Card Packs

[cdub]

Well I am just getting back into the baseball collecting guys and when I collected you didnt have the big internet You went to your local card shop. Anyways, I am a little out of the loop of trends etc.. So my question is, whats hot or worth buying when going into a store to buy packs/box for 2013?

2013 Topps Series 1?

2013 Bowman?

What set/brand has the nice inserts for 2013

Thanks

[jwgreen68]

Like you, I was out of collecting for nearly 20 years. I owned a hobby shop in the early 90's and the best part was the customer interaction. That's pretty much gone thanks to the internet. And its killed the brick and mortar shops anyways.

What to buy depends really on what interests you and how much you want to spend. Topps is a less expensive set, easy and cheap to build a set, get a lot of inserts, but not a big money maker if you're looking to sell. Bowman is great if you're looking for a lot of rookies and prospects. 2011 Gypsy Queen was a huge hit but last years offering fell off quite a bit. I love the nostalgic look of the cards. For that reason, I love Archives and Heritage. SP's are the big chase in Heritage and Autos in just about every product, of course.

What I don't like is Topps exclusive license. I miss the choice of Fleer, Upper Deck, etc. I think the GU's that Fleer and Upper Deck made are far superior to anything Topps has EVER done. It pains me to see a Topps GU where no 2 letters are the same size. Disproportionate is the word I would use to describe them.

Having said all of that, I build a Topps set every year or have bought one for the years that I wasn't collecting(1952-2012).

Lowest price: Topps, Topps Opening Day
Midpoint: Bowman, Gypsy Queen, Heritage
Mortgage the house: Tribute, Topps Triple Threads


I think there are more products now that Topps has an exclusive license than there was in the junk cardboard years!

Topps
Topps Opening Day
Bowman
Bowman Chrome
Bowman Platinum
Topps Turkey Red
Topps Heritage
Topps Gypsy Queen
Topps Tribute
Topps Five Star
Topps Museum Collection
Topps Archives
Topps Chips Baseball
Topps Pro Debut
Topps Big League Mini baseball
Topps Bowman Inception
Topps Tier One
Topps Allen & Ginter
Topps Finest baseball

If that didn't make your head spin, I probably missed a few!
Good luck!

[ucffans]

I was out of the loop for about 20 years as well. Now with 2 sons collecting, I have changed my approach. I collect things my kids would lke and things I like (favorite teams, favorite players). I don't worry much about selling in the future (I have binders of players like Gooden, McGwire, Strawberry, Canseco, and others that I thought would have made me rich by now!)

Personally, I agree with JWGreen68 - I like the old look of the Topps inserts (remakes of the 84 topps, 87 topps, 72 minis, etc). I collect the sparkle inserts because my boys like them.

[cdub]

Awesome information... Yeh the head spinned a little but I caught on Thanks for all the information guys. Helped out a lot.

[ucffans]

Just don't ask me to look up the value on some of these cards. With parallel inserts and short print, etc... I just miss the days of looking up a 1985 Fleer base card!

[cdub]

lol i know right? Even though they over produced cards in the 80's and early 90's I think those were the best years of card design. Im just not a big fan of the modern cards.. all this flashy silver gold and symbols.. just not big into those cards. Only modern card that I have interest in maybe are the ones with a jersey attached.. thats about it.

Im old fashion though. lol

[tndcollectables]

I agree with jwgreen also with the exception the cardshops are struggling but we are kinda still here. Sad thing is if I buy a case to sell I end up opening it myself, the town I am in is small and they call to me.

[jwgreen68]

I agree with jwgreen also with the exception the cardshops are struggling but we are kinda still here. Sad thing is if I buy a case to sell I end up opening it myself, the town I am in is small and they call to me.

A couple months ago, my LCS converted over to all comics and non-sports. Ticked me off! The loser sold off his sports inventory for $2000! There had to be $100K easily. I would have given him $10-20K for all of it. Now I have nowhere to buy locally.

[ucffans]

I feel your pain - I have no LCS anywhere around me.

[bluejaysfan]

I just got back into collecting a couple years ago and was also overwhelmed with the choices available. I actually started by picking up some of those value boxes you can get at walmart. They are generally last years cards but normally give you a couple packs from various sets so you can get an idea of which ones you prefer (I know they have boxes now with 2012 Heritage, 2012 Archives, 2012 Allen and Ginter and 2012 Bowman which is a decent cross section).

I have the same problems with LCS's around here. I have the added misfortune of being in canada (any card shops that ARE around deal almost exclusively with hockey, which i have no interest in).

[cdub]

yeh thats why I made the post originally... over whelmed of the different types of cards they make. I mean you 20 different topps, 10 different bowmans..lol im like.. what do I buy to get value cards. But to keep thins simple its probably best to buy the most expensive pack..lol

Well I still have a nice LCS.. I mean its 30 minutes away but its still there.

[Frosty]

I agree with all the posts on here, there's a lot to choose from. I just started back up again because of Strasburg. Probably would have quit, but on the 2nd Bowman Hobby Jumbo Box I got one of the auto's. Kept me going since. I've learned quite a bit getting back into it. I prefer buying hobby, just better chances of good cards. Every once in a while, i'll hit up walmart for a fix. The only card store around has the prices jacked up so high. I kind of thought know that I have a good job, I could buy all the "fancy" cards that I drooled over as a kid. I was wrong, Triple Threads and Tribute are like $200 - $300 per box of like 4-5 cards I think? Crazy. I also go after redemption cards on Ebay, takes away the thrill of whats in the pack, but cheaper. I have tons of cards for the last 3-4 years, let me know if your looking for something.

[cdub]

I agree with all the posts on here, there's a lot to choose from. I just started back up again because of Strasburg. Probably would have quit, but on the 2nd Bowman Hobby Jumbo Box I got one of the auto's. Kept me going since. I've learned quite a bit getting back into it. I prefer buying hobby, just better chances of good cards. Every once in a while, i'll hit up walmart for a fix. The only card store around has the prices jacked up so high. I kind of thought know that I have a good job, I could buy all the "fancy" cards that I drooled over as a kid. I was wrong, Triple Threads and Tribute are like $200 - $300 per box of like 4-5 cards I think? Crazy. I also go after redemption cards on Ebay, takes away the thrill of whats in the pack, but cheaper. I have tons of cards for the last 3-4 years, let me know if your looking for something.

I was thinking the same thing man.. now that I do pretty well financially I thought I could just get what I want with no breeze... but those series thats worth opening are a bit expensive... but ill pace myself at least until the wife yells at me..lol

[Frosty]

Hahahahahaha, there you go! I think my fav's are the Allen & Ginter and Heritage. I like the older looking ones. I've really liked the mini-inserts in the Topps the last couple years. I really would suggest Ebay for getting a decent price on things. I know I might get yelled at for that, but shops bump up the prices waaaaaaaaayyyy too much, most wont haggle either. At least with Ebay you have a punchers chance on the pricey stuff. You were checking out that Wagner post too weren't you. You should look at the new post I put up there.

[cdub]

Yeh I love the older look sets. Just a sucker for them. Ive been on Ebay quite a bit this week. Ill pull the trigger on something real soon

Ok ill check that Wagner post out.