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This is an adaptation of the introduction for sets on the USA side of things, as originally the site kept them all in the same place. Finally we get some breathing room, Canadian Samsonite is no longer a pesky footnote but an equal in this space.

All sets will be grouped under their confirmed year of release, but it is sometimes unclear what era/theme a particular set belonged to. They will be placed under an "Unknown" dropdown until such evidence arises.

Also, set numbers will not inherit any modern additions to denote sets that use the same number. As an example, the 725 Town Plan will simply use 725 and not 725-X. There are a few crossover set numbers(i.e. 102 for the 102 Super Value Set and 102 Imagination Set), those will just use the same numbers for now.

With that out of the way, the following is the layout we will use when documenting a set:

General Set Information

The following information will be collected from original newspapers, catalogs, and magazines, all of which will be freely available for reference here or in the site's gallery. No aggregate catalogs (BrickLink, Brickset, etc.) will be used.

Advertised Part Count(s): These will be official part counts, never the count of parts in my particular set unless there are no available sources.

Instructions: This is a late addition, so not all sets will have this just yet, but it will generally list the form number and a direct link to the instructions. Sometimes purpose-made pamphlets/brochures will take this place.

Year Confirmed First Available: Taken from (one of) the first confirmed source(s) that conclusively advertises the set's availability for purchase for that season. Typically this requires more than one source to confirm, but only one will usually be provided. It will be specific to the region it is posted in, it CANNOT be assumed to be applicable to both countries.

Most Likely Retirement Date: Usually using catalogs, brochures, or the sudden absence of the set elsewhere and requires some deduction. This is a very useful metric that isn't as simple to show as "Last Year Seen Available". It will also clarify region if needed.

Last Year Seen Available: As a bit of fun, especially for sets that sat on shelves for long periods of time, note that this is not always an indication of retirement date. This is region specific.

Aliases: Any other names a set might've been called during its life, just for the record. This is also region specific.

Suggested Retail Price(s): The set's original retail price, by region if I have that information.

Known Discounted Price(s): Examples of sales along with the year they occurred will be recorded here.

Known Box/Packing Variants

While our article Dating Samsonite Boxes is very comprehensive, it should only be considered applicable to the US side of things. For Canadian Samsonite, I'll write up its own article, as there are plenty of nuances to cover there. And important to note, do not assume this section to be absolute: obviously I cannot report a box variant I don't know of.

Box/Overview

Here will be an introduction going over the context the set existed in. Then we will do a comprehensive look at the box art, inserts, and general contents. This is generally the most versatile entry for each set, though it will not necessarily be comprehensive. Some, such as the 704 Master Discovery Set from the US side of things, require separate articles to cover everything. Instead, here I will try to be as concise as possible while still holding myself to our research standard.

Contents

Specifically looking at the types of parts appearing in the set. Unfortunately, Samsonite being Samsonite, it is obviously very difficult to give an exact anything in this regard. Especially on the Canadian side. I will try and note anything I feel is important and signpost anything speculative or not backed by experience(as I cannot show a ton of images of each set, as its difficult to demonstrate reliability with used examples' inventories).

Historical Examples

Any available images of the set's sealed contents or generally important appearances to cover. This section will be omitted from most sets as this resource is only available for a lucky few.

To keep from having a million sections, a prototype/mockup box falls under historical examples too.

Suggested/Intended Model

Here I will construct the suggested model, if and only if the set allows. This section will be omitted from most basic sets, as there is no one intended model to build. Sets that do not have instructions but feature an explicit model, like the 725 Town Plan, will keep this section.

Should I collect this set?

Departing into subjective land, I've decided to include this section as a bit of a specific "collector's guide" as I find that to be a valuable inclusion.

This is not a "you have to get every set to complete your collection" as that is not practical for most people(myself included) and I simply disagree with the notion that a collection is not impressive or carries less value simply because of what it doesn't have.

A collection is built based on what someone wants, not what someone needs.