Collecting Blues?

otwcards

Does anyone else ever hit a lull or a spot in their collecting when they feel a slight separation from their direction? A loss of motivation or desire, perhaps?

I realize that when one narrows the scope of their collection, there comes a point when selectivity and availability create a natural halt to the progress. I realize that other times, when there is little focus, funding can become an issue.

I've been quite a bit more focused on my collecting the past couple of years, so I understand that there are times that items that I would have interest in will not be readily available. I've also concluded that sometimes, when an item is available, it either doesn't meet my criteria or the price point is one that I deem a bit absurd.

The struggle that I find is to continue to muddle on and continue to search for those needles in the haystacks. The hardest part is maintaining the focus enough NOT to deviate into other areas that, while I find them interesting, would not fit into the overall scope of my collection -- things that I would like for a short period, but become less enamored with in the very near future.

And what about all of the excess? How does one garner up the chutzpah to sell off all those pieces and placeholders that having stories and emotions tied to them via the search and acquisition period? Especially when the extra funds that may be generated don't have many places to go with regard to the collection (holiday purchases and college educations aside).

Just figured I'd throw this out there and see if anyone else is in the same boat...

Bosox1976

I am in a lull too.

I view my collection as fluid and am realizing that I like the chase as much as, if not more than, the holding of any given acquisition.

Prices have driven vintage rips out of the realm of logic, so I have been seeking out clean vintage sets and cherry picking. I found myself with 11 complete 1973 sets last year at one point, before sending them all to Brent and Rick to sell.

I have enjoyed the few rips I have done, but the 80's stuff just doesn't float my boat like the 70's.

I've tried a couple of non-sports, oddballs, and prewar excursions - but none did it for me.

My son is just about the right age to (hopefully) enjoy the hobby - maybe the 2014's will get us both revved up.

Alternatively, I'd love to do a "big buy" of a nice collection or two -- but do not have my ear to the ground. We'll see...

SidePocket

I am finding it harder to finish the 1959 and 1960 Topps sets I'm building. Not so much for lack of trying, but it seems there are definitely a large number of cards that are really hard to find centered. Then I start thinking maybe I'll hold off on these sets and start 1963 or 1967. Then I think maybe I'll start 1965 instead, but maybe 1966 since I have a good number of cards already. Then I go back to 59 and 60 again, find a few cards, then start the "maybe" process all over.

When I was building 1961 Topps there were many more set breaks where I could pick up 20 or 30 cards at a time and always felt I was making good progress. Harder to do with 59 and 60. Still enjoying the hunt though!

tkd7

I do, so I have a few ways to work with that.

It is fine to be in a lull. I always have multiple projects working, and some I put aside for years, until it hits me again to move on it. I usually start things that attract me for some reason, and that reason usually sticks even if I put something down for a few years.

The other thing I do is have some completely different hobbies other than collecting. That way I can put collecting aside and do something else.

The final thing is to revisit what you've collected. It is the cheapest way to collect. When is the last time you actually looked at what you collect, front and back.

Other than that I've got nothing.

hyperchipper09

Short answer, yes.

bunt

Short answer also - An 8 on anything past 1975

robert67

Downtown1974

Oh yes....I know how you feel Scott. As a matter of fact, those lulls resulted in my current card collection. It seemed that when those lulls hit me, I became disconnected from what I had been collecting at the time. As a result, I would end up selling it only to try something else.
It made card collecting very frustrating and I wasn't enjoying it anymore. These are the few things I came up with that made me enjoy it again.

What is the 1 thing I really love about the hobby? What got me into collecting cards in the first place? (This could take time to figure out)
Once I figured that out, it was an easy project to embark on.

Next, to stay focused. If you really love the project you're working on (based on the criteria from above), you will not get bored with it.

Finally, learn to separate hobby from investment. I made it clear from the start of this project that my cards were not going to be a hedge fund. They are for me to enjoy. They are not money parked in cards that I can cash out if I fall short on bills.

This worked for me Scott, as the project I did, comprises my entire collection. I have not had any lulls in years because of it. No intentions of selling it either. No more clutter, no more checking card prices like its a stock, just pure enjoyment!

akuracy503

Really interesting topic.

Like most in this hobby I can spend too much time obsessing over the next find to my collection.
Lack of options, dry spells can steer me in the wrong direction or lose motivation.

This is where life balance comes into play for me personally.
Having other hobbies such as fishing and hunting. Coaching my kids baseball team.
Things can get so busy that I rarely have time to obsess over my collecting goals.

I may mix in thirty minutes a couple times a week scouring through my saved searches, latest auction house offerings etc.
But I get to a point where if those specific items arent available then I don't care.

When I try to stick around, kicking dirt and looking for items to collect is when my collection starts wandering.
But I always got to remind myself of balance.

cjaccardi

I personally cannot collect. Usually I end up selling everything after a certain time. What really motivates me is the hunt.

I buy and buy and buy sets and collections from people and see what kind of goodies and odd ball stuff. I enjoy looking at them but no real desire to keep it.

I only keep certain items that I enjoy of historical importance or rarity.

jmmiller777

Wow, I have a bit of what everyone is expressing. I constantly bounce from project to project and then go out on a tangent several times each year. My 60's sets are close but I usually get tired of trying to locate key cards. I am even having a rough time with the 75 minis, the condition I am getting are just not what I think I am buying. I get frustrated and start another project. In 2011 it was a ton of graded Kellogg's, all HOFer's, dozens of them, boxes for every year. 2012 saw a shift into another project, cards with multiple HOFer's. graded, expensive, and really no plan other than HOFer's (50-60's). This year was baseball banks after seeing some posts here. They are really nice, but most of this stuff gets packed up and stored. It's always something, records, stamps, post cards, concert tickets, movie memorabilia, toys, posters, unopened boxes, cases, blah, blah, blah...
I suppose I need to walk away from this for awhile. I did once from 1990-2003...

