Nice Topic guys,

Set building has always been what the hobby is all about to me. For over 30 years now I have been insainely obssessed with building the perfect 1970 to 1990 Topps football sets.

The seventies being my childhood collecting years makes those set very special to me.

Thankfully, 10 years prior to the crazy TPGing hype, I had been searching out the finest examples for my sets at card shows and ripping product that was much more affordable at the time.

Then came the internet and TPGing, The cards that remained on my wantlist became increasing harder to find in the higher grades, due to most always were overgraded from ebay sellers who call anything "Mint"

Thus the 3rd Party grading. All fine and dandy until it started to take "stupid money" to even get the higher graded commons.

Now, The hobby has never been about money to me and its always been the CARDS and the history they represent that I was after.

So with the legions of idiots who haven't a clue as to how to grade cards flocking to ebay, I was forced to start cracking cards out of slabs.

Ive cracked a lot of product over the years, Wax, factory sets and vending boxes.

While I have pulled lots of killer cards from vending boxes, they also yeild a lot of junk cards as well. Wax and rack packs will usually net you the best cards, but the prices on many of those are getting stupid as well.

The vending is still about half the cost, mainly for the reasons noted above. Even so I have rolled the dice on some vending boxes and have done ok pulling some high end cards for my sets.

For me set building never ends, even though I have complete most of my seventies set multiple times, I always seem to have a want list.

For example, Ive completed the 1970 Topps football set 3 times over the years always moving the higher grade cards up to my top set.

And here I sit with my current set still having a want list and still missing that one 1970 Topps Football card in mint condition that has always aluded me.....

Card #147 Dave Osborn, he is my "white whale" in that set.

Its the same way for the rest of my seventies sets:

71 Still looking for the right Joe Greene Rookie and I've had a few nice ones over the years.

72 With my boyhood hero Roger Staubach, its one of my all-time favorites! I can't even imagine how many thousands of dollars Ive dumped into my set. Another set that I have built multiple times.

73 Ive always had a hard time with the 73's.
For some reason the centering on the back really bothers me if it is o/c more so than other seventies sets. My white whales in this set have always been the John Riggins, Dwight White and Jack Ham Rookies.

74 Man! with that goal post design centering can be brutal on these and for a centering freak like me its almost enough to make one throw in the towel! LOL
While I maintained a pretty nice set I hadn't give the 74 set much attention for a few years. That is until I managed to cut a deal with long time collector, Mike Tavenner, who had assembled one of the finest 74 sets I had the privillage to see.
Of coarse I merged it with the set I currently had and it was just an amazing set. But you know what? I still managed to come up with a wantlist here as well. Mainly the Ray Guy Rookie

75's and their centering woes.

76's and still looking for a centered #331 NFC semi game card(Roger Staubach)

77's How many times am I going to make this one before being content, probably never.

78's, Hell I just busted 5 vending boxes from BBCE and still have a wantlist of 85 cards!

79's? busted a couple of wax boxes last year. Boy did I get some beauties there. Still looking for the perfect Roger Stabuach. Still sitting on some of the 3-pack wax trays. I'll bust them sooner or later.

Eighties sets? lets just say the smoke has yet to settle on them. Ive been busting this stuff left and right. I just love finding that perfect card! LOL. Maybe I'll get some more from BBCE.

I enjoy set building more than any other asspect of the hobby. While sometimes it came be very frustrating searching for high grade cards, it is very fulfilling when you finally land a certain card you have been looking for for so long.

That moment when you remove the card that has been the reigning champ in your set for so long.....and slip the new Top dog into that spot in your set. Thats where I get my staisfaction and why I am a card collector.

John