I love the 1980s! The ultimate unopened rip quest to build Topps, Fleer, Donruss PSA 10 sets...

jordangretzkyfan · June 25, 2018 5:59PM

Pack #24 was a swing and a miss...

jordangretzkyfan · June 25, 2018 6:08PM

Packs #23 and #24 from the full box of 1983 contained the wrong Boggs (Tommy) and a vibrant, but not grade worthy Nolan Ryan...

jordangretzkyfan · June 25, 2018 6:20PM

Packs #23 and #24 of the full 1982 box had a nice Brett Butler RC, some HOFers...

...and this contender.

jordangretzkyfan · June 25, 2018 6:59PM

Here were the 1981 packs. A 2nd Gibson RC from this box appeared along with two HOFers, but nothing gradeable...

ldferg · June 25, 2018 9:04PM

81s are a beast. Good luck on a good run of packs.

JWBlue · June 27, 2018 11:54PM

Weird about the 1986 Donruss cards not being in good condition. Back in the 1980s when I would open those packs I would always recall how crisp and new they looked.

Big80s · June 29, 2018 11:04AM

Tuning in for this!! Love the theme and the unopened material.

jordangretzkyfan · July 4, 2018 7:29AM

@Big80s said:
Tuning in for this!! Love the theme and the unopened material.

Thanks Jeff! Between these breaks and your rip videos, the 80s are alive and well in our hobby.>

@ldferg said:

81s are a beast. Good luck on a good run of packs.

Thanks for the well wishes and luck David. You’re right, the 81s are a high grade nightmare...but I am loving the hunt.

jordangretzkyfan · July 4, 2018 7:30AM

Happy 4th of July everyone. Here come a couple of 1986 Topps vending boxes in search of those elusive 10s...

jordangretzkyfan · July 4, 2018 8:43AM

Here were the rookies and star cards...

Finding candidates for PSA 10 remains a serious challenge with this set. Out of 1000 fresh cards, only 4 contenders emerged 0.4%...ouch!

Stone193 · July 4, 2018 10:11AM

Those looks really good Chris.

What are the "big hits" in 10 for the set.

I would guess Ryan e.g.?

jordangretzkyfan · July 4, 2018 11:27AM

@Stone193 said:
Those looks really good Chris.

What are the "big hits" in 10 for the set.

I would guess Ryan e.g.?

Hey Mike...happy 4th. The 1986 Sandberg is likely the toughest to find in a 10. The Ryan is the marquis card and my personal favorites are the 2nd year Clemens, Puckett and Eric Davis cards. Love the 1986 Topps Davis card for some reason.

jordangretzkyfan · July 8, 2018 6:44AM

Let the 1986 Topps journey continue...

jordangretzkyfan · July 8, 2018 9:20AM

After opening 2 more vending boxes...5 more GEM contenders were found.

jordangretzkyfan · July 8, 2018 9:27AM

Let’s try some 1987 Topps next...

jordangretzkyfan · July 8, 2018 11:32AM

I know I am in the minority, but I still love the look of 1987 Topps. Likely because it is the first year I went all in collecting. Cello boxes have always been the best way to pull GEM cards for me, and this box was no exception. Here were the stars...

Here was a fun star pack...

And here were the 14 contenders for PSA 10...

burghman · July 8, 2018 12:07PM

Looks like you're having a ton of fun and I'm enjoying seeing your results. Are you submitting (or eventually going to submit) your candidates to get the sets officially on record, or are you just keeping track of the 10s yourself in your effort to complete the sets?

And, now that you're well into this challenge and seeing the rate of return, any thoughts as to whether you have enough unopened material to finish any of the target sets in 10? Or if there are enough unopened packs / boxes / cases out there in the wild to finish it?

jordangretzkyfan · July 9, 2018 3:40AM

@burghman said:
Looks like you're having a ton of fun and I'm enjoying seeing your results. Are you submitting (or eventually going to submit) your candidates to get the sets officially on record, or are you just keeping track of the 10s yourself in your effort to complete the sets?

And, now that you're well into this challenge and seeing the rate of return, any thoughts as to whether you have enough unopened material to finish any of the target sets in 10? Or if there are enough unopened packs / boxes / cases out there in the wild to finish it?

Hi Jim. For now, I am trying to build the full set in what I believe to be 10 worthy and will then submit the full run as a bulk sub. Ideally the sets will have a consecutive run of serial numbers. I am sure I will miss on some and will have to upgrade along the way for anything 8 or below, but I am being insanely picky on what I submit since any of the 80s stuff will be money losing in even a MINT 9.

The rate of hitting 10 candidates is about what I suspected, 0.5-2.0% per box. I knew this was going to be much harder than most would suspect since the production quality during the 1980s was poor. I have tons of cases I have collected over the years, so I have plenty of material to open. Time to do so is my bigger challenge at the moment. If I ever run out, I am pretty sure they are still producing 1986-1989 anyway! This will continue to be a fun quest and thanks to all who are following!

Panama Mutiny · July 9, 2018 6:27AM

@cpamike said:
Looks like you might have to bust some cases Chris.

