Forbes Article...good can reading.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

Detecting Head and Body Lice Eggs (Nits and Eggs reflect ultraviolet light)
Hunting scorpions and other insects
Detecting Bed Bugs
Fluoresces Gems, Minerals and Fossils
Use with UV Automotive Dye to detect Automotive coolant A/C Freon Refrigerant Gas Fluids Leaks
HVAC / AC leak detection
Locate pet stains
Detect blood stains
Use at Rave Parties
Detecting bodily fluids, which fluoresce when exposed to UV light
Checking for counterfeit paper money bills
Detect Counterfeit Stamps and Tagging
Night time Fishermen- Glow in the Dark Bait (UV light charges Glow)
Inspect Vaseline, EAPG, Depression, Uranium, Topaz & Canary Glass
Rodent Detection-Find mouse and rat dropping and urine
Test for True Vaseline Glass buttons
Finding food and pet stains on carpeting and other surfaces
Inspecting glass for cracks and other defects
Searching for minerals outdoors (Illuminates Fluorescent Minerals)

The black light connection is itemized above.

Items of particular interest to Net54 board members are highlighted in bold print.

Dealers must be concerned with items highlighted in red.

Absolotely!! Dr. Frank you are the best....


But, Yikes, I was using the wrong function to go back and forth on the board and my answer freaked out. This comment I made (and subsequently made again) went in the wrong thread.

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by Leon

Absolotely!! Dr. Frank you are the best....


But, Yikes, I was using the wrong function to go back and forth on the board and my answer freaked out. This comment I made (and subsequently made again) went in the wrong thread.

Oh Leon, now you're acting like a Nit Picker with a black light.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

Oh Leon, now you're acting like a Nit Picker with a black light.

If you have nits a nit picker isn't bad!! (*no affiliation to this company)

http://www.thenit-picker.net/

,

[esd10]

the biggest issue with the hobby is people are buying as a investment and have priced out a lot of young people new to the hobby for vintage cards. I started collecting again back in 2004 or 2005 and you could pick up a raw decent t206 for $10-15 (ebay) but now those same cards sell for double or triple now.

[bobbvc]

Originally Posted by esd10

the biggest issue with the hobby is people are buying as a investment and have priced out a lot of young people new to the hobby for vintage cards. I started collecting again back in 2004 or 2005 and you could pick up a raw decent t206 for $10-15 (ebay) but now those same cards sell for double or triple now.

The type of canned beans I buy at the grocery store sells for double what it did in 2004 (and they're still making those, unlike T206's) Let's not even get into property values. Inflation has it's way with collectibles as well as genuine value increases.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by bobbvc

The type of canned beans I buy at the grocery store sells for double what it did in 2004 (and they're still making those, unlike T206's) Let's not even get into property values. Inflation has it's way with collectibles as well as genuine value increases.

It seems everything goes up. I can barely afford the taxes on my house anymore.
As long as the stock market is up I think hobby prices will increase. If there is a big drop I think it will affect some card prices but not the "commodities".

[ls7plus]

Originally Posted by Leon

It seems everything goes up. I can barely afford the taxes on my house anymore.
As long as the stock market is up I think hobby prices will increase. If there is a big drop I think it will affect some card prices but not the "commodities".

The hobby is simply maturing the same way the coin market did, with the big boys (it wasn't that long ago we called them "whales") now also being drawn to it. Really rare and significant cards are still well below comparable items in other collectible fields. I remember the early '90's, when an ExMt M101 Ruth rookie could be had for $5,000 to $6,000. Multiply by 25X or so now, but that pales in significance to $30-$40 million Ferrari 250 GT's. The original 5 Shelby Daytona Cobras, which won LeMans, could have been had for a total of about $12K in the late '60's, and now each is well into seven figures. 1967 L-88 Corvettes (with the 427, 560 horsepower racing engine and related racing components), 20 of which were made, could be had for less than $20K in the '80's--now, $3.5 to $4 million all day long. I always like to think that one indication of the hobby's growth is the size of REA's catalogs. I have one from the mid '90's that was on newsprint and about 8 pages long. Now, even the fall auction catalog is approaching 500 glossy pages.

There will be some up and downs, but as long as baseball is around and people are drawn to its history, rare and significant items (each of which is a matter of degree) will continue to rule the day in the long term.

Just my two cents worth (and a lot of time studying the collectible car and coin markets),

Larry