Collecting sets you can't complete

[bleeckerstreetcards]

Do y'all also go after sets that are or effectively are "uncompleteable" either because of some extreme scarcity, huge values, or otherwise?

I am chasing the 1948 Leaf set in a way that doesn't seem like it can ever be "complete" and wondering how others view this conundrum. Is it nice to have an infinite hunt or unsatisfying to never say job done? Any input or examples is appreciated.

For details on mine, I am going after the 98 cards in the 1948/1949 Leaf set all with IP autos, but I don't think more than ~65 of those 98 have ever been signed. So, I don't really know when I'll ever be "done" with this, which is odd.

[G1911]

If it's because of a great scarcity, that just makes it a fun and long hunt, and if I don't finish, it's still a fun chase.

If it's because of autographs that don't exist or cards that are just difficult because they are expensive and pumped by investors, that's not fun.

Have a blast building my boxing sets that take years and years. Took me 20 years to build my favorite set, T220 Silver, because of the 2 extreme rarities, but that was a fun time. Leaf baseballs, 1952 Topps, a bit less fun because the challenge is a challenge of $$$, not effort, the hunt, diligence. I just accumulate cards I don't have in those issues and enjoy it, without any serious attempt to complete because I'm just not willing to pay that much money for commonly found cards.

[Casey2296]

I'm a completionist so I have to be careful with set collecting, it has to be a set I know is a challenge but obtainable with the resources I have.

[Exhibitman]

If you collect certain things, like boxing as Greg noted, or many nonsports sets, foreign sets, etc., defining a set can be a challenge and for all intents and purposes, finishing a set can be impossible. You just accept that it will never be completed and you do the best you can.

One of my favorites is the H815 and related Adam Hats premiums (whether they should all be H815 or H-Unc. and H815 is an academic debate among cataloguers). They were made for store displays in Adam Hats stores and are legitimately a rare issue. No way to know how many there are or who is in them. I'm a handful away from the complete known sports checklist, but they are nearly all baseball (I need Grove, Hubbell, McGraw and boxers Maxie Rosenbloom and Dave Castilloux) so no realistic chance of finding them except by luck. Uncatalogued ones pop up from time to time. Here's the Jack Dempsey and the Raging Bull, Jake LaMotta:

[commishbob]

Originally Posted by Casey2296

I'm a completionist so I have to be careful with set collecting, it has to be a set I know is a challenge but obtainable with the resources I have.

This exactly for me. When I decided to put together a run of Topps sets I chose to go back as far as 1957. The earlier sets had cards I knew were expensive to the point I wouldn't want to chase them.

[ALR-bishop]

Have ultimately given up on these sets and settled for one or two examples

Topps 1955 Stamps
Topps 1961 Dice
Topps 1966 Punch Outs ( not 67s)
Topps 1968 Discs...have 12 ( I do have the two 67 sets )
Topps 1970 Cloth

Have not been able to get even one of these

Topps 1971 Rookie Artists Proofs

Need one 67 Stand Up and two 55 Hocus Focus to finish those, and 3 of the 1971 Topps Winners. And time is running out

Also need 3 1950 Bowman no copyright cards and a bunch of the 1923 Fleer cards ( but do have Ruth)

[Republicaninmass]

Originally Posted by bleeckerstreetcards

Do y'all also go after sets that are or effectively are "uncompleteable" either because of some extreme scarcity, huge values, or otherwise?

I am chasing the 1948 Leaf set in a way that doesn't seem like it can ever be "complete" and wondering how others view this conundrum. Is it nice to have an infinite hunt or unsatisfying to never say job done? Any input or examples is appreciated.

For details on mine, I am going after the 98 cards in the 1948/1949 Leaf set all with IP autos, but I don't think more than ~65 of those 98 have ever been signed. So, I don't really know when I'll ever be "done" with this, which is odd.

Thought the same with my signed 52 topps set. Prices just got too nuts for me after 383/407. Still a handful not graded, likely they do exist.

48 leaf, aside from Ruth, all could exist. You have to keep that attitude

[bks14sr]

I got into the 48 Leaf set and had to pull the plug on that effort. Got as far as the Jackie, about 30 commons and a hand full of SPs. Just could no longer justify chasing the Paige or other stars and SPs.

Decided to send those and my mid grade 54 Topps set to REA for the fall auction. Did this to try having a better shot at chasing a 52T Mantle and Robinson, as I don’t want to be defeated on my 52 set

[Cliff Bowman]

It will be impossible for me to complete the 1966 and 1967 Pro’s Pizza box lids sets but I get one whenever possible.

