@jordangretzkyfan said:
Oh good lord! There was only one card in the entire box that was anywhere close to 50/50 centering. The print stock this year was paper thin which explains how they got 18 cards into the same dimension pack as Topps 15 card packs. On a positive note, I did get to see these cards for the first time and liked some of the old photos. Not sure why there are randomly 3 Reggie Jackson cards in the set with no special notation on the front such as IA, but guess it was a selling point. I also never realized that Danny Ainge had a 1981 Donruss RC. I had always thought the 1982 Topps was his RC. At any rate, here were the stars and RCs...
I'm curious about the collation. What was the most of one card you got in a pack?
I don’t recall any packs with duplicates, but I did get 3-4 of some cards within the box. Overall, I would guess that I got about 2/3 of the set and the other 1/3 were dups. I will pay more attention to this as I break more boxes from the case.
As I was digging through some cases, I realized that some of my favorite cards from the 1980s were part of the Topps Traded, Fleer Update and Donruss “The Rookies” sets. So I figured why not add those to the mix too?!? It’s not like the base sets are going to be hard enough to find in GEM MINT, so let’s see what we can do with these too. Here come some 1987 Topps Traded sets...
Just like the base 1987 Topps set, the centering on the Traded set is all over the place. Most of the cards are 60/40 in one direction or the other, so the hit rate on GEM MINT candidates is low. Also, the centering is not consistent on the same card even when the sets are pulled from the same fresh case. Here were the few HOFers and XRC that I set aside...
Out of the 660 untouched cards, only 9 contenders emerged (1.36%)...
The 87 Topps set is gorgeous. Love these gem potentials. We all need to figure out how to make 75% of this issues cards that exist spontaneously combust.
@softparade said:
The 87 Topps set is gorgeous. Love these gem potentials. We all need to figure out how to make 75% of this issues cards that exist spontaneously combust.
And even then we would all still be sitting on mounds of 1987 Topps 😂 I’m with you though...I do love the design and photos from this year!
Time to add some 1983 Fleer into the mix. This is an underrated set from the early 1980s with a simple, yet attractive design. Add the key rookies of Gwynn, Boggs and Sandberg to the equation and you have the makings of a fun rip quest. “Mr. Retailer...2 free packs inside!” So much for Mrs. retailer huh Fleer?
@softparade said:
The 87 Topps set is gorgeous. Love these gem potentials. We all need to figure out how to make 75% of this issues cards that exist spontaneously combust.
Agreed these are beautiful. I bought so, so many...
The typical 1980s centering issues plague this set too. Add to it a bunch of arrant print flaws and some edge wear and you have the makings for another challenging GEM MINT hunt. This box had a very small edge-notching issue likely from the wrapper loader that impacted half of the cards in this box. This made for an additional condition challenge. Hopefully it was just this box and not the balance of the case. Here were the stars and RCs...
If not for the tiny notch on the right edge, the Boggs would have been a PSA 10...
I think it is interesting how many of the 1983 Fleer cards (esp the stars you posted pics of) are portraits and not action shots. Also, on the 1987 Traded, I totally dig the Reggie Jackson for some reason. Shame they couldn't have found a better picture of Lefty for a card right at the end of his career...
I didn’t realize how nice this set is! The cards have amazing color transposed against bright white borders...these cards really pop when dead centered and GEM. Here were the stars and rookies...
And I found these 10 contenders for GEM MINT. I cannot state enough how cool these cards look in hand. I have a new appreciation for the premier edition from Fleer...
With the holidays upon us, how about we enjoy some fresh 1981 Topps cello boxes from a case! Seems like a good place to search for some elusive GEMs...
Here is the first box...I love the look of fresh cello packs...
It is always fun breaking early 1980s vintage boxes. Something about the smell of cardboard and gum that take me back to being a kid. This box did not disappoint. Here are the stars and rookies from the box...
There were an outstanding 17 candidates for GEM MINT. This set is absolutely stunning when the cards are dead centered with crisp white boarders and bright, deep colors. Check out these 15 beauties...
Then this card made an appearance...
And while the L/R centering on this last one is 55/45, everything else about it screams a PSA 10...
Thanks...it looks great in hand! Think it has a good shot.
