Favorite Post War Set

[EGreenwood]

My favorites are:

• 50 Bowman
• 52 Bowman
• 53 Topps
• 56 Topps
• 62 Bell Brand
• 78 Topps

[3-2-count]

1956 Topps. The dual image layout is fantastic.

1957 Topps. The smokey Kodacolor images used that year are timeless.

Honorable mention post 1970 would be 1972 Topps. The card design that year is so 1970's. I love it!

[Beercan collector]

I find myself unable to vote for some great sets because of the exclusion of Musial or Mantle - I love the 1955 but it has neither player ,
So 1958 because of the great Allstar subset

[StraightRaceCards]

#1 1956 Topps

#2 1954 Topps

#3 1954 Bowman

-56 just has so much going for it. Great eye appeal, loads of great cards from hall of famers. Absolutely love it.

-54 has the best aesthetic in my opinion. Plus rookies of some of my favorites, Banks, Aaron, and Kaline.

-54 Bowman. Not much love here if I had to guess due to the lack of firepower, but I love the simplicity of the set

[carlsonjok]

For me it is 1974 Topps. For some reason, it is the only set that evokes in me a feeling of nostalgia. Especially the Traded subset.

Which reminds me that I really need to get that 599 - San Diego Small Print in order to finish my master set.

[MarcosCards]

For me it’s 1963 Topps — a set that presents great color and came dripping with gloss.

I was 10 years old when I bought and put this set together. Walking home from the neighborhood store with several packs, I would open them, throw the wrappers on my neighbor’s lawn and jamb the gum in my mouth. Then, as I recall, the mumbled, repetitive litany went something like…”got em, need em, got em, need em…” Oh the memories of a simple, carefree childhood!

[Yoda]

Dandee Potato Chips.

[rats60]

Originally Posted by Beercan collector

I find myself unable to vote for some great sets because of the exclusion of Musial or Mantle - I love the 1955 but it has neither player ,
So 1958 because of the great Allstar subset

1958 is the only true complete set of the decade with all of the active stars, but you miss out on a lot of recently retired stars, Jackie, Feller, Kiner, Campy,...

My solution to this problem was 1955 Topps + 1953 Bowman. Two smaller sets that combined have all the big names that I wanted.

[Leon]

I have very few post war cards but I was given this one by the OBC guys (thanks again!) as they knew I liked it, years ago, and still love it.

Originally Posted by cgjackson222

Would love to see this become a poll, although giving the varying opinions, an "Other" choice might score very high.

My favorites are '53 Bowman, '51-'52 Bowman, and '55 Topps.

A shoutout for 1988 Score as well. They have no value, but they had some really cool images.

[thatkidfromjerrymaguire]

My favorites:

1952 Bowman - Beautiful artwork, attractive 2nd year cards of Mays of Mantle, a classic Musial card, and due to smaller set size and generally lower prices than 52 Topps or 51 Bowman, the set can actually be completed on a smaller budget.

1956 Topps - Classic design and another set full of amazing art and HOF cards at "reasonable" prices, making it more collectible.

1975 Topps - Brett and Yount rookie cards, Hank Aaron, and bright, bold colors. Has always been my favorite set from the 70's.

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[JimC]

59 Bazooka, FB and BB

[1954 topps]

54 Topps has a blast of color, dual action shot, can actually see what the player looked like. Not an artist representation or camera shot from 20 yards away. Not to mention 2 cards of the greatest hitter the game has ever seen and oh yeah they made him first and last so super tough to find in high grade. Also the cartoons on the back are the best that were ever released combining baseball facts, history, and humor with a little insight into a players life outside of baseball season. Find another set where the backs are as good as the fronts.

54 Wilson Franks amazes me that cards survived hotdog packages. A little staining just shows the unique way they were marketed and there’s a package of hotdogs pictured on the card. Other than Cracker Jack nothing compares to America’s pastime. You go to a game and get a dog!

