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Saturday Night Rip: Part Deux **** 2/9 KABOOM!!???!***

LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

I was fortunate enough to get a pass from the Mrs. and was excused from a black tie fundraiser for her hospital this evening. Sooooo glad she decided to turn it into a girls night out! So with a free evening and not really wanting to watch Boss Baby again during the Kids movie night it’s time to rip.

A while back I took a shot at a 1998 OPC Chrome Wayne Gretzky Retro Refractor that was graded a PSA 10 in one of the PWCC auctions. I bid very strong but it wasn’t enough. It’s a cool card.

So I bought a few boxes and ripped them a few months back. No Gretzky but I decided that I wouldn’t give up. A sealed case popped up a while back and I decided to try again. Which brings us to tonight.


(It was sealed. I forgot to take the photo before o opened it. Also just realized it was in LA. Hope it escaped Katrina)

The last time I ripped one of these boxes I just dove in and went at it. But after my last rip with the ‘85 Topps Hockey and figureing out the sequencing I decided to be a little more.... methodical. I did notice last time ripping 98 Chrome that the hits always seemed to be the last card. So I figured I’d confirm that tonight.

After opening the first box I realized you could VERY easily make out the top card. Didn’t realize it last time. May have had a few at that point. How Topps ever thought that this was a good wrapper I don’t know.

And as you might guess the backs are just as if not easier to see through.

So I sorted Box one and it looks like there are 2 Blast from the Past Cards in this box. Brett Hull and Ray Bourque.

Neither are refractors.

Kevin

Comments

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Box 2: Refractor!! Messier. Nice card with good centering.

    Kevin

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Box: 3 Double Hull case.

    Kevin

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Box: 4 Wayne Sighting!

    Hesitated opening the pack. Thought about subbing it and thought it would be cool to have the card on back. Unfortunately it’s not the Refractor version.

    I will go through the rest of the packs over the next few days to test my theory that all the hits are the back cards.

    Kevin

  • Arsenal83Arsenal83 Posts: 1,176 ✭✭✭

    Fun rip bro.

  • OddRodzOddRodz Posts: 645 ✭✭✭

    Now you've done it. I have to get a Chrome Hockey box of some sort.

    I know the Chromes ain't the favorites of the elites here. Am finding myself buying more here and there though. Chromes are fun, and well, damn they're cool.

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    .> @OddRodz said:

    Now you've done it. I have to get a Chrome Hockey box of some sort.

    I know the Chromes ain't the favorites of the elites here. Am finding myself buying more here and there though. Chromes are fun, and well, damn they're cool.

    You can find a lot of other years but tracking down 98 has been a challenge.

    Kevin

    Kevin

  • OddRodzOddRodz Posts: 645 ✭✭✭

    Lotsos.... got one.

    Will need assist in identifying the refractors though. To this day on stuff from the 90's, I can not identify a refractor if it was right in front of my face.

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Fantastic! All of the refractors will have Refractor written on the back. It took me a bit to figure it out too! Best of luck and please share.

    Kevin

    Kevin

  • ReggieClevelandReggieCleveland Posts: 3,854 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Nice, we got rippage. Good luck man!

    Arthur

  • initialDinitialD Posts: 1,624 ✭✭✭

    Hellz yeah!! I'm down with this
    Good luck with the rip!!
    Stellar Wayne you pulled Kevin. Never noticed how easy it is to see through the wrappers, or how the retros are all on back
    Get after it!

  • OddRodzOddRodz Posts: 645 ✭✭✭
    edited December 28, 2017 8:53AM

    @LOTSOS said:
    Fantastic! All of the refractors will have Refractor written on the back. It took me a bit to figure it out too! Best of luck and please share.

    Kevin

    Ok on the refractor identification then :) Must have been thinking of the 93 baseball :) If REFRACTOR is written on the back,. i don;t need my stapler.

    break it...uhh wuuuuhhhHHHHHT ? hey. box does seem rare. Now saved for a special alone evening.

