. My first ever purchase was a Krause Portrait American Beauty, and I just absolutely loved it. But as I sat at my desk and looked at my 3 graded cards, I realized I was about to go down the same path as I did with the 1953 Topps set. I was going to accumulate a bunch of slabs that would go in a cardboard box, and this was going to be a much more costly endeavor.

At that point, I decided to pivot to what is now my T206 project. I decided that instead of trying to collect a 520 set, or something close to it, I would instead just collect all of the portraits. I remember going to Luke's T206 site and seeing his banner at the top, with a collage of a bunch of different poses, and really marveling at how the portraits looked so stunning all grouped together. The different color backgrounds really brought the portraits to life. One thing I also sort of realized is that the portraits are obviously much more "life like" and a much closer representation to what the player actually looked like. If you compare, say, the Cy Young portrait with his action shots, the action shots almost just look like generic stock players. Some of them, it is impossible to really even distinguish who the player is. There are some cool things about the action shots, notably the various sunset backgrounds, and the few horizontals. But overall, I was just much more drawn to the portraits, and as I did more research, I realized that if I collected just portraits, I'd end up collecting all the big names in the set anyway, as Cobb, Matty, WaJo, Cy, Tinker, Chance, etc all had portraits.

In version 1.0 of this plan, I was going to try and truly collect a portrait master set, getting every front/back combo with the exception of Magie, Plank and Wagner. However, I obviously realized that trying to find the one or two known copies of some of the Drum, Lenox, Uzit, etc would be next to impossible, and unlike some folks here, I don't have an unlimited budget. So I had to scale things back a bit, but I believe I settled on what is a "realistic" lifetime collecting goal for T206: to collect all of the Piedmont/SweetCap + off backs (everything except Hindu, Broad Leaf, Carolina Brights, Drum, Lenox, Uzit) for all of the portraits, with the exception of Wagner and possibly Plank. I may be able to afford the Plank at some point, maybe.

Not having to track down the one or two Drums or Carolina Brights makes this task somewhat achievable, and there are still a bunch of very tough (and very expensive) backs to track down, like some of the very scarce Old Mills or Sovereign 150s, the low pop Tolstoi's and American Beauty's, etc. Based on the checklists at T206 Resource, I think my magic number is 1,383. This excludes Wagner, Plank and Magie (for now). This number is subject to change, if theorized cards end up actually being confirmed in the course of me collecting.

The key to making this work, was to settle on a way for me to actually be able to see my cards, to look at my cards, and to stay connected to everything. As I noted above, I lost my desire to complete the 1953 Topps set because the cards were just stored away in a box and I never looked at them. To prevent that happening again, I spent weeks researching different types of binders. I ultimately settled on the Lighthouse binders with 15 pocket pages. I was initially kind of scared to put these very old cards into binders, but having now done this for 5 months, it was 100% the right decision. Knowing that I needed to collect almost 1,400 cards, the idea of buying PSA or SGC 4s and 5s quickly went out the window. I started to look for lower grade cards I could snap out (and I have become an expert at cracking open PSA and SGC cases) and put in the binder. I also embraced the idea of buying raw cards. I think it took a bit of time for me to feel comfortable buying raw, but I've since acquired 100+ raw examples, and I am confident all of them are authentic and just fine. The single most helpful addition, however, was a pair of stamp tongs, used to put cards in the sleeves. Using these tongs, I've had absolutely zero issue inserting a card into the pocket pages, or removing a card when needed. They have honestly been a lifesaver, and I can't imagine collecting cards in a binder without them.

So that brings me to the current day. Based on my tracking, I have collected 207 of the needed 1,383 cards. Here is a breakdown of what I have so far:



As I said, I used T206 Resource for almost all of my background and lists. They do not consider the Bridwell with Cap on their portrait list, but I included him, because I think it is a portrait, or close to it. Their portrait checklist also omits Davy Jones, who is clearly a portrait.

My plan is to use subsequent posts in this thread to show my "completed" back runs. Since I am omitting Brown Hindus from my project, that means I only need 2 cards for the Southern League portraits, and I have 2 of those complete now, but waiting for those cards to arrive in the mail. I will try to scan and upload when they come in.

