Near Sets vs Starter Sets
 

Thought this would be appropriate to post on the postwar side.. Anybody else find that when they purchase near sets of 80 to 90 percent of the set, there is a good possibility of you sticking with it and completing the set? But starter sets seemed to be abandoned?

I've noticed the last handful of times I've purchased starter sets, let's say about 20 to 30 percent of the cards, I've chipped away at it, but in the end, gave up and sold or traded off what I was working on. But, when I purchased near sets, that are almost complete, I went right to the end to complete it.

I think the giving up happens more often when it's a large set as well.

I suppose the benefit of a starter set, is you can work away at it and most of the set, is customized to your liking.

IMO, this depends on the set's size. With my regular Topps sets (containing mostly 500-700+ cards) that I have built, I have found that near sets gave me a much better chance of finishing. However with smaller sets, 300 cards or less, a starter set worked just as well.

Likely because when you start with 80% of a 600 card set you still need 120 cards to complete. If you begin a 200 card set with a "starter" set/lot containing 40% of the set, you need the same 120 cards to complete. It is a lot easier to find 120 cards for a set versus 300-400, no matter it's size.

I don't have a problem finishing either. I more regret just not buying a complete set and save the ton of cash it takes to build a set. Even if you find the cards at a decent price all that shipping adds up real fast.

As an example I am 8 cards from a complete 55 Bowman set. I received 1/3 of the set including most of the star players for free from a very nice fellow member. I have made some amazing purchases of small to medium lots from fellow members. Even with that I still have more into the set than if I just bought a complete set in similar condition. On the upside it has been fun putting it together.

This!!
I have found that I really enjoy getting a nice lot or a set minus the stars and then I go and buy the specific star card that I like - as I find that the stars are normally 1-2 grades below the rest of the set when I buy it complete and I have to upgrade anyway.

My '56 Topps set was put together with a lot and then card by card. I am way deeper into it than if I bought a mid to high grade complete from REA, for example, but I really liked putting it together and it is my pride and joy - the one that I get out of the safe most often to look at because nearly every card has a story of how I got it. However, heaven help me if I ever need to move it because I will take a serious bath...

Feeling stupid.... what is REA?

Robert Edward Auctions http://www.robertedwardauctions.com/

Nice to hear how you guys build your near or partial sets!

I agree to what's being said here, it is more enjoyable piecing together a set rather then buy it complete, even though it would cost more when it is all said and done.

[s QUOTE=jasonc;1696599]Nice to hear how you guys build your near or partial sets!

I agree to what's being said here, it is more enjoyable piecing together a set rather then buy it complete, even though it would cost more when it is all said and done.[/QUOTE]

Jason,

That is the rub of being a set collector, I suppose. I really enjoy doing it and do not worry much about the resale value. It is simply a fun hobby for me. To that end, while I sometimes buy a lot of cards, I like having total control of each and every card that goes into my sets and tend to build sets card by card. This makes it more expensive, but there are dealers who give little bulk discounts, free shipping, etc. These days I am mostly building 1960s football sets which are smaller and less expensive relative to baseball.

I have a couple of monstrous Japanese sets I've been putting together for several years now, both of which I started on after buying small "starter sets". Both of them were issued by Calbee, a potato chip maker which distributes its cards 1 at a time in bags of potato chips, making the sets extremely hard to put together.

The first is the 1987 Calbee, which is 387 cards. I started off with a 60 card lot, about 15% of the set. After years of tracking them down I am just 31 shy of finishing the set (92% there). Its been a labor of love.

The more ambitious project is the 1975-76 Calbee set, which has almost 1400 cards including a lot of short printed ones, which probably makes it the biggest regular baseball card set ever issued (?). I started that one with a 50 card lot and after years of tracking them down now have a little over 500, which still puts me less than half way there. Even with me actively seeking them out this could literally take me the rest of my life to complete.

I think if I had bought a "near set" of either of these (if they were available, I think there are probably only a handful of people who have complete sets of these out there and they never sell them) I would have just put it on the shelf and said "close enough!" Getting them in much smaller numbers created a challenge for me that gave me some incentive to actually try and put them together.

From childhood, I had about 300 of the ’73 set with no high numbers. I figured by the time I finished it it would be cheaper just to buy the whole set. So I did - it’s not that pricey of a set anyway. Now that I have it, I realize I have no emotional connection to it. I never look at it. It just sits. It’s nice to own, but I might as well have bought a savings bond. Blah. Never again.

The only way I would buy a complete set is if it was maybe 50% near mint (or whatever condition I was aiming for) and then try to upgrade the other half. In fact, I wonder if that’s the way to go - seems like the best bang for the buck. The only problem is you need a big chunk of change to start with.