Hobby is Becoming So Expensive!!

[KangoBass]

I'm going to read this over and over. It reads like you're on CNN.

I assume this is tongue-in-cheek and not a lecture about hyberbole or sincerity.

Either way, you're equivocating on the word "lose," which to him, clearly means being stuck with a whole bunch of hard-to-move low end inserts and base but which you've construed to mean that he ought to dump 99% of the content of hobby cases in your lap.

I think the point is well taken by all that he values the thrill of the chase more than a return on investment. Of course, if this is just an inside joke or retort that's just way over my head, then I'll return to Cave Lurk and ask you to please carry on...

[GHCHambone]

If you open boxes hoping that you will break even on the value, you will be disappointed nearly every time. If you want to collect cards the cheapest way, only buy PC cards from eBay or people who open boxes.

For me, part of the fun of the hobby is opening boxes and trading. I don't open a lot of boxes, and definitely not high-end such as The Cup. For my PC I have probably traded for half of it and bought the other half. Could I have bought the trade half for cheaper than the cost of breaking boxes to get traders? Probably. But part of the fun is hashing out deals and meeting new people through trading. And in the rare case that I pulled a PC hit from a box, that was great.

Yes, I see the point that the cost of cards is going up. But thats the same with almost everything else. There aren't a lot of hobbies where people expect to make money, and I think if I got to the point where I was trading/selling cards to make money that would take the fun out of it. I'm not trying to bash anyone here or start an argument. I am just saying that for me, I expect to spend some money in this hobby and that is ok with me.

[AndrewJacobson]

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I'll make you a deal then. Seeing as you don't care if you lose $1.000.00, why not send me the $1,000.00. I will spend it all on new boxes, I will open them live, (you can watch). I give you everything that is Monster #/25 or less, and I keep everything else.........seeing as you don't care if you lose a thousand.

Deal?

If you actually read my post you would not have posted that. I said I love the thrill of opening cards something I will not get when you open them.

And I do just give away my less hits such as jerseys and autographs of no name players. If I can give a 10 year old kid at my lcs an autograph of Tyler Ennis or Jordan Caron. (I actually gave my friend at the lcs a 1/1 Tyler Myers SPGU base card because he loves the sabres.) I will in hopes he enjoys the card and will want to start collecting/grow his/her collection. I do stuff like this all the time. I recently traded away my sp legendary cuts dual relic of ruth maris to a kid for a $50bv reggie jackson relic because I saw how badly he wanted the card and how little he had to trade so I did it anyways regardless of value.

It's a hobby for people to enjoy. And because I am fortunate enough to be able to open a lot of product when I want to I try and share this with others to get them into collecting. This is for fun not for making money and I think that is what many people have lost sight of.

[centrehice]

That's the problem with the internet, you simply cannot post a joke without somebody being offended.

I blame religion.

[Hilfiger1975]

that's the problem with the internet, you simply cannot post a joke without somebody being offended.

i blame religion.

lol

[stop__dreaming]

Will this ever change? Will it continue to get/spiral worse?

[Thrak360]

It's a hobby, and whether you open a pack, a box, or a case, you are gambling with your money on getting a big hit. If you are in it as an investment opportunity, or to make money, I think you lose in the long run. For every one person who opens a box and gets the monster hit that nets them profit, there are probably thousands of people opening the same product who don't get cards to recoup their cost, much less make a profit.

If you are really just interested in getting PC cards, in my experience you are better off reading the checklist and going after the singles you want. Instead of spending the $400 on a box of The Cup, take that $400 and buy the cards you want. That's what I do for the high-end products. I still love buying boxes, for the thrill of opening packs, but I can only really afford to do that with some low- to mid-end products.

[cardscardscards]

I need to ask....

Why call it a hobby if its purpose is to make money? I call that a job.
I've never had a hobby that was profitable.

Hey, this is my 777th post... Do I win the jackpot?

[centrehice]

Hobbies no matter what they are can suck the life out of you, stop you from other obligations and dig deeply into your wallet.

I'm thankful that I'm not an airplane or yacht collector in terms of spent money.

[SkyFire47]

they should make jerseys more rare to get like in the late 1990s so they will be worth more

everyone complains that jerseys are worthless and autos are saturating the market but god forbid someone is shorted even 1 common jersey or auto out of the 4-5 hits you're supposed to get in a box and you'll see a post soon after letting all hell rain down on what a crappy manufacturer so and so is...

also, opening boxes of base cards and inserts sucks.