[bb66]

Going to be impossible for me to finish my signed 1966 Topps baseball set 623/639.I knew this when I started. This includes all league leader and rookie star cards. There are three more I can pickup but that will about do it. That will leave thirteen out of my price range at least for the near future! I have never seen the Dick Ellsworth #447 card signed since it actually pictures Ken Hubbs.He would never sign it.It is rumored he signed a few on the back of that card.Never seen #578 Chi Chi Olivo signed. Only seen one #578 Roberto Pena. There should be more of him.Cesar Tovar #563 has eluded me,too . I have seen 3-4 but the price was sky high!Can't find a George Brunet #393. A few of him on e-bay and around --but no 1966 at least now.The others I need are just too expensive for me right now!!!However, it has been a lot of fun--no regrets.

[darkhorse9]

I'm a set collector, so completing a set is the only reason I even start a set.

I'm only five cards away from completing my 1949 Bowman set. The Jackie Robinson and Satchel Paige are simply out of my budget for now. I'll be pausing that effort and moving on. I doubt I'll ever complete it. This one frustrates me, but it's the only Bowman set I haven't completed.

Other sets simply aren't worth completing even if I can. I'm thinking the 1960 Leaf set. The second series cards are overpriced and the set isn't a high demand one anyway. I'll stick with series one on that one.

I actually tried to complete a Salutation Exhibit set with all the variations. I got within eight cards of it and realized completing it wasn't important since no one actually collected that as a set anyway. The individuals were greater than the sum. So I went ahead and broke it up to work on other ventures.

[Exhibitman]

1968 Atlantic Oil contest cards. There are 40 base cards and ten prize-winners (well, 11 if you count a redemption card that could be traded for a stats booklet at the gas station). Here is the redemption card:



It is tough but not rare.

I've seen a handful of winner cards in 30+ years of chasing the set, nearly all of which were the $1 winners Osteen and Wilson. The only higher $ prize I found was this one, which is for the 2nd highest prize:



But I keep looking...

[David W]

I was doing the post cereal cards for a while, but just got tired of chasing the short prints. While , not impossible. I just don’t feel like paying hundreds of dollars for common players I could care less about.

And I’ve got a lot of the Atlantic oil cards, but like Adam said, I just got tired of chasing cards that probably don’t exist or that there’s only one or two out there

[raulus]

I think a lot of this comes down to personal temperament and whether you can be at peace with being "mostly" done, even if you might never be completely done.

Most of my player master set registries are nearly done, but might never really be done, due to a few pieces that may never become available to me. Or if they do come up, the potential seller might decide to only part with it for six figures, which is unlikely to work for me. Certainly my Master Mays set could come down to that, with 2 pieces left to find.

https://www.psacard.com/psasetregist...timeset/290520

I'm also just a few cards away from completing some other very difficult sets, realizing that I might never get there, either due to the last pieces never being available, or I might just not be willing to spend the serious cash required to land the final pieces, including:

1971 Bazooka Numbered (46/48)
1973 Topps Comics (23/24)
1954 Stahl-Meyer (11/12)
1953-1954 Briggs Meats (35/40)

For that matter, my quest to collect the full set of 1963 Jell-O Complete Boxes is almost certainly futile, particularly since I only have 6 of 200, and progress is glacial at best.

But in every case, I'm having plenty of fun collecting these sets, even knowing that my odds of actually getting to 100% aren't very good. Confession: I'm also not someone who lives and dies by getting stuff 100% done. I'm usually pretty okay with getting most things 90-99% done, moving the goal posts, and calling it done.

Why let perfection be the enemy of pretty darn good?

[Bigdaddy]

Originally Posted by raulus

But in every case, I'm having plenty of fun collecting these sets, even knowing that my odds of actually getting to 100% aren't very good. Confession: I'm also not someone who lives and dies by getting stuff 100% done. I'm usually pretty okay with getting most things 90-99% done, moving the goal posts, and calling it done.

Why let perfection be the enemy of pretty darn good?

I agree. Part of me likes to wrap things up and put a bow on it, but when the cost of the bow becomes too much, I'm fine with 'pretty darn good'.

For example, I'm collecting the 1964 Topps Giants signed set. Right now at 58/60 and missing only Clemente and Dick Ferrell. We all know about Clemente autos and the Ferrell is actually very tough as he moved to England shortly after retiring and died at an early age, making his cards pretty scarce - and expensive. At least more than I'd be willing to pay for a common autograph. His main issue Topps autographed cards are actually reasonable.

So I'm good at 58/60 and enjoy the set -2.

