Loosy Packs

So I went to the Bridgeport Bluefish game the other day and came away with some packs of cards that I found in the Fan Shop. I got (1) 2008 UD First Edition Update and (2) 1992 Topps Stadium Club.

Here's the pack of 2008 UD First Edition

Gil Meche

Derek Lee

Livan Hernandez

Dan Uggla

Blake DeWitt

Randy Winn

Kurt Suzuki

Zach Duke

Brad Wilkerson

Daisuke Matsuzaka (Star Quest)

1992 Stadium Club (Pack 1)

Ryne Sandberg (Member's Choice)

1992 Stadium Club (Pack 2)

Darryl Strawberry

Robin Yount

For $3 bucks that wasn't a half bad way to fill the pack ripping fix. It's amazing how much more crisp the stadium club cards are when they are fresh out of the pack. I'm used to ones that have been roughed up for a decade or so.

Chicle Blaster

Nope, no Stephen Strasburg here

I've opened 7 packs of Chicle prior to this blaster, and my luck has been fairly good. I had pulled 2 Chicle back variations, 2 Bazooka back variations, and 2 Short Prints.

I found this blaster at Sports Authority while shopping for new running sneakers. So here goes:

Pack 1

#37 Ryan Howard

#92 Cole Hamels

#270 Adam Moore

#80 Jermaine Dye (Chicle Back)

#18 Josh Johnson

Pack 2

#147 Jon Lester

#252 Duke Snider

#200 Chipper Jones

#91 Asdrubal Cabrera (Bazooka Back)

#148 Chris Young

#103 Pablo Sandoval

Great start so far. 2 packs, and I have 2 variations.

Pack 3

#237 Thurman Munson

#122 Roy Halladay

#170 Jair Jurrjens

#308 Dustin Pedrioa (SP)

#63 Aramis Ramirez

#23 Shane Victorino

Pack 4

#97 Matt Kemp

#87 Ted Lilly

#112 Dustin Pedrioa

#130 Elvis Andrus

#188 Rich Harden

#138 Scott Kazmir

I liked this pack even though there weren't any SPs or variations. First because it had Ted Lilly. When he was a Yankee I always like this guy and was disappointed to see him traded away. I'm glad he's had success though. Second becuse I got and Elvis Andrus card. He's my newest player collection. And Third because of the #34 patch on Kazmir's card. I thought that the way the Angels played in Adenheart's memory made a great story out of something tragic.

Pack 5

#232 Roy Campanella

#91 Asdrubal Cabrera

#50 David Ortiz

#120 Tommy Hanson (Chicle Back)

#108 Josh Hamilton

#68 Vladimir Guerrero

Pack 6

#96 Derrek Lee

#151 Michael Bourn

#211 Jim Palmer

#15 Brad Hawpe

#28 Andrew McCutchen

#173 Jonathan Broxton

Pack 7

#266 Carlos Carrasco

#240 Cy Young

#276 Babe Ruth (SP)

#214 Warren Spahn

#83 Brian Roberts

Pack 8

#166 Duke Snider

#126 Melky Cabrera

#46 Kevin Youkilis

#265 Neil Walker

#248 Tom Seaver

#79 Russel Branyan

Darn, I liked Melky in a Yankee Uni better.

How come card #166 is Duke Snider? Duke has 3 cards in this set: #166 #252 #300. It seems really weird because #166 is in the middle of the current players section of the checklist. Then when I looked up the Chicle checklist online, the one I found has a player named Fu-Te Ni listed as card #166. Does Fu-Te Ni even exist?

Well I started out strong for this blaster and then kinda faded out toward the end. I got 2 SPs, 2 Chicle backs, and 1 Bazooka back which I think is pretty much par for the blasters.

I'm going to be really bold and attempt to collect the base set with SPs, as well as the National Chicle Variation set and maybe even the Bazooka back variation set. I really do love this set!

