Collectibles NJ said...
Pete Rose has lots of cards that are vintage. His 1964 Topps card is one of the nicest in that year's set. But can we consider this card of Rose vintage? It is 25 years old.
Does the fact that it is a quarter of a century old make it so? I'm not sure.
In the early 1980s I remember going to a card shop and buying a bunch of cards from the 1950s and 60s. They included stars like Warren Spahn, Robin Roberts, Frank Robinson, Whitey Ford and Hank Aaron. To me, even though they were barely 20 years old, they were vintage.
Some say that cards ceased being vintage after 1980 when Topps lost it's 25-year grip on the industry. In 1981, Fleer and Donruss joined the market, producing cards to challenge Topps. Other companies soon followed suit and the industry would change forever.
Before a few weeks ago, I felt the same way. I consider myself a vintage collector and wouldn't even consider buying anything made after 1980.
But then I found a few 1981 Donruss Reggie Jackson cards at a local shop. They brought back lots of memories.
But again I ask, are they vintage or are they just old? What do you think?
You can weigh in by leaving a comment below. I'd like to know what you think.
6 comments:
If 1983 Fleer cards are Vintage, then what the hell am I? O_O
My feeling is that 1991 is the new 1980. Last year of the greyback Topps and whatnot.
Personally, thought I never gave it a thought before, I think a vintage card is one that predates Topps altogether.
Never considered the question before. I suppose it depends on one's own point of view. For me, 1984 would be the vintage cut-off date, because I started collecting in 1985. I don't have much prior to that year.
Historically, the SCD divided the vintage / non-vintage card eras at 1980 / 1981, with Fleer and Donruss' entry to the market. I'm inclined to agree.
I'm with spike glidden and the SCD. It's like the American League. Anything after the designated rule doesn't matter.
Spike if I remember correctly, the SCD declared the vintage divide in the late eighties. So that declaration is now two decades old. And to have a set year on a term as broad as vintage seems a little foolish because time never stops. I'm pretty sure a set number of years should be the definition and completely agree that 25 years old is a reasonable amount of time to classify cards as vintage.
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