New Card Collecting Strategies for 2024!! Vintage, Modern, and Pre War Ideas!!

As 2023 comes to a close, we should reflect on how the past year has gone and what the new year has in store. This is a great time to sit back and decide on if there’s anything we want to change for the upcoming year in our Vintage Sports Card Collecting strategies. What about collecting more Hall of Famers? How about collecting certain players like Jackie Robinson or Mickey Mantle? Should we start buying more vintage Pre War cards? That’s exactly what we discuss in one of the last videos of the year.

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Some of my other recent videos:

PSA’s CEO Shares Big Changes at PSA: https://youtu.be/StzKJ8uHyJs
Multiple Pickups at an Epic Card Show: https://youtu.be/jAF_3YEvihA
Has the Card Collecting Community Lost Their Minds: https://youtu.be/4JOo2OYMVZE
Avoid this Common Card Collecting Mistake: https://youtu.be/xOdQVCkvK1U
Why to Buy the Card and Not the Grade: https://youtu.be/S_66eKej5TM
Buying HOF RCs Before they’re HOFers: https://youtu.be/KF1fQFHtwBY
A Recent May 2023 Card Show Vlog: https://youtu.be/Fm0PowJ3iRw
Going back in time to see what vintage cards were worth in 1986: https://youtu.be/YrHY8xXSS9w
Why We Should Be Buying PSA 1s: https://youtu.be/dS3jyiPzjMw
Better understanding the supply and demand of sports cards: https://youtu.be/KNyQZ6wGfv0
A Recent Card Show With Tons of Vintage and t206 Cards: https://youtu.be/wZJAyngMGtM
My Analysis on whether Rookie Cards are Overrated: https://youtu.be/XiKnBftHe1A
My Dad’s Estate Sale Find of a Lifetime; A Shoebox of Vintage Cards: https://youtu.be/Q6mlRNrIcgY
Why PSA is Still Beating SGC: https://youtu.be/ToNqD4G7tJI
Top 5 Undervalued Vintage Rookie Cards: https://youtu.be/vMgKzICua8g

Consider following me on other platforms:
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#vintagecards #baseballcards #sportscards #thehobby

*All statements and opinions shared in this video (and all of my videos) are for entertainment purposes only, and are not investment advice. I consider Sports Cards to be a hobby, and not an investment. If you’re interested in investment advice, I recommend connecting with a certified financial planner.*

What’s going on everybody it’s Christmas Eve it’s the day before Christmas and whenever we get to a holiday like this and a time where we spend time with our family and kind of prioritize the things that really matter in life it’s always good to do some reflection and then some looking forward

And that’s a lot of what this video is about today and and the point of card collecting is to enjoy ourselves it’s to have fun and it’s to distract ourselves from the stresses of life and enjoy something that brings us peace and brings us comfort and brings us joy just

Like Christmas and holidays and being around family so I first got to start out and say you guys continue to spoil me this week I got a couple more care packages and I wanted to share what you guys got for me so first you know I mentioned a

Few weeks ago uh how I didn’t have a Greg Maddox rated rookie card and I mean who doesn’t like Greg Maddox guy was an unbelievable pitcher he could make the ball go up down left and right I mean he was incredible and so I got an email from Scott and he

Said I’m going to send you one I got one I’m going to send it to you so he sent me a little care package with some stuff so he sent me this 87 rated rookie Greg Maddox card which I’ve wanted for years and I just never got one now I have one

So thank you for that and then he threw some other cool stuff in there he knows I’m a Warren SP Spa guy so he threw this Warren spawn card in there and he threw in a Randy Johnson rookie and I’m always talking about ttms I’m talking about autographs I’m talking

About my childhood and one of the elite prospects from when I was a kid was Andy Bennis remember him he threw an assigned Andy Bennis in there too so super cool Scott thank you super generous to think of me and send me those cards and then David David sent me a

Care package a while ago uh you know we continue to communicate a really great guy and he sent me a book and a lot of you have probably read this book or heard of this book he’s a pretty popular author I’ve not read this book but I’ve heard about it and I’ve

