General Forum

Trading is how the hobby make sense to me.  I mean, over the past 4 years I've sent out ~15K cards and got roughly the same amount in return.  If I didn't trade, I'd be sitting with a bunch of duplicates that I don't care for and 15K shorter in my collection.

Once I trade as many duplicates as I can for new cards, I start looking for lots to buy and start the whole process over again.

No real difference in opinion here, very much enjoy trading, and the ease of the transaction manager on this site adds to it.  Started trading another site and it was a major hassle listing cards manually one by one.  Where I probably differ with some is that I’m happy to spend 66 cents to send/receive the right nickel card.  Call me financially stupid or the adjective of your choice (I’m absolutely sure I’ve been called worse).  I sacrifice a great deal for my kids benefit and save as much as I can for emergencies and retirement so I figure if I “waste” $5 a week in something that makes me happy, so be it.  Not to mention I have a very addictive personality and I’ve become quite addicted to trading.  
enjoy the site however you choose to utilize it. 
 

One thing I've found within my few short (but busy, just hit 100 trades completed) time here is that there are times you can add something new to your for sale/for trade list and within minutes (ok, maybe an hour or two) you'll have a new trade offer coming in.  If you have something that someone wants, they won't be shy in asking about it.  Sooner or later, just like someone took a chance on trading with me without having had any feedback, I predict you'll find yourself stepping out and doing the same. And you'll have a new 21st century trading buddy.

All have been very awesome answers so far. Thank you.

Another question I now have is...

From reading on the forums it seems some of you pack an extreme amount in PWE... i thought in PWE you could only mail a several cards in a toploader... how many cards do you guys mail (safely max) and how do you do it?

Your mileage may vary, but....

For a regular letter-size envelope, I'll generally do up to 18-24 cards, depending on cardstock (older upper deck are thinner than new topps heritage, etc).  Loaded 2-3 cards to a slot in a 9-card page, folded over in 3, so you're left with 3 panels of cards across.  Stick that between thin cardboard (think cereal box, not amazon box), secure with painters tape.  Mark the outside of the envelope as "non-machinable" and be prepared to pay the extra $0.40 so it doesn't get slammed through the conveyor belt, as it should be pretty stiff.  Keep it under ~3 oz and under a quarter inch thick or so, and the post office shouldn't give you a hard time.

looking something like this:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Oe5Aw5ca7nQtrhRlerIvzG9s4yC1GFkz/view?usp=sharing

i am a Reds team collector. I have most of the Reds base cards back to the mid 50's. The newer inserts, parallels and oddball cards I need are hard to find. The nearest card show is an hour away. And shows now are for the investors, not the collectors. The last one had 80 tables... 78 vintage and slabbed cards but just 2 with boxes of cheap cards. The cost of gas and lunch makes it hard to justify buying a few cards.

So trading is the answer. I list my needs and extras, then see where it goes. I even found cards I did not know existed. It may be a little extra work, but that package in the mail feels like Christmas each time. Above all, enjoy the hobby.

I am always looking to do trades of any size. Somtimes it takes me a little bit to ind the cards since I am not currently organized the best (work in progress) but enjoy it. I will ship up to 30 cards in an envelope taken to the post office and shipped non-machinable. For trades of 31-60, I will give the option of 2 PWE's or a BM. Beyond 60 is almost always a BM or box, depending on how many are being sent. If a card is higher-value, I will usually send by BM in that case as well. I haven't had as many trades as others, but have had very good success and not got shorted on many of them. I find it to be worthwhile as it moves the duplicates and cards of little to no interest I had previously had just laying in boxes. The cost of stamps does run a little bit higher, but I feel like the stamps in exchange of getting card I need and moving the ones I don't balance each other out. My enjoyment of adding cards to my collection is higher than the $13 or so on a book of stamps, which usually does me between 10-15 PWE trades (some are double-stamped since they go over an ounce in weight). Everyone will have different methods of shipping/packaging, but finding what works for you makes it worthwhile in my opinion. I also know a couple members who put a limitation on their trading that works with their budget, for example 2 or 3 stamps a week for PWEs or a few dollars a week for trades taken to the PO. Hope you enjoy the site if you decide to begin trading.

I will send up to 6 cards (in 2 card savers) on a regular Forever stamp.

For the larger amounts (from 9-18 cards) I use the same method as JC645 above.   Because it is rigid (not to be bent), it has to be sent Non-Machinable.   Those are $1.06 for the first ounce then each extra ounce is $0.24.  9-12 cards should be 2 ounces.   15-18 cards will be 3 ounces.

He also mentioned that to be considered a letter, it has to be 1/4” or less in thickness    Anything over that is considered a package, which will be several dollars more.   I have seen people pack it thicker than that and get it through, but you will also see posts about people getting stuck with "postage due" when the sender tried to pack in too much and cheap out on the postage.

For more than 18 cards you will need a bubble mailer.  A Bubble Mailer will cost you a minimum of $4.20, to about $6.00 for larger ones.  Get an account at pirateship.com and buy you postage from there and print it yourself.    It is cheaper than the Post Office and you can ship from your house.  This is what I would use for trades of 40+ cards or anytime you are including something thick.   

If you are doing a really big trade of 150-200 cards, send them in team bags in a USPS flat rate box.   That will ship for around $9, regardless of the weight 

I started with several small trades to start and get the hang of making and countering offers. When I felt comfortable with that process I tried doing a little bigger trades. When I brought the envelopes to the post office I was shocked at the price I was given. There was no way the cards I was sending were worth the $20 for shipping. I am happy to say that the price was so high due to my way of packing the envelope (I was using way too thick cardboard). Once I figured it out(thanks to all the more seasoned traders) it is totally worth it. I have been able to get cards I didn't know existed, ones to finish sets I have been trying to complete for years, and ones I just find awesome. At the same time I have also been able to help other traders in the same way. This is the best site with the best community of collectors and trades.

I always try to recycle - some of my cardboard packaging is probably more tape than cardboard anymore.  For bigger trades, if you don't want to buy special boxes or send out a BCW 200-400 ct box (done that too), I've started shipping in team bags put inside empty blaster boxes (brown paper wrapped) with bubble wrap or those foam card box spacers for interior protection.  Those end up being about 6 bucks for ground.  Agree with royals - I need to get a pirateship account, it'll cut shipping by a decent amount.

And for late owls like myself, the USPS self-kiosks are your friend.