[Footballdude]

I am also a card collector with a stamp collecting background. Errors and variations have been a part of the stamp world since stamp collecting started over 150 years ago. There are dealers and collectors who specialize in this sort of thing and spend their lifetimes pursuing them. Some of them wind up writing books, and other reference works, detailing them.

So far I haven't seen card collecting get quite as involved as stamps, but I do see it slowly changing in that direction, which I think is awesome.

I see nothing wrong with adding interesting varieties of cards, errors, miscuts, whatever to a collection, to spice it up. I actually find the whole printing process fascinating and would, if I had the money, buy nothing but pre-production items like proofs, uncut sheets, original photos, etc.. These tell the story of how a card set was produced. The errors and variations are a part of that card sets' history.

True, Topps' quality control left something to be desired back in the day, but I am pretty sure they weren't too concerned with future collectors opinions of what they should be discarding. I am glad the let get by everything they did. If the quality then was as nice and uniform as it is now, it would really make them boring to collect, which is one reason why I don't collect modern cards.

Everyone can collect what they like, how they like, and spend what they want. That's what makes a hobby like this interesting, because there is no right or wrong way to collect. There is room for everyone.

Cards, in any form, have no real value other than what someone is willing to pay, period.