Heard about how great it is and it’s got a bunch of stories of different you know famous events and moments in baseball history and so it’s broken up into short sections which is great for you know just picking it up and reading a couple of them and then putting it down instead

Of some books that have these long chapters in you’re reading for a long extended period of time so I’m in excited for this but the coolest part about it in addition to his kind note that he sent is he sent a list of some of his favorite portions of the book

Different sections different pages that he really enjoyed and so it’s really cool cuz now when I get to one of those sections I I’ll I’ll be able to really go oh yeah this is one that David liked a lot so that was super cool so sending

Me this book sending me these cards like super cool thank you guys so much very very generous I feel like Christmas came early so as we look at this particular video let me remind you of the question from last week which was what are your plans for 2024 and what are you specifically

Looking to Target or move into in 2024 or do differently in 2024 that you didn’t do in 23 so like what’s something new that you’re looking to Target or a new direction for your collection and huge variety of responses which is the point which is great that’s

Why having this community where we can share thoughts and stuff makes it so much fun I can tell you that hearing other people’s responses watching other people’s videos having discussions with other friends and text messages and people that I’ve met has really really impacted My Personal Collection and my collecting preferences and interests

Over the last year year more so than I ever remember so let’s look at five responses from all of you that just kind of explain where you’re headed and then I’ll give you a short take on my thoughts on that and why I chose that particular comment and why I think that

They were ones that stood out to me and especially interesting let’s check out the first one here next year I’d like to venture into collecting pre-war cards specifically some of the candy and gum cards from the early 1930s I really like the Delong George Miller and Diamond Stars

Releases oh yeah I mean that’s been the biggest change for me this year is getting more into pre-war stuff I mean when 2023 started I had very little pre-war stuff I was just starting to dabble in t206 but that was about it it’s not that I didn’t like the carts

It’s it’s not that I didn’t like gouty or you know uh t6s or t25s or turn of the centry cards or you know the caramel cards or it’s not that I didn’t like them it’s just I just didn’t have any and and they didn’t seem super realistic to me

But I really started to liquidate some of my cards personally from the 50s and 60s because those things started to Intrigue me more and more and and and it’s one of the it’s one of the influences I think that that the YouTube Community has had on me

Because as I watch other people do YouTube videos and talk about you know their collection and share their collection C I find myself as I go to card shows get more and more drawn to those cards that you just don’t see very often and

It’s like you know I’ll go to uh I go to I don’t know this year I probably went to 10 or 12 card shows whenever I go to a card show I I do a vlog on it so I would say it’s 10 or 12 I could look it

Up but every single show I go to is going to have a Nolan Ryan rookie card and the Nolan Ryan rookie card is very cool but every show has one every show has you know a 1960 Mickey Mantle card and it’s a very cool card but every show

Has one but it’s not very often that you see a really nice uh t205 Walter Johnson it just you don’t see it very often so when you see it it’s I’m very drawn to it and and I found myself moving in that direction like I have some Pete Rose

Cards every show I go to has multiple Pete Rose cards but not every show has some you know Allen and G gter cards so when I see Allen and gter card I’m like whoa check that out and I like that Rarity and that that is interesting to me and and I like

Learning more about them and and more than that I feel like there’s an extra excitement for me when I am looking at those things and I’m learning about those things that I’m just kind of going with it and I’m not I’m not trying to steer my collection in a certain

Direction my direction will be going this way and then all of a sudden I’ll go what is that over there and then I head that way and I’m just letting it go wherever it goes so that’s kind of something I totally understand now when we talk about the three sets that were mentioned

Here so you got the Delong set the Delong set is a gum company set it’s 1933 um a smaller set there was you know like 25 cards or so I think it might have been 24 cards something like that and and is a very attractive set really

Bright colors couple of big cards in there there’s a garri in there that if you saw it you’d probably recognize in fact I I’ll put it up on the screen here you know there are some cool things and and in the early 30s there are you know

Some big stars are starting to show up like Jimmy Fox is starting to show up you know uh Mel a uh Hank Greenberg there’s a few big names that show up in some of these early to mid3 sets so I totally get the and and you know