The most important thing to me, is that I am truly enjoying this collecting project much more than any previous attempts, and I think the binder is a big reason. When a new card comes in the mail, I don't simply file it into a big cardboard box. I take my binder off the shelf, and slowly page through to find the appropriate slot in the binder for the card. I remove the placeholder piece of paper, I slowly slide the card into place, and then I continue to leaf through the binder and admire what I have already collected. I've already gotten more joy out of this collection in 4 months than I did in the 2+ years when I was working on the 1953 set.

So, if anyone actually read through this, thanks for your time. I will be adding more pictures later, and periodic (monthly maybe?) updates to my overall progress. Eventually, I will work out a way to make a video of my flipping through the binder, page by page, but that will have to wait until I have a way to film it properly, and until the binder is more heavily populated.

[skelly423]

Thank you for sharing. I think you've touched on something I've recently experienced with my own collection, but had never been able to articulate. I've been fortunate to buy some really nice cards, but they sit in boxes or drawers and seldom see the light of day. I don't feel the strong connection I should feel to some very special pieces, and I lack the motivation to complete simple projects that I should really enjoy.

I've recently dabbled in some T206 commons, and found that I really enjoy being able to handle them without worrying about destroying thousands of dollars in value. They're visible, available, and I am interacting with them daily; I've been much happier with this than any set I've worked on in years.

[stutor]

Great post! I really enjoyed reading through your thought process. I, too, collect exclusively t206. Most of my cards are slabbed so I understand the frustration of focusing on the spreadsheet more than the cards themselves. For this reason, I started a secondary binder project a few months back. I haven’t made a ton of headway yet, but I’ve found that I genuinely enjoy flipping through the pages and enjoying the cards. Thank you for sharing and good luck with your project!!!!

[Casey2296]

Very nice post and good luck on your journey. Flickr is a great way to scan, upload and view your entire collection and share it with others.

[brianclat11]

That is a great story about collecting and how that vision sometimes changes. I look forward to reading future updates to this post. Thanks for sharing!

[Pat R]

Nice post James I enjoyed reading it. I'm guessing by your avatar that Bowerman is one of your favorites what are some of your other favorite portraits?

[Cmvorce]

Great post! I put my T206s (and my 50s Topps sets) in lighthouse binders too. I love them.

[53toppscollector]

Yeah I love the Bowerman image because of the yellowish green background, there aren't a ton of yellowish green background portraits, I really like that image.

A few of my other favs

Krause - Because he was my first.

Hal Chase Pink - The pink background is distinct, and he looks so innocent in his portrait pose

Doyle

Huggins - his portrait always reminds me of Alfred E Neuman for some reason, lol

Joss - Yellow background, and hes an all time great.

Lajoie - Yellow...I love the yellow

Lipe - Like his cap, a lot of the Southern League portraits are among my favs

Mattern - Like how the red on his uniform contrasts with the green background

O'Leary - I like the pose

Overall - The gradient orange background is lovely

Revelle - I love the background color

Ryan - the light blue background and his rosy cheeks

Street - The gradient green background is beautiful

Walsh - I like the blueish green background and his dark blue jersey pops nicely

Cy Young - A classic image

[skelly423]

Originally Posted by 53toppscollector

Yeah I love the Bowerman image because of the yellowish green background, there aren't a ton of yellowish green background portraits, I really like that image.

I'm sure it's already on your radar, but you owe it to yourself to grab a Bill Donovan portrait for the same reason. It's just electric in person

[Dead-Ball-Hitter]

I do the same thing - lock all the valuable cards in a large sturdy fire safe or safety deposit box, never look at them, and get bored. Similarly, I spend most of my time in an Excel spreadsheet or Access database crunching numbers like: current value vs. price paid, length of ownership vs. change in value, creating "hot & cold" lists based on price fluctuation, etc, etc. Its the geeky thing to do, but is enjoyable.

One thing that has helped is I always take clear pictures of each item, so I do spend some time reviewing the photo's and smiling!

[53toppscollector]

Originally Posted by skelly423

I'm sure it's already on your radar, but you owe it to yourself to grab a Bill Donovan portrait for the same reason. It's just electric in person

Yep. I was pretty disappointed losing out on the Donovan Sovereign 150 over the weekend. It was at like $80 with 10 seconds left, I bid, and then it boomed to almost $400. Really wanted that one. I have 2 nice SweetCaps so far, including the tougher 350/25.

