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Originally Posted by clydepepper
[SIZE="4"] My question is this: How important is legibility? I would think if you can ready the name, it's a plus...but, as players get older, their autographs change...Lord, I know mine own has reached 'chicken scratching stage.' Do you shy away from signatures of older players? Two that come to mind are Willie Mays and Warren Spahn.
Any sincere tips are appreciated.
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I’m unsure if I’ll be much help, but you offer up some good questions and it’s an interesting topic. I really only collect one player currently, but I’ve picked up quite a few other Oriole player signed items as well through the years of collecting.
How important is legibility? Very important for me in regard to autographs. Look at the old school players vs. the modern; night and day difference. I know that’s a blanket statement and I’m sure there are a few exceptions, but the large majority are less then desirable in my view. I don’t think I could collect a modern players autograph, even if I really liked their play, if they just had a scratch as an auto.
Typically a players autograph does change over time, which is understandable, so I typically try to find early examples. While I have a ton of Brooks Robinson autos a couple months ago I started an autographed run of his regular issue cards (unsure why I haven’t done this sooner) and trying to locate vintage, pen signatures. If you use the two examples you mentioned, Mays and Spahn, both have very nice autographs when you find early examples.