    This is where the box came from last week....the code is NOT used as of 17:20 MST 12/11 if anyone wants it;

  • slum22slum22 Posts: 2,593 ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2017 3:42PM

    @OddRodz said:

    @LOTSOS said:
    Fantastic! All of the refractors will have Refractor written on the back. It took me a bit to figure it out too! Best of luck and please share.

    Kevin

    Ummm errrr.... I believe you have my stapler..

    Ok on the refractor identification then :) Must have been thinking of the 93 baseball :) If REFRACTOR is written on the back,. i don;t need my stapler.

    break it...uhh wuuuuhhhHHHHHT ? hey. box does seem rare. Now saved for a special alone evening.

    This is where the box came from last week....the code is NOT used as of 17:20 MST 12/11 if anyone wants it;

    @OddRodz -- If no one has used your code yet, I will use it. There's a box I have been waiting to buy. Since the code is in plain sight for public consumption, hopefully, the code is still working by the time I get home to use it. Thanks!

    Steve
  • slum22slum22 Posts: 2,593 ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2017 3:44PM

    Kevin, those are really cool Chrome and Chrome Refractors of those classic RC's. I wish Topps did basketball in the 80's. I love modern retro cards.

    Steve
  • OddRodzOddRodz Posts: 645 ✭✭✭

    Lotsos ! Have started amputating pieces of the box. Very cool cards. Top loaders ok ? or do these require the penny sleeve too. Pulled out Jagr and Coffey already. if you see any other HOFers please let me know.



  • miwlvrnmiwlvrn Posts: 4,221 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 28, 2017 10:20AM

    @OddRodz said:
    Lotsos ! Have started amputating pieces of the box. Very cool cards. Top loaders ok ? or do these require the penny sleeve too. Pulled out Jagr and Coffey already. if you see any other HOFers please let me know.



    I love to see people ripping hockey boxes! OddR, if you're looking to separate the HOF'ers base cards out, then you have another there too besides Coffey and obviously Jagr even though he hasn't retired yet: Adam Oates is in the Hall.

    Mogilny, Barrasso and Bondra have long shot chances of eventually getting in. Not super likely but not out of the question either. All 3 of them are already in various types of lesser Hall of Fames.

  • vintagefunvintagefun Posts: 1,975 ✭✭✭

    I got one of these boxes for Christmas. Who are the RCs? Gomez and Stuart? Is the Gretzky the main chase?

    52-90 All Sports, Mostly Topps, Mostly HOF, and some assorted wax.
  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Miwlvrn covered the HOFers and possibles. With the shinies I would at least use a penny sleeve in the top loaders. They are pretty touchy. I'm sure you found out already with how much they stick together even coming out of the packs. Nice Hull refractor!

    Kevin

    Kevin

  • OddRodzOddRodz Posts: 645 ✭✭✭

    Cool, thank you :) These are sticking a little but are breaking apart without any remnants so all good.

    There are cards here and there that do NOT say Refractor on the back, but are more shiny than the others or have darker borders. Frederic Olausson cards pictured below is an example. The shinier dude does not say Refractor on the back, but is a Refractor isn't it ?


  • miwlvrnmiwlvrn Posts: 4,221 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Another HOF w/ Lidstrom there, (but hopefully you knew that already ;) )

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Two of these just returned from PSA. One Gretzky and one Messier. I gave the Messier the @mouschi refactor treatment but not nearly as well as he does.

    Kevin

  • Arsenal83Arsenal83 Posts: 1,176 ✭✭✭

    I love that Gretzky. Beautiful cards Kevin.

  • Loyalty32Loyalty32 Posts: 497 ✭✭✭

    Nice looking cards!

