Known in the American Card Catalog as T204, the 1909 Ramly set is one of the gems from the pre-war era that is available to collectors. Certainly, it doesn't have the popularity or widespread appeal that the T205 and T206 sets have. However, it is appreciated by those who appreciate something that's a little bit different. Black and white images of players are displayed inside … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: The Surprise Card Featured in the 1909 T204 Ramly Set
The Wayback Collector
The Wayback Collector: Observations in Pre-War Collecting from 2022
It's been nearly two years since the massive price spike in card prices that we saw in the spring of 2020. And as 2022 comes to a close, here are six trends I've noticed in the world of collecting pre-war cards. Hall of Famers Continue to Hold Strong While other cards have fluctuated a bit, one thing is clear -- the price hikes on the biggest names in pre-war card … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: Observations in Pre-War Collecting from 2022
The Wayback Collector: How Are Collectors Tackling The T206 Monster?
The T206 baseball card set (aka, the Monster) has always been a popular target for collectors of vintage sports cards. With a grand total of 524 cards, it's one of the most daunting set builds that collectors can undertake. Many have tried and eventually given up before completion. These days, most collectors pursuing the set will chase either a 520-card set (the set minus … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: How Are Collectors Tackling The T206 Monster?
What Was Jim Hegan Doing in Outer Space in 1951?
Ask most collectors familiar with vintage baseball cards, and they will tell you that there are 324 cards in the popular 1951 Bowman set, which boasts the true rookie cards of Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays. While that is true, however, there is at least one more baseball card produced by Bowman that year that many are unaware of. See, while Bowman produced its popular … [Read more...] about What Was Jim Hegan Doing in Outer Space in 1951?
The Wayback Collector: For Early Collectors, Finding Sports Cards Was No Small Feat
Between low supply issues and bulk buying by resellers, card collectors might think they have it difficult today. But collecting today is a breeze compared to the difficulties of buying product in the pre-internet days. And if you think card buying in the 1970s or 1980s was complex, just imagine what the very earliest collectors went through to secure needed cards. Forget … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: For Early Collectors, Finding Sports Cards Was No Small Feat
Near Set of Rare 1921 Self Developing Strip Cards Discovered
Little is known about the unclassified baseball card set dubbed as 1921 Self Developing Strip Cards. But a new discovery of them will certainly reignite some interest in learning more about this interesting set. Calling them strip cards is even a bit misleading. In reality, these are small cards with real pictures of players. However, that is their designation in one of the … [Read more...] about Near Set of Rare 1921 Self Developing Strip Cards Discovered
The Wayback Collector: Ten Observations from a ‘National’ Rookie
Last week, I mentioned that I would be attending my first ever National Sports Collectors Convention show. It'd been a goal of mine to get to one and I safely made the trip to Chicago this week. The highlight of my trip was picking up a T207 Louis Lowdermilk card. Known as one of the toughest cards in the set, it helped me complete the standard 200-card set and that alone … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: Ten Observations from a ‘National’ Rookie
The Wayback Collector: Early Sports Card Documents Pre-War Autograph Seeking
Autograph collecting is quite popular among collectors these days. And the activity is so common that it's even been depicted on cards themselves through the years. That's right, start back in the 1970s and you can find plenty of cards picturing players signing autographs. The topic's even been covered before online. Here's the thing, though. Baseball card photography has … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: Early Sports Card Documents Pre-War Autograph Seeking
The Wayback Collector: Pre-War Card Bargains Can Still Be Found
The sports card craze of 2020-21 isn't one that's going to be soon forgotten. Collectors have seen prices soar and the values of their collections rise -- in many cases, dramatically. That's good news, right? In a way, sure. Some collectors have cashed out, pocketing big profits. And while others have held onto their stuff, the value of what they possess is now in most cases … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: Pre-War Card Bargains Can Still Be Found
The Wayback Collector: There’s Low-Grade — and Then There’s Low-Grade
As a pre-war collector, I've bought my share of ugly cards. I'm not enamored with them, really. And, like most, I'd like to have cards in the best condition possible. But unless you've got unlimited resources, if you're a collector of early cards, sacrificing a little on condition sort of goes with the territory. After all, these cards are, in some cases, 100 years old or … [Read more...] about The Wayback Collector: There’s Low-Grade — and Then There’s Low-Grade