Some advise from 1984 Topps experts

jradke4

Well this years olympics have me thinking back to the summer of 1984. At the ripe old age of almost 11 I spent the entire LA Olympics tied to TV watching everything that was on. At the same time I was ripping 84 Topps packs. I loved the design back then and still do today. A few years ago I bought a rack box from a highly regarded dealer. This last week with the games on I decided it was time to rip it. No Ryans or Mattingly in the whole box. Nearly every Glossy insert had the same tearout on the back, which tells me this box was not searched at all. The centering was hit and miss with those that had issues it seemed any card of that player from the box was the same way.

I would really like to put together a higher end set than I have from back in the day. So clearly the overwhelmin choice is to buy Racks. Right now I have seen both 3 and 6 box cases out there to be had from a few different sources. Here are my questions. Within a case does centering tend to be like the box that I opened? Say any Ben Olgive card that I get will have the same centering or will it vary. Because the answer will make a big deal on if I would get a 3 or 6 box case. Does collation even out over a case rather than box?

If you have any other insights I would love to hear them.

Thanks.

Jay

thehallmark

BBCE has 1984 Topps Vending boxes for $20 a piece. Buy five of those. Not as much fun but you'll complete a high quality set for sure.

jradke4

I was always under the impression that vending was not as good for quality as racks. I want to put together a high end raw set that if graded would grade high.

thehallmark

A guaranteed unopened and well stored vending box is very comparable to wax box quality, except without the "gum cards". The first 5-10 cards and the last 5-10 cards will be ungradeable but the middle 475-485 cards should be strong. More bang for your buck in vending, imo.

Lucky for you, the product you're seeking is REALLY inexpensive, so clearly it is in your best interest to buy some vending & wax & cello & racks to see for yourself which is best for this project. Seems like a no brainer!