[53toppscollector]

(edited)

[53toppscollector]

I thought it would be interesting to bring this thread back almost 8 months after starting it, as my collecting interest in the T206 set has changed quite a bit. When I started this thread, I outlined my plan to collect all of the T206 portraits in as many backs as I could find.

At some point a few months after I started this thread, I was browsing through ebay listings and I think it was the Evers Yellow Sky card just hit my eye differently, and I thought.....its kind of silly to not try and actually put together a 520 set. Collecting 1300 portrait front/back combos was an insanely tall order, what is stopping me from just collecting a 520 set and then expanding on it after that? I went through a few different ideas in my head, trying to figure out how to approach things and what made the most sense.

I ultimately reconfigured my collecting approach to have 1 main T206 project, and within that project, 4 smaller projects (for now)

My main goal now is to put together a 520 set. Within that goal, I want to have each of the 520 subjects containing a non Piedmont/SweetCap back. I'm still avoiding the Carolina Brights/Drum/Broadleaf/Lenox/Uzit/Hindu backs because they are just so cost prohibitive right now, but in my research I've obviously come to realize that I can still add off backs that have 10 or fewer graded copies between PSA/SGC like American Beauty, Old Mill and Sovereign to add rarity to my set without needing to spend $10,000 on a Drum back. So far, I have 255/520, and I have 91/520 with an off back. Making solid progress, despite the big increases in raw, low grade commons in the last year. With this approach, I also give myself plenty of time to upgrade each card. For example, I have Abbott in a Sovereign 350 back. That back is the most plentiful of his non-ultra rare backs. It is still an off back and suits me for now, but eventually, if I can add swap out the Sov350 back for an American Beauty back or an EPDG, I will definitely do it. Incremental upgrades will be possible forever for the 520 set.

My 2nd minor goal is to assemble the full set of 48 Southern Leaguers with OMSL backs. I have 29/48, so I am making great progress there, and I already have a bunch of the really tough ones in Persons, Ryan, Carlos Smith, and Bill Hart.

Goals 3 and 4 are related: I am assembling the 34 card SweetCap 150/649 OP and 109 card SweetCap 350/460 Factory 42 OP subsets. I have a ways to go on both of those, but I really love the overprints and think they look really cool in the binder.

I have reorganized and divided up my T206 binder (Lighthouse binders really are wonderful), to put the 74 Hall of Famers first, then the 48 Southern Leaguers, then the two OP subsets, and then the remaining cards for the 520 in alphabetical order.

The most important thing, in all of this, is that I love taking my binder off the shelf and paging through it, I love getting in a new card and putting it in the binder, and I love spending hours looking through my spreadsheet, going through pages of ebay listings, and refreshing the BST forum here looking for deals. Having a main goal (getting to 520) and having a bunch of smaller related projects keeps this interesting to me. And knowing that I can change my mind at some point, as I've already done multiple times, and still find new ways to enjoy this set is what makes it so much fun for me.

I'll check back 8 months from now and either be close to 520, or I will have changed my entire project again. Either way, I know that I will be having a blast collecting this set in some shape or form.

[Zach Wheat]

Interesting keep us posted on your progress.

[53toppscollector]

I thought it might be interesting to post here again and add the last chapter, for now, to this adventure. The T206 set still fascinates me for so many reasons, and I will probably be back to it in some form in the future, but I reached a point where I just kind of felt paralyzed with the set. I believe that the high point, I had close to 375 cards toward the complete set, with lots of off backs. But it started to honestly feel like a slog. I found myself paying $35-40 for beat up commons, putting them in the binder, and then looking at my spreadsheet and seeing I still needed like 100 more of those commons. I watched the prices of Cobbs continue to creep up, and reminded myself I still needed all 4 of them, along with some of the other very expensive cards like the Cy Young Portrait, WaJo portrait, etc. I started with a goal of 520, then had conversations with myself like "am I really going to spend $8000 on a Demmitt STL?"...and then I started to negotiate down to 518, and then I started to wonder what the ultimate goal was.

About 7 months ago, I completed the Old Mill SL back run, 48/48, and it felt like a massive accomplishment, but it was really the only accomplishment I felt when collecting the T206s. I had minor moments of joy, where I'd find a really great deal on a HoF with an off back, but ultimately it just felt like a mountain I wasn't going to be able to climb. I mean, that is why they call it the monster, right?

