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How to Put Together a Vintage Card Set

Whether your passion is baseball cards, playing cards or postcards, putting together a vintage card set takes time, determination and money. A card̵7;s availability and physical condition determine its value, and collectors spend their free time hunting the perfect vintage card to add to their collection. Assembling a set can take from a few years to a lifetime to complete. Learn how to begin this traditional hobby in your spare time.

Things You'll Need

Plastic sleeves
Hard plastic case
Storage box or binder

Instructions

- 1
  Decide what kinds of cards you want to collect according to what interests you. Begin by focusing your collection on a specific era, a certain team or a geographic location; or collect cards that originally came in a set. Begin your collection with a few cards that are easy to find and acquire additional cards as you are able to find them.
- 2
  Search your local hobby shop for trading and collectible cards. Ask the store owner about the specific set you are collecting and for advice on how to locate hard-to-find cards.
- 3
  Attend a card show in your area to peruse trading cards, memorabilia and vintage cards. Find out the card show dates in your area on card collectors' websites, such as Beckett (beckett.com) or Tuff Stuff (tuffstuff.com).
- 4
  Search online auction sites such as eBay (ebay.com), Legendary Auctions (legendaryauctions.com) or Guernsey̵7;s (guernseys.com) to find vintage cards for sale. Confirm that the seller is reliable before making any purchase.
- 5
  Trade cards with other collectors to add to your vintage collection. Join a local collector̵7;s club to trade with other members, or join an online trading site, such as SportsCardFun (sportscardfun.com), to connect with other traders.
- 6
  Protect your vintage cards in plastic sleeves or hard plastic cases, and keep the cards away from bright sunlight, humidity and heat. Organize the cards in a box or a binder that can hold all of the sheets. Arrange the cards in order of release date or print date.
- 7
  Record all of your card information on your computer to keep track of the cards in your collection.

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