Wednesday, December 31, 2014

One more

I forgot to post this card. This was my final purchase from the Black Friday card show. After my box purchases I had $5 cash left so I went browsing through $5 boxes to find a nice single. I had the intention of finding a nice Braves card that suited my collection, and while I did find few interesting Braves, none really fit what I was looking for. But I did find this Eric Chavez patch for $5.


#37/50

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Repacks repacks blah blah blah

More Target repacks.

The guaranteed hits


010/150





Now these last two are just dumbfounding to me. I bought both of the boxes at the same time.


Not a hit. Just a generic Bowman Chrome base card with a facsimile signature. I repeat, NOT A HIT.

And then in the very next box...


lolwut?

I also pulled a few other nice cards from the boxes.


Variation SP




In conclusion: I have a blast opening these boxes. $20 for 20 packs with a guaranteed hit (sorta, see above), is the best deal in the hobby IMO. But I've got to quit buying them so much. I just don't have the room to store all these cards that I have no place for in my collection. I've been thinking that I need to almost eliminate retail from my purchases and stick to hobby boxes and singles. I also really need to clear some storage space so I'm thinking about doing some flat rate boxes filled with cards and sell them at shipping cost. Who knows. Gotta think about it some more.

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

2014 Topps Finest box

The last box I got at the card show from my new favorite dealer was a box of 2014 Finest. I enjoyed busting a box of 2013 a few months back and it certainly helped to hit one of the toughest pulls in the set. He gave me a good price and I'd been wanting to bust a box of '14.


Green Refractor 162/199


Green Refractor 028/199


Blue Refractor 031/125


Gold Refractor 16/50







And the autos





Taijuan Walker is not a bad pull. Overall I'm guessing this was a pretty average box. Certainly not like pulling a buyback auto #/5 like the 2013 box, but I can't complain.

Friday, December 19, 2014

2014 Topps Stadium Club box

Box #2 that I purchased from my favorite dealer was 2014 Stadium Club. When this product debuted I was not happy with the concept and even less happy with the price. Obviously I wasn't alone because the price of boxes plummeted quickly. I got this one for $55. Each box contains three mini-boxes which each contain six packs of five cards. You are guaranteed one on-card autograph per mini-box.

Inserts





This one looks like it belongs in Topps Chrome.


Gold parallel #11/50


Autos




Rainbow Parallel #49/50

As is the historical hallmark of Stadium Club, the photography was superb with some really cool shots that aren't what Topps normally uses for cards. Auto content wise, maybe there are some good boxes out there but I did not get one of them. 

I feel like this product really isn't appropriate as a hobby only, mid level release. It would have been better served to be a slight step above Topps flagship with hobby boxes receiving a similar pack-out, and one hit per box as well as a similar price. It also should have gotten a retail release. I can hope that Topps will learn a lesson from the drastic, quick drop in price that happened. They weren't the ones that took the financial hit from said drop, that went to the distributors and more so the dealers. Collectors like me that waited to grab a box definitely benefited though. If Topps doesn't change their approach to this set next year I imagine they'll see a huge drop in pre-orders meaning it will be a much more short printed release. In conclusion I think $55 for this box was a good price. That's what it should debut at next year. But I'm sure it will still be in the $80-100 range.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

2014 Topps Triple Threads box

At the recent card show I attended my biggest purchase was one box of 2014 TTT. Ever since I got back into the hobby and discovered this set I've been pining to open a box for myself in addition to all the singles I've bought on eBay or traded for. Well this show provided the perfect opportunity. I got it from a dealer I had bought from before. He's the same guy I got the 2013 Finest box from back in April where I pulled the 1993 Finest Matt Williams buyback autograph. This guy's prices rock, They were far and away the best of any dealer at the show. He sells online as well at Queen City Sportscards. He doesn't have a huge selection online but his prices are right on par with and sometimes even better than Blowout. I bought three different boxes from him at this show, the other two of which I'll feature in the near future, so he gave me a good deal on everything. The TTT box came to $135 which I thought great since Blowout is currently $149.95. Like any wax, and especially high end, it can be very hit or miss. I got the usual assortment of base cards and parallels, none super low numbered. Here are the hits. I think I did alright.


Mini-box 1


34/36

Always happy to get a future Hall of Famer. This one is going to preemptively go in the HoF relic PC. I'm going to assume the red swatches are from an All-Star workout jersey.


26/50

And an already HoFer to go in the PC. Doing well so far! Props to the employee at Topps for putting the sticker on crooked.


Mini-box 2


08/18

Not a future HoFer but a recent World Series MVP at least. I like Koji's signature but I would love it if he would sign in Japanese.


4/9

Possible future HoFer. And also not a plain Unity relic like most boxes.

If I sold these cards I would not make back the cost of the box. But since I don't sell and this was all for fun and I had a blast, I think I did pretty well. My real dream is to bust a whole 18 box double master case of Triple Threads. 

Monday, December 15, 2014

One pack of 2014 Topps Tribute

Over the Black Friday weekend (the worst American creation ever), there was a three day card show in Charlotte. After I got off work on Saturday I headed over. One of my purchases was one single pack of 2014 Topps Tribute. The dealer was selling them for only $25 a pop which I thought to be an outstanding price. I'd never opened any Tribute before so I jumped on the deal. He said he was pretty sure all the relics from the box had been pulled already so I'd probably get an auto. It didn't disappoint.



5/5


24/40

BOOM!!! New World Series MVP and the local boy.

This pack was definitely a winner for me!

Friday, December 12, 2014

2013 Gypsy Queen hobby box

The last box from my most recent order from Blowout was a hobby box of 2013 Topps Gypsy Queen.


305/499


119/199


59/99


42/50







Hit content wise, I don't think I did very well on this box at all. But it was still fun to open.

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Trade from the Quarry

The final trade that I recently completed was with Johnny of Cards from the Quarry. Johnny was interested in the Tulo blue refractor I got from my recent Topps Chrome box breaks and it turned into a much larger swap of relics, autos and parallels. 

Here's what he sent me.


2002 Topps Chrome black refractor 02/50



Unlike most of the former star sluggers that are known steroid users, Palmeiro was much more than a one trick pony of home runs. He was an accomplished hitter and member of the 3,000 hit club in addition to the 500 home run club. With the BBWAA having made it clear that they don't want to elect juicers to the HoF, Palmeiro's chances of getting in are not good. But I can't help but wonder if he would have had a better shot than guys like McGwire, Sosa and Bonds if he hadn't denied everything while under oath during those congressional hearings a few years ago. 







Johnny also sent me a really cool item that deserves to be showcased in a post of it's own. I'll show that soon.

Thanks for the trade Johnny!!