I've thought about other possibilities, like just collecting the HoFs with an off back, but again, the prices on some of those cards are just tough to stomach, given how many there are to collect. I've considered just doing a pure back run, one of each back/factory, so I could have a small collection, with a few really hard/expensive backs. Ultimately, I will probably end up doing that, picking my favorite pose/front for each of the backs, and grabbing a nice copy. But that is on the back burner now, with other projects brewing.

Ultimately, the coolest part of this set is just how expansive and interesting it is. I've collected a TON of data on the set, and I have a lot more I want to do, including eventually revisiting my SweetCap census project, which had to be shelved for a while. This closes the T206 chapter of my collecting. For now.

[Kevin]

I need to be 40 instead of 50 right now. 300+ with no plan other than collecting all 520+.

Thanks for posting🙃

[3-2-count]

James, following your thread has been a fun ride.

Keep on truck’ in. I love this set too….

[Johnny T]

James,

Well I just read through all of your posts from the beginning and it was quite the ride. I too have quite a few higher end vinage sets that are all slabbed, but you're right...I don't look at them much because they are slabbed. My 1950, 51, and 52 Bowman sets are awesome, but they sit in the box. Same for my 35 and 38 Goudey sets.

Conversely, my 33 Goudey, 34-36 Diamond Stars, 40 & 41 Play Ball, 48 Bowman, and 53, 55, 57, 59 and 60 Topps sets are in binders and I look at them all of the time. My really high end cards and favorite cards that are slabbed are in curio cabinets (about 125 separate cards) and I look at them almost every day. My office is in my basement so no real danger of light ruining them (I think...lol). Anyway, if you can't enjoy them, what's the point???

That brings my to my T206 journey which started a year ago. I bought a collection from a friend of a friend who inherited about 110 of them from their uncle. Not in great shape...all were raw and in poor to good condition...mostly poor. But I loved handling them and I was immediately hooked. I did send a few for grading because they were some of the higher end cards...Cobb, Matty, Johnson, Young, etc...the rest I kept raw and in a binder. I was happy reading your journey until the last post, where the project is on hold....and obviously you're selling some because I've bought a few from you already on B/S/T. I too keep a limit of $35 for commons and I'm currently at 338 out of the 520. I didn't complicate things yet by worrying about backs, just getting to 520 and the backs are the backs...for now. With almost all of the HOF'ers done, with the exception of 3 Cobbs and 1 Young, I'm hoping I don't fall victim to the same decision to pack it up.

For now, I love following Leon's weekly T206 auctions (even won a few) and lately dabbling in B/S/T. Hoping I stick with it as I'm really done with almost all of the other sets I ever wanted to go after...I'm hoping this one keeps the chase going for some time.

JT

[RCFire82]

Sorry to see you go James! I can totally relate to the on-again, off-again feelings towards the monster. I've been in those positions a couple times on my current set build endeavor. Shooting for all off-backs, a marathon mentality has definitely been required.

[Luke]

I can relate. I was about 250 cards in to a set when I felt the same. Just seemed too daunting. What I did was I sold all the common backs and started collecting mid-tier and rare backs, with no rules other than I had to love every single card in the collection.

[ty_cobb]

probably my highest run at the 3 times I tried to collect the T206 set was just under 300 subjects. Its easy for me to get distracted as I do collect the other ATC brands/backs, and when I have to get a T213 or T215 , obviously there's less budget left to do T206. Ive tried on the second attempt to do mostly HoF or rare backs, and life got in the way. I dont think its even do-able to recreate the collection I had. But I dont need to stress about it, or view the set that way. I'm doing a 3rd attempt , locating those cards I never did have before , or that have a good look for the grade. Enjoy the Ride, don't overthink the obstacles

[3-2-count]

Originally Posted by Luke

no rules other than I had to love every single card in the collection.

This ^^^^

[MR RAREBACK]

I understand what your going through, I thought I could finish a brown hindu set, but they have went up a lot. Now I just keep buying less common backs and rare hope I get to 520 someday but I don’t keep track.
It will be a life long journey

[53toppscollector]

I appreciate everyone's comments.

The funny thing is, I think my ORIGINAL plan, to only collect off backs (except the ultra rare backs) for only portraits was the plan I should have stuck to. When I pivoted and started trying for a 520, I think that was where I kind of got stuck in the mud. Collecting 178 portraits is a lot more realistic than collecting 520 cards, and a lot of the big HoFs still have portraits. And the portraits were always my fav cards in the set, hands down.

