Question for Player Set collectors

sjeanblanc

Hi everybody,

Player Sets, at least for players that played into the 80's and 90's, are more of a scavanger hunt than a defined set like 1975 Topps, due to all of the extraneous cards one must find. When I originally started my Nolan Ryan set, I set out with the objective to have the highest grade set that could be had, which became very expensive on both fronts, Ebay and PSA. Now two years later, I am starting to wonder if a better more pratical objective is to just complete the set regardless of the condition of the cards.

Outside of just collecting for fun, a Player Set has three objective criteria:

1) Weighted Grade Point Average
2) Completion Percentage
3) Set Points


My question to fellow Player Set collectors is this, which if any of the above objectives is most important to you?



Scott Jeanblanc
jeanblanc@iconnect.net
Ebay UserId : sjeanblanc

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Collecting Nolan Ryan cards (68-94)

dbj77

Seeing as I'm completing a Chris Webber Master set (waits until laughter dies out) I understand your predicament. Because all of my cards are 1992 and later I can usually find exceptional material to submit or buy. However, for cost reasons, I will accept PSA 8 cards even though my goal was a PSA 9 set. There are so many cards it's not funny. So compromise is in order....

qualitycards

DBJ - How many diff Webber cards are out there 1500? That must be a daunting task, cause every year another bunch gets added to the mix...jay

CON40

Scott;

You can probably tell by looking at my Ryan sets, but I go for the completion percentage! I don't mind having 8s of the 70s stuff. They are still damn fine cards in NM-MT... from the 80s on I do like to have at least 9s. I'm not that hot to have 10s of anything.

It's that elusive 100% that entices me! Not that I think I'll ever get there on the Master set! I liked your analogy about the finish line being on a string!

grilloj39

I would consider budget and what is going to make you happy...if 7-8 cards are fine to you, then so be it. I have a Roberto Clemente master set I am working on and I had a goal of at least a "5" on the 1950s, "6" on the 1960s, and "7" on the 1970s. It was both economical and fun to collect in this fashion.

regards,
JG

speeder

it has to be set points. all the other parts of the equation = set points. I once had a choice to spend around $300 for an item that had a grade weight
1.25 or another item w/grade weight of 5. my master set is only about 40% done, both items are somewhat scarce. i took the item with the grade weight
of 5, seemed a very simple decision, don`t you think ??

67standup

Sort of off-topic, but I had a 1300+ DIFFERENT item Yaz collection years ago. The plethora of modern sets made my ultimate quest impossible. Therefore, the answer to what is a player set is infinite. Do you own the original artwork for each Topps card produced, of course not? You will never get it all. I agree that there should be some standard of what defines a Registry player set, e.g., cards produced after retirement, test issues, etc. But definition will differ per collector, again, there is no definitive answer. You may have the highest PSA graded Ryan rookie, but someone has the best SGC version. Someone may have the the four-color seperation proof of that card that they're going to let GAI grade, etc., etc. Maybe you could list in the notes or intro paragraph how many different items you own. Sorry about going off on a tangent, but it seems as if this topic is a little frustrating for you (it would be for me if I was a player collector.)

EdsBaseballCards

In doing the Pete Rose master set, i to am finding that collecting the newer and i'm talking 80's is becoming an exceedingly difficult task. Everyday it seems there is a new card found that if not part of the registry will eventually be. personally i don't know how you new guys do it. I was just last night thumbing through the new SMR and was looking at the Shaq graded 5 or 6 pages that are in there. INCREDIBLE. I think if i were doing anything like that i would just feel defeated even looking through the POP report. Anyhow I would say find nice examples, self submit and whatever the grade just go for completion. Thats how i would aproach. If you ever try and recoup losses paid for higher grade graded examples i would say your fighting an uphill battle right from the get go. This newer stuff seems to lose its value overnight and if your collecting just because you love a certain player you should be more than content owning self submitted nice examples regardless of grade and owning them all is what i would strive for. Just my opinion. ED

AlanAllen

For my raw collection, completion is my first priority by far. I'll by a Poor card if it will fill a gap. For my slabbed registered sets, GPA is my highest priority. Since every Marcus Allen card is 1983 or newer, I can't see myself being happy with anything less than a 9.

Joe

minibeers

Like Ed, I'm a Pete Rose fan, but only going for the basic set. I pulled a 1977 PSA 10 last year and, with a blessing from my wife, went after the basic set. My goal is to have all 8s before 1977 and all 9s after. I just completed the set 2 days ago and plugged my last hole with an 8, so I guess completion is pretty important to me.

