Is SCD even worth getting anymore??

mojorob

Years ago, pre ebay I use to subcribed to SCD.
I just rec'd a subsription notice in the mail yesterday and was wondering if it is still a worth while publication to subscribe to??
Is anything ever offered in it that is any good, that you actually have a chance of buying??
Or basically is it 95% old news by the time you rec. it??
I'm sure there are express services available.......but is it worth the trouble?
Or basically is it just for light reading and having the names and numbers of active hobby dealers??
Any thoughts or insights are appreciated.
Thank you in advance,

Mojorob

wlf3

I read it still... but i think i renew out of habit any more. i renew for 2-5 years in advance, save a few $s and get a decent read once a week. But i agree, not as it was years ago

Ripken

SCD really cast it's own lot several years ago when they jacked up advertising rates for classifieds & small display ads. Perhaps it was necessary but the jump was so startlingly high that it drove a ton of collectors away...individual collectors and small or part-time dealers who offered interesting stuff at a reasonable price. There used to be a lot of 'trade' ads back in the 70s. 80s and early 90s too. No more.
It's too costly even to place a small classified. Then the internet came along and made it even more obsolete. I still think SCD could survive and flourish, but they need to be more aggressive in their news content. The hobby still needs a "voice" and they have no competition, but they just don't seem to put out the type of publication that would grow & entice collectors to buy on a regular basis. I get it..and have for 20+ years...but I zip through it in about 20 minutes now. I used to spend hours reading it & writing to the people who advertised.

jimtb

I've subscribed to SCD for at least 15 years. Before ebay and boards like this, it was the best thing going as far as info on baseball cards. Today, I flip through it in about 15 minutes. I'm not sure why I still get it anymore.
Jim

jvineyard

I still go to my local card shop to buy it every week - I can always get it a few days earlier than by subscription. That used to be impportant because unique stuff would be sold by the time a subscription copy got to me. Now it's just habit. I honestly don't think I've purchased anything from an SCD ad in years.

The show schedule is still worthwhile, and some of the articles. But, generally, SCD seems to have lost touch with the hobby. But even on it's worst day it beats Beckett.

SDSportsFan

I'm a 25+ year subscriber to SCD. It used to take me hours, or even days to scour every page of SCD. Now, I just scan it in about 15-20 minutes.

The only use I've really had for it in the last few years is for the show ads...I've been able to send a few items to show promoters to have autographed. Otherwise, I just scan the news, see if there's an interesting article or two (usually a fruitless effort) and throw it away.

I guess for me, subscribing is just a habit, like keeping that old, comfortable pair of slippers.

Steve

interchanges

I suppose I'll echo the sentiment you've read here.

Last year they offered two subscriptions for the price of one so me and my buddy got it.

There is next to nothing as far as vintage offerings are concerned. Every week seems the same as the previous. All kinds of autographed stuff for sale.
It gets thinner every week as well.

Likewise, I would thumb thru it, then throw it in the recycling bin. It's a sinking ship.

Basilone

I still get it and read it cover to cover each week. I always seem to learn a thing or two about the hobby in each issue. I feel SCD is worth the 70 cents or so each week. Bushing has written some very informative articles lately. I also enjoyed the article regarding Burdick's collection.

koby

I still subscribe. Many smaller auction catalogs are enclosed with the magazine. Maybe if there was a better or free source of calendar of events, I would stop subscribing.

qualitycards

SDSPORTSFAN - I agree 100% w/ your assesment. I've been a non stop subscriber since 1981, and would look foward to each issue.
I would go through it quickly and circle the ads that I wanted stuff out of, then go thru it again to read the articles that interested me and the classifieds. I renew each year not so much out of habit, but beacuse of the salad days of the early/mid/late 80's, it has that nostalgic feel to me about the early days of the industry when Donruss & Fleer tried to go toe to toe w/ Topps and Upper Deck wasn't even a company. I still feel the "good ole days" vibe when I pick up an issue. Sort of like an old resturant you went to for years, the food may not be that great, but you appreciate that its still there. So I would be sad to see SCD disappear forever. And as BASILONE stated. its still worth it for the mere .70 cents an issue...jay

ctsoxfan

Count me in among the longtime readers of SCD, I renewed this year because of habit...and nothing else. The publication itself is largely ads, little content to speak of. The show calendar doesn't even list all of the shows in my area. But, still, I would hate to not get my SCD in the mailbox every week.

jaxxr

Very similar to most posters, do subscribe, wil probably let it lapse.

Was very much better before the net became big-time.

Classifieds could make a comeback if they were cheaper, and might regain some readership. Not all collectors are computer savy, and many are still wary of internet sales. Seems SCD may have missed the boat by not keeping ad prices down.

Griffins

I finally let mine lapse this year as well. After January it got really small, and there rarely is anything worthwhile in there anyway. Yes, they do enclose some auction catalogs, but if you go thru and book mark each auction website you can do the same thing. Its cheap, but in the end I thought it wasn't even worth the effort to carry it out to the trash can, so I let it go.
There is much more worthwhile information on this and the Net 54 board. If you collect vintage a subscription to VCBC (vcbc.com) is infinitely more worthwhile.
It'll be too bad to see SCD go- I had a subscription for a few years when it first started in the early 70's- but its not the same hobby, and not the same magazine. I think it's demise is pretty inevitable.

Mantlefan

I will continue to read SCD. Of course, I only read it for the articles, not the pictures.

mariner

I echo what everyone else says here. I have been a long time subscriber but I can browse through it in 15 minutes or less. I used to read and cherish it like a good book.....no more. It just does not seem to have any substance.

RayBShotz

The one thing SCD is really good for is cataloging a list of the national show schedule. They run a state by state listing of all the card shows upcoming for the month. This info is still invaluable as there is so much clutter on the internet that often you cant get information about shows in your local area that way.

Side note:
If anyone knows of any good card shows this spring in New England please let me know. I live in Maine and aside from the monthly stuff at the Portland Mall the pickings are pretty thin.

Will drive for cards! RayBShotz (Don't currently get the SCD).

EdsBaseballCards

I still like SCD. I look forward to receiving it every week. Granted the stories are few but they are generally well written and every once in awhile there are some truly great ones like the series on the Lionel Carter letters. Truly awesome. Shoot i pay more daily on a pack of gum then this thing costs me weekly so there are absolutely no complaints here.