@Kep13 said:
any of those 15 low-pop or you haven't had the chance to look? Or you maybe aren't concerned with that? In any case, those 15 are blazers...
I hadn’t thought to check until you asked, but here is what I found for the PSA 10 pops...
@jordangretzkyfan said:
It is always fun breaking early 1980s vintage boxes. Something about the smell of cardboard and gum that take me back to being a kid. This box did not disappoint. Here are the stars and rookies from the box...
There were an outstanding 17 candidates for GEM MINT. This set is absolutely stunning when the cards are dead centered with crisp white boarders and bright, deep colors. Check out these 15 beauties...
Then this card made an appearance...
And while the L/R centering on this last one is 55/45, everything else about it screams a PSA 10...
The Mattingly thread started by MLBdays made me nostalgic to pull the iconic RC. So you guessed it...up next is a 1984 Topps rack box fresh from a factory sealed case...
I only managed to get through the first half of the rack box, so still 12 more racks to go at a later date. The cards are coming out of these racks really crisp! There was no sight of a Mattingly or Strawberry RC in the top half of the box, so hoping the second half is more eventful. Here are the stars and rookies that continue to pile up from the 1984 Topps I have broken...
As I said, these babies are sharp out of this box. Here are the 13 contenders for PSA 10 that emerged...
you planning to get any of the glossy all-star cards graded? They can be tough, not only centering, but there are usually marks and such on the backs...
@Kep13 said:
you planning to get any of the glossy all-star cards graded? They can be tough, not only centering, but there are usually marks and such on the backs...
I am grading any that have a shot at a PSA 10, but so far I have not pulled a single one worthy of that grade. You are spot on when you say these are tough! Centering is never 50/50 in the ones I have opened...
@jordangretzkyfan said:
Time to add some 1983 Fleer into the mix. This is an underrated set from the early 1980s with a simple, yet attractive design. Add the key rookies of Gwynn, Boggs and Sandberg to the equation and you have the makings of a fun rip quest. “Mr. Retailer...2 free packs inside!” So much for Mrs. retailer huh Fleer?
always loooking
for
JUAN BERENGUER
RENNIE STENNET
OMAR MORENO
BEN OGLIVIE
I can safely say that 1981 Fleer is a set I have unfortunately over looked all of these years. Fleer took a great deal of care to create their premier baseball edition. These cards are absolutely stunning when you find them perfectly centered with crisp edges and corners. Now that Baines is in the HOF, there is a nice legitimacy to the set with complementary RCs of Valenzuela, Gibson, Ainge and Reardon. Here were the stars and rookies that didn’t make the cut...
This box had a whopping 28 cards with a great shot at PSA 10. There were two RCs in this group as a bonus! Good looking first cards of Reardon and Scioscia...
@JWBlue said:
1981 Donruss pulls at my heart strings a bit. First packs I bought. Always ran down to the concession stand at the little league field to buy them.
Agree with 1983 Fleer being most underrated set. Attractive cards with star power.
I love hearing memories like this...glad this thread triggered the flashback for you!
@softparade said:
What do you do with the gobbs that don’t cut it? Heat a house in Duluth?
Pretty sure I could heat Buckingham Palace for a solid year with all the ones I send to recycling 🙂
@softparade said:
Just reading the thread title says it all.
I'd love to see a pic of his stash
You mean this stash?
Thanks again to all who continue to comment along the way. I love reading your posts about memories these breaks trigger along with your encouragement on my crazy journey. It is always fun to share with others who enjoy the hobby too!
1986 Topps vending is a fast rip since every card is either off-center, has print defects or corner/edge wear that is obvious immediately. Only 3 contenders emerged. Here they are...
The second 1986 Topps vending box was pretty similar. Here are all the stars and rookies that continue to pile up. This is such a good looking design...
Comments
I don’t recall any packs with duplicates, but I did get 3-4 of some cards within the box. Overall, I would guess that I got about 2/3 of the set and the other 1/3 were dups. I will pay more attention to this as I break more boxes from the case.
Yes! Thread HOF.
