I like 1954 from the 50s. The 1957 is nice except the pics are dreary.

From the 1960s, I have to say the 1960 set is pretty nice, followed by 1963 and then 1967.

Shooting forward to the 1970s, I'd lean towards 1975.

'56 Topps
 

I would have to vote for the 1956 Topps set. I like the look of the cards with a portrait overlaid on an action shot. It includes one of my favorite Mantle cards as well. And only 340 cards too! Easy to collect a set....

Z Wheat

Also the Lucky Penny card (and Lucky Penny), the contest cards (especially July 19th)

Good topic! We need a radio button to vote with per decade :) :)

I love the 57's. I have just recently convinced myself that the contest cards are part of the set. I still differ on the lucky penny or the lucky penny card. Everyone else thinks they are, but I at this time am quite happy without either.

no love for 73? the oddly bad yet interesting photos....

but my fave is 67 closely followed by 71, 56 for the 50s and 83 for the 80s.

Favorites overall:
1956 10% HOFers but sucks no huge Rookies or Musial
1971 great action photos, 1st with photos on back, tough boarders good variety
1980 love to design and good mix of action and posed shots

Favorites for sentimental reasons:
1955 1st vintage set I built
1971 year of my birth
1978 1st cards I ever owned. Learned about baseball as a game from studying those cards
1981 1st pack I bought. Yes ugly set with no great RCs but I bought it with my money. No one gave it to me.


I have never attempted a 60s set and only have handfuls of examples from them so it's not that I don't like them but don't have a lot of experience with them. Like the 67 set though.

Drew

If you are going to try for a 1960s set, I recommend the 1969 Topps set. Once you get past Mantle / Ryan / Jackson, you are pretty much home free. You can also pick up those "big three" at very reasonable prices if you are patient and shop around.

1957, 1963, 1972

Vote
 

'57, '67, '75

1952 topps
 

The 1952 topps is the standard all are measured to. Set is worth more the next six sets combined. SMR on a PSA 9 is $1,748,000. The set transcends the hobby. With the dumping of surplus cards, the mystique was born. Pole 100 people outside the hobby, the 52 topps Mantle will be know to most of them. Entry level collectors know the Mantle and Mays have 1951 issues, but are not as desirable. I know I'm biased on the 1952 topps set. The artwork alone is admirable, and appealing.

My personal favorites:

1950s--1953, then 1957, although the 54 and 55 sets are starting to grow on me

1960s--1963, then 1964/1967, depending on what mood I'm in

1970s--1971, then 1979

1980s onward--whatever makes the best kindling :D

Just too bad there are so many manager, coaches and non major leaguers in the set :)

1954 love the dual photo layout and its Kalines rookie year. 1969 the first year my older brother's starting collecting (I still have most of their star cards ). 1971 love the black borders and some great action photos and next the 75 Topps minis only because it was the first year I started collecting.

1957 & 1967

This set does have a mystique unlike any other.

IMO, no matter the design, every set has a few cards that look really fabulous and a few that look just terrible. But over all, strictly based on eye appeal alone, the set where most of the cards look really good to me is 1957 Topps. In second place for me is 1975 and in third is 1978.

I like the 57 set but my experience has been there are two versions of each card, one version being much darker or muddier than the other

For me it's 1955. By far the nicest looking set color wise and also that an action shot along with the portrait was good design.

1955, 1965 and 1971.

1955, 1960, 1971 are the best to me...but I do have a secret love of the 1974 cards.

56 is an easy answer but I just love that set. I put it together card by card. 342 is the perfect number. Not too big like the 572-726 card behemoths but not too small. 10% HOFers. Last Feller card. Good mix of legends and upstarts. Great poses. Arguably the best Clemente and Mantle cards. It was the first year after the Bowman buyout so finally all the best from both set. The last of the oversized cards. Team cards for the first time.

I spent a year and a half on this set and I feel like I have every card memorized. I have sets that are more valuable but none that I love quite like ‘56

My favorite Topps is 1954. The only thing I don't like about it is no Mantle. 1956 is a close second for sure.

1956 for me. Also really like 1961 as well.

1955 and 1956

56 for sure.

It is the most beautiful set by far to me.

Another good thing about it for the budget collector is that there are no major rookies to break the bank over, just the Mantle. I love the 54 and 55 sets too, but the Aaron and Clemente rookies make them unobtainable in a condition I can live with.

Overall, 1956.

And from the '60's, 1967.

I like the 1960s since this period was my childhood and I started collecting. I will break the "rules" and list more than one set that I enjoy in the 50s and 60s.

1950s...55 and 57
1960s...63, 65, 67
1970s...none stand out

My top five.

1. 1956
2. 1955
3. 1953
4. 1960
5. 1965

1967 set is wonderful, bright vivid color. The green backs are nice, too.
1972 set as well, in action cards and a great color scheme. The Clemente card is probably the best card in the set.

Jim

1952, 1954, 1957, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1967 & 1971. Is that too many :-)

If I had to pick just one, I’d select the 1953 Topps set. I love art-based cards, and the Paige and Mays cards are probably my two favorite Topps cards. Only drawback to me is the facsimile auto on back makes some of the text hard to read. 1957 is my favorite in the now-standard size, and 56 is fantastic

By decade:

60’s - 1966 Topps, with 67 a close runner up. 67 and 68 has my favorite back design of all Topps issues.

70’s - 1971, those black borders are great. The vibrant yellow backs on the O-Pee-Chees I like more than the Topps ones.

80’s - 1987, wood grain perfection.

90’s - pretty weak decade for me. Nothing terrible, but none stand out. Guess I have a soft spot for those ugly bright 1990 borders

00’s - 2000 Topps, love the silver borders. Actually liked 2001’s 50th anniversary set a lot too.

10’s - probably 2010. Very similar year to year for quite awhile now, but pretty solid every season

Yes Jerry, you have to whittle it down some :)

50s: 52 through 57 are all wonderful, but my favorite is 53. The beautiful paintings and the design are just perfection to me. One of my favorite sets of all time.

60s: 60, 63, 64 and 67 are all in the running, but if I have to pick an absolute favorite, I'll go with....hm. 60, I guess. It's fun and colorful, and I like the side by side shots, similar to the mid 50s sets, and the team logo on the bottom.

70s: 71. Cool design and I dig the black borders. I know everyone loves the 75, but I guess you had to be there. I was an 80s kid. Not crazy at all about the wild colors. I disliked 90 as well, and that was out when I was still in little league, so there you go.

80s: 83 is a great looking set. Another of my all time favorites, and one of the first I started collecting. I also like 84 through 87, but I can take or leave the rest of the decade. That run from 83 to 87 though, produced some memorable designs.

90s: I liked the 91 set quite a bit. Classic style design, and lots of great photos that year. They caught some of the players in cool poses. Ryan, Puckett, Boggs, Clemens and Henderson all come to mind as having stand out cards that year.

OK ... 1957, 1967 & 1971. This is a tough task for set collectors. And I don't mean the high #'s :-)

Excellent choices ;)

65
57
62

at the bottom of the heap
60
68

vote best tops set
 

This is tough but I would go:

1955 Combines everything you would want in a card (logos, great art, unique design, portrait and action, signatures) with just the right amount of each.

1953 Stunning portraits

1965 The pennants and bright colors

1975 Looks like the 70s felt

1980 Those position and team banner wraps. Classy.

My vote would be for the 1967 Topps set. The photography and card design are both outstanding. Second place might just go to the 1971 black border set but there are many candidates.

Steve

1953 Bowman - Commanding picture.
1955 Topps - First set completed.
1971 Topps - Have many but never completed the set.