Since I completed the set, even my non-collector friends enjoy looking at it with me. I wish I didn't have to collect any of the cards that are post-1980. When I was a kid, I gave up in 1981 due to card overload and the baseball strike. I had an "all or nothing" mentality.

cheers,
minibeers

helionaut

Well, Set Points are a function of GPA and Completion, so that's kind of a moot question. I've one player I'm collecting, but the set isn't posted yet, and probably won't be until I request it, but my goal won't be for a straight 10 GPA. I guess it's more for fun, as it's a common player. And isn't that all this should be?

1967topps

A few years after the madness began (1981: Fleer, Donruss...) I decided to only collect Topps,
which means any player set that extended past 1981 I just don't try to complete.
Sorry if that's not quite the answer to your question but an observation anyway.

peterredshoes

I try to strike a balance between weighted GPA and completion percentage, but in general the GPA matters more to me because the completion percentage will come with patience. Because well under half of the cards I'm looking for have even been submitted, and many of those not more than once, my patience is tested in a slightly different way than a collector pursuing a player for whom cards are more readily available and in several different grades.

Ultimately, though, I know what I want, what grade or grades are acceptable for a given card to me, and what I can afford to do, so from there it's just a matter of tracking things down. From there, the math all works out in the end.

Peter G.

sjeanblanc

Thanks for all the responses,

When PeterRedShoes said that completion % will come with patience that really struck a cord with me, because when I started the Nolan Ryan Players sets patience was something I didn't have. I think Keith "Con40" will attest to that. I attacked Ryan cards on Ebay like a shark going after a wounded seal.

I guess what I have decided to do is this:

On Ebay I will only buy in PSA 9 or PSA 10, but not in a bidding war situation.

My own submissions I will use whatever I get for a grade on the card. Some of the tougher OPC's I have recieved PSA 6's and PSA 7's. I will also use the PSA 8's that I get on other cards, this will beef up the completion percentage and hurt the GPA in the short term, but I will look to upgrade if the opportunity provides itself.

Lastly its great to a have a forum like this because, its just too hard sometimes to find people with the same interests. While I don't post often, I do try to interject when I know something that might be useful to someone else or when I have a question that I would like to see others opinions on.

Thanks to all,

Scott Jeanblanc
jeanblanc@iconnect.net
Ebay UserId : sjeanblanc

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Collecting Nolan Ryan cards (68-94)

1420sports

On Ebay I will only buy in PSA 9 or PSA 10, but not in a bidding war situation.

Scott, I would also consider PSA 8's if the weight is one. Even 1.5 and maybe 2 as well. When I was collecting the Rose Master set I was banging my head on the wall wondering why I was paying 50 plus for a PSA 9 when an 8 would go unbid on at 3 bucks. There were exceptions, but I use those figures as examples. If I would have done that for 5 cards, I would have had an extra $235 in my pocket for the big weights of 5-10. When the set got out of hand (to me only), I decided that it was not worth it to have playing cards graded at $5 a pop so I got out. I was able to do business with the remaining set collectors and two of them I still keep in touch with and root for.

I would like to see PSA honor two of them - Marc and Ed - in the next award "ceremony". These two are truly player set collectors. Take a look at the Pete Rose and Mike Schmidt Master sets and you will see what I am talking about.

minibeers

Just started my Garvey player set. I'm going for 8s up to 1976 and 9s from 1977 to 1983. I don't care about completion because I refuse to acknowledge that Garvey went to San Diego. Like our moon program, that never happened.

cheers,
minibeers

1420sports

minibeers, I am glad to see that someone else believes that we did not land on the moon

minibeers

In fact, the photos for the Garvey cards where he is in a Padres uniform were taken in the same exact sound stage that the moon landings were faked. If you look at the cards closely, there are some dead giveaways.

question authority

goodriddance189

completion % for me

Yzerman19C

Will

You have run into some competition on ebay for Plante cards. Last nights auctions went for double what previous copies sold for . With the 70-71 Plante going for 192.50 more than double or maybe triple the going rate

Randy

goodriddance189

yes, i've talked to the guy (RayDBonz) and apparently he is a huge vintage goalie collector. luckily, he isnt chasing the Master set, only the basic. i was contemplating getting in to a bidding war with him, cause i really hate being outbid, but apparently he has unlimited funds. i might as well just chase some of the cheaper Plante cards and let him get what he needs before i chase after everything

theplasticman

On my Eddie Murray and Will Clark master sets I go for the best I can find and then upgrade.

I keep an eye on the tougher cards to grade in 10s (and even super tough stuff in 9s). Im probably on more of a budget than anyone and I just make due the best I can. I will buy something I know I'll have a hard time finding later before something much more plentiful, even in a 10.

theplasticman