63 Topps brings back the color but in an eye appeasing and not overly done manner. Plenty of star power and when you find those clean cards with no chipping on the bottom boarder and sharp corners, they are a thing of beauty.

You really can’t go wrong with any of the 50’s sets, it really was the greatest era in baseball and the nostalgia of vintage designs. I lose significant interest in cards produced after’ 69.

[obcbeatle]

1953 Bowman color
1965 Topps
1971 Topps
1988 Topps

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by packs

I really like the 1958 Topps set. Some really beautiful images. I've always liked the Clemente from this set. The portraits look great against the solid background colors.

The ‘58 Clemente is one of my all-time favorite cards. The batting stance just pops with the bellow background. Plus, I love the typography.


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[the 'stache]

I’d have to go, probably in order (though a few might change positions):

1953 Bowman Color. No type, no nothing but glorious full color photography of golden era players on those glorious wool blend uniforms and those iconic old ballparks. Tough to get well centered, but they present beautifully.

1960 Topps. I love the horizontal presentation, and the beautiful full color pictures making up the majority of the front. Some odd my favorite cards come from this set.

1975 Topps. Great selection of rookies and Hall of Famers, and the colors make for spectacular cards.

1957 Topps. I’m working on this one, slowly, in mid grade. What a set!!!!!!

1953 Topps. Those hand drawn portraits are just glorious. 1953 is the greatest year on vintage, hands down. Two iconic sets.

1980 Topps. I’ve always loved the design, and the A.L. and N.L. All Star banners at the top were cool. The Rickey card is an all-time favorite.

1971 Topps. They’re so condition sensitive with the black borders showing even the most minor chipping, but what a set! The Thurman Munson first solo card will be mine. The ‘71 Topps Clemente is one of my favorite cards on my collection.

1954 Bowman. This set is really growing on me. I’m going to add a nice Mickey Mantle ‘54 Bowman if it kills me.


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[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by Chris Counts

My favorites are 1953 Bowman, 1956 Topps and 1957 Topps, but I also really like the 1950-52 Bowmans. I've long been curious who painted all those little masterpieces. Between baseball, football and non-sports cards, they must have created a thousand different images.

I love the ‘55 and ‘56 sets, too. And the ‘52. And…

I just love them all. There are gems in every single set from the ‘51 Topps set all the way to the 1980 set.


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[Exhibitman]

Favorite 'classic' set has always been 1954 Topps, ever since I was a kid.



Also the 1968 Atlantic Oil set (shown is contest winning SSP Davis):

[molenick]

I like the look of 1967 Topps cards but it's probably because it's the first set I remember actively trying to put together from buying packs at the newsstand/candy store/stationery store. I was aware of cards before that, but only bought the random pack.

The only postwar set I collect is Wilson Franks, so I guess that is my favorite set. (Attached scan is the same one I posted in the "Bring Frickin' Joy Now!!!!!" thread.)

[darwinbulldog]

1951 Bowman

[Kutcher55]

75 mini.

[Brian Van Horn]

Walking off the beaten path and my apologies. Not cards, but 1948 and 1949 4x5 Pittsburgh Pirates issued photos.

[benedini]

1950 Bowman has some beautiful artwork so probably my favorite of the 50's
1966 Topps for the 60's although most don't like as much.
1973 Topps for the 70's - love the unique color of the backs.

[MVSNYC]

Being a designer and artist, I am partial to the 1960 Topps set. Here's my sole example...

[ValKehl]

I don't collect any post-War sets, just certain players. Because I'm partial to unusual and scarcer cards, if I were to collect any post-War sets, these would be 2 of them - the 1953-54 Briggs Meats and the 1948-50 Safe-T-Cards (the earliest known safety issue). That these 2 sets were issued in the DC area where I have lived my entire life may influence my choices.