As I was digging through some cases, I realized that some of my favorite cards from the 1980s were part of the Topps Traded, Fleer Update and Donruss “The Rookies” sets. So I figured why not add those to the mix too?!? It’s not like the base sets are going to be hard enough to find in GEM MINT, so let’s see what we can do with these too. Here come some 1987 Topps Traded sets...
Just like the base 1987 Topps set, the centering on the Traded set is all over the place. Most of the cards are 60/40 in one direction or the other, so the hit rate on GEM MINT candidates is low. Also, the centering is not consistent on the same card even when the sets are pulled from the same fresh case. Here were the few HOFers and XRC that I set aside...
Out of the 660 untouched cards, only 9 contenders emerged (1.36%)...
The 87 Topps set is gorgeous. Love these gem potentials. We all need to figure out how to make 75% of this issues cards that exist spontaneously combust.
ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240
And even then we would all still be sitting on mounds of 1987 Topps 😂 I’m with you though...I do love the design and photos from this year!
Time to add some 1983 Fleer into the mix. This is an underrated set from the early 1980s with a simple, yet attractive design. Add the key rookies of Gwynn, Boggs and Sandberg to the equation and you have the makings of a fun rip quest. “Mr. Retailer...2 free packs inside!” So much for Mrs. retailer huh Fleer?
Agreed these are beautiful. I bought so, so many...
The typical 1980s centering issues plague this set too. Add to it a bunch of arrant print flaws and some edge wear and you have the makings for another challenging GEM MINT hunt. This box had a very small edge-notching issue likely from the wrapper loader that impacted half of the cards in this box. This made for an additional condition challenge. Hopefully it was just this box and not the balance of the case. Here were the stars and RCs...
If not for the tiny notch on the right edge, the Boggs would have been a PSA 10...
Here were the only 3 contenders for GEM MINT...
Awesome as always. The '87 set, while not worth much at all, is worth a lot in eye appeal.
I think it is interesting how many of the 1983 Fleer cards (esp the stars you posted pics of) are portraits and not action shots. Also, on the 1987 Traded, I totally dig the Reggie Jackson for some reason. Shame they couldn't have found a better picture of Lefty for a card right at the end of his career...
Let’s mix in another brand from 1981...here comes a case fresh box of 1981 Fleer Wax...
I didn’t realize how nice this set is! The cards have amazing color transposed against bright white borders...these cards really pop when dead centered and GEM. Here were the stars and rookies...
And I found these 10 contenders for GEM MINT. I cannot state enough how cool these cards look in hand. I have a new appreciation for the premier edition from Fleer...
Time to hunt for a perfect 1982 Donruss Cal Ripken RC...
Have enjoyed this immensely Chris.
I did a 2 box rip of the 83F - centering all over the place for sure.
I have a box of 82D - have never considered opening.
Best of luck.
Like all issues of the 1980s, centering was all over the place. That said, talk about crisp cards! Here were the stars and RCs...
Mr. Ripken made an appearance, though centering left much to be desired...
However, I found an amazing 31 candidates for PSA 10!!
Thanks Mike! Always great to hear from you. Hope you are doing well and your game collection continues to flourish...
1981 Donruss pulls at my heart strings a bit. First packs I bought. Always ran down to the concession stand at the little league field to buy them.
Agree with 1983 Fleer being most underrated set. Attractive cards with star power.
Beautiful
With the holidays upon us, how about we enjoy some fresh 1981 Topps cello boxes from a case! Seems like a good place to search for some elusive GEMs...
Here is the first box...I love the look of fresh cello packs...
It is always fun breaking early 1980s vintage boxes. Something about the smell of cardboard and gum that take me back to being a kid. This box did not disappoint. Here are the stars and rookies from the box...
There were an outstanding 17 candidates for GEM MINT. This set is absolutely stunning when the cards are dead centered with crisp white boarders and bright, deep colors. Check out these 15 beauties...
Then this card made an appearance...
And while the L/R centering on this last one is 55/45, everything else about it screams a PSA 10...
Up next is the other end of the spectrum...1988 Topps vending box.
any of those 15 low-pop or you haven't had the chance to look? Or you maybe aren't concerned with that? In any case, those 15 are blazers...
That Schmidt is gorgeous!
Andy
There were 3 gorgeous contenders in the vending box...
