Set collectors - flaws you are ok with

Eric72 · #1 09-13-2025, 03:02 PM

Flaws I don't mind for set building:

Off-centered cards, up to about 65/35
Corner wear
Print imperfections that aren't on the player's face
Very minor wrinkles/bends (older sets only)

Flaws I can't tolerate:

Undersized cards
Any surface issues (scuffs, snow, fisheyes, etc.) on the player's face
Miscut cards (as in, the cardboard is not rectangular)

Harliduck · #2 09-14-2025, 12:07 AM

Same as others...off center with some border still showing...ok, and really accepted with sharp corners. Not accepted post 56, creases of any kind. I'd say 95% of my 57 to 80 would grade 4 to 6...I'm constantly looking for upgrades.

Balticfox · #3 09-14-2025, 12:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harliduck

Same as others...off center with some border still showing...ok, and really accepted with sharp corners.

Off center cards didn't bother me as a kid. Therefore they still don't bother me now even up to 90/10.

Printing fish-eyes I hardly notice either. It's after market wear such as soft corners and creases that I find totally unacceptable.

JustinD · #4 09-14-2025, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric72

Flaws I don't mind for set building:

Off-centered cards, up to about 65/35
Corner wear
Print imperfections that aren't on the player's face
Very minor wrinkles/bends (older sets only)

Flaws I can't tolerate:

Undersized cards
Any surface issues (scuffs, snow, fisheyes, etc.) on the player's face
Miscut cards (as in, the cardboard is not rectangular)

This is a great summary. I would say I am a little stricter on centering�maybe accepting 60/40 on a bad day for something I have been looking for. But the rest are bang on.

mortimer brewster · #5 09-14-2025, 03:04 PM

Creases are a No-No. 80 20 centering is acceptable. I don't mind gum stains as long as they're on the back of the card. I don't want any paper loss. Slightly touched corners are okay.

UKCardGuy · #6 09-14-2025, 03:48 PM

I'm old school... For me condition starts with the corners and no wrinkles/creases.

For 1950s and up I'm really looking for sharp corners and straight edges.
I don't mind a card that's a little off center. But if it's 90/10, I'm gonna pass.
Like others, I don't mind d price issues like fisheyes if the don't take away from key parts of the image.

For Pre-war, I have a lot more flexibility. I don't mind a T205 with some rounded corners. In fact, I think it makes the card attractive. But for my post-war... No thank you.

bnorth · #7 09-15-2025, 06:24 AM

I am OK with almost all flaws and actually go out of my way to find cards that are way off center and have print flaws.

About the only thing that makes me pass on a card is damage to the players face area like paper loss or huge creases.

bk400 · #8 09-15-2025, 07:27 AM

I find tilts and diamond-cuts very distracting and try to avoid them, even if they grade high.

vintagebaseballcardguy · #9 09-15-2025, 07:28 AM

Ed, good to see you back at it again! I have loosened up a lot over the years. As someone who tries to build sets from the early 1950s, I can tell you that the cards aren't getting any cheaper. I prefer well centered cards, but if a common is OC, I can live with it so long as it's not MC. I used to toss out a card with a wrinkle. Now, I'm using binders again (been all over the place with that, too), and I figure a card with a wrinkle or a crease not on the face isn't going to make a big difference. I just want reasonable looking copies of cards. As I've gotten older, just completing sets has become the objective. I'm about 60ish% complete on four different sets. Two of them I'm rebuilding after having sold off the commons a while back. I used that money to buy some stars for some other sets. It's all working out, and I'm having fun.

steve B · #10 09-15-2025, 08:46 AM

I've always been ok with flaws. The really bad ones get put into the box of printing errors.

I am thinking of working on fisheyes, which I've always considered to be very transient. That bit of stuff causing it could be there for one sheet, or 50. I've seen some here that must have stayed in the press for a long time.

Tere1071 · #11 09-15-2025, 09:10 AM

Budget now dictates what I'm willing to collect. The cards that I'm looking to upgrade are: miscuts, tilt/diamond cuts, and creases. Some sets are pretty much "locked-in"

My 53 Bowman Color is in vg-ex overall, mostly due to centering. The funds aren't there for upgrades.

1967 p-vg/ex and 1968 Topps Baseball f- vg/ex- too many creased cards to fully upgrade

1969 Topps Baseball- g-vg (miscuts and creases) slowly upgrading it to vg to vg-ex condition

1970 Topps Baseball vg/ex- there are centering issues, and the Bench and Ryan are in vg condition

1971 Topps Baseball ex-mint overall. I'm upgrading the stars and hard to find commons that are centered in ex-mint condition. This set is my priority.

1972 Topps Baseball vg-ex+ to ex-mint. #695 Carew in in vg/ex condition and a number of the high numbers are off-centered or have a slight tilt.

1973 Topps Baseball vg-ex to ex-mint overall, Schmidt rookie is SGC 4.5.

1974 Topps Baseball ex-mint, need to upgrade the Yankees team card and one checklist.

1975 Topps Baseball ex-mint, Ryan is in ex condition.

I've begun to collect the 1970 and 71 Topps Football sets. A number of the cards have a small pinhole with sharp corners. I would like to collect the stars in vg condition without creases or miscuts.

Off to work now. Willing to trade to complete the football sets.

Phil aka Tere1071

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