10 Collecting Projects I’ve Tackled in the Last 10 Years

I returned to the hobby about ten years ago. Over these years, I’ve tackled various projects, some successfully finished, others abandoned along the way. In this article, I thought I’d summarize a few of them. 

First, a few notes. I almost always complete or nearly complete projects, enjoy them for a short period, and then sell them as my interests pivot. I feel this helps me learn more about cards and interact with more people in the hobby. Second, I regularly buy large lots with cards I need and sell the ones I don’t to subsidize my collecting interests.

1952 Topps Baseball PSA Graded Set

The first set I went after in my return to the hobby was a 1952 Topps PSA graded set. I mostly went after mid-grade variant low numbers and value in the high numbers. After completing about 75% of the set, and realizing the Mickey Mantle was a bit out of my price range, I slowly moved on from this set.

1969 Topps Deckle Edge Baseball PSA Graded Set

I bought a raw set of 1969 Topps Deckle Edges, got the entire thing graded, and slowly started upgrading it as my introduction to self-submitting. I enjoyed this effort for a few years before selling them. And it is definitely the most condition sensitive set I can think of.

1975 TCMA All-Time New York Yankees

I have over 80% of all the graded cards from this set and a few signed ones. I came across this set in the Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards and starting buying raw sets and sending them in to see how many high-end sets I could complete.

1973 Topps Baseball PSA Graded Set

There was no rhyme or reason for my starting a 1973 Topps set. But I liked the action shots and Clemente’s last card. I had over 500 PSA 8 graded cards when my interests shifted.

1948 Bowman Baseball PSA/DNA Graded Set

I got into this by accident years ago when I acquired a few cards in a lot from what I think was a Huggins and Scott auction. I completed about 80% of the set when I realized that I was competing with a few whales who started this set. Conveniently, this meant I was able to liquidate this set for a considerable profit (which subsided my triathlon gear).

1926 W512 Hand Cut PSA Graded Set

I think I came across an article from PreWarCards.Com, and it got me interested in this set. I’m missing two cards: the non-ex-mgr Ty Cobb and the Rogers Hornsby Cardinals cards.

1914 T222 Fatima SGC/PSA Graded Set

I finished about 25% of this set when the cost and lack of availability of many cards pushed me towards other interests.

1978 Topps Basketball PSA Graded Set

1978 Topps Basketball has been an addiction for a few years. I was looking to start a set a few years ago, and this one was manageable in terms of size and cost at the time. My highest set had a 9.85 graded average (I’ve had two complete PSA graded sets, the picture below is the lower graded one that I sold to subsidize the second), and I’m now selling it off after enjoying the cards for a while. I’ve also collected boxes, packs, and anything 1978 Topps Basketball related I could find.

Cal Ripken Signed Cards

I’m tackling the Cal Ripken Basic Set Registry up to 1993 as my newest endeavor with about 25 cards so far.

Random BBCE Authenticated Boxes and PSA Packs 

I’ve had dozens of BBCE boxes and PSA Packs over the years. Here are a pair of favorites that have since found new homes.

That’s the majority of what I have collected after returning to the hobby as an adult. I’m thinking about a few other projects now that will keep the bulk down, like higher-end cards (maybe Babe Ruth), or signed cards of the players I followed as a kid (1980s or Early 1990s cards). 

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