  • secretstashsecretstash Posts: 1,393 ✭✭✭✭

    What did you do to that Messier? Is it a gif from different angles? Pretty cool

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Thanks guys. Tanner made a great tutorial a while back about how to do it. It was pretty simple but I didn't have the patience to make them as nice as he did his.

    https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/977828/making-your-high-end-cards-sparkle-animated-gif-tutorial#latest

    Kevin

    Kevin

  • secretstashsecretstash Posts: 1,393 ✭✭✭✭

    Thanks. That totally certified Canseco of his is insane. I thought it was pictures with a black light on yours. Looks trippy!

  • mouschimouschi Posts: 687 ✭✭✭✭

    Thanks for the mention and congrats on the pickups!

    Tanner Jones, Author of Confessions of a Baseball Card Addict - Now Available on Amazon!
  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited February 9, 2018 6:42PM

    So far I’ve ripped 5 boxes. First two and then a sealed case of 3. In those five boxes I’ve determined that you get one Blast From The Past per box and one Blast From The Past Refractor per case. The boxes that have had the refractors have had a base Blast From The Past for a total of 3 plus a Refractor per case.

    Seeing as how the odds of pulling the Gretzky Blast From The Past Refractor are really stacked against me I decided that I would probably never pull one and had decided to not bother ripping anymore..........

    Until last week. A couple of boxes of 98 Chrome popped up on EBay from Kruk Cards. I waivered back and for for a bit. Seeing as how it was only two boxes I figured maybe someone hit the Refractor and decided to sell the other two boxes. I decided to just take a chance.

    They arrived today and I was feeling eager. These packs while not completely see through do reveal which packs hold the Blast From The Pasts which so far have always been the last card in the pack. The wife was working on stuff in the kitchen so I headed out to my workbench in the garage to find the
    packs with the Blasts.

    Kevin

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited February 9, 2018 6:46PM

    First box had a Bobby Hull blast which I’ve hit before. No second in that box.

    Second box I found a Messier which I hit in the last rip and it was a Refractor that graded a 10 that’s in a post above. I was feeling like I struck out but had to finish going through the second box. Guess what I found?

    A second Blast. Guess who it was? WAYNE FREAKIN GRETZKY!!!!!!!

    Just then the garage door opens and one of my boys come out and informs me we have to leave for his basketball practice.
    So I grabbed the pack hop in the car and take him to practice.

    I’m there now. I didn’t look closely at the Messier to see if it was the base Blast or a Refractor. So here is the pack with Gretzky on back.

    It’s not clear if it’s the Refractor. I when I adjust the pack I’m 85% sure it is. I can see what I think is the word Refractor under the card number. With a magnifying glass and the right light I know I’d be able to tell.

    So the question is: Should I sub the pack to be graded with a Gretzky Refractor on back or just rip it? It would crush me if it was horribly OC like quite a few are but on the other hand if it had Gem potential.....

    I have to look up and see if you can get modern foil/plastic packs graded first and second how a pack like these that
    appear semi transparent grade. If any of you pack collectors could share any knowledge I’d greatly appreciate it.

    Can’t wait to get home and confirm!

    Kevin

    Kevin

  • Open it is my vote

  • initialDinitialD Posts: 1,624 ✭✭✭

    Figured it would be on its way to Newport by now. Are you kidding?
    Rip that thing and bask in gem victory, you came this far not to just hold out and wonder.
    Haha, tough call on the pack rarity though. But it would do nothing for me compared to a refracting Great One RC

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Sorry for the delay. It is indeed the refractor but the centering is brutal.

    Kevin

  • Arsenal83Arsenal83 Posts: 1,176 ✭✭✭

    Still a great pull Kevin, but that centering has to feel like a gut punch. What do you think you're gonna do with it?

  • LOTSOSLOTSOS Posts: 1,303 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Not sure Brian. I probably won’t keep it. I won’t display it and that’s one of the keys to what I collect. Really was hoping to get one in a 10 holder but would have settled on a 9 to put next to the 10 non Refractor version and his Topps 9 RC, a nice OPC copy that I have yet to buy and an Autoed version of his RC which I also have been looking for.

    Kevin

    Kevin

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