[barrysloate]

Thanks David, and I understand that you collect the way that makes you happy. I think the registry has caused prices on high end cards to increase so drastically that there are only a small number of people who can even compete for them. I collect VG-Ex to Ex not because I like to see flaws on cards, but because high grade cards are out of my range.

When I saw the 1932 U.S. Caramel Hornsby sell for $52,000, I was astounded. I understand chasing after a Wagner or a Plank or a 52 Mantle, because those are iconic cards and there are countless collectors who would like to own them. But in my 37 years in the hobby, nearly 30 of them as a full time dealer, I never once had a collector come to me looking for a U.S. Caramel Hornsby. That's an esoteric set, and while Hornsby was a great player, his cards are not as popular as Cobb or Matty or Wajo. That price was almost surely a product of two registry collectors going head to head until one of them blinked.

So yes, as you said the hobby has changed and many of us are scratching our heads and watching prices reach levels that we could never have imagined.