Brian,

Oh yes! (and thank you) This is something I know too well. I've DIY'ed both types of quilts. At least in the baffle design, the needle holes don't go through the entire quilt and I swear, I've felt actual wind gusting through the holes in my sewn through quilt. Of course, I'm embellishing and exaggerating for dramatic effect, which, apparently, went over like a lead balloon. LOL.

Another thing I noticed on some (not all) of my sewn-through quilts is there is a bit more stress at the sew-lines vs a baffle designed one. Internal baffles allow more (are more forgiving of) movement.

Regardless, IMHO, getting more gear to putter and play with is a big part of the fun!