Here are the cards that I have:

Base

15, 16, 18, 22, 23, 25, 28, 34, 37, 41, 45, 46, 47, 50, 63, 68, 79, 80, 83, 86, 87, 89, 91, 92, 96, 97, 98, 103, 107, 108, 109, 112, 120, 122, 126, 130, 131, 137, 138, 147, 148, 151, 156, 170, 173, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 193, 196, 200, 205, 206, 211, 214, 217, 219, 226, 229, 232, 237, 240, 241, 248, 252, 262, 265, 266, 270, 275

...SPs

276, 303, 308, 323

... National Chicle Backs

8, 56, 80, 120

...Bazooka Backs

9, 91, 274

If anyone has cards that can help me out, just comment or email me, and we can work out a trade.

Ichiro Collection

Ichiro Collection

minus the Rookies and Jersey cards, I may add them on at some point

2002 Donruss, Fan Club: #147

2002 Fleer, Tradition: #U312

2002 Fleer, Tradition: #U371

2002 UD: “Year of the Record” #726

2002 UD: “Year of the Record” #735

2002 UD, Honor Roll: #98

2003 Donruss: #180

2003 Fleer, Patchworks: #51

2003 Topps: #692

2003 Topps: “Own The Game” #OG5

2003 Topps, Finest: #50

2003 Topps, Gallery: #30

2003 Topps, 206: #T206-1

2003 Topps, 206: #T206-5

2003 Topps, 206: #T206-19

2003 Topps, 205: #100

2003 Topps, 205: #100 (SP: looking left)

2003 Topps, 205: #240

2004 Topps: #10

2004 UD, Etchings: #32

2005 Donruss, Leather and Lumber: #49

2005 Donruss Playoff, Absolute Memorabilia: #128

2005 Donruss Playoff, Leaf Certified Materials: #LC-7

2005 Topps: #337

2005 Topps: #338

2006 Fleer: #181

2006 Fleer, Tradition: #86

2006 Fleer, Ultra: #80 (gold)

2006 Topps: #250

2006 Topps: “SI for Kids: Funny Photos” #22 of 25

2006 Topps, Turkey Red: #350

2006 UD, First Pitch: #172

2007 Topps, Opening Day: #154

2007 Topps, Updates and Highlights: #UH279

2007 Topps, Chrome: #158 (japanese writing)

2007 Topps, Turkey Red: #15

2007 UD, Elements: #35

2008 Bowman: #185

2008 Topps: #320

2008 Topps: #320 (gold foil letters)

2008 Topps: #15

2008 Topps: “Topps Stars” #TS7

2008 Topps, Co-Signers: #055

2008 Topps, Finest: #88 (refractor)

2008 Topps, Heritage: #373

2008 UD, First Edition: “Star Quest” #SQ-1 (common)

2008 UD: “Star Quest” #SQ-1 (common)

2008 UD, Goudey: #165

2008 UD, Heroes: #152

2008 UD, Heroes: #186

2008 UD, Masterpieces: #81

2008 UD, National Baseball Card Day: #UD12

2008 UD, SP Authentic: #4

2008 UD, Timeline: #48

2009 Bowman: #10

2009 Topps: #300

2009 Topps: “Ticket to Toppstown” #TTT16

2009 Topps, Updates and Highlights: #UH153

2009 Topps, Allen and Ginter: #100

2009 Topps, Allen and Ginter: #100 (A&G back mini)

2009 Topps, Tickets to Stardom: “Big Ticket” #BT-1

2009 Topps, 206: (SP: No #)

2009 UD, SP Authentic: #51

2009 UD, X: #80

2010 Topps, Heritage: #487 (SP)

2010 - Big D Custom card

Derek Jeter Collection

Derek Jeter Collection

year manufacturer, set: "subset or insert name" card# (variation)

