Beginner Set Building Question
 

I have been considering starting my first ever set and I have a few questions. I have seen some opinions on here that a good and fun way to complete a set is to buy a starter set to get the ball rolling as opposed to building the set card by card.

I have been looking at completed sales for the set in question (1968 Topps) and have seen that the prices vary quite a bit. Obviously, condition is the primary cause of differing prices, but several sets that appear to be the same grade (VG-EX) and will sell at different prices.

How do I know if I’m getting an OK deal? Is there a price-per-card for commons in the VG-EX grade that I should aim for? For 100+ card lots, there obviously won’t be an individual picture for every card, so how can I be sure there won’t be many cards below the advertised grade?

Thanks so much for any insight. I’m really excited about tackling my first vintage project.

If I were you I’d look for a lot that contains a Ryan, Bench, or the Tigers Team Card. Those are going to be the ones that cost the $$$. You can usually pick up a partial set with a Ryan for about what the Ryan would cost alone.

Mantle will be the 2nd highest card in the set followed by Bench. Superstars #490 will be the 4th most expensive. Mays and Clemente will be next. Tigers Team card is routinely found in NRMT around $40-50. I am currently in the final stages of upgrading a 1968 to EXMT/NRMT with only a handful (<20) of EX to replace.

When you initially started the EX set, did you buy the commons in any lots? I’m looking at some on eBay and they are listed in the $0.45/card range. Is that reasonable for the 68 set in VG-EX?

I actually bought the set complete. I would say the overall condition was EX with none above EXMT. The Ryan was EX+ (PSA 5 range, possibly 6). I paid $1300 for the set and I am not certain that it was a good price.

My current total spend on the upgrade is $1522 and nearly every card has been upgraded excluding the Ryan which will be coming soon. All HOFs have been upgraded to NRMT or better and as stated, only a handful of EXs left. The EXs that are left would be considered EXMT by some. It has kind of turned into a long term project now to end up with a "pristine" set.

You probably want to determine what grade of set you will be comfortable with and then come up with a plan. I would say that .45/ea for VGEX is decent. I usually shoot for $1-2 for EXMT/NRMT but routinely pay more depending upon the series and player. It is conceivable that you could do better than .45/ea if you find the right auction.

So here's the deal with vintage card collecting -

It grows on you - It becomes an itch that HAS to be scratched

There is no right or wrong way to do it - eventually you will find what your level of satisfaction is.

I would suggest that you simply post a request on Net 54 asking for starter lots of commons. I would think are tons of guys on here that will assist.

Then pick a key card or two and go after those individually in the grade/price that you want or have budget for. I wouldn't overly stress too much on price - pricing is very subjective and factors like perfect centering command significantly higher prices than off centered examples in the exact same grade.

This is coming from a guy that started a 1955 Topps over 20 years ago with the purchase of 40 low grade commons. Im still working on the 55's and have put together a low grade, mid grade and high grade set.

The high grade set consists of all 7s or better and Im down to needing just a couple of cards for it. (Is currently #1 set on the SGC registry)

Anyway - congrats on your decision to jump in. The hobby always needs more true collectors.

I've bought 6 sets (1970-1976) over the past 18 months. I bought the first 4 on eBay. The prices were all over the place. Sellers like Probstein123, PWCC and a 3rd one (New England Sports Cards? Name is escaping me, but they are in Boston) will have higher prices than the average private eBayer. In my experience it's difficult to accurately assess the condition of the cards in a typical eBay listing with the cards in plastic sheets. The better listings that have a breakdown of condition would make me feel more comfortable. In two of the sets I did well and didn't need to upgrade more than a handful of cards. The two other sets needed a lot of upgrades and I probably would have been better off holding out for a higher quality set.

I bought two other sets off a third party specialty auction house, not eBay. I had mixed results there too. The descriptions weren't 100% accurate either, but the prices were much cheaper and seemed more predictable than eBay (no last minute giant spikes in the final bidding minutes).

I am also looking to build a 1968 set one day. I don't see the pre-1970 sets for sale on eBay as often. My strategy this time would be to look at these 3rd party auction houses and pay close attention to the condition of the higher number cards. That is where the costs really go up. You can go on eBay now and follow some of the card sales from GregMorris as he breaks up vintage sets every day and it will give you an idea of what the commons cost.

"In my day" we were all set builders and I've seen it's become a lost pursuit over time. I'm glad to see people wanting to take on the challenge. It's well worth it. I genuinely enjoy reading the backs of the common cards more than I do admiring the Ryans, Aarons and Clementes of the sets.

Thank you everyone for your well-thought out and helpful replies!

Just do alot of research. Check eBay constantly and be patient you can get deals.

And if you go after a 72 set get one with the high numbers ...oooo weeee those are a pain to piece together for cheap.

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The most important thing Mark, is to have fun doing it