Damn, am I pi-polar?

eyebone

Me too. Haven't bought many cards at all lately, and I have not finished a set in months. When the cards I need come available on ebay they are usually low grade and overpriced.

Eyebone

ClockworkAngel

Yes. I crossed a line recently as far as quality of cards I am picking up, and now unless I win or buy a card of a certain caliber, it doesn't do much for me. The Rush comes from the real big time high grade cards, but that is very bad for my wallet

Stone193

Hiya Scott

No different than any other part of life - marriage, work, where one lives, our vehicle, ones house?

I want to save more money this year.

So, what's up?

I started pulling everything out. Yes, everything!

I'll go thru everything - reacquaint myself with past conquests. And, spend some time doing a better job of cataloging/organizing. And working on a better way of displaying.

I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking that I continue to pick up more items and don't really appreciate - enough - what I "already" have?

ThoseBackPages

Totally hear you.

currently going through it with both cards and comics.

MrNearMint

I'm still going strong with my collection, but sometimes I feel as if I should throw in the towel and stop spending money on cards. But sports cards are literally the only thing I buy (besides living essentials). I don't buy movies, cd's, stereos, TV's, shoes, tools, etc.. cards are the only real thing I have an interest in.

I kinda have two areas of focus; unopened and I'm still addicted to BGS 9.5 Michael Jordan cards.

Hope you all can snap out of your funk, it's a great hobby!

Downtown1974

I haven't bought a card in a while now, sad thing is.......I really don't miss it.
I don't think I have the collecting blues fellas, I think I'm done.
I'm content with my collection and have no desire to add to it anymore.

Even here...I started out as lurker in 2004, became a contributor in 2005 and went back to being a lurker from 2013 to present.

miwlvrn

Collecting Blues?

BostonAmericans

<< <i>Collecting Blues?





>>



You win!!!

DanBessette

It's crazy to look at 1970s hockey and basketball cards and see how bad the lighting was in those arenas!

72skywalker

Yes, I collect mostly Yankee team sets/cards . I was getting bored of Yankee team sets so I started the 1972 complete set Raw. I am just about finished and I am currently in the middle of finishing the 1975 and 1976 complete set. I found it fun to look for commons of players other than Yankees. I will probably finish these sets next year some time and I will most likely be borded from that so i will go back to the Yankee team sets. I try to keep the clutter to a minimum so I don't just buy for the sake of buying. I hate doubles so i always sell or trade those to reduce the amount of stuff I have lying around.

mcolney1

<< <i>It's crazy to look at 1970s hockey and basketball cards and see how bad the lighting was in those arenas! >>



You'll notice a lot of hockey and basketball cards from the 70s and 80s were shot in Washington at the Capital Centre. Apparently, they had a strobe system that photographers could hook into and it improved the pictures quite well. Technology also plays into the dark appearance of the cards. Cheap printing processes and camera and film that didn't capture the light like it does now. Football and Baseball are blessed with the sun as their light source.

mattinglymint23

well timed thread Scott - i'm feeling the blues these days - i got back into the hobby about 2 years ago with the mission to upgrade and complete my 75 topps BB set - started down the graded front both sub'ing and picking up slabs.

i broadened the line a bit when i gave in to the urge to finally start my 71 and 56 topps BB sets -

then the unopened bug hit - and i was lucky to find some 75 unopened still at a decent price to justy the rip and sub approach (never mind just loving the sheer act of ripping a rack). that has dried up as we know.

then to get my rip fix i got into some modern - bowman draft mostly - which i didnt fight because i welcomed the chance to expand my knowledge into the farm systems and track some prospects - which is fun.

then i found heritage and discovered that my desire to rip and trade and build sets is a driving force in my collecting.

The blues kicked in when i woke up this weekend passed out on top of ~30 white cardboard boxes full of base cards and commons from the 70's early's 80's and 2012-2014 and realized that i havent finished even the HOF portion of my 75 set in PSA 9 (did pick up that nice Carew recently). plus i havendt finsihed my Mattingly Base Card PSA 10 1981-1996 set, nor my Munson Base Card 70-79 set, nor my yankee team set run for 70-83, nor my 56 yanks, my maris run, my reggie run, etc. etc.

here is how i am kicking the blues - some may call it focus finding - i am boxing and liquidating my plethora of base cards as best i can - i am making checklists for each of the themes i am looking to collect (most listed above) - i am selling any and all vintage and modern slabs that dont fit in with one of these themes - i am narrowing my prospects to my personal picks based on research and gamble factor.

any new idea or impulse i have i write down and spend time browsing in the hope it will feed the immediate curiosity without costing me unfocused dollars. i.e. i want to start a 65 topps set - so i reread the threads about how its tougher to start today than in the past, i pull my topps 35ths anniversary book out and skim through the 65 section - i browse ebay. someday i say, someday.

on the bright side - i have something to keep me busy - but its much more fun digging the hole then digging out of it - my son is 18 months - i think he needs to start helping...

Dodgerfanjohn

Time to take a dip into modern. It's relatively inexpensive and condition isn't much of an issue( with a few exceptions)

Allen & Ginter is most interesting and challenging IMO. I really like it.

Heritage is fun as is Archives.

Archives + most insert sets from that product are easy to complete.

GB5HOF

I agree. Modern is what keeps things interesting for me. I always have a vintage project I'm working on...but I love ripping and selling modern. Keeps me in touch with the current players and game in general. Sure makes following spring training a lot more fun.