General Forum

I have always wanted to have friends locally that also collect cards that we can just kick it once in a while and just trade some cards. Unfortunately, I'm not too socialable lol....

Anyways, the thought of trading by mail with TCDB sounds cool to me.

But with shipping prices it doesn't seem to make financial sense for me since I can get cards I want for very cheap (I'm a low end collector)... and with trades with shipping it seems like I'll pay 60 cents, 30 cents, 20 cents etc... per card and i lose my cards too lol.

So my question is... is it worth it to you? And why or why not?

I'm on the fence about it. But want to do it.

PWE is not expensive and makes trading worth it. 

For me it is 100% worth it. I'm in Canada. A package of 10 forever stamps costs me $9.20. That is good for 10 PWEs within Canada. If each PWE can hold on average 27 cards that means my 10 stamps are good for 270 cards which is about 3.5 cents per card. For US stamps it ends up being about 5 cents per card. I've completed hundreds of trades on this site. I've collected and completed all kinds of sets of which I likely would not have otherwise. I've also gotten rid of cards that are worthless to me and decluttered in the process. For me, trading on this site is definitely worth it!

It's a good question and the answer might depend on what type of collector you are and how you source your collection. Are you a set collector, a team collector, or a player collector.

I prefer to pick up cards locally when I find a buy at an auction or from a local collector as my main source for adding cards. However, I do like to build complete sets and like to focus on older cards. Since I like to complete sets and I'm in a rural area, when I am working to complete a set I don't mind trading or buying on here to reach my goal. It might not make a lot of fiscal sense but spending money on trading cards probably doesn't make fiscal sense anyway.

Postage costs are a part of having this hobby.  I enjoy trading in the mail, but to ease the pain a bit, I try to stick with PWEs and try to be sure that the value of the cards being exchanged is worth the cost of postage.  I’ll ‘splurge’ if what I’m after is something I really want, or to help someone with a ‘PIF’ with one card to kill a set. In my case, I have some health issues that keep me home quite a bit; my biggest enjoyment is my card collecting and the cost of stamps is worth it to me.  I’m closing in on 1000 cardboard exchanges with only a couple of trades going sour.  I’m having fun!  Hope you do too!!

Welcome to the site. 

I have really enjoyed trading on the site. To me, it's worth it. Here's why: #1 with a little practice, you can mail 12-15 cards safely in a letter envelope for less than $1*, so it can be a cheaper way of getting cards than buying them, particularly for commons. I have a lot of duplicates, so it gives me a chance to convert those duplicates into cards I don't already have and help somebody else do the same. #2 You get cards in the mail! :-) Just the enjoyment of that is worth it to me. I have met some nice folks and enjoyed gradually working on sets/players that I like.

You should understand that it is time consuming. First, you have to spend time loading cards into your Wantlist and For Sale/Trade list so you can get matches in the system. Then, you have to review your matches and propose trades. Then, you have to pull the cards, package them and get them in the mail. All that takes time, which is fine if you enjoy it.

My advice would be to stick to trading commons or lower-value cards, especially at first as you learn the ropes, and keep your expectations reasonable. Good luck! 

*one Forever stamp plus one Extra Ounce stamp

I can't throw out the cards I have so I find making someone else take them is great. If they happen to want them it's even better. For 2$ (Caandian) here or 3$ there three or four trades a week is still cheaper than a pack of cards full of stuff I mostly don't want.

It's totally worth it!  I've been able to get some sets completed that would be expensive to buy otherwise.  It is even better when finding set buildings and making large trades!  And while going to Canada does take a trip to the post office, it's worth it to have a letter or two go out

The last line is exactly what I was going to say as well. For $6 I could get a pack of new cards and maybe keep a couple, or I could spend $6 on postage and get upwards of 50 cards I know I want. However, as it has been said before, trading takes a lot of work. Communication, searching, deciding, packing, sending, waiting... but it's all worth it to me.

 Your statement:   it doesn't seem to make financial sense for me.  Most hobbies do not make financial sense.

So why would anyone want to do it?

1.  The enjoyment.   That is what a hobby is for.

2.  They have way too many cards which they do not want.   These cards hold little value to them.  To some the cost of shipping is the only cost.

3.  Getting cards to others that they will enjoy them.

4.  Pay It Forwards is an example of not caring about cost of shipping.

5.  This site is one of the very few that makes you feel like you are dealing with friends, and you do things for friends even if it is not financially good for you.

6.  In most cases trading locally is not a thing as it was in the 90s.  Really hard to meet up with people willing to trade now days.

Yes there are members that will not do small trades due to the shipping cost.   Most other members have no problem with that.