I am considering broadening my collecting horizons, though. Perhaps it's just starting and finishing Topps 2012 quickly, but I don't feel like waiting for series 2 just yet. And I know Heritage comes out this week. I've never worked on a set other than Topps flagship (and some upper deck set like 10-15 years ago - who can remember?) but I am thinking of dipping a toe in the water.
Here's my request to you: please post with some of your thoughts on past Heritage, hopes for this year's Heritage, frustrations and anything else I should know. I know this - the packs are far more expensive (per card) than I am used to... Is it worth it? (I am not a run-to-ebay-and-sell collector, by the way)
Ok, baby is awake - please try to check in with your thoughts, even if it's just a quickie!
Thanks!
Heritage can be fun, if you like the old school cards. However, the SP's are not so fun to a set builder.
ReplyDeleteI'm still working on 2003 Heritage for example.
Granted i started it in 2008, but still...
how hard is it to track down the "old" sets? is that what makes it hard to complete? and how do you obtain more towards completion - ebay/sportslots? or blogger trades? (or some other way?)
DeleteI've always liked the Heritage set. I want to pick up a box this year, but I'm not sure if I'll have the available funds. I opened a box of Heritage a couple years ago and it might have been my favorite box to bust.
ReplyDeleteYou have do be dedicated if you want to build the set, though. As Captain Canuck above me said, those SPs can be tough to track down. I've seen many collectors agonize over those last few SPs they can never seem to find.
also, it seems like one box doesn't even get you halfway to a set... which raises a question - why would you want to buy one box? just to score some of your team guys, and trade the rest for more team/players that you are interested in? or are you chasing some "big hit" with the box purchase?
DeleteYeah, I just buy a box to try and get the many player/team guys I collect and have some extra tradebait left over. I've managed to get all the Heritage base cards of the guys I needed over the years, but the SPs are another story.
DeleteMost people I've seen that try to complete the Heritage set open multiple boxes. I'm sure you wouldn't have much trouble getting the base cards, but the SPs are tougher to find.
I fully support the Heritage concept and have tried to complete it once or twice. But the frustration of 2008 Heritage -- a set I'm still attempting finish -- made me swear of Heritage until it's a design I really enjoy (I'm looking forward to 2020 Heritage). The SPs will drive you crazy more than any other set.
ReplyDeleteok, i've seen the reference to the SP's a few times - are you referring to the "high numbers" within the set, that get you up to 500? or is it the inserts inside? (sorry if that's a basic question! i'm not super-familiar with building the set)
DeleteYup, I'm referring to the high numbers at the end of the set. #425-500 as Crinkly Wrappers said. He also mentioned my least favorite term in modern collecting "artificial rarity" or "artificial scarcity." Bleah.
DeleteI love the Heritage sets, but as the others above have attested to already, they can be murder to complete. The SPs (cards 426-500 in 2011 Heritage for example), can get pricy, especially if they are star cards. But the design mimics Topps' classic sets from the 50's & 60's so they are worth the chase (at least for me..)
ReplyDeleteBasically Topps issues a 500 card set that mimics the set from 49 years earlier (this year, 1963 in 2012, for example). Cards 1-425 are the commons and cards 426-500 are the short prints, usually falling one in every two packs. The thing that makes it difficult to complete is that in a box of Heritage, you get 24 packs, at the rate I mentioned above for short prints, you get 12 towards your set. That's if you don't pull a duplicate either. With perfect collation, you'd have to buy 7 boxes to get all the short prints. It's not that the set is particularly hard to finish, it's just expensive. Short prints usually run a couple bucks per card depending on the player, so be prepared for that.
ReplyDeleteThe reasoning for Topps doing this is to mimic the final series of the older sets, when the issued their base sets in 4-6 series (until 1974, which was all one series). The final series was usually released late in the season and less were produced because less were bought. I guess people didn't buy baseball cards all year round like they do now. So I guess any series released in September wouldn't get the sales a set would in May.
Heritage is a fun set to attempt but it can be tough if you don't spend the money to finish it up. The cards themselves aren't scarce, just sold for more due to artificial rarity.
(sorry this is so long!)
I bought Heritage for the first time last year. This was really the first product I'd bought that wasn't Topps base or Upper Deck since I was in junior high. It was my favorite product last year - a big part of that was because I love the design. 1962 Topps was kind of special to me because I had a Whitey Ford card that I got autographed when I was real young. I also really like the 1963 design - though I've never owned one - so this year's set is another I'm excited about.
ReplyDeleteTed has a good description written above about the SP's. It is a tough set to complete. Though I think the idea of buying 7 boxes to complete it wouldn't be the way to go - you'd have a ton of extra singles!
I also like that the focus is really on the base set. There are a few inserts and you will pull a relic or auto here or there - but the base cards are really where it's at for this product.
(Lifetimetopps)
as i was searching around the internet and blogs for comments on Heritage I came across that post (and another where you compared it to the actual set, i think) - that got me even more excited about it...
Deletethough i am curious (and partially intimidated!) by the posters who have mentioned spending several years working on the set... though that is probably because they are working on so many different projects at once...
Yeah - I guess it just depends how focused you are on getting it. If you're trying to complete 10 other sets at the same time, it would be difficult (uh, wait - I'm kind of doing that).
DeleteThat comparison post is my favorite I've done - but it was a total bear to do. I'm going to do the comparisons again this year when it comes out - very excited to do it! But I'm going to do them 1 or 2 at a time - that will be more fun and just easier!
For me for last year - I'm 2 SP cards short of the full set from last year. I have been for about 4 or 5 months, I think. I could finish it real quick through Sportlots - but then I'd want to do the "complete set" post - so I'm kind of waiting until someone just has those cards or I decide it's time to pick them up off of Sportlots.