I find the most satisfying thing is to collect what makes you happy.
I have a number of items which aren't much in value and are very satisfying to have (TOPPS Card signed by Glenn McGrath in black and TOPPS signed by Corey Richards thanks to COMPO) whereas other items have a fairly high value and are just there because I didn't have them and they are reasonably nice.
Obviously I am interested in Ooh Aah Glenn McGrath and centred my interest on him.
I got a copy of 'The Futera File' which I also used as a guide (these are available from Cardshowcase in Melbourne although I can't remember how much they cost).
I also use the Cardshowcase website and their listing on cricket cards as an aid.
Various sites have lists which you can print off, some of them have distribution of cards etc.
Look at photobuckets of members as an aid also as to what you like, there are many photos of high end cards in them, or people can send you photos of cards if you specifically request them.
The next most important thing is patience. If you have the money to just go out and buy up what you want that is fine otherwise look at the market and cherry pick what you really want first otherwise what you really want may come up when you haven't got any reserves and you miss out. Once you have decided what you really want put a Wants List on OCT and hopefully someone may see something you want at a reasonable price.
This has worked well for me thanks to the fantastic cohort here on OCT, and is how I got the elusive Glenn McGrath red sig because everyone knew that was my Mr Big.
First and foremost it is your collection and you need to enjoy it because you like it.
Thanks for the great advice. My wish list right now looks pretty stupid as it's got almost everything on it: NAZIM'S CRICKET PAGE 2 (Cards Wish List) I guess my grand plan is to knock off as much of the low-end items as I can in a hurry and leave the high end stuff for something to take my time over and cherry pick. I really haven't thought this through properly. I suppose I just want to get a few uncommon items into my collection and go from there.
Ultimately, my greatest pleasure comes from signed items (common or not) and all of this is sort of a distraction from the main goal, but a nice distraction to have I reckon I can't believe I've got so wrapped up in the card collecting side of things since I started spending more time on here. Curse you OCT .... hehehe!
Anyhow, thanks for taking the time to provide me with some sound advice. All the information I can amass will be extremely useful to me.
just looked up your wish list and will have the following cards in the mail next week:
TNL24Phil Simmons
2003 AW1 BC1
TOPPS:
R8,9,10,13,15
M2,,4,5,6,10
Y6,9
G8
A3
just looked up your wish list and will have the following cards in the mail next week:
TNL24Phil Simmons
2003 AW1 BC1
TOPPS:
R8,9,10,13,15
M2,,4,5,6,10
Y6,9
G8
A3