If/when I return to T206 for a third act, it will likely be a reprise of Act One.

For those of you still plugging along toward 520, or those who have already gotten there, I tip my cap to you.

[Lunker21]

Greetings all!
I too was worried as I started collecting... how to see, touch, stay connected to these tiny pieces of art?
...to find a way to connect to the worn nature of these beauties... and the fact that no two, even same player w same back, can ever be 'the same'... so I've spent months trying to find a way to 'see' my collection.
I created this bespoke display system for raw cards. I fabricate holders similar to SGC/PSA slabs, but thick so they can stand on their own... and both sides are visible, and can be made for multiple cards..but are openable... changeable...can be switched out at your leisure...
(I have spent so much time cracking cases to be able to hold, see, display!!)
...thinking team collections... or I really wanted the Cubs infield in 'one place'...

Please see the attached... I have created a general selection... and can custom fabricate for specific desires... to hold a card and signature for example....
As I create ideas I add them to my display site... www.martimar-cards.com... please check it out and would love any feedback.
If anyone is interested in any of these, I can sell them ppff cheaper than the website.. usually the singles for $25...
PM for any questions... I've sold a few and for the buyers they seem to really embody the idea I was looking for!
Great thread... Thanks all!
Craig Martin

[Pat R]

Good luck on your next T206 adventure James. It's said all the time that there are so many ways to collect T206's. I've been collecting them for over 20 years and I have never considered or tried to collect a complete set but one day I may decide to give it a go.

My favorite t206's to collect are the ones that give us an idea of how they were printed.

Plate scratches

A-B Sheet Lower Scratch Part 2 - Copy (2).jpg Sheckard-Goode - Copy.jpg

Sheet 3 - Copy.jpg

Seymour _5_ - Copy.jpg

Seymour [5] - Copy (2).jpg

Two names

img687 - Copy.jpg

Ghosts

Demmitt-McAleese.jpg

Moran-Mitchell.jpg


Factory 30 sheet numbers all print group 1 150/350 subjects

Factory Sheet number group - Copy (2).jpg

Print flaws

img698.jpg

img699.jpg

Print flaws caused by debris during the printing process

img416 - Copy.jpg

img415 - Copy.jpg

Willett.jpg

Print flaws that exclude players from being on the same sheet together

img700.jpg

[Ronnie73]

James, I had never seen this post before, so I read it from the beginning. At first, I felt like I was reading something I typed myself. Lots of similarities and also the same negativities. I still purchase a card every couple months if I feel it's a really good deal. Otherwise, I'm in a holding pattern. Mainly because of prices. My cards stay in boxes and I reference only my spreadsheet. I don't really enjoy my cards anymore, unless I'm pulling one to share a scan of. When it was a few boxes, I could still kind of enjoy them. But once I had to start stacking boxes, it got more difficult to enjoy them. Even with the spreadsheet, I still don't realize what I have. When pulling a card to scan it and share it for a topic either here or on Facebook, I see other cards I own, and I'm suprised that I own them, even though they are on the spreadsheet. Luckily I learned to focus early on. I wish it was earlier, but I can't be picky. We all learn important lessons along the way.

Luke did an online interview of me, when I was just a few years into the set. I like to think that some of my answers to Luke's questions, inspired him to change up his collecting strategy.

Here is the interview link, if anyone is interested in reading it.

Collecting a T206 Master Set with Ron Kornacki
https://www.thatt206life.com/2018/02...-ron-kornacki/

Here's another article on Luke's page.

Ron Kornacki Found a T206 Jack Powell with Blue Old Mill Back… And I Think its Legit
https://www.thatt206life.com/2019/02...ink-its-legit/

[53toppscollector]

One interesting thing is that I think this board was both a huge help and a hinderance to my T206 attempt. It was a huge help because I learned a lot of important information here, and was able to pick up lots of cool cards on the BST board. It was a hinderance because I log in here and browse the forum and see such an incredible diversity in collections, cool cards being posted, sets being discussed that I'd never heard of, rare postcards and supplements, and my brain short-circuits and I think "damn, I want to collect that stuff too!" and then I remember I don't have an unlimited hobby budget, and I start negotiating with myself about how and why I should sell X to buy Y.