General Forum

Long-time lurker, first time posting. I've checked out the site throughout the years, but never did get around to registering. Looking to get back to collecting, but just not sure how to get back into it. I do know I don't want to burn myself out too fast to the point I don't restart collecting. I kind of have an idea of where I want to start, so it seems best to begin there. Get cards I enjoy - who knows I may have some of them already - and go from there.

Welcome to the light! I wish you luck in your collecting endeavors. I would agree that collecting things you like is the best place to start, but keeping in mind that you don't want to burn yourself out, start small with possible limitations. For instance, if you're a team set collector maybe just stick to 10 years and a particular brand. If you're a set collector, just focus on one or two sets and get those mostly if not completely collected before moving on. I am a Red Sox collector and it's very tempting to get every card, variant, color, etc under the sun but that can cost quite a bit in time, money and sanity. Just take it slow and see where the hobby takes you.

Collect what & who You really like and maybe even passionate about right now?  Plus, what nostalgia value will it have for You in a few years??  Welcome back to The Hobby and Welcome to One of the finest Places on The Planet for Trading Card Collectors!!

Yours in The Hobby - Felix

Hello and welcome.  I took a break from collecting from the mid 1990s for about 9 to 10 years.  What got my back into the hobby was when the Penguins got Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, Marc-Andre Fleury and Kris Letang.  Getting cards I enjoy is the way I collect now.  I am mainly a team and favorite player collector.  I am by no means a completionist.  Set building is not a priority with me.  All in all collect what you enjoy that's what I did when I returned and I have been having fun ever since.

Welcome (officially) to the site. It's a great one as many will attest to. Going at your own pace is best. Typically many will begin by entering their collection, then if your in the mood for trading, create a wantlist as well as a list of what you may have to offer in the way of an exchange. After that there are lots of ways to "connect" with the vast number of others willing to look at /negotiate trades which may turn out to be mutually beneficial. I'm sure that others will most certainly add to this. Good luck and above all have fun.

Welcome back. I think you are on the right track. Start a budget both in what you want to spend in money but also in time. Then identity what interests you the most and go from there.

I think the tie standpoint is just as important as the dollars. I have bought so much locally because I found good deals that my time aspect has been spent for the next couple of years. I am going to have boxes of stuff that I will be just packing out of the way until I get the time to get into them.

Welcome back.

First and formost collect WHAT YOU WANT. Not what is most popular or valuable. For sports start with your faovrite sport and team and go from there.

Also check to see if there are any card shops near you. If you are in the US or Canada you can check out cardshopfinder.com locate your state (or privince/area).

There are several places online to get cards, many of these sites have been discussed on these boards so you might want to do a little post searching. Popular sites are: Sportlots.com, COMC.com, Ebay, Amazon, cardbarrel.com

Hopefully some of this helped.

Welcome.

If I was in your position, I would start by seeing what I had already. I would log it all here. I would determine what it was I wanted t okepp in my collection, and move all the other cards into my for sale / for trade list. I would then determine what cards I wanted, and add them to my want list. That way, I'd be ready to start making trades on here and start adding to the "keep" section and removing items from the "don't keep" section.

Welcome! Always happy to see a new face pop in! For me the funnest aspect of the site is the trading community.

Once I get my already owned cards added to my collection list, the trading aspect is something I definitely want to consider. Another resource that I like is the card shop listing - seems card shops are few and far between nowadays compared to when I first began collecting in the early to mid 2000s.