[novakjr]

Well, the approach to buying a graded set is gonna be completely different than raw. You'll probably find less lots.. Unless you get them graded yourself. If you're gonna document the entire process, it might be interesting to document the process of picking out the high grade cards, whether it be on ebay or this board or shows, with before and after photos of the cards. Be sure to document any upgrades and downgrades. Sometimes downgrades are necessary to complete a high grade set. Say you've got a 9 of a very desirable card, but may be willing to sell and downgrade to an 8, in order to fund other cards. Or the instance of trading said 9 to someone in exchange for an 8 of the same card, plus others. My dad used that last maneuver a couple of times while building his '54 Bowman football. Also, as you do this, eye appeal will play a factor, beyond the numbers. All 8's are not the same(same goes for every number). Sometimes, you may just not be happy with a certain card, and move it, to exchange for a better looking card of the same grade(sometimes even lower)..That's about all I can think of for right now.

Keep in mind the grade numbers I used are arbitrary, and can be swapped with any desired grade.

Now to the set selection. I've noticed a few recommendations of the '53 Topps. It's a nice set. '53 Bowman Color would be a nice choice as well, which could possibly lead to a larger set of the original Bowman run('48-'55), and would be far more realistic and affordable than doing the same with a Topps run..