[jchcollins]

At some point about 5 years ago, for whatever reason I thought it would be a good idea to go after the full 1967 Topps set. Though I have most of the big names, including those two very popular high numbered rookie cards - for whatever reason I’ve lost steam now. The low number commons are easy enough to pickup, but for the rest of the true single print high numbers, it seems silly to pay north of $50 for mid-to-low grade copies of players like Cookie Rojas. Even stars of a lower tier, not HOF (Norm Cash, Rocky Colavito…) can be $100 and up easily.

[steve B]

For me most sets have become too expensive to be finishable.
I don't need many 76 Topps, and they're all inexpensive.
73 may be doable too, as I started really collecting late in the year, so I have most of the high numbers.

Not sure about 70-72, haven't checked in a while.

Older gets out of hand pretty quickly.

I sort of collect 48 Leaf, but more in the collecting different varieties and color differences. No way I'm getting even one of some cards anymore, and most have 3-4 versions maybe more.

What I've done for that set is to collect it virtually. As I find "new" ones, I save the pics and add them to a spreadsheet I made.
Even then, I'm not as close as you might think.

Some of what I collect is hard more because nobody else even cares. Crazy production differences in Junkwax era sets, that generally affect either the whole set, or a major portion of it.

[Exhibitman]

Rather than doing big sets and getting pissed at missing SSPs or paying $$$ for commons, I prefer to collect oddball Aaron cards.

[Jwkeen]

I never go after sets that I feel I can’t complete, for one reason or another. However, I have recently decided to make an exception, and pursue one that I will likely never complete. This is due to my love for 30s gum sets, as I want pretty much all of these, so I have started a George C Miller set. I know that there is very little chance of ever owning the Ivy Andrews card, and while the set is considered complete without it, that is a hard fact for me to accept. There is no guarantee that I will even be able to acquire all 31 of the other cards. These don’t come up very often. I am prepared to be in for the long haul on this one, and see how far I can get.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by Jwkeen

I never go after sets that I feel I can’t complete, for one reason or another. However, I have recently decided to make an exception, and pursue one that I will likely never complete. This is due to my love for 30s gum sets, as I want pretty much all of these, so I have started a George C Miller set. I know that there is very little chance of ever owning the Ivy Andrews card, and while the set is considered complete without it, that is a hard fact for me to accept. There is no guarantee that I will even be able to acquire all 31 of the other cards. These don’t come up very often. I am prepared to be in for the long haul on this one, and see how far I can get.

I'm at 8 beaters after 40 years. Not that I've been at all focused on that set.
It's one of my favorite sets.

The last one I got years ago was on ebay simply described as "old baseball card"

[Seven]

Passively, through the years, I've started work on a 1952 Topps set, that will most likely never be completed. Quite a number of cards were purchased right before COVID, but since the pandemic it has made the high numbers virtually impossible. I'm also never going to prioritize one of the high numbers, over my main collecting interest, which is Mickey Mantle.

I suppose one day, when I'm much older, I might be able to finish it, but it's a pipe dream at best. Here's to hoping.

[RayBShotz]

Originally Posted by darkhorse9

I'm a set collector, so completing a set is the only reason I even start a set.

I'm only five cards away from completing my 1949 Bowman set. The Jackie Robinson and Satchel Paige are simply out of my budget for now. I'll be pausing that effort and moving on. I doubt I'll ever complete it. This one frustrates me, but it's the only Bowman set I haven't completed.

I feel your pain.
Actually affording to complete some sets has risen as a problem with the escalation of the major HOF'ers over the last handful of years.
RayB

[doug.goodman]

I put together complete sets of all the Topps baseball sets from 1948 thru 1992 including variations and insert sets. I started with my dad buying me packs in 1972 or so, graduated to buying my own packs, and eventually started hitting dozens, if not hundreds of card stores across the country on my travels (back when every town had at least one). When I got to a point where the only cards I was missing were too expensive for the lovely wife to approve the purchase (yes, I asked) like the Mantle 1952 FTC variations, or "impossible" like the dice game cards, I sold the entire thing and now I'm working on completing the m113 and m114 sets.

Doug "call me crazy" Goodman

[ALR-bishop]

Admit it Doug, you just could not keep up with all the new variants

[irv]

With just 2 cards remaining to complete my 52 Topps set, I highly doubt that it will ever happen? Purchasing a Hoyt Wilhelm is one thing but trying to land an acceptable copy of Eddie Mathews is another.

About 35+ yrs ago now my father gave me 148 of them, and since 2016 I have amassed 257 (not counting dupe black backs and error cards) of them to get me down to those 2 remaining.