Love the Bo Jackson. My son Zachary busted a box of 1987 Donruss he bought at the last National and hit all the big names except McGwire. I told him that it was a good box and not to expect that to happen every time. I don’t want to encourage this type of behavior.

i need 1987 Ben Oglivie or Juan Berenguer PSA Donruss Fleer or Topps 10 if you pull one ... ill buy it raw or ungraded

ajw · July 10, 2018 3:42AM

@jordangretzkyfan said:

@ajw said:
I just found this thread (as I don't come here often). But wow. This is a project I fully endorse!

Thanks AJW! The comments are what makes this even more fun for me. Hope you come back to check the breaks out.

This was the sweet-spot of my childhood collecting. I was born in 1974 and had a handful of cards in my collection from 78 and 79 but had more from 80 and 81. 1982 is where I really hit my swing and 82-89 or so was peak pack busting for me.

82-83-84 Topps sets will always get me excited. I just love those cards. The 82 In Action cards were awesome. The All-Stars and league leaders were also great. I loved that Topps found a way to get cards picturing the best players of the era.

Keep up the pack breaks and the posts!

ajw · July 10, 2018 3:48AM

@jordangretzkyfan said:

Ideally the sets will have a consecutive run of serial numbers.

Ummm...that would be amazing.

jordangretzkyfan · July 15, 2018 10:37AM

Let’s look for some more dark blue boardered gems...

jordangretzkyfan · July 15, 2018 11:01AM

Here were the few stars and rookies...

But far more impressive to me were these 4 candidates for PSA 10...

Stone193 · July 15, 2018 11:52AM

You've showed some killers Chris.

I really like the blue borders.

The Ryan future HOFers looks great.

Good luck with your sub.

Please post results and pics buddy.

bensie · July 15, 2018 11:44PM

It always makes my day when I refresh and see updates in this thread. Love those 1986 fleer. Underappreciated set, imo.

jordangretzkyfan · July 21, 2018 11:37AM

Time to hunt for some gems in my favorite set of the 1980s...

jordangretzkyfan · July 21, 2018 12:56PM

Wow...so that box was loaded with GEM MINT candidates!!

First, there were plenty of stars and rookies to add to my ever growing stash of these light blue boardered beauties...

These three RCs made an appearance, albeit an off centered one...

Here are 18 candidates for grading...

Then check out this beauty...I loved this card as a kid!!

And for the finale...it just doesn’t get better than this for a quintessential GEM of an iconic 1980s RC...

Stone193 · July 21, 2018 2:47PM

I'm with you on the Bo card Chris - sweet.

Please post when you get it back.

Unknown · July 21, 2018 2:54PM

This content has been removed.

jordangretzkyfan · July 21, 2018 8:22PM

@Stone193 said:
I'm with you on the Bo card Chris - sweet.

Please post when you get it back.

@BALROG said:
and STILL,, this pure greatness thread continues. !!! Always watch this.

Thanks for continuing to follow this guys. Love the comments along the way!

jordangretzkyfan · July 22, 2018 4:34AM

If you told me as a kid that someday I would own all these, I would have predicted I would be rich as an adult...eat your heart out Warren Buffet!!!

I’m sure I could eventually get $50 for all of these, but man the memories associated with these are priceless. Hope everyone takes moments to enjoy their collection and appreciate just how awesome this hobby can be. Cannot put a price on the fountain of youth...

ahopkins · July 22, 2018 5:36AM

@jordangretzkyfan said:

>

I’m sure I could eventually get $50 for all of these, but man the memories associated with these are priceless. Hope everyone takes moments to enjoy their collection and appreciate just how awesome this hobby can be. Cannot put a price on the fountain of youth...

Well put. I love this thread.

Andy

NJ80sBBC · July 22, 2018 6:36AM

@jordangretzkyfan said:
If you told me as a kid that someday I would own all these, I would have predicted I would be rich as an adult...eat your heart out Warren Buffet!!!

I’m sure I could eventually get $50 for all of these, but man the memories associated with these are priceless. Hope everyone takes moments to enjoy their collection and appreciate just how awesome this hobby can be. Cannot put a price on the fountain of youth...

This thread is amazing. Incredibly fun to follow and love seeing the hits. I got back into the hobby after a 20 year hiatus based upon buying this exact stuff and ripping it. I started buying ahead and didn’t have rip sessions nearly enough to keep up with the unopened inventory. Then I started to research unopened baseball card collections and stumbled on the CU Forum. Was simply blown away by what I saw and the rest is history. Though I am primarily an unopened collector, I rip a decent amount of the 80s material and still get a rush from a big pull. Keep up the awesome “work” here.

Stone193 · July 22, 2018 6:55PM

I’m sure I could eventually get $50 for all of these, but man the memories associated with these are priceless. Hope everyone takes moments to enjoy their collection and appreciate just how awesome this hobby can be. Cannot put a price on the fountain of youth...

Very true Chris.

The past 2 years, I've been opening new stuff and enjoying it immensely.

It does get away from me and before I know it? I've spent way more than I would ever have imagined!

jordangretzkyfan · August 18, 2018 7:52AM

Sorry gang...that was one long layoff between ripping some 1980’s packs. I missed the National this year, but enjoyed the write ups from those who attended.