Oddball what does that mean it just means not a major manufacturer that is widely known I suppose and Dong is not a widely known major manufacturer by a lot of people now some people are go what are you talking about I’ve had those cards for 40 years yeah but that’s not

It’s not like Topps or Bowman or some or leaf or something like that where most people recognize the names because they’re you know some of them are still manufacturing cards now you mentioned a couple of sets so there’s there’s the George Miller set and the funny thing about the George

Miller set I saw a card at the couple George Miller cards at a um at a show I was at not that long ago and my friend said oh what do you think of these George Millers and I I said you know that’s my grandpa’s name you know my my

Dad’s dad is George Miller so obviously it’s a name I’m going to recognize but another set that is a very cool set a very colorful set a little bit of a different type of color set it’s not the bright bold colors it’s more like pastel colors and some people are very drawn to

It again it’s a smaller set that comes from Candy I think it was toffee instead of gum like the Delong or or like some of the other companies that you know you heard of we hear of but but another very cool set with a very strong following and then the

Diamond Stars is the one that probably more people are familiar with because it’s a bigger set there’s over 100 cards instead of you know 30 to 40 cards like the other two where because it’s a bigger set there’s more of them out there there’s bigger production the

Other thing about the diamond star set is it was a three-year run it was 34 to 36 and so you know they were produced for 3 years there are more cards out there and there are more of the big names right there’s a fox there’s a Greenberg there’s a you know uh Rogers

Hornsby there there are a lot of of names in their Lefty Grove there’s a lot of names in that set that a lot of people recognize and the other ones being a smaller set it’s just it’s just not as broad so the Diamond Stars people probably see more frequently than the

Other two um I think all three are cool I I personally I see the D the least um I don’t know if it’s the region I live but I’d say I rarely see the dongs I and I rarely see the George Millers but I see them occasionally um but I see the

Diamond Stars fairly frequently like you know every other card show someone will have some of those um but they’re all cool and I totally get being interested in them and whether it’s an early set that is a more well-known set like the gouty set you know or or a a smaller set

Like you know the dong set I totally get it and I totally think that they’re they’re a cool thing to go after but for me predominantly I’m really getting more and more drawn to the preor War II and even some pre-World War I stuff and and

It’s really fun so if you’ve not dipped your toe in that if you’ve not gone to the pre re War side yet or tried it consider it if you’re open to expanding your collection this year be open to expanding it there I think that you’re going to get rapidly pulled in like I

Have my plan for collecting in 2024 is to be very intentional with my selections of cards I’ve transitioned from just wanting a certain card into wanting card s with good centering on the front so this coming year instead of just buying when I see something I want

I plan on being much more selective and deliberate I think this makes perfect sense I it’s it’s very very similar to the housing market it’s very similar to the car buying Market when there’s a Feeding Frenzy when things are exploding in price and and people are fighting

Over stuff it’s very difficult to stay disciplined in what you’re buying it’s just there’s a Feeding Frenzy you know if if housing prices are going through the roof people are like that house is good enough we need to buy it because if we don’t get this house we may miss out

And then the next house is going to be more expensive so let’s just settle for this house but then when there’s a a market where houses are sitting for months you can go no that house is missing this one thing that I really want so I’m not going to pick that one

I’m going to go look for another one so yeah it makes perfect sense that being in a slower Card Market that we’re able to be much pickier about what we are interested in you know my buddy Dylan from Double D vintage cards he is adamant now just

Adamant he’s only going to be buying cards that are pretty much perfectly centered and his argument is they’re the rarest cards the rarest cards are perfectly centered cards out of every thousand cards that was produced in vintage cards there are very few that are perfectly centered so yeah there are certain players that

Are kind of rare and certain sets that are kind of rare but what’s also rare is a perfectly centered card so that is what he’s put his focus on so I I totally hear what you’re saying you’re not alone there are people out there that are like centering is it it is the

Thing because it is so rare and being in a market where you know if you if you don’t get this you know 1959 Bob Gib a notoriously off-centered card you know there will be another one there will be another one and another one and another

One and when the prices are going up so fast you’re afraid that you’re going to get priced out but if the prices aren’t going up or are even going down like some things are going down still and and will continue to go down you can be more