Hindsight being what it is, if I could got back and change how I collected those 257, I certainly would start at the high numbers first instead of going after the commons like I did.
With the current exchange rate at roughly 40% now and crazy shipping fees, (which also seem to be the norm now) my dream of ever owning them and completing my set gets more bleaker everyday. My dad is now 85 and I was trying hard to complete the set for him, and although, thankfully, he is still in good health, I know my days are numbered of ever doing so.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by irv

With just 2 cards remaining to complete my 52 Topps set, I highly doubt that it will ever happen? Purchasing a Hoyt Wilhelm is one thing but trying to land an acceptable copy of Eddie Mathews is another.

About 35+ yrs ago now my father gave me 148 of them, and since 2016 I have amassed 257 (not counting dupe black backs and error cards) of them to get me down to those 2 remaining.

Hindsight being what it is, if I could got back and change how I collected those 257, I certainly would start at the high numbers first instead of going after the commons like I did.
With the current exchange rate at roughly 40% now and crazy shipping fees, (which also seem to be the norm now) my dream of ever owning them and completing my set gets more bleaker everyday. My dad is now 85 and I was trying hard to complete the set for him, and although, thankfully, he is still in good health, I know my days are numbered of ever doing so.

I really hope you land a nice Eddie sometime.

[ALR-bishop]

Dale— pick up a couple of reprints as fillers until you can snag the last two

[Exhibitman]

I am short a few of the big names in 1952 Topps to get where I would like the collection to be. Unless I find one in the wild, none of those cards are in the cards for me.

I tried the reprint thing. Bought the Topps reissue. Nope, not satisfied at all. They just glared at me from the binder.

[Republicaninmass]

Still wondering who couldn't have signed in the 48 leaf set aside from Ruth.

[carlsonjok]

Originally Posted by commishbob

This exactly for me. When I decided to put together a run of Topps sets I chose to go back as far as 1957. The earlier sets had cards I knew were expensive to the point I wouldn't want to chase them.

This is exactly me with regard to the main part of my collecting focus. Although my cutoff was 1955 and it probably should have been a year later. The pain I felt dishing out for the Clemente RC wasn't offset by the feeling of accomplishment I got from completing the set.

Now, with regard to my signed 1960-1963 Fleer sets, I know I will never be complete and that is okay. It isn't my primary focus and I went in with that understanding.

[Zach Wheat]

1932 Fleer Whiz Bang. It is unknown how many cards are in the complete set as only 83 cards are known, all of which were found together. There is only 1 card known of Ed Brendel (non-baseball), which makes completing the set almost impossible. In addition, there are 3 others where only 2 are known.

The other set is a complete run of 1952 mid-series gray backs of which there are 60, not including some of the variations. I am in the mid to upper 30's by card count with over a dozen duplicates.

Some gray backs seem to be super rare and have not figured out why....

[jingram058]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

If you collect certain things, like boxing as Greg noted, or many nonsports sets, foreign sets, etc., defining a set can be a challenge and for all intents and purposes, finishing a set can be impossible. You just accept that it will never be completed and you do the best you can.

One of my favorites is the H815 and related Adam Hats premiums (whether they should all be H815 or H-Unc. and H815 is an academic debate among cataloguers). They were made for store displays in Adam Hats stores and are legitimately a rare issue. No way to know how many there are or who is in them. I'm a handful away from the complete known sports checklist, but they are nearly all baseball (I need Grove, Hubbell, McGraw and boxers Maxie Rosenbloom and Dave Castilloux) so no realistic chance of finding them except by luck. Uncatalogued ones pop up from time to time. Here's the Jack Dempsey and the Raging Bull, Jake LaMotta:

As usual, I'm late to the dance. Those Adam Hats photos are awesome, sir!

[irv]

Originally Posted by ALR-bishop

Dale— pick up a couple of reprints as fillers until you can snag the last two

It's crossed my mind, Al, but like Adam, I don't think it would fill the void?
I've also looked at 53 Topps Mathews figuring if a 52 is out of the question, I may as well get the next year card but that too just doesn't sit/feel right with me and I think my happiness would just be half hearted or temporary.
I haven't thrown in the towel just yet, however, as I've read from other members here, it can take years, and then some, sometimes to complete some sets or get the cards they covet so I'll be like them and just be patient.

[ALR-bishop]

One of my “sets” is the 1951 Topps Current All Stars. I have the 8 issued cards. But there are 3 unissued cards, Stankey, Roberts and Konstanty. Only a few examples of each exist and they are among the cards I never expect to get. A board member created fantasy versions. They look the same and are the same size, but in hand the stock is completely different. I stuck them, labeled as reprints, in with my set. I like having them ��

Did something similar for the check listed but unissued 1958 Topps card for Ed Bouchee with a Bob Lemke creation