New Member/Collector

[JRDill]

Hi Everyone,

My name is JR and I recently became interested in collecting cards and baseball memorabilia. I collected cards as a kid, but nothing too serious (outside of my extensive Nolan Ryan collection).

I'm mostly interested in collecting, not necessarily for ROI in the future, but for the enjoyment of finding the cards. I'm not sure exactly what I want to collect yet, but very interested in post war and modern.

I have some questions; I have no idea what all of these letter number combos mean, like "T205" and "E90." Any idea where I can read about this to become more informed? Also, what's the most trusted grading company?

Any help and guidance on where to start is greatly appreciated!

A little about me:
- From Houston, TX currently reside in Kansas City
- Die hard Cubs fan (family from Illinois)
- Outside of baseball I enjoy leather craft and comics
- Until the night of October 27, 2004 I carried a 1986 Topps Bill Buckner card in my wallet.

[trdcrdkid]

Welcome, JR!

Things like "T205" and "E90" are set designations from the American Card Catalog, which went through several editions between 1939 and 1960, and is still widely used among collectors of pre-WWII cards. There are various places where you can learn more about these designations, but one of the best for a beginner is on the Old Cardboard site:

http://oldcardboard.com/ref/classifications.asp

The rest of that site has lots of good information about all these different sets, and about vintage cards in general.

[JRDill]

Thanks!

Is current collecting, as in new cards this year, worth the effort?

[ls7plus]

Originally Posted by JRDill

Thanks!

Is current collecting, as in new cards this year, worth the effort?

It is, so long as you don't mind paying a price based on speculative and transient demand for the fine young phenoms that may not be anywhere to be seen 5-10 years down the road.

Seriously, its worth it if you're doing it for enjoyment and not for investment. There's a lot of joy to be had in collecting new cards if you divorce yourself from the concept of lasting monetary value.

Happy collecting,

Larry

[JRDill]

Awesome! Yeah I'm in to collecting for MY enjoyment, not a big pay day down the road.

Today was my first pickup of anything in the past nearly 20 years. I bought a 1987 Topps complete set, '86 and '87 Topps traded, then a few single packs (I found out Kansas City still has a baseball card shop!). The single packs were so fun opening, not knowing what I was going to find inside. Brought back great memories.

I also bought a pack of Topps Gypsy Queen. These cards look incredible. All together I spent about $25 and it was well worth the fun.

[trdcrdkid]

JR --

A lot of people around here disdain the "shiny new stuff", but there are some really nice-looking set being put out now. I really only actively collect pre-1920 cards plus a few Topps sets from the 60s and 70s, but I've occasionally bought a few packs of current cards to see what's out there. I agree that you shouldn't collect anything, either old or new, with an expectation of making a profit; collect it because you enjoy it. Keep buying packs of new stuff to see what strikes your fancy, if anything, and some older stuff if you want to. You can buy unopened backs or boxes of cards from the late 80s and early 90s very cheap, and if it's fun for you to open them, go for it! And if you're going to hang around here, maybe get a few vintage cards to see how you like them.

[clydepepper]

Originally Posted by JRDill

Hi Everyone,

My name is JR and I recently became interested in collecting cards and baseball memorabilia. I collected cards as a kid, but nothing too serious (outside of my extensive Nolan Ryan collection).

I'm mostly interested in collecting, not necessarily for ROI in the future, but for the enjoyment of finding the cards. I'm not sure exactly what I want to collect yet, but very interested in post war and modern.

I have some questions; I have no idea what all of these letter number combos mean, like "T205" and "E90." Any idea where I can read about this to become more informed? Also, what's the most trusted grading company?

Any help and guidance on where to start is greatly appreciated!

A little about me:
- From Houston, TX currently reside in Kansas City
- Die hard Cubs fan (family from Illinois)
- Outside of baseball I enjoy leather craft and comics
- Until the night of October 27, 2004 I carried a 1986 Topps Bill Buckner card in my wallet.

JR- Welcome to a wonderful site! There is a whole lot of good guys on here with a lot of hobby knowledge.

I know that the 'T' in T205 stands for 'tobacco'. not sure what the 'E' in E90 stands for.