Patient because you don’t have have to worry about getting priced out so being much more deliberate about your decision- making in 2024 I think makes perfect sense and it’s a great point and it’s something we all should consider is don’t freak out because you’re probably

Not going to get priced out now I I do have to throw out there if it’s a card that rarely comes up for sale has a really low population that’s different because you don’t know when you’ll see another one so in that case you just kind of have to maybe pay

Up a little bit and maybe have to not have the perfect one because you may not see another one for a year or two that’s the exception but if it’s a common card you know a a 19 55 uh you know Ernie Banks there are going to be multiple of that card coming

Up for sale over the next few weeks time and time and time again so make sure it’s one that you really like my change for 2024 might be to get more cards from other sports like football basketball or hockey now you guys know I love vintage football cards I really like vintage

Basketball cards and I have some you know I collect Chamberlain I collect Oscar Robertson I collect you know Kem Abdul Jabar I collect Dr J you know um some of the guys before that before the Gap in basketball cards it’s hard to afford the Bob Koozies of the world and

You know the Bill Russell of the world but a lot of those guys that were you know uh early 70s I collect them and I like them very much and I love love vintage football you know I collect unitis and star and autog and Gail sers and Jim Brown those

Are kind of the main ones that I I collect and I and I love those cards a ton and I I found myself looking at hockey recently there are quite a few viewers of this channel that are from Canada and they’re big hockey collectors and and there are people that are hockey

Collectors that are big big hockey collectors and a lot of them are starting to kind of rub off on me a little bit I I found myself looking at some older hockey carts and I haven’t bought any yet but I’m I’m I’m viewing them more and I’m searching them more and I’m

Learning about them more and I mean there’s like a 1954 Parkhurst uh Gordy house that I was looking at the other day I’m like that’s a pretty cool looking card I got to admit that’s a cool card I didn’t buy it but I really thought about

It but but I think I think being open to expanding is key and with that said it’s funny you mention this because I just recently kind of opened the door to collecting vintage golf cards and over the last two or three weeks I’ve bought a handful of vintage golf cards and it’s

Been really really fun like really fun um why has it been fun I don’t know if it’s just cuz it’s completely new I don’t know but I mean you know there there are some unbelievable vintage golfers some are some huge names in the US and some are some huge names in

England and I I’ve just enjoyed it and it’s it’s added a lot of of of uh interest for me over the past month and and so before then I had no vintage golf carts like zero and now I’ve got a handful which you’ll see on my December

Pickups video here in a week or two but it’s fun to expand to something new so if you’ve not yet gone beyond just one sport and I know a lot of us are just baseball and some of us are you know baseball and something uh but but consider it

Consider it this coming year consider picking a team or a player from a different sport and just broadening your collection a little bit I think you’re going to be surprised at how exciting it is when this whole new door gets kicked open and and this whole new influx of potential

Targets means for your enjoyment of the hobby consider that seriously try it in 2024 the new category or area I will look at for my colle ction are vintage Oddball cards or cards not produced by Major manufacturers cards like Bond bread or Wonderbread Johnson’s cookies NFL PA cards

Etc my collection has most of my major cards I desire and I am not looking to buy a lot of volume but picking up some of these overlooked vintage cards is something I plan to do in 2024 so I think think this I I think that this answer brings

Up a topic that I’ve been wanting to talk about and and the topic is like I know we’re all collectors we like we’re well not all of us there are some of us that are just in investors I suppose but most of us would consider ourselves collectors but we

Also consider part of our collection to be an investment and and I understand that so so probably most people would consider themselves mostly collector little bit of investor a few people would be mostly investor a little bit of collector and some people would be mostly collector and barely any

Investor but we don’t want to buy something you know nobody wants to buy something that like is going to become worthless or worth very very little so one of the things that I think holds a lot of of us back from expanding our collection to Oddball cards again what

Does that mean I think just non- major manufacturers but the reason I think that a lot of us kind of hold back from that is because of how liquid major manufacturer cards are versus the non major manufacturer carts for example you know if if I were to if I

