The Good, The Bad, The 6-for-5 Bin
March 27th, 2010 by slangon
To go with yesterdays all ’65 haul, today I present an all ’60 haul, which is good for me since now I’m collecting that set. Once again, all the cards I got were just commons, but that’s six steps closer to completion.
1960 Topps #180 Harry Simpson
1960 Topps #109 Bob Shaw
1960 Topps #368 Daryl Spencer
1960 Topps #367 Bill Tuttle
1960 Topps #131 Ed Hobaugh Rookie Star
1960 Topps #348 Barry Shetrone
Rather than talk about the individual cards today, I thought I’d share my thoughts on collecting this set so far. This is the first vintage set that I’ve ever tried to collect, and so far I feel like I’m making pretty good progress. Between the 6 for 5 bin, eBay and Sportlots, I’ve managed to put a pretty good sized dent in the checklist. Initially, I was going to try and figure out how many cards I’ve gotten and calculate the percentage of the set that I’ve completed, but on further consideration I figured that might end up just depressing me. A lot of times I feel like I’ve accomplished so much as far as collecting a certain step, but when I really look at how close I am it always seems like I’m nowhere near as close as I thought I was. For now, I’d rather just labor under the delusion that I’m making good progress and leave it at that.
One aspect that I do know is an issue with collecting this set, and probably any other vintage set I’m sure, is when you reach the point where the commons are done and now you have no choice but to track down the big boys. So far, I’ve made at least a little bit of an effort to not get to that point where I’ve ignored the star players and just concentrated on commons since they’re easier and cheaper. Obviously, I’ve been getting more commons than stars, but I’ve been trying to squeeze in a few stars for every batch of cards that I’ve gotten.
In that one really big Sportlots haul I got a while back, I was able to knock off Luis Aparicio and 2 Nellie Fox cards, which felt good to do. For the little of bit of progress I’ve made on the star player front, I must admit it is a little disheartening to look at that checklist and still see names like Mantle (three cards), Mays (three cards) McCovey (2 cards), Banks (x2), Robinson (three cards between Brooks and Frank), Ford, Kaline (x2), Mazeroski, Kaat, Berra, Yastrzemski, Killebrew, Stengel, Spahn (x2), Musial, Hodges(x2), Ashburn, Clemente, Koufax, Maris(x2), Mathews(x2) and Snider. When you see all of those names and see how many cards above #500 you don’t have, things can get a little overwhelming. Luckily, earlier this week, I got a separate Sportlots delivery and an eBay lot that were both able to wipe out a few star players along with some more commons. I also made one sort of big eBay buy that knocked one of the biggest pains in the ass off that list, which I’ll get more into once I have the card in hand.
I guess I just have to keep telling my self that a card collection is built over a lifetime, not as quickly as you can possibly do it. I also need to keep in mind that for the longest time I wanted a T206 card, and with a little patience and perseverance was able to get one at a price I felt totally comfortable with. I guess that’s the trade off of making progress on a collecting goal. Every card you’re able to track down just makes you that much more anxious to get that next one. I guess you just need to keep in mind that you’re collecting the set, not just outright buying it.
I really enjoy your 6 for 5 bin posts.
So many great cards reside in that bin!
I’ve been able to pick up some of the big hitters of the ’62 set on eBay for dirt cheap. You just have to be persistent and the card you’re looking for will go for the price you want to pay. BTW, I was able to pick up a 1960 Banks card off of eBay for $4 shipped. It’s in great shape too. Persistence and patience are key.