72 OPC Wax Box

mygotta · December 14, 2012 9:05AM

What is a good price for this box? Who is in the 2nd series OPC?

1972 OPC Wax Box

tsalems1 · December 14, 2012 9:07AM

Based on information I got, thats about double what they go for...

grote15 · December 14, 2012 9:18AM

<< What is a good price for this box? Who is in the 2nd series OPC?

1972 OPC Wax Box >>

I'd say realistic price would be about 2K at most.

There are only 2 series in the 72 OPC set. The 2nd (high) series runs from cards 265-525.

edmundfitzgerald · December 14, 2012 9:46AM

Many of the 72's opc wax boxes that are still sealed have gum that bleeds through one, two, three, and sometimes four of the cards in the packs.

I would personally stay away from any 1972 packs myself. Not because all the remaining packs out there have this problem. But I've heard of too
many horror stories that allows me to dive into any more of them.

Then again, if you know you're getting a good box from a good source, then by all means.

mygotta · December 14, 2012 10:31AM

The box was graded an 8.5 which seems pretty good. But I dont know if getting a box graded includes the packs within, or just the box itself. The picture is not a very good pic to even determine the box itself. You would think anyone asking for anything more than a $1000, they can invest 10 more minutes on a good picture.

ReggieCleveland · December 14, 2012 1:05PM

<< 

There are only 2 series in the 72 OPC set. The 2nd (high) series runs from cards 265-525. >>

Ok, stupid question alert. How do you know there are only two series? The checklists break the set down by 132 card segments. Are those not the "series?" (I honestly don't know)

grote15 · December 14, 2012 1:10PM

<< 

<< 

There are only 2 series in the 72 OPC set. The 2nd (high) series runs from cards 265-525. >>

Ok, stupid question alert. How do you know there are only two series? The checklists break the set down by 132 card segments. Are those not the "series?" (I honestly don't know) >>

For 1972 OPC, only wax packs were produced (no cellos or racks). In Series 1 packs, cards 1-264 are possible and in series 2 packs, cards 265-525 are possible.
Of the two series packs, Series 1 packls are the tougher ones to find.

jeffcbay · December 14, 2012 1:13PM

BBCE's buy price is $1200, series not specified.

ReggieCleveland · December 14, 2012 1:19PM

<< 

<< 

<< 

There are only 2 series in the 72 OPC set. The 2nd (high) series runs from cards 265-525. >>

Ok, stupid question alert. How do you know there are only two series? The checklists break the set down by 132 card segments. Are those not the "series?" (I honestly don't know) >>

For 1972 OPC, only wax packs were produced (no cellos or racks). In Series 1 packs, cards 1-264 are possible and in series 2 packs, cards 265-525 are possible.
Of the two series packs, Series 1 packls are the tougher ones to find. >>

Thanks Tim. Is there any kind of reference for this? I completely believe you, just curious as to the source so I don't have to say "I heard it from a guy."

grote15 · December 14, 2012 1:30PM

<< 

<< 

<< 

<< 

There are only 2 series in the 72 OPC set. The 2nd (high) series runs from cards 265-525. >>

Ok, stupid question alert. How do you know there are only two series? The checklists break the set down by 132 card segments. Are those not the "series?" (I honestly don't know) >>

For 1972 OPC, only wax packs were produced (no cellos or racks). In Series 1 packs, cards 1-264 are possible and in series 2 packs, cards 265-525 are possible.
Of the two series packs, Series 1 packls are the tougher ones to find. >>

Thanks Tim. Is there any kind of reference for this? I completely believe you, just curious as to the source so I don't have to say "I heard it from a guy." >>

I'm not sure if there are any references for this (I'm not aware of any offhand though I'd suppose there is one somewhere on the web) but in my years of collecting
unopened and specializing in 70s baseball exclusively, I've opened a lot of packs from this issue and the only ones I've ever seen are the ones with the "2nd series"
sticker on the box in which I've pulled cards from 265-525 and the scarcer "low" or "1st" series packs in which cards 1-264 are found. I have never seen for sale,
either on the BBCE site or anywhere else a 3rd or 4th series box/pack, or any pack with either "mixed" or another series cards inside other than either 1st or 2nd.

There are a number of things you pick up and/or realize over the years while collecting, in reference not only to this issue, but product codes and how certain cards
should always appear (with rare exceptions) in certain sections on a rack pack, and though there may be no actual reference guide, if you collect long enough and
open enough packs to test these theories, you realize which make sense and which are true. For that reason, I try and open as many packs as I can--even
though unopened collectors generally frown upon opening packs, I have found the experience to be invaluable in learning what to look for and what makes
sense when dealing with unopened product.

ReggieCleveland · December 14, 2012 3:12PM

Thanks again, Tim. I had no idea you had opened that much 72 OPC. Good enough for me.

