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New Collector...Advice?
hslice
Posts: 74 ✭✭
New collector here. I used to collect as a kid and loved getting the monthly price guides and seeing values go up and down, in the 80's and 90's. Everything seems so confusing now. I like collecting rookie cards but it seems like there are dozens and dozens of rookie cards. For ex., Aaron Judge has like 20+ different rookie cards. Same for Clayton Kershaw, Stephon Curry, etc. And then the hologram cards..sheesh. And then cards that are autographed are more valuable..sheesh. How to figure everything out?
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Hi, hello, how are ya? -welcome-
http://www.unisquare.com/store/brick/
Ralph
Welcome!
Good luck with all the new choices. I collect one player and he's from the 1950's through 1970's, so I don't have some of those problems. I was trying to acquire all of his new cards but gave up on that and now focus on cards and memorabilia from his playing days.
My suggestion is to collect what appeals to you. The new stuff is confusing, but you can get specific answers here.
Have fun collecting!
I'm in the same boat - was active in the 80's and 90's and hadn't thought much about collecting for two decades. Didn't realize the companies kept making cards of Puckett after he retired/died. As for all the parallels, I just can't justify buying the same card in 5-6 different colors etc.. I buy the base card and maybe one other if I think it looks cool or something, but all these different types with different print runs... just not into wasting money on the same card with a different border.
The deal with modern "rookie cards" is one thing I have found that turns me off from where the hobby went. From all the different ones to the SP ones and the autograph ones, its just not the same. There is no simple "rookie card" anymore. I tried to flip through a beckett finding what the rc's of current players were listed at and could hardly find them without literally looking at every entry(keep in mind I wouldn't even know what year to look under). IMO, with all the different cards, modern players have more cards in print than players from the "3 card" era even though individual cards may have smaller print runs. Heck, I was reading an article yesterday about Tom Brady having 44 rookie cards. FORTY-FOUR!!
And with prices? Good luck. You'll find little to no consistency at all. Further, the internet killed the ability of the average collector to buy "hot" cards at reasonable prices. Don't even try to expect to find cards priced at what the SMR or Beckett graded cards say because you will rarely find cards offered at less than 2-3 times what these guides claim they are selling for(a 4 will be offered at what a 6 is listed for, an 8 at 10 prices, etc...). The internet is full of scammers and unscrupulous collectors who list thousands of cards at bogus prices waiting for that one gullible rube to click "add to cart" having no idea what they are buying.
Look around before buying. There are many online sources for cards. Try COMC and Beckett Marketplace if you want to deal mostly with scrupulous dealers and/or a company that has the cards in their hands. I'd say use ebay at your own risk; too many scammers and little recourse imo. Plenty of honest sellers, you just have to parse through the crooks to find them.
Lastly, my advice is simply this. "If something doesn't seem right, it probably isn't". There's a lot of fraud and even more market manipulation out there. Before paying big bucks for modern RC cards, consider what high priced cards of the early 90's now sell for(Strawberry, Canseco, even Clemens and Puckett). Buy what you are interested in at prices you can live with. Don't buy what you think someone else wants and don't buy to sell to someone else, and you'll probably do ok.
I actively collect Kirby Puckett. I have collections of Michael Jordan, Emmitt Smith, Roberto Clemente, Dwight Gooden, Tom Seaver, Errict Rhett and Evan Longoria.
@hslice i too just got back into collecting earlier this year after about a 13 year break from the hobby. Before i used to collect all of the hottest rookie cards from baseball,basketball & football as well as the favorite players from my local sports teams but now i just narrowed it down to a few favorite players due to there being so many cards out there to choose from. I think Jimmy_Commonpants gave you some good advice but i will add that you should be ok on ebay buying cards as long as you take a look at each seller's feedback & percentage then go from there. Some may have negative feedback for good reason but some just have some for superficial reasons. Spending a few minutes on their feedback before buying from someone may save you a little headache later on. Also i almost always ask if the buyer would go lower on Buy It Now Listings and most actually are willing to sell for less than their listed price whether there is a Best Offer option or not. Even if it just gets you a few dollars off or free shipping, that saved money adds up as you go.
