I collected "new" product from 1975 to 1983, with the "apex" of my collection in the 1977-79 range; i.e. collecting and building sets from packs. I remember attending my first local baseball card show in 1979 at the Twin 60s Inn in Dallas and was introduced to 1933 Goudey cards and 1951 Bowman cards. I remember being fascinated with the artwork of those cards and have slowly over time started to collect those (especially the Bowman "art" cards of 1950, 1951, 1952) over the years. By 1984, I was essentially "out" of the hobby, and did not start back until 1989-90, in which I tried to buy one set for each year for the years I had missed (1985-90). I have since sold those sets.
Regarding adult vs. kids hobby, I think it is mostly for adults now. I don't see a lot of kids into the hobby. Heaven knows I can't really get my sons interested in baseball cards (the Pokemon and Star Wars craze is still big for them) other than a pack here or there. In fact, I was in the local baseball card shop this week on a Wednesday, which happens to be "trade" day at the shop. It was the first time I had been there on a Wednesday, and there were four gentlemen crowded around a table trading and talking. They were older than me (I'm 48), and as I perused the shop, I listened in on the conversation. They were busy trading/buying new product, with an emphasis on Topps Allen & Ginter cards. They were also buying cases/boxes of product, and the emphasis was on the "pulls." My mind went back to the early days of Baseball Card magazine in 1981 which contained the first articles of baseball cards as an investment, and each issue devoted a section to "what's hot, what's not" in terms of rookie cards and investments. I think that may have been the point (early-to-mid 1980s) that baseball cards became an adult hobby rather than geared towards kids, at least in my mind.
I don't buy modern product anymore. I tried it on and off for a few years in an effort to get back into the hobby. I come from the old way of collecting by building sets, but I found that set building is cost prohibitive now, what with inserts, parallels, etc., etc. And now I just collect vintage, and if I want the thrill of opening up packs or a box of cards, I collect new Japanese baseball cards. It's all about the hobby to me. With few exceptions (counted on one hand), every card or set I've sold from my collection over the years has been at a loss, so to me, it's a hobby.
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