Littletweed · December 14, 2012 3:20PM

<< Many of the 72's opc wax boxes that are still sealed have gum that bleeds through one, two, three, and sometimes four of the cards in the packs. >>

I have opened only a few packs of 72 OPC and this was the case. Not a good box to rip looking for mint cards.

ClockworkAngel · December 14, 2012 3:36PM

<< 

<< Many of the 72's opc wax boxes that are still sealed have gum that bleeds through one, two, three, and sometimes four of the cards in the packs. >>

I have opened only a few packs of 72 OPC and this was the case. Not a good box to rip looking for mint cards. >>

I think that can be said of anything from the 70's OPC series. I just busted 2 boxes of 1979 OPC and of the 10 cards/pack, only 6 were not ruined

grote15 · December 14, 2012 3:51PM

OPC gum had more sugar than and was pinker in color than the gum used in Topps packs during that same era so if a box/case was not stored
properly it was not uncommon to find at least a couple of stained cards behind the gum. The seal on back of the wax packs was also loose tha Topps, too.

grote15 · December 14, 2012 3:57PM

I kept this gum card to remind me just how bad it gets with 72 OPC gum stains, lol..The sugar in the stick had almost
eaten away the gum over the years..

mikelowell25 · December 14, 2012 5:21PM

tim, i think what you have there is not the clemente IA card but rather the rare Gumby IA card

edmundfitzgerald · December 14, 2012 8:42PM

There was a find of 73 o-pee-chee baseball years ago, and all those boxes produced mint beautiful cards (many o/c), but no gum bleeding.
Perhaps the original owner stored them in a cool basement.

The 72 opc wax out there may have been stored in a hot garage over the years.

Being that the 1973's (that came to the market in 2004) were in perfect shape, I believe that gives testimony that the opc gum will not decay if properly stored.

If you see any GAI 73 opc packs for sale, go ahead and bid, because the cards you'll pull will be very nice.

corvette1340 · December 14, 2012 11:23PM

I bought the last 2 of these from BBCE a couple of years ago, one 1st Series and one 2nd Series. I think I remember paying $1600 for the 1st Series and $1400 for the 2nd Series before discount, but that was over 2 years ago. If you will do a search you will see the results of my rip of those 2 boxes. As was mentioned before, the gum card is ruined in all of these, but fortunately none of the subsequent cards from Series 1 were hurt and only a couple of the cards after the gum card had bleed in the 2nd Series. Overall, I think I got like 4 of the 70 or so 10's that have been graded total and a ton of 9's. I still have another 2nd Series box, but it didn't come from BBCE. It was part of a collection I bought. I opened 1 pack and the bleed was about halfway through the pack so I stopped.

grote15 · December 15, 2012 6:27AM

As far as opening packs, I have had better sucess overall with 1973 OPC, including pulling a couple of PSA 10s, but a properly stored
1972 OPC box is a real treat to open, too, and at about 1/2 the price of Topps, it's a nice bang for the buck.

ClockworkAngel · December 16, 2012 3:36PM

I think all of this is more proof as to what a better investment OPC is than Topps. Not only is there much less unopened OPC out there, the end result of the packs is that you get much fewer gradable cards and less high grades long term

PaulMaul · December 17, 2012 3:36AM

<< I think all of this is more proof as to what a better investment OPC is than Topps. Not only is there much less unopened OPC out there, the end result of the packs is that you get much fewer gradable cards and less high grades long term >>

But you have to factor in that there is much less demand for OPC stuff as well. I have no interest in OPC due to a lack of nostalgia for the product, and I think there are many others like me. The market for OPC is pretty much limited to Canadians and American advanced collectors. So I'm not sure if we can conclude it's a better investment.

That said, if the higher grades really are a lot rarer due to quality control issues, I'm sure they are good investments regardless of demand.

mygotta · December 17, 2012 5:25AM

Cards in general are a specialized collectible, regardless of how many out there are doing it. You certainly have more advanced collector's than others and the deeper you go, the more you realize what is out there beyond Topps, Fleer and Donruss. So, with that, I have a question. Beckett, clearly not just a guide for the casual person who opened a pack of Donruss 88 and wants to know their worth, but also caters to all kinds of collectors. So my question is, why does Beckett not display pricing for OPC in their guide? Despite the size of their monthly guide, it seems to lack in a lot of ways.

mygotta · December 17, 2012 5:41AM

Also, does anyone know the years that OPC began to replicate the Topps designs? Also, in tandem, what years Leaf replicated Donruss?

ClockworkAngel · December 17, 2012 6:01AM

I know Leaf started in 1985. I remember the green leaf in the upper left corner replacing the Donruss emblem..