Let’s get back at this by finishing the first box of 1984 Topps. 12 more packs to go as we hunt for GEM MINT candidates. I don’t think we have seen Mattingly or Strawberry yet from this box...

jordangretzkyfan · August 18, 2018 8:20AM

Not much star power in those 12 packs...

But I did find two contenders at first glance...

burghman · August 18, 2018 12:19PM

Rance Mulliniks may be the best MLB name of all time. Torn between him and Cecilio Guante...

jordangretzkyfan · August 19, 2018 5:23PM

Time to take the time machine back to 1982 tonight...here are the last 12 packs from the first box I have been breaking. Hoping for some tough GEM MINT cards out of these packs...

Panama Mutiny · August 19, 2018 8:48PM

save me a ben oglivie, and juan berenguer cards!!

jordangretzkyfan · August 19, 2018 8:54PM

Here were the stars in the rest of the box...

And there were 3 GEM MINT candidates in the final packs...

For those wondering, there were 12 GEM MINT candidates out of the 540 cards in the 1982 Topps wax box for a 2.2% hit rate. The 1984 Topps box only yielded 9 candidates for a 1.7% hit rate. The more stuff I break from the 80s, the more I realize how tough finding 10s will be. Sure is a fun journey though...

jordangretzkyfan · September 4, 2018 6:03PM

Hey gang...a few of you have been sending me PMs asking if I am still on the journey to build perfect sets from the 1980s from scratch boxes/cases...the answer is ABSOLUTELY! It seems like every weekend this summer has been filled with travel and outdoor activity, so my breaks have been few and far between. Rest assured I will pick the pace back up this fall and still have tons of boxes and cases to open in search of those elusive GEM MINT beauties.

As a show of good faith, here are a few more cases I just dug out of storage for fun filled breaking pleasure. Yep, you are looking at factory sealed vending cases from 1982, 1983 and 1985 Topps Baseball. I love these years, so we should have many top RC and star sightings ahead...now I am just hoping for lots of perfect examples!

Planning to finish out the last 12 packs tomorrow night from the first of the 1981 and 1983 wax boxes I have been breaking. Thanks for those who continue to check this thread and comment along the way...

jordangretzkyfan · September 4, 2018 7:27PM

Why wait on the 1983s? This box has already yielded a nice Gwynn RC and an off centered Boggs RC. Only one major RC missing at this point. 12 packs left in this box. Here goes...

jordangretzkyfan · September 4, 2018 8:15PM

No Ryno RC to be found in this box, but a 2nd year Ripken was pulled along with these other stars and rookies...

As Mr. Peanut can attest, these 1983s are tough to find in GEM MINT. The narrow boarders make perfect centering the biggest challenge by far. Add to that a fair amount of print defects and corner/edge dings and you have a tough set to build. For those wondering, there were 19 PSA 10 candidates I pulled from this wax box of 540 pack fresh cards, which is a 3.5% hit rate. So far 1980’s Topps contenders seem to average 1.5-3.5% of the pack fresh production run. Here were the last two contenders...

Stone193 · September 5, 2018 6:45AM

Good to see you back on board with your project, Chris.

I was just thinking how I wanted to do the same thing but with vending - that's how I wound up starting with 79T and started a run.

Now? Don't think I have the energy.

Best of luck.

TheThrill22 · September 5, 2018 12:00PM

I love this thread!

jordangretzkyfan · September 5, 2018 3:07PM

@Stone193 said:
Good to see you back on board with your project, Chris.

Thanks Mike...I always love that picture of your 1979 unopened stash!

@TheThrill22 said:
I love this thread!

Thanks Tom...glad you continue to enjoy the journey with me. I will keep working those 1982s for you.

But first, let’s finish up the last 12 packs from this box of 1981 Topps Baseball...

jordangretzkyfan · September 5, 2018 3:53PM

Those 1981s are tough and I am pretty sure I had a lucky condition box. Here were the stars from the last of the packs...

3 more GEM MINT contenders emerged...

That took the final tally to 20 contenders out of the 540 pack fresh cards, which is a 3.7% hit rate. I actually feel pretty lucky about that. Unfortunately there was not a Raines or Fernando RC in the entire box. Good thing we have plenty more boxes left...

wadevl · September 5, 2018 4:30PM

SWEET!

Busted a Box Monday
https://youtu.be/HJ3yYp64ikg

@jordangretzkyfan said:
First up...1987 Donruss.

jordangretzkyfan · September 5, 2018 6:14PM

@wadevl said:
SWEET!

Busted a Box Monday

@jordangretzkyfan said:
First up...1987 Donruss.

Thanks for sharing your video break. Good looking Maddux and always nice to pull a pair of Larkin and Clark RCs. Good stuff!

miwlvrn · September 5, 2018 6:27PM

Thanks again for sharing the results of all these case/box/pack rips; I know I'm not the only one curiously and anxiously awaiting the results of your sub(s) of the "contenders" in this thread!

I love the 1980s! The ultimate unopened rip quest to build Topps, Fleer, Donruss PSA 10 sets...

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