[dougnash]

So I've been collecting Topps Heritage for a couple years, and have near master sets from 2002-2013 except 03 and 09. In addition to that I make an occasional PC addition (Jeter, Rivera, Harper, Trout, Stanton, and BGS 9.5 rookies from the Yankees WS champs at the right price). Anyway, I need something else to collect. Baseball only. I like to build sets, but wish Heritage had more first cards of players (Harper had about a zillion cards in 2011 and 2012 before he had a regular issue Heritage card). Hits are cool too, but not so cool if the non hits belong in the recycle bin. And I'd like to stay below $120 a box. I've been looking at A&G, Gypsy Queen, and base Topps, but haven't pulled the trigger. I'm not driven by $$ return on the box, but if I'm going to pay $100 to open a box, I should get $100 worth of entertainment, and some of that comes from return. Any suggestions? Thanks!!

Doug

[Phillies_Joe]

I'm not a fan of A&G....each years cards look almost exactly the same to me. Gypsy Queen I like, but like A&G, each year is starting to blend together. I guess it comes down to what floats your boat! I was in a quandry in that I really like the thrill of opening but putting sets together was too much work (I really didn't enjoy chasing cards of players I cared nothing about) and wasn't really fun for me. I decided to collect Phillies and only Phillies as my PC, everything else is either up for trade or being sold to replenish funds. I'll never get borded as I truly love the Phillies and can never really complete the collection...just my 2 cents. Really comes down to what will make you happy.

[muz0]

I personally do one set a year. I did heritage last year and did the regular topps series 1 (and 2 when it comes out). I think next year I will do the topps chrome set or maybe even archives.

[dpatera]

I think it really depends on what sort of collecting you like. A&G will take a lot more effort, especially if you're trying to do all the crazy little inserts sets, as well. Regular Topps isn't going to be anywhere near as challenging as Heritage.

[ryanmo5]

Collect topps tribute sets, they are gorgeous cards and you can put together the sets via trade. The base sets aren't very expensive so trading for them is easy!

[DrMitchJ]

Personally, I really liked Gypsy Queen this year. In another thread I crunched some numbers and at the low end, worst card selection possible, GQ gives you nearly $100 of cards for roughly $100 per box!
Here it is copied for you, if interested .... If not, sorry
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Your box of Gypsy Queen, for example has 24 packs, 10 cards per pack (240 cards) plus a box loader (250 cards grand total) Guaranteed 2 autos, 2 relics. At the low end a $100 box (thats what i bought mine for) I believe, gets you at least $100 BV of product (comparing BV as a neutral guide)..... 2 autos book at a minimum at $8 each, relics at the low end $6? There's a mini per pack that has a minimum BV of .50. Theres an additional 10 exclusive minis that randomly book at $1 each. And the remaining cards lets say low end 20 cents each? That's $28 (auto/relic) + $12 (mini) + $42 (base 212x.20) + $10 (box loader $1 x10) which totals up to be about $92 for $100 box .... That's totally minimum with the absolute worst possible mix with absolutely no rookie prospects, no stars, nada, zilch! Just 1 Trout or 1 Harper base card or mini brings you right up to getting nearly $100 worth of cards for $100. Topps is justified selling that product at that price and the gamble of getting something more is still there as an added incentive.
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There it is .... Hope it helps!

PS: I have plenty of doubles if you need to complete a set, and I could use some Heritage in trade, so keep me in mind if so!

[shaunbaus]

In regards to Topps Heritage, do you work on the Topps Heritage Minors sets. They are pretty fun in my opinion and would be similar and probably rather inexpensive as well.

[jayohhessaych]

I enjoy sets with a good mix of current and retired players. Gypsy queen is a ton of fun but it's too similar year-to-year to build every year. With that said, this year's set would be a great year to do it the hits seem to have taken a step up from the past.

I way overdid my set building last year and this year i will be limiting myself to Archives and possibly Topps Chrome. The autos in Archives are very limited but I had a ton of fun building last year's set. Chrome is a smallish set, fun to build with 2 rookie autos per box. Archives is pre-selling for around $80-$85 and chrome is still down at about $65.

[jstbuch]

I LOVE Alen Ginter. I will probably get 3-4 cases this year. I love the non-sports cards and unique "hits." With that said, it is a nightmare for set makers. It's not just the volume of insert sets you have to consider. You have to think about how much space the insert sets take up. So say you only decided to do the main set. The fact that you will get 1-3 insert cards per pack means you will get less of the main set meaning you have to buy a lot more to complete the set. You could easily by 4 cases and not be able to complete a master set.

[krykslr]

It sounds like A&G is right up your alley, my friend.

If you like building Heritage master sets, Ginter is great. All those mini sets, some of which are pretty scarce, would appeal to the set builder in you, and as you stated, you're looking to get your money's worth in entertainment, and Allen & Ginter is an interesting set, a quirky set, and is one that I find to be full of surprises. I love the non-sport inserts because they're always interesting, and I like something that's different from the appeal of game used memorabilia and numbered refractors.