[AMBST95]

I would say get a feel for what you like by looking over past "pickup threads". Or look through past auctions to see what kind of stuff is listed. The more variety of cards you see, the easier it will be to make a decision. The other thing is, don't feel imprisoned by what you choose to collect. If you decide it's not for you, sell it and go for something else.

Personally, I'm collecting 3 different sets, from 3 different decades, with 3 different types (Tobacco, Caramel, and Bubblegum). This gets me a large variety of prewar players as the players cover several years of baseball. In addition, I have set different quality standards for each set. 2 of the sets are easily available and one is more difficult. This variety make the projects I'm working on very enjoyable.