Once you get going post some of your additions in the monthly pickups threads,we'd all love to see them.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
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Hi and welcome. What's your first name?
If you want my "immediate" advice?
Do nothing before taking a long time to figure out what you may be interested in collecting.
Here's Stone Rules
Ask lots and lots of questions. Don't hesitate to PM those your learn to trust.
My door is always open buddy.
This!
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Welcome to the boards.
I don't collect any of the new stuff, so the only advice I can give you is to collect what you enjoy and makes you happy.
Good luck,
Donato
Donato's Complete US Type Set ---- Donato's Dansco 7070 Modified Type Set ---- Donato's Basic U.S. Coin Design Set
Successful transactions: Shrub68 (Jim), MWallace (Mike)
Welcome!
Lots of good advice from a lot of seasoned vets. My 2¢ as someone who also relatively recently got back into the hobby is use this message board to ask any questions you have. There are a lot of knowledgeable collectors who would be happy to help answer questions. Don’t be shy.
Kevin
Kevin
Collect what you like not what you think others will like. It is easy to get caught up in what others board members from the many different boards collect. Stay true to what you like to collect.
Looking forward to getting advice. There's so many different variations of recent cards. My fear is paying $200 for something worth $10.
I had to acquire my favorite card as a kid right off the bat. I actually got this card in the early 80's trick or treating..lol. But I had split the cards into threes. Nice to reacquire it. Bought it on ebay from someone who referred me to this forum.
thank you,
Hung
Welcome back! This is such a fun hobby. Collect what you like. Ignore prices and price guides, they are not a good reason to buy cards. If it makes YOU happy is the reason to buy it. Things a different now than they were even a few years ago. Before it used to be about set collecting, now kind of hard to do as most sets are ~500 for 5 to 8 cards per pack. I refer to them as memorabilia delivery systems more than cards, lol. I've been a set builder since the 80s but now have transitioned more to my project of trying to get everyone that has ever had an NBA card into my collection...370ish to go, 2800+ down. I'm also working on the same project for NASCAR and I just started collecting the NHL this year as well.
There's so many different things you can collect in the hobby that there is never a time when there's not something to collect, and I love that about the hobby.
If you want to keep track of the different inserts and parallels, I recommend the Trading Card Database, tradingcarddb.com. it has listings for over 8 million cards, with over 2 million cards scanned front and back, in all sports and non-sports, averaging 1500 new scans a day. You can also track your collection there. It's what I used to figure out who I was missing from my collection because everyone who ever got a card has a listing-you can search by set, person or team. I literally went through and clicked every name I wasn't sure on, I could not just use the list of names because college only and WNBA players are not part of the scope of my project.
I bought a 2nd Bird & Magic rookie card but didnt realize that MC meant "MissCut" until after I purchased it. What does that drop the PSA level to?
6
thanks for the info!
If you are concerned about holding/growing value, then only buy a players most iconic RC in the highest grade you can afford. For modern baseball, it is typically the Bowman Chrome AUTO first draft pick card. Basketball is Panini and Football is National Treasures. Everything else is a gamble on if someone else will eventually want the lesser RC of the 20+ made for each player these days.
Most importantly, buy the cards you love to look at and have fun along the way. The Bird/Magic is an iconic start...well done!
That's exactly my goal, to buy and hold for the next 10+ yrs. Thanks for the info on modern cards, that was the most confusing part!!
Great advice Mike. I was always told collect what "you" personally like, and if it happens to increase in value you can sell it and buy more of what you like. That way if it goes to zero you can still enjoy having it to look at just like when you were a kid.
KC
ROOKIES, RECORD BREAKERS, STARS will not let you down unless they are busted for using performance enhancing drugs, gambling or murder.