Needing advice for a new youth collector

[bluefan89]

Hello,

My 7 yr. old wants to begin collecting baseball cards, this is something that I did when I was younger but not seriously at all.

I know there is a lot of reading I (we) need to do. We do not want to go out and buy big time collectable cards. Just start with current player cards and build upon them.

Where is the best place and brand of cards to buy? We have noticed the large card lots on ebay....is this a hoax?

Any suggestions and recommendations would be helpful in starting a new collector of the Great American Pasttime.

Thanks

[Mike D.]

I'd buy a few packs of the current year's base brand product....regular Topps or Upper Deck. They're available at places like Walmart and Target for a couple bucks for a pack of about 10 cards. Open the packs with your son, and see what you like, and then go from there. Maybe you'll want to collect a certain team, player or set of players, insert or subset, or try to complete the whole set. While you're flipping through the cards, you'll get a feel for what direction you want to go in.

Don't worry much about value, as any cards a 7 year old will enjoy probably won't remain in top shape for long. And hey, why would they? You don't keep his toys on shelves unopened in boxes....let him enjoy them!

At some point, you may want to pick up a D-ring binder and some 9-pocket plastic pages for storing and displaying cards...that way, you guys can organize the cards any way you like, and flip through and look at them.

I'd go with newer packs over huge lots off eBay, most of those are just common cards...most of the good/interesting things have been picked out. The exception to this rule is if you decide to collect a certain team or player, buying a lot of that team or player on eBay wouuld probably bring in a lot of stuff you'd enjoy.

As you get rolling, feel free to ask questions on this forum...the people here are super nice and more than willing to help.

Anyway, I hope this helps. Happy collecting!

[EricDavis]

I started collecting when I was 5. I have boxes of cards, which are all in pretty poor condition. But it doesn't bother me at all. All those kids who were like "ooooooh nice card! put it away and never touch it again so it'll be worth something!" are long gone from the hobby. Do teach him how to handle them in an attempt to keep them in good shape, and if you come upon autographed cards or game used cards, do put them in protective cases and be careful with them. But don't put them in the attic! That's where my friends 89 Upper Deck Griffey RC card was. (It got destroyed in a flood. BIG flood).

Anyways, make sure he knows it's about fun. Not "value". SUre his appreciating the value of a card may make collecting more fun and that's fine and good. But I don't think it should be the number one priority.