1996 Fleer, Metal Universe: #87

1996 Fleer, Metal Universe: #87 (platinum edition)

1996 Pinnacle: 279 (hardball heroes)

1996 Topps, Bazooka: #80

1997 Fleer, Circa: #200

1997 Pinnacle, Xpress: #32

1997 UD: #421 (Ken Griffey Jr.s Hot List)

1998 Pinnacle, Score: "Spring Training" #RT262

1999 UD, Choice: #33

1999 UD, Choice: #115

1999 UD, Choice: "Star Quest" #SQ4 (blue, one star)

1999 UD, MVP: #139

2000 Topps: #15

2000 UD, ???: "Pennant Driven" #PD1

2000 UD, Black Diamond: #40

2000 UD, Victory: #319

2000 UD, Victory: #330

2001 Fleer, Platinum RC: #442

2001 Fleer, Platinum RC: #494

2001 Fleer, Tradition: #188

2001 Fleer, Tradition: #419

2001 Pacific, Private Stock: "PS-206 Action" #40

2001 Topps: #100

2001 Topps, Heritage: "Classic Renditions" #CR9

2001 Topps, Heritage: "Then and Now" #TH4

2001 UD: "2001 Greatest Hits" #GH10

2001 UD, Ovation: #26

2001 UD, Victory: #255

2002 Bowman: #2

2002 Donruss, Leaf: #129

2002 Fleer, Maximum: #34

2002 Topps, 206: #236

2002 Topps, 206: #380

2003 Donruss: #154

2003 Fleer, Flair: #2

2003 UD, Victory: #54

2004 Bowman: #3

2004 Bowman: #3 (gold)

2004 Donruss, Playoff Prestige: "Prestigious Pros" #PP-2

2004 Fleer, Tradition: "Diamond Tributes" #1 of 20 DT

2004 Fleer, Ultra: "Ultra Performers" #11 of 15 UP

2004 Topps: #337

2004 Topps: #693

2004 UD: #65

2005 Bowman: #25

2005 Topps, Opening Day: #138

2005 UD, ESPN: #60

2005 UD, Pros and Prospects: #6

2006 Topps, Opening Day: #96

2006 Topps: #NYY2

2006 Topps: "SI for Kids: Max Action" #4 of 25

2006 Topps: "Topps Stars" #TS-DJ

2006 Topps, Bazooka: #5 (gold chunk)

2006 Topps, Chrome: #256 (Refractor)

2006 UD: #900

2006 UD: "Season Highlights" #SH-26

2007 Bowman, Chrome: #90

2007 Fleer: "Year In Review" #YR-DJ

2007 Fleer, Ultra: #126

2007 Topps: #301 (red back)

2007 Topps, Turkey Red: #109

2007 UD, Elements: #70

2007 UD, Elements: #112

2007 UD, Future Stars: #63

2007 UD, Goudey: #266 (heads up)

2008 Topps: #455

2008 Topps: "Topps All-Star Rookie Team 50th Aniversary" #AR46

2008 Topps: "Topps Stars" #TS11

2008 Topps, Chrome: #121

2008 Topps, Stadium Club: #59

2008 UD: "Star Quest" #SQ-9 (common)

2008 UD, Heroes: #114

2008 UD, Heroes: #188

2008 UD, Heroes: #196

2008 UD, Heroes: #197

2008 UD, Heroes: #200

2008 UD, SP Authentic: "Marquee Matchups" #MM-33

2008 UD, X: "Exponential2" #X2-DJ

2009 Bowman

2009 Bowman, Chrome: #80 (Refractor)

2009 Bowman, Chrome:

2009 Topps: #353

2009 Topps: "Ticket to Toppstown" #TTT29

2009 Topps: "Turkey Red" #TR77

2009 Topps, Updates and Highlights: #UH69

2009 Topps, Updates and Highlights: #UH69 (Target)

2009 Topps, Updates and Highlights: #UH122

2009 Topps, Updates and Highlights: #UH131 (gold border #d/2009)

2009 Topps, Allen and Ginter: #323

2009 Topps, Allen and Ginter: "Highlight Sketches" #AGHS18

2009 Topps, 206: #120

2009 Topps, 206: #120 (piedmont mini w/ cardstock variation)

2009 UD: "Star Quest" #SQ-6 (silver common)

2009 UD: "Star Quest" #SQ-6 (emerald super rare)

2009 UD, Goudey: #130

2009 UD, Goudey: "4-in-1" #35-18 (green border)

2009 UD, SP Authentic: #2

2009 UD, Spectrum: #65

2010 Topps, Opening Day: #174

2010 Topps: #8

2010 Topps: #269

2010 Topps, Finest: #14

2010 UD: #589

2010 UD: "Season Biography" #SB-182

I'm too lazy to dig into the box of rookies, serial #d and relics right now so those aren't yet listed.

If you have a Derek Jeter card that I don't, shoot me an email at nrmtblog (at) gmail (dot) com and we can work out a trade

Are Painted Cards Really Painted?

