Two things you love about the hobby & Two things you hate

[skelly]

After recently discovering that I card I bought was likely trimmed, I was going to post a negative thread about trimmed cards, but I thought lets also keep things somewhat positive. So besides the people, ( we all have friends we've met through collecting ) what are a couple things you love about the hobby and a couple things you hate. Mine would be as follows

1. Deceptively trimmed cards ( I bought so many of these back in the day )

2. Hearing people talking about how they have to/will be having people shill bid their auction items ( makes me not want to bid on things )

Things I like

1. Going to shows and finding off grade cards that still have good eye appeal
( miscuts, cards with a tack hole, etc )

2. Working on completing sets and finding tough cards that you need.

[Jcfowler6]

Dislike
1. Not having enough money to get a great card. (Keep a reserve)
2. Dishonesty of any kind. (Trust but verify)

Love
1. Learning something new
2. Meeting and talking with like minded guys like those on this website

[wazoo]

What I love:
1. Learning the stories of the baseball players that formed the sport and made a huge difference.
2. Purchasing new cards that complete my t206 set.

What I dislike:
1. Having sellers be dishonest (selling trimmed, fake, altered cards)
2. Not being able to afford the expensive and rare cards.

[Bicem]

Like:

1. it's a lot of fun, provides a nice break from everyday life
2. sharing the hobby experience with others with a similar appreciation

dislike:

1. the rampant fraud
2. I don't have enough money for everything I want

[Runscott]

like: friends I've made. I've made a lot of friends here, and can honestly say that if it weren't for this board and a friend I made through it, life would not be so great right now.
like: seeing people get excited about cardboard - we're a strange group, bonded by this odd excitement. It's good to see a thread like this that reminds us of that special thing that we all have in common, no matter how different we might otherwise be.

not-so-great: dishonesty by anyone - given it's a hobby, it doesn't make sense that people would choose baseball cards as a way to screw people.
not-so-great: meanness. I'm guilty of it too and trying to watch myself. Seeing it in others makes me sick and I try to reflect on that and be careful. Sorry when I've failed.

[E93]

Likes:
1. the friends - especially enjoy events like the National for the chance to hang out with hobby friends.
2. the cards - their history, art, the stories behind them, everything.

Dislikes
1. dishonesty
2. greed
-both are dimensions of fraud in its various hobby manifestations.

JimB

[brickyardkennedy]

Love:

The cards,of course and learning about them.

Meeting the good people in the hobby and dealing with them.

Hates:

Crooks

Grading. Too subjective and often sloppy.

[jefferyepayne]

Love:

Attending card shows and talking to card dealers who are passionate about cards

Talking vintage cards with my two boys who are into it right now

Hate:

Not seeing many kids at shows

Dishonest dealers who are doctoring cards to make a buck

jeff

[atx840]

1) Love chatting with the people I've met on here and seeing their cards.
2) Learning something new about the cards, printing process and intricacies of the sets.

1) Dislike that in my niche I'm competing with good friends and sometimes have to decide, give up a great card or chance upsetting them.
2) Never enough funds, scarcity of freaky deaky cards, greed & egos....

[Jaybird]

1. love finding out new things and aspects to cards. Basically the history tied to these pieces of cardboard

2. Love talking with friends and other hobby acquaintances about this stuff. Having stuff in common is a blast. The focus and intricacies that we can geek out on is what's amazing. The different print type on the back of a Sporting News card, etc. We can just burrow into the specifics to find out amazing things about my #1 above.


1. Don't like the arguments about cards. I don't mind disagreements but arguments aren't productive and only serve to fragment the hobby rather than shed light and elucidate.

2. Card doctors.

[Tobacco&Gum]

I like that there is always something new to learn about and collect.

I love graded cards, because it allows me to hand a 1956 Mantle to my young kids, and say "here, check this out" without having to worry about them ruining it.

I dislike how shady dealers can be.

I dislike the sometimes huge inconsistencies in grading.

I once sent a 1971 Topps Munson to PSA. It came back a 6.

Seven months later, I cracked and subbed it again. It came back an 8.

$60 card the first time, $800 card seven months later.

[ullmandds]

I love:

-discovering new cards/poses I have never seen before

-sharing my passion for the hobby with other like minded collectors

I hate

-what grading has turned the hobby into

-unscrupulous behavior within the hobby.

[Cardboard Junkie]

Aloha, I like the cards and researching them.

I dislike insufferable know it alls, and TPG.
Dave.

[Tobacco&Gum]

Originally Posted by ullmandds

I love:

-discovering new cards/poses I have never seen before

-sharing my passion for the hobby with other like minded collectors

I hate

-what grading has turned the hobby into

-unscrupulous behavior within the hobby.

What in your mind has grading turned the hobby into?

I can't speak on Pre War, but for Vintage and Modern grading has given the hobby new life IMO.

The major card grading companies aren't perfect, but I think the good well outweighs the bad.

[Jaybird]

Some could argue that grading has brought prospectors into the hobby in higher numbers than before. It also encourages submitting and resubmitting for higher grades (bringing higher dollars) and therefore card doctoring to sophisticated levels enough to pass these TPGs.

So, with grading and more "security" come doctors who can pass that security. What you are left with is more people in the hobby trusting a system which is inherently as flawed as it was in the past. I suppose it's great that more people are entering the hobby with trust but in the end, the only defense against getting taken is knowledge and experience.