Were to look up uh or if I were to sell a 1952 Topps you know Willie ma card there are hundreds and thousands of people who I know would like to have that card there are there are there are thousands and thousands of of collectors that want a 52 tops Willie

Mace but are there that number of collectors that want a Willie Maye Red Man card now a lot of people do but a lot of people don’t so what happens is is when you go Oddball again I don’t really like that term cuz it sounds kind of like it

Has a negative commentation and and I don’t think it should but if you go non- major manufacturer card it’s less liquid meaning it’s harder to sell because there aren’t as many people that are currently in the market for it if I buy a 1963 Topps Willie Mae card which I did

Recently when I buy that card I don’t really feel like it’s that big of a risk cuz I know if I put that card up for sale there are a lot of people that would like to have it a lot of people would like to have a 1963 tops Willie

Mace and there are people who would like to have you know one of the the Red Man Willie Maye cards too but not as many like if I were to put up a 63 tops Willie May it’s a really nice five in a week I’m going to have 20 plus

Watchers of that card right on eBay they’re they’re going to click it they’re going to favorite it they’re going to they’re going to watch it but if I put up a red man wiie May’s card I might only get five Watchers and and that’s intimidating

That that is preventing a lot of us from going out beyond the normal the standard stuff and it’s holding you back because you’re like ah it’s not going to be as easy to sell if I decide I don’t want it and you’re a little bit less convinced

That it’s going to go up in value like the other things will and I get that because I’ve been there myself I’ve been there myself and gone ah if I buy that card will anybody want it someday and again you’re saying but I’m a collector who cares but all of

Us well not all of us but the overwhelming majority of us have a little hint of well we consider this collection to also be an investment which is part of the reason we allow ourselves to spend money on it so I understand the apprehension of getting into the nonstandard

Stuff but I can tell you that recently I’ve bought a few nonstandard cards and they’ve been it’s been a lot of fun it’s been a lot of fun so one thing to consider in 2024 is maybe kind of dial down the investment part of your collecting habits and consider dialing up your collecting

Parts now should should you do that no not necessarily but maybe consider it depending on your financial situation your life situation your debt situation your you know future situation everybody’s different but we only get one chance at this life thing right we get one crack at this you you literally you only live

Once so make sure that you’re not forgetting to enjoy yourself and actually collect some of the things that you’d really like to collect because you’re afraid that it won’t have value down the road there are people that like let me give you one quick example to show you

That I’m not just speaking because one thing I don’t want you guys ever think is I am I am uh telling you to do things which I’m I don’t ever think I’m telling you to do I’m just throwing out ideas for you to consider is what I feel like

I do but I’m throwing out the idea of consider collecting something that you really like that may not be super Popular by the mainstream I have like a dozen pirate cards from 1888 Allen and Ginter pirate cards like there are so few people that are interested in those

Cards like I I’ve never met anybody else who’s interested in them but I love them like I think they’re so cool and I picked up more this month I’ll show you on my December pickups video I I think they’re absolutely beautiful and I think they are so

Cool and do I think they’re G to be Skyrocket in value over the next 50 years no I don’t think they’re going to Skyrocket in value but I like them and they’re it’s my collection and I like having them so if there’s something that you really

Like allow yourself to have part of your collection be something that isn’t an investment it’s just an enjoyment CU at the end end of the day you want to enjoy your cards you want to enjoy your collection you want to enjoy yourself that’s the whole point so consider

That I’m on a mission I’m taking 2024 by the horns I’m working on a Jackie run the goal is to accumulate Jackie Robinson cards and by the time the 2024 National comes around I would like to trade or sell into a 52 mantle I will continue tock pivot my collection until

I have enough High valued cards that will allow me to trade or sell for that precious 52 tops mantle oh man yeah I mean the 52 mantel can anybody go wrong picking up a 52 Manel I mean it’s it’s sort of like the card in the hobby I think most people

Would like to have one most of us will never have one cuz of the cost you know I just did a video on Friday about consolidating your collection and it’s like you know trading up basically like trading you know these five cards for this big card that you’ve long

Wanted I I totally get that and at the moment that’s the kick I’m on at the moment it’s I’m going to sell off some of my smaller cards to buy some of these cards that I’ve wanted for the last 35 years and I I totally respect that but I also totally respect