I highly recommend you purchasing the Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards. Ton of information included. I have the 3rd Edition published in 2013. Amazon would have it for you, but just in case, the ISBN is 1-4402-3849-9

As far as grading companies are concerned, PSA and SGC are the most popular ones. My personal preference is PSA and card graded by them tend to resell for higher prices than SGC, but you could be happy with either.

Several members of this board welcome 'piggy-back' additions to the orders they send to the grading companies...which is a great way to save on that particular expense. All you have to do is start a new thread asking for such- and someone will be sure to reply.

These days, I've been purchasing cards that are already graded. And I use The PSA online price guide and EBAY's sale history to help me decide how much I should spend on a particular card.

I'm no expert, just 'into' it. - hope this helps,

Raymond Culpepper

[the 'stache]

Welcome aboard, JR.

Old Cardboard really is a great resource to learn about the classifications of different pre-war cards. They also offer an annual magazine (it comes just after the April 15th tax deadline). Lifetime subscriptions are $20. You can also purchase back issues on their site. Highly recommended reading. I started out with a couple back issues containing articles about the cards I first became interested in (T206s, T202s), and then kept expanding from there.

If you're willing to spend a little bit, and want a great reference that also looks fantastic in your office or den, Old Cardboard also offer two Type-Card Gallery Prints. They're about $25 delivered. The only other expense would be to have them framed. Not a day goes by where I don't spend a little time looking at them.

Have a look around, and if you have any questions, please feel free to shoot me a message. I check this place a few times a day, and I'm happy to help if I can.

Enjoy!

Bill

[JRDill]

Thanks, everyone!

Lots of great info to dig into. Bill, those prints looks amazing! Thanks for the recommendation!

[4815162342]

Welcome to the board, JR!

I'm sure you've been asked who shot you about as many times as I've been asked where my brother Daryl and my other brother Daryl are. Ah, the '80s.

[JRDill]

Originally Posted by 4815162342

Welcome to the board, JR!

I'm sure you've been asked who shot you about as many times as I've been asked where my brother Daryl and my other brother Daryl are. Ah, the '80s.

Haha yup! my parents moved to Texas right before I was born and my Dad thought it was the coolest name. I'm ok with it. My entire name is six letters!

[Leon]

Welcome to the forum, JR. As a fellow Houstonian (born and raised but now living near Dallas) you are amongst friends and man "homeys"......good luck in the quest!! If I can ever help or explain anything shoot me a PM, always here to help.

[Rich Klein]

Several other boards have a "PiNNED" thread at the top so new members can introduce themselves. I would love to see that here as well. Just MOO

Rich

[ALR-bishop]

Welcome. I still collect each new Topps base set ( and any related update/traded set), plus each of the Topps Heritage sets

[Leon]

Originally Posted by Rich Klein

Several other boards have a "PiNNED" thread at the top so new members can introduce themselves. I would love to see that here as well. Just MOO

Rich

I would like to have a full head of hair. Judge Judy would rather be blonde and 5'10". Pinned threads have never been part of this board's normal mode of operation but have been given much consideration in the past. I don't like them as an everyday occurrence. Other boards aren't as much sticklers about names being mandated in certain situations. All message boards have their own ways of operating. I appreciate the rules pinned at the top of the CU board.

[Rich Klein]

I think with all her money, Judge Judy can make herself any hair color she wishes. However, I think she will remain a bit vertically challenged.

[JRDill]

Originally Posted by ALR-bishop

Welcome. I still collect each new Topps base set ( and any related update/traded set), plus each of the Topps Heritage sets

Do you know much about the Gypsy Queen sets? I'm really intrigued by them after buying a couple packs.

[Den*nis O*Brien]

I would like to parrot Clyde Pepper's suggestion of grabbing a SCD "Big Book".
This will put some clarity to the alpha numerical identification system started by Jefferson Burdick. It will come easy.. M116, T206, T210 etc. The Lew Lipset 3 editions are also very helpful and available with a bit of searching. The SCD "Big Book" with Bob Lemke at the helm is an edition to grab. He is a board member and has helped the hobby enormously. If you can not locate a vintage edition of SCD Big Book ...writ me and I will get you a beat up -loose page one.
Sincerely, Dennis