Like most collector's, I have many collecting goals. Whether it's a player PC, team PC, or simple commons to fill a set, I want it all and I want it now. But the reality is, there isn't enough time or money in the world to get it all now or maybe ever. That's not to say that I don't already have a lot though. Because, well, I do.
But one thing I don't have a lot of is old time hockey. By old, I'm talking about pre-overproduction era hockey cards (before the 80s). Sure I have a few singles here and there. I even have almost 300 pre-1980s cards in my COMC inventory at my disposal if I wanted, but other than a couple cards, there's nothing substantial to any one set.
So long story short, on top of all the other things I collect within this great hobby, I've decided to go Turbo and find a vintage set (or two or three) to go after. There are many sets that I have always wanted to collect like the 1979-80 Topps or OPC set, the 1971-72 OPC set, the 1964-65 Topps Tallboys, or the 1951-52 Parkhurst set. But those are just way too far outside of my price range to go after the stars and rookies in each set. I need something that is small, not extremely over-the-top expensive, and possibly attainable within my lifetime. I first narrowed it down to a few sets to consider:
1953-54 Parkhurst - 100 cards - Key Cards: Tim Horton, Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau RC, Terry Sawchuk, Bill Dineen/Al Arbour RC Errors, Gordie Howe, Gump Worsley RC
1957-58 Topps - 66 cards - Key Cards: Johnny Bucyk RC, Glenn Hall RC, Terry Sawchuk, Gordie Howe, Norm Ullman RC
1962-63 Topps - 66 cards - Key Cards: Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, The Checklist
1971-72 Topps - 132 cards - Key Cards: Ken Dryden RC, Gordie Howe, The Checklist, Bobby Orr
1976-77 OPC - 396 cards - Key Cards: Bryan Trottier RC, Bobby Orr, Tiger Williams RC
I think when all is said and done, I'm going to go after all five of them but for now, my winner is going to be the Parkhurst set. It's small, has some mega HOF power in it and I think I can get most of it for well under the "pie in the sky" values.
What is everyone's opinion? Do you see any of these being an advantage over the other? Do you collect vintage sets? How concerned are you with completion vs. condition?
I've accumulated some hockey cards, through various purchases, over the years but never had any interest to collect. Not sure how old my cards are.
ReplyDeleteHa ! My first word association was pssoff !
Accumulate is a word i use often.
DeleteI've never really had any interest in vintage, but I would say the Parkies would be a cool set to collect. If I were to collect vintage I would want them all PSA graded, and try to get the same grade for each of them (because I'm stupid like that). I typically hate graded cards but I think it works well for vintage for some reason.
ReplyDeleteI love the old Parkies set. They are sweet. Too far out of my price range though.
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