The guy who has a ton of stuff full runs of tons of players I totally respect that too and I’ve literally gone back and forth in my whole collect collecting Journey on what the right move is cuz there’s not a right move it’s just what what’s your move right

Now you can’t go wrong with Jackie Robinson cards piling up Jackie Robinson cards is like piling up bars of gold that there is always going to be a demand for Jackie Robinson cards it is a very safe investment now have Jackie Robinson cards gone down over the last year

Sure did they go down because people don’t like Jackie Robinson any anymore no I think they went down because they got a little carried away and there’s a correction in the market but but they’re not a card that will someday we’ll find out oh those cards nobody wants a Jackie

Robinson card anymore that’s not going to happen so it’s a very it’s a very safe uh investment it’s a very safe collectible and and quite frankly it’s a meaningful colle cble like I just I just mentioned the other day I can’t believe I don’t have a Jackie Robinson card like

That has to change in 2024 it has to change I’m going to have a year from now I’m going to have a Jackie Robinson card it 100% has to happen and and moving toward the bigger card positioning yourself to get that card that you really really really want

And liquidating part of your collection to get the card that you really want I totally respect it I’ve been doing it myself I don’t blame you at all and I say go get it if the if the 52 mantle is your ultimate goal in this collecting

Journey go get it this year and for some of you it’s not the 52 mantle for some of you you know maybe it’s the 57 unitis right maybe it’s the 50 you know autogram maybe it’s the 54 Aaron maybe it’s the 33 Ruth whatever the card is it’s your ultimate

Goal I don’t think you can really go wrong if you move up and consolidate toward that bigger card just like I did by getting that Jim Brown this past month I totally get it and I totally respect trying to move up from massive card that you’ve always wanted

Now great answers again this month I I told you guys from the beginning the whole point of my channel is not for me to have a soap box to get up in front of and just talk and have people listen to me it’s to create a community Community

A community of fellow collectors uh to create a place and a platform for us to share and exchange ideas and it has been eating away at my stomach for a week that I’m like four days behind on responding to comments on my Channel right now but Lucy Had a

Soccer tournament last month I’ve had family gatherings for Christmas and holiday stuff I was grading finals and getting my grades in and at the same time I’m trying to also continue to create new videos and keep that going so I’m behind but trust me I will get caught up

And it’s important to me to continue the two-way communication of you sharing your thoughts and me sharing my response because that’s the whole point of this with that as we head into the last week of Christmas I’ll say a couple of things first I’ve got a couple of big

Things planned for the next week I’m planning on doing a whatnot sale because I think it’d be fun I’ve got a video coming out where I’m going to do a collaboration with my buddy Darren from Return to collecting that’s going to post on on New Year’s Eve so if you’re looking to

Kill an hour on New Year’s Eve we’ll post that and we’re going to share some big opinions about 2023 and 2024 and we’re going to share some of our pickups we’re going to talk about some of our targets I’m really excited for that I’m gonna be a guest on a

Collaboration with Samy Thunder on his channel sami’s a great guy if you’re not a subscription subscriber of Sammy subscribe to Samy subscribe to four collectors for collectors Samy is one of the four of them along with three other great collectors and great guys the question I have for you finally

Greg get to the point what’s the what’s the question for this week my question for this week is if you look back on 2023 cuz I don’t I like to look forward let’s try not to look back and regret too much let’s try not to do that but at the same

Time if we consider the decisions that we’ve made over time and where we’re headed sometimes we go I learned from that I learned from that mistake or from that good decision you can learn from good and bad decisions and and bad experiences can be learning experiences and good experiences can be learning experiences

But when you look back over all of 2023 what’s the one thing what’s the one thing that you learned during 2023 that has made the biggest impact is it not buying something that you wish you had bought is it buying something that you wish you hadn’t is it something

With the grading industry is it something with modern cards versus vintage cards is it something about uh collecting versus investing over 2023 what is the the biggest takeaway for you that you’ve learned based on your experience based on conversation based on everything that transpired during the year what’s your biggest takeaway from

2023 that you plan to implement for 2024 let me know what you Think