Time for a second box of these...
What do you do with the gobbs that don’t cut it? Heat a house in Duluth?
ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240
Thanks...it looks great in hand! Think it has a good shot.
I hadn’t thought to check until you asked, but here is what I found for the PSA 10 pops...
Tidrow = 4
LaCorte = 9
Salazar = 10
Remy = 12
Here were the stars and rookies from the two vending...
And there were 2 more contenders in the second box...
Sweet! You are living it up!
ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240
Those '81's are amazing!
Thanks Tom! It was a really fun cello box to rip.
The Mattingly thread started by MLBdays made me nostalgic to pull the iconic RC. So you guessed it...up next is a 1984 Topps rack box fresh from a factory sealed case...
Nice!
ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240
I only managed to get through the first half of the rack box, so still 12 more racks to go at a later date. The cards are coming out of these racks really crisp! There was no sight of a Mattingly or Strawberry RC in the top half of the box, so hoping the second half is more eventful. Here are the stars and rookies that continue to pile up from the 1984 Topps I have broken...
As I said, these babies are sharp out of this box. Here are the 13 contenders for PSA 10 that emerged...
Time to finish off the second half of the 1984 Topps rack box...
1984 Topps really is a nice looking set. Here are the stars and rookies that continue to pile up...
6 more contenders for GEM MINT were found, one of which is a top HOFer in the select 3000 H + 500 HR club...
Always a blast to pull one of my favorite RCs of all time! Too bad he isn’t grade worthy...
Then check out this cool rack...”love me some Rickey” - Rickey
And look what showed up in the very bottom row of the box...SWEET!!
you planning to get any of the glossy all-star cards graded? They can be tough, not only centering, but there are usually marks and such on the backs...
I am grading any that have a shot at a PSA 10, but so far I have not pulled a single one worthy of that grade. You are spot on when you say these are tough! Centering is never 50/50 in the ones I have opened...
Nice quest! Keep it up!
Nic
Guides Authored - Graded Card Scanning Guide PDF | History of the PSA Label PDF
always loooking
for
JUAN BERENGUER
RENNIE STENNET
OMAR MORENO
BEN OGLIVIE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Major_League_Baseball_players_from_Panama
My favorite thread
Just reading the thread title says it all. Complete PSA 10 set goals ar> @TheThrill22 said:
I'd love to see a pic of his stash
ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240
In honor of Mr. Baines making the HOF, time for a case fresh 1981 Fleer wax box...
I can safely say that 1981 Fleer is a set I have unfortunately over looked all of these years. Fleer took a great deal of care to create their premier baseball edition. These cards are absolutely stunning when you find them perfectly centered with crisp edges and corners. Now that Baines is in the HOF, there is a nice legitimacy to the set with complementary RCs of Valenzuela, Gibson, Ainge and Reardon. Here were the stars and rookies that didn’t make the cut...
This box had a whopping 28 cards with a great shot at PSA 10. There were two RCs in this group as a bonus! Good looking first cards of Reardon and Scioscia...
I know somebody is gonna be longing for that Manny! Cue the post from @lawyer05! Haha!
I love hearing memories like this...glad this thread triggered the flashback for you!
Pretty sure I could heat Buckingham Palace for a solid year with all the ones I send to recycling 🙂
Thanks for following the thread...I am having a blast with all the nostalgia it creates for me!
Just shoot me a PM with the cards you want me to set aside for you. Anything I don’t picture in my “contenders” photos is fair game.
Thanks for continuing to follow along Tom!
You mean this stash?
Thanks again to all who continue to comment along the way. I love reading your posts about memories these breaks trigger along with your encouragement on my crazy journey. It is always fun to share with others who enjoy the hobby too!
Up next is a 1986 Topps vending box as we hunt for a perfect Mattingly...
C'mon Donnie Baseball!
1986 Topps vending is a fast rip since every card is either off-center, has print defects or corner/edge wear that is obvious immediately. Only 3 contenders emerged. Here they are...
Think it is time for another one of these...
The second 1986 Topps vending box was pretty similar. Here are all the stars and rookies that continue to pile up. This is such a good looking design...
And 4 more contenders for PSA 10 were found...