What % of your collection is in ...."mint " condit

[nozer]

I have been toying latly with the idea of starting an Everton
collection from the season i first started attending games on a regular basis in my formative years (61/62 season).

Being the fussey sod that i am all my collection has to be in "mint " or near mint condition has pos ie NO Team Changes Half-Time Scores etc.

My search so far has turned up few in acceptable condition to me (or am i looking in the wrong places) and i dont want to be folking out good money for "tat".

What are you guys take on writing in progs.

Regards.
The Noz.

[grantham]

Prefer as near to mint as possible, but will always buy a programme I need in whatever condition if the price is right. Then look to replace it further down the line
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[Karb]

I'd obviously prefer one in mint condition, but the main thing for me is just to have as full a collection as possible. I avoid hole punched ones, but I will buy ones with team changes, scores on front or creases.

[notreve]

I'm like you- as mint as possible- no writing etc must have token if applicable but will accept folds
That said I think I'm down to my last 200 competetive wants dating back to 1945 so as my collecting rate slows I'm sure I will have to become less fussy- but not yet! (Didn't bid on a Man Utd with scores etc written in it today)

[Pete’s Picture Palace]

I don't mind creases, scores, scorers, team changes as long as legible and not in a scrawl. I like to feel the programme has been through a game in whatever weather there was and I'm not in mind condition so why should a bit of paper be?

But - NO to punched holes or cellotape or bad tears.

[pafcprogs]

I am with Grantham here...better to have it in some condition and replace later than not have at all

getting to that stage now where I trawl ebay and see a programme and think...is that better than mine?
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Currently disposing of my collection so please email any wants lists to [email protected].
Most Plymouth post 1959 but plenty of others including reserves, friendlies, Cup Finals Internationals and Club issues, handbooks and other sports.

[PompeyPhil]

Pete’s Picture Palace wrote:

I don't mind creases, scores, scorers, team changes as long as legible and not in a scrawl. I like to feel the programme has been through a game in whatever weather there was and I'm not in mind condition so why should a bit of paper be? But - NO to punched holes or cellotape or bad tears.

Spot on Pete......the purists might not agree but to me handwritten ink team changes, scorers etc add to the "history" of the programme.

[derby1884]

For anything, say, pre-1960, I don't mind things like team changes or even bovril stains on the back cover as it more or less authenticates the programme as being used at the match itself and not one that never saw the light of day between printer and dealer.

Draw the line at punched holes or missing pages, though.
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[manchesterunitedman1]

I am with Pompey, Derby Steve and Pete on this subject.

Let's face it if you are a collector of say programmes back to the very late 1950's then great conditioned ones are still in plentiful supply for sure but when you start to go further and further back then "genuine match worn" will throw up some faults.

I will not buy punched holes generally or score on face, although i do have one or two but they are scarce issues but I could not give a hoot about team changes and as far as United are concerned have replaced many where tokens have been removed but will have the odd one or two still need sorting out. However, with some/certain Reserve issues i will buy with SOF/some writing on if i have too, as some of them do not show up that often.

I am aware of a few collectors who will not have anything less than virtual perfection-well any port in a storm to get one knocked off the list and then find another one day was always my collecting philosophy and still is.

Post 1946-7 you can take your time-there are no set rules and everyone will do as they see fit as far as I am concerned, but some of the tat that is offered on ebay and other outlets is no better than second hand toilet paper or as one of my United colleagues has often advised me "arsewiped"[that treble is a bugger!], so there you have it this is my view.

[Fishy]

manchesterunitedman1 wrote:

I am with Pompey, Derby Steve and Pete & Leslie on this subject.

I have a list of substandard issues in my collection (50s onwards) and will wait until a good copy comes up at the right price before changing it.

Pre War with a tear; cello or other is sometimes very difficult to fnd - just filling that gap and waiting until flush again (pigs will fly one day!).

[roughyedz]

manchesterunitedman1 wrote:

I am with Pompey, Derby Steve and Pete on this subject. Let's face it if you are a collector of say programmes back to the very late 1950's then great conditioned ones are still in plentiful supply for sure but when you start to go further and further back then "genuine match worn" will throw up some faults. I will not buy punched holes generally or score on face, I could not give a hoot about team changes and as far as United are concerned have replaced many where tokens have been removed but will have the odd one or two still need sorting out. I am aware of a few collectors who will not have anything less than virtual perfection-well any port in a storm to get one knocked off the list and then find another one day was always my collecting philosophy and still is. Post 1946-7 you can take your time-there are no set rules and everyone will do as they see fit as far as I am concerned, but some of the tat that is offered on ebay and other outlets is no better than second hand toilet paper or as one of my United colleagues has often advised me "arsewiped"[that treble is a bugger!], so there you have it this is my view.

Agree with every word . . . well said

[markb9060]

Although I`m a Manchester United collector I don`t have experience buying pre-war home programmes as they are financially not an option (at the moment)

However, I have noticed that age and rareity tends to outweigh condition.

About Mint condition programmes, this is a great matter of opinion evidently. It`s a term that some sellers tend to throw around with ease....yet you can bet your bottom dollar the described item is more likely to be 'very good condition' (if you`re lucky!)

On a personal level, I do have some fairly strict guidelines which are as follows....

No Punch Holes EVER !!
No Sellotape or marks left by it.
No Staining anywhere.
No Water Damage.
No writing which is nothing to do with football....ie I once bought a fairly rare Workington Town FA Cup Ticket Stub from the 1957-58 season which was described as having some writing on it but cleverly not shown in the Ebay photo.
However I didn`t expect the writing to be an effing shopping list !! ....
needless to say I sold it on at a loss describing it accurately but with my self respect slightly dented but very much intact !

Otherwise, I don`t like writing on the cover but a neat score on the face is acceptable abeit in rareity situations. Obviously, the older the programme, the more lenient I am.

I once returned a whole season of United homes all with tokens from the early `70`s to an Ebay seller (sorry if it`s anyone on this forum) because he failed to mention that almost every single programme had extensive team changes in fountain pen ink ! i was annoyed and gutted because otherwise it was a cracking set.

For me though, the most important thing when buying programmes is good old fashioned honesty. Manys the time I have hurriedly bid on a programme, received it only to descover it`s less than perfect condition.
Then kicked myself for not reading it`s correct description whilst leaving my 5 Star feedback of excellence.

Just as a footnote, I`m going to be taking a break from collecting for a year or so due to more pressing matters.

For instance, my car has been officially placed on death row !...Yes, it has been given a year to live. So I`m saving up for another....this together with job uncertainty has put everything on hold. So any dealers/sellers I normally buy from, it`s nothing personal.

Obviously, I`ll still be chipping in on the Forum from time to time.

I am now officially a non-collecting collector !! (and NOT very proud of it)

I`ll be back (as a famous Austrian once said)

[iucrmh]

For me I guess it depends whether I picked the programme up at the match, or bought it otherwise. I've got into the habit of putting the programme straight into a plastic bag when I get it to protect it from the elements (home games I will have already read as I am one of the proof readers).

When I first realised that I was collecting programmes from all of Chester's games since reforming (rather than just games I went to) I ended up with some duplicates, do I keep the ones I picked up at the game (slightly worn) or the perfect copies I got as a job lot. I sort of prefer the ones I got myself, even if slightly worn.

As for my other collecting stream, the Cheshire Senior Cup, I am more than happy to have the score filled in, team changes etc, as it helps in my quest to fill in some of the history of the competition. I've got quite a few where someone has bothered to neatly fill in the gate receipts and the split between clubs.