Poor man's Unopened Thread....Anyone collect blasters??

BigRedMachine

I know. I know. Another unopened thread. This one though, by the looks of some of the great boxes and packs I've seen, would be considered by some to be quite unimpressive!!

I've posted a picture of these boxes before, but thought I'd do so again as the number I've acquired is reaching 100. Sure, I wish I had massive quantities of unopened from the 60's and 70's, but since my collection dollars are limited, and also spent on a separate hobby, this is what I've got. Here is a pic of a portion of my blasters.....




The first one I bought was in 2001, and it's interesting now over the years to see how boxes with potential stars on the cover have succeeded, while others have flamed out. And the boxes with the Jeters, Mannings, Kobe, Ripkens, etc. have a little more of a nostalgic feel. My favorites may be the Heritage and Allen & Ginter boxes, and those are the ones I continue to look to fill holes in the years I'm missing.

So again, I've posted a picture of the boxes before, but this time I thought I would ask.....

Does anyone else collect blasters???

If so, and without fear of the BST police, drop me a PM. I've got a handful of duplicates I'd love to trade to add to my collection. It gives me something to collect while I work on my '48 bowman set!!

Shawn

Cubby

Im impressed, really ....

jmmiller777

Yep, I started collecting them about 4-5 years ago and also trying to back fill the Heritage lineup. I collect mostly baseball, but when there is a cool player on the BB or FB boxes, I'll grab 1-3 of them. Just got 4 Pete Rose Blasters from Blowout for a real good price and every once in a while the retails like Target or Dick's Sporting Goods throw out a clearance on them. I supposse I have 50-60 of these put away despite my hoarding of Heritage hobby boxes.
So what year did Heritage first come out in blasters?

BigRedMachine

They made blasters in 2001, the year heritage first came out.

I haven't bought one yet though.

Shawn

Aric

Nice collection! I think modern unopened retail blasters will be very hard to find in 20-30 years. Of course, whether there is any demand for them in 20 years is another thing.

esquiresports

Those are great looking! I have a really basic question - what makes a box a "blaster"? What other types of modern boxes are there? (I'm stuck in the past).

BigRedMachine

<< <i>Those are great looking! I have a really basic question - what makes a box a "blaster"? What other types of modern boxes are there? (I'm stuck in the past). >>



A blaster, or at least what I've always considered a blaster, are the factory sealed boxes sold at walmart, target, etc for $19.99.

Although the odds for certain inserts are longer than their hobby box counterparts, I've had good luck over the years pulling hits from blasters (I often buy two at a time, open one and save the second). I think one of the biggest hits we've had on these boards was a member pulling an insert from a blaster/retail box of Allen and Ginter.

The blasters have a couple advantages in my opinion....

1) They are factory sealed. So no worrying about the guy feeling up the individual packs for the inserts and game used cards and me left with the scraps. And
2) They're affordable. Hobby boxes for most of these brands run anywhere from $60 to $150 per box. If you're on a budget, it's easier on the wallet to drop $20 bucks here and there than purchase a hobby box. And
3) They're right there and in hand. My local card shop has been closed nearly ten years now. If you get the urge to rip, there they are, no need to order on ebay and wait three or four days for the product to arrive.


Again, in the end, I'd rather be sitting on hoards of unopened early 70's product. But I'm not and I can't afford to do so. Perhaps one rainy day I'll get the itch and have a big rip. Knowing my luck, I'll hit a bunch of expired redemption cards!! In the end, they'll probably just continue to clutter the man cave, I think they display nicely.

My offer still stands if anyone has any for sale or trade, I've got duplicate boxes.

Shawn

ashabby

I have some but really do not collect them. Looks cool

BLUEJAYWAY

I like the blasters as well but I wait until they go 40% off. Sometimes they go that low only 1 year after release date. Got Archives blasters 1-2012,3-2013 for $11.99 each. And 5- 2013 series 2 TOPPS with a patch card in each box for $11.99. Patches usually sell for around $5 so 7$ for 10 packs. Low investment,good rip fun, and even if you do not hit well, you are not hurt too bad. Also put away Heritage baseball blasters for years 2002,2003. But all the other Blasters I buy I open. In the future may list the unopened on the BST.