ThoseBackPages · December 17, 2012 6:16AM

<< Also, does anyone know the years that OPC began to replicate the Topps designs? Also, in tandem, what years Leaf replicated Donruss? >>

OPC: 1965 - 1992
Leaf: 1985 - 1988

ReggieCleveland · December 17, 2012 6:47AM

There are Canadian Topps cards prior to '65 though. I believe the only way to tell the packs is by the number of cards inside. I know BBCE has a '64 empty display box that has Topps on the front but mentions OPC on the bottom? Something like that. I would imagine the stock is different and wouldn't be surprised if some of the back variations attributed to Topps cards in the 50s and early-60s is actually just the difference between the American and Canadian cards.

ReggieCleveland · December 17, 2012 6:48AM

<< 

<< Also, does anyone know the years that OPC began to replicate the Topps designs? Also, in tandem, what years Leaf replicated Donruss? >>

OPC: 1965 - 1992
Leaf: 1985 - 1988 >>

There's definitely OPC in 1993 and 1994.

esquiresports · December 17, 2012 9:01AM

I can confirm that the Series 2 wax and the cards run the full second-half of the set. One nice thing about the OPC box is that it comes with 36 packs as opposed to 24 for Topps. It's therefore a significantly larger box. I've thought about purchasing a box just to sell off the packs one by one because of the break-up value. I'd put the box value in the $1800 range with nrmt-mt packs. If you look at most of the BBCE buy prices, you will see that you need to add roughly a 50% (or higher) premium to get to a price you normally see in the market.

mygotta · December 17, 2012 10:18AM

<< 

<< 

<< Also, does anyone know the years that OPC began to replicate the Topps designs? Also, in tandem, what years Leaf replicated Donruss? >>

OPC: 1965 - 1992
Leaf: 1985 - 1988 >>

There's definitely OPC in 1993 and 1994. >>

Yeah, they are in 93 and 94, as well as 2009. Upper Deck handled the 2009 series. But are the 93 and 94 years Topps designs? Or are they of another brand all together?

ReggieCleveland · December 17, 2012 10:26AM

<< 

<< 

<< 

<< Also, does anyone know the years that OPC began to replicate the Topps designs? Also, in tandem, what years Leaf replicated Donruss? >>

OPC: 1965 - 1992
Leaf: 1985 - 1988 >>

There's definitely OPC in 1993 and 1994. >>

Yeah, they are in 93 and 94, as well as 2009. Upper Deck handled the 2009 series. But are the 93 and 94 years Topps designs? Or are they of another brand all together? >>

That's an interesting question, I honestly don't know. I have a few unopened boxes of '94 OPC but they don't show an example of the cards on the exterior.

tsalems1 · December 17, 2012 10:33AM

They dont look the same

ThoseBackPages · December 17, 2012 10:34AM

'93 and '94 OPC do not look like 93/94 Topps releases

grote15 · December 17, 2012 10:41AM

<< I can confirm that the Series 2 wax and the cards run the full second-half of the set. One nice thing about the OPC box is that it comes with 36 packs as opposed to 24 for Topps. It's therefore a significantly larger box. I've thought about purchasing a box just to sell off the packs one by one because of the break-up value. I'd put the box value in the $1800 range with nrmt-mt packs. If you look at most of the BBCE buy prices, you will see that you need to add roughly a 50% (or higher) premium to get to a price you normally see in the market. >>

72 OPC boxes do contain 12 more packs per box but 72 Topps packs also contain 2 more cards per pack so the actual difference in the card count between them is only 48.

ReggieCleveland · December 17, 2012 11:53AM

Anyone know the card-per-pack breakdown for OPC throughout the years? It's definitely changed multiple times.

grote15 · December 17, 2012 12:03PM

<< Anyone know the card-per-pack breakdown for OPC throughout the years? It's definitely changed multiple times. >>

Starting in 1970, OPC packs contained 8 cards per pack till 1978 when they increased the card count to 10.

mygotta · December 17, 2012 3:05PM

Here is the 1993 and 1994 OPC designs

ReggieCleveland · December 17, 2012 5:10PM

<< 

<< Anyone know the card-per-pack breakdown for OPC throughout the years? It's definitely changed multiple times. >>

Starting in 1970, OPC packs contained 8 cards per pack till 1978 when they increased the card count to 10. >>

Thanks Tim. Do you know about the 80s? I know there are 7 cards per pack in 1987.

grote15 · December 17, 2012 11:47PM

<< 

<< 

<< Anyone know the card-per-pack breakdown for OPC throughout the years? It's definitely changed multiple times. >>

Starting in 1970, OPC packs contained 8 cards per pack till 1978 when they increased the card count to 10. >>

Thanks Tim. Do you know about the 80s? I know there are 7 cards per pack in 1987. >>

You're welcome. No, my collection of OPC wax is focused entirely on 1970-1980 so I'm not sure about the 80s. I would ask tsalems--if anyone knows, he would.

72 OPC Wax Box

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