Posted By:
Jeff OEmerick, it's all fine and good to wax poetic about "true collectors" and other utopian ideals. That being said, it's important that you don't lose sight of the bigger picture. You may someday lose interest in your collection... I know I have in some speicific areas that I used to collect. When that happens, you will likely sell some or all of your cards, probably with the intent on putting that money into a new area of interst. So why wouldn't you want the value of your collection to have appreciated? I know I'd rather sell for more than I paid than to get less.
And as for your comment: "but why would any true collector wanna see a high price paid, or more people getting into these cards and driving prices up?" That is some seriously old school thinking. It reminds me of the guys I used to see at shows in the mid 1980s who had been collecting since the 70s - complaining about all of the people getting into "their" hobby, but at the same time also complaining about the lack of "respect" their hobby got. I for one don't want to go back to the stone ages of the hobby, when information was scarce and the people who had it wouldn't share it... when it was impossible to find the cards you were looking for at any price, etc.
If there is one interesting side effect of eBay and grading companies as a whole (IMHO), its that they have LOWERED the value of more common, VG stuff making it more affordable than it was in the past. The other side of the coin is that truely rare or really high condition cards have gone through the roof... which is fine too.
Just my 2 cents.
Jeff O
http://www.seattlehockey.net