What is the one thing that has changed most since you started collecting?

[mrreality68]

I think the scope of collecting has expanded.

First it used to all about Baseball and specifically cards. Now it seems all sports have been on an update with NBA the hottest and then NFL, and even Soccer and hockey has really picked up.

Second. Fringe collections are becoming more main stream. Postcards became Cards, different items like Pictures becoming hotter commodities and now Pins seams to be on the upswing. Even Pokemon Cards, Hugi Go Cards etc are becoming mainstream collectables.

Third. Vintage is steady but Modern is really exploding but it has major swings in prices and focus while the market figures it out

Fourth. Alot of new money is coming in the collectible realm,

[rhettyeakley]

The prices paid for T206 cards. I never could have imagined that THE most common pre 1930’s set in existence would sell for multiple times the same player’s cards in sets exponentially rarer. I get why people like it but I have always valued true rarity over everything else.

I get the back rarities and understand the price on those more than a Common back T206 card.

[darwinbulldog]

Obviously the prices have changed. Used to be a 1984 Topps Don Mattingly was worth as much as a T206 Hall of Famer in similar condition.

Two other things that really stand out are how much easier it is to find almost any card you're looking for now (thanks to the scope of the internet) and how much the hobby cares about centering. It never occurred to me until the 21st century that being off-center would impact the price of a card; and if it had, I would have presumed that very off-center cards would sell for a bit of a premium (as they do for T206s).

[Republicaninmass]

People buying because they are afraid prices will "go up".

[Johnny630]

The whole Gambling Aspect tied to selling

Breaks...Raffles.. from Cases Down.. Half Cases, Boxes, Packs, Modern and Vintage, Teams, Players..and Facebook Raffles on graded and raw cards sometimes as much as hundreds of dollars a chance.


Sellers have many many more ways and platforms for moving cards now as compared to 20 plus years ago.

It's interesting to watch.

[obcbobd]

Got my first T206 in 1973

Biggest change is the move away from collecting to investing in cards.

[darwinbulldog]

The demographics have also changed. Used to be the main collectors were prepubescent kids and middle-aged guys. Now I think it's largely young men collecting modern cards and elderly men collecting vintage cards.

[Touch'EmAll]

The biggest change for me and my collecting happened many years ago, when I was about 10 years old in the mid-1970's. The advent of the Rookie Card craze. When I was a young kid, nobody cared about rookie cards. In fact, we were disappointed when we pulled them as we would have much rather pulled the stars - Reggie, Ryan, Seaver, Bench, Pete Rose, etc.

[GasHouseGang]

I would have to echo "information" and up to date pricing knowledge. With the growth of sites like Ebay, what I used to think was rare suddenly showed up in quantity. Plus, the sites that quote the latest sales data (not asking price) gives you a realistic idea of what you should be paying for items in various grades.

[todeen]

Ebay. My local card shop used to have everything I needed. Once I went away to college and lived in a town where there was no card shop I was forced to turn to ebay in 2004. Wow. What a world. I didn't collect a lot in college because I had no place to put them. But I sure wish I did! 2004 had amazing deals on cards that you just can't find today.

[Yoda]

The decline in trading cards with your pals. When I was a kid, the only ways to get cards you wanted was to trade with your gang or, if your meagre allowance permitted, buy another pack and hope for the best.

[prewarsports]

Sets v. Singles

I have a theory as to why. The earlier generation of baseball card collectors were mostly the older baby-boomers and they were taught by their parents (WWII vets and Depression kids) to finish things and that the satisfaction was in the work of completing the task. For generations the finishing of a set was the key. When I grew up in the 1980's I remember having this conversation with my father about why one card was worth more (84 Topps Mattingly) when it was just as common as the other cards. He could not get it no matter how much we talked it over. He was born in 1934 and it did not make sense and never would.

Almost nobody completes sets anymore and I think the trend will continue to get worse as older collectors pass away.

[SyrNy1960]

Originally Posted by Touch'EmAll

The biggest change for me and my collecting happened many years ago, when I was about 10 years old in the mid-1970's. The advent of the Rookie Card craze. When I was a young kid, nobody cared about rookie cards. In fact, we were disappointed when we pulled them as we would have much rather pulled the stars - Reggie, Ryan, Seaver, Bench, Pete Rose, etc.

So true. And then later, I found myself collecting nothing but rookie cards. Boy how times change.

[Jim65]

How I find cards. Some of the 1966 and 1967 high numbers took months and many trips to shops and shows to find. Now they are super easy to find.