Collectors’ demeanor in 2021

[Republicaninmass]

You'll find the "nicer" your collection, the more "haters" that will come out of the woodwork. Also, the tremendous run on prices gives older collectors pause to think about the late 80s.


I was just a kid then, and "everyonenwas making money" selling baseball cards. You could likely walk into a shop, buy a pack of 1990 score, sell the contents back to the store and buy two packs with the proceeds. Wild speculation on rookies and investments filled the minds of thousands of kids buying .25 packs. I remember seeing some 1985 topps packs and couldnt resist the chance of pulling some Gooden or Clemens rookies. I dont think McGwire had quite the appeal back then.


Then, for some reason, it came to a grinding halt. I was sitting on 300 scott cooper and carlos Quintana rookies. Many many other hundred count lots of players that were barely worth the stock they were printed on. I had loaded of rookie and traded sets, unopened boxes, and more. My " retirement plan" filled the back of a dodge Dakota 20 years later and I received $1,000 for my years of collecting.

Sure I kept the good stuff, but the modern junk wax stuff just soured me away from buying cards for a decade or so. I can only imagine how many other "collectors" were tunr off, or walked away from the hobby. As "fun" as it may have been, the llmonetary loss, although nothing insurmountable, was enough to give me pause for a while. Those that say this market is different, I cant agree. History may not repeat itself, but it will make for a good mirror. I think some of the collectors who lived through the 80s boom, see the writing on the wall and are getting out or worried about what the future holds.