[ledsters]

My favorite post-war set is the 1978 Family Fun Centers San Diego Padres set. 39 postcard-sized cards with wood grain fronts. HOFers, a hamburger tycoon and the rookie issue of some guy named Ozzie.

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[Bigdaddy]

I'm mostly a post-war guy, so I have a hard time naming just one. Today my top five would be (without using the word 'iconic'):

1. 1956 Topps - love the design and the artwork. Mickey, Feller, Jackie, Willie, Duke, Sandy, Ted, Roberto, Hank, Yogi. Just a beautiful set.

2. 1957 Topps - classic, clear photos, many with ballpark backgrounds. The Dodgers' Sluggers and Carl Furillo cards are nonpareil.

3. 1964 Topps Giants - cheap and small set, but wonderful photographs. Working towards an autographed set.

4. 1965 Topps - crystal clear and colorful photos, and pennants to boot.

5. 1971 Topps - for the reasons mentioned above - the black borders and the introduction of action photography. Who doesn't love Thurm's card?

[steve B]

A few, and the list might vary from day to day.

Most of the cards from my kid collecting years, say 74-80.

the 78 Papa Ginos discs.
Hostess, all years.
Pretty much all the other discs.

49 Leaf.

One I doubt anyone else will pick, 1950 drakes. The 71 Topps of the 1950's.

Maybe too modern, but sets with weirdness of complexity
91 Topps
88 Score
Anything by Signature Rookies
Or Wild card.

The Gypsy Queen framed cards, especially the 2014 ones with the white frame.

[Kevin]

I have an affinity for ‘81 Topps. My first year collecting wax packs that I remember. I have some ‘79s and more ‘80 Topps, but ‘81 was peak! I think by 1985 or ‘86 I was done buying packs and just focused on buying older cards.

1981 Topps
1950 Bowman
1955 Bowman
1962 Topps

[sports-cards-forever]

I agree with 1956 Topps. Best blend of art and photos, plus all the classic stars.

[Luke]

1986 Procards
1993 Finest
1986 Topps

then a bunch of oddball major and minor league team sets

[vintage321]

1) '56 topps - iconic, sharp, bold

2) '53 topps - artwork

3) '54 bowman - classic

[Balticfox]

Baseball only:

1. Topps 1959
2. Topps 1960
3. Post 1962 (both American and Canadian)
4. Salada/Shirriff 1962 Baseball Coins
5. Topps 1963

Honourable Mention

6. Topps 1958
7. Topps 1954
8. Topps 1965

[robw1959]

1. 1956 Topps - amazing artwork in the background
2. 1971 Topps - the unique black borders will always make this one magical
3. 1964 Topps Giants - gorgeous photography on oversized cards

[perezfan]

Really tough, but here's my top 5...

1. '51 Bowman
2. '52 Bowman
3. '55 Topps
4. '56 Topps
5. '53 Bowman

Honorable mention:
'50 Bowman

[kailes2872]

1. 56
2. 65
3. 80
4. 63
5. 54

I have told my kids to pick out their favorites so that they can have it when I am one day gone. My daughter has always migrated to 62 and, especially '55. She likes the wood grain on 62. She thinks the televisions are cool. Only 3 programs were even made in color in 1955 and I read that only 3% of families had a color TV in 1955. It was a very cutting edge set - sort of like if there was an Iphone set in 2007 and it took 15 years for it to scale up versus a year or two. I think it is pretty hideous and there are too many umpire cards, but when I think about what it would have been like to collect it out of packs - or to see the first cards out of the pack that early spring of '55, it would have been pretty interesting.

[bcbgcbrcb]

My favorite is 1964 Topps Stand Ups.

[Kawika]

1953 Topps is my favorite post-war set. A veritable museum of baseball art.


1957 Topps is #2. First year I busted packs and got hooked on cardboard. It was grand to be a kid in the 'fifties in New York.



Tough to choose a #3. Will go with '53 Bowman. Terrific photography and a super-clean look.