This posts is an offshoot on the discussion that jswakos started at "A Priceless Pursuit". The question is: Are painted sets really painted?

*This is just my interpretation of the cards, not necessarily truth.

Subject 1: Allen and Ginter

2009 Allen and Ginter base cards are not in fact painted. They are photos that are converted into a sketch looking form on the computer, which are then placed in front of a watercolor "wash" that was scanned. A "wash" is loose background coloring in a watercolor painting. I believe that these are actually painted because I don't know of a computer program than can create a digital wash well (Not to mention that it would have taken a painter about 5 minutes to create the wash for this card.). Once the wash is painted, it is scanned and placed behind the digitally altered photo of the player.

However, these Allen and Ginter insert sets are definitely real paintings.

Subject 2: Goodwin and Champions

These cards are not actually painted. Every time I look at them I have a very tough time deciding whether they are faked or are real. In my mind there are several clues that indicate they are faked. 1. On some cards the "brush strokieness" resembles a watercolor painting, but the color saturation is much more similar to an oil painting. 2. Each card seems to have a unique quirk that would not exist in an actual painting. Let's take #158 David Purcey as an example of this. On his right cheek (our left) the shadow does not flow from light to dark in a smooth manner, nor does it transition in a step-like gradation. Instead, there is a light tone, a dark tone, and a middle zone where there is a color of medium darkness in which the are tiny patches of the dark tone thrown in. A painter would not have inserted these tiny little patches of darkness in the transitioning shadow, but a computer could have. Sorry I couldn't get a photo of the David Purcey card.

Subject 3: Upper Deck Masterpieces.

Now this are what a painted set looks like! The cover of the Hobby box advertises "an entire base set of exclusive artist paintings". I'm sure they would have been sued by now for false advertising if they were lying. Also, most cards even have an artist signature on them. The 5x8 box loaders provide the best evidence that these are actual paintings. The set is done in watercolor, and there are clearly watercolor brush strokes visible in this card. The cloud of dust at his feet would have been created by using a sponge to blot the painting before the watercolor dried, thus soking up some of the color and creating a faded look.

I hope this was helpful. If anyone has any further insight, don't hesitate to comment.

Wants and Needs

Black = Cards I Need

Red = Cards I Have

1986 Diamond Kings: 1-26

1987 Diamond Kings: 1-27

1988 Diamond Kings: 1, 11, 14, 15, 16, 19, 21, 23, 24, 27

1989 Diamond Kings: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 14, 15, 16, 23, 26, 27

1990 Diamond Kings: 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 11, 13, 16, 27

1991 Diamond Kings: 6, 8, 9, 10, 19, 22

1992 Diamond Kings: 1-27

2003 Diamond Kings: 1-6, 8, 10, 13-20

2002 Topps Post Cereal:

1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29

2007 UD Masterpieces:

14, 17, 28,42, 53, 55, 68, 78

2007 Topps Turkey Red:

SPs: 7, 43, 47, 63, 71, 73, 74, 101, 103, 106, 123, 124, 128, 134, 135, 139, 146, 152, 165, 179, 183,

Ad-Backs: 1, 15, 20, 25, 40, 56, 95, 105, 106, 110, 130, 150, 159, 180, 185

2009 UD Goodwin and Champs:

7, 8, 10, 15, 18, 19, 21-24, 28, 32, 39, 43, 51, 52, 56, 69, 72, 77, 78, 82, 84, 92, 97, 98, 100, 101, 103, 106, 107, 109, 110, 113, 114, 117, 124, 127, 129, 131, 134, 135, 136, 140, 141, 142, 144

SPs: 153, 156, 158, 159, 168, 177, 188 (red means I have these cards)

2008 Topps Stadium Club:

1, 3-8, 9, 11-18, 21-24, 26-30, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 39, 42, 45, 48, 50-60, 63-69, 71, 72, 73, 75, 76, 78-82, 84, 85, 87, 88, 90, 93, 94, 96, 99, 101, 102, 104, 105, 106, 108, 109, 111, 114, 115, 116, 117, 119, 120, 123, 125, 126, 129, 131, 132, 133, 135, 136, 138, 141, 142, 144, 145, 147, 149

2008 Topps Trading Card History (In):

TCH_ 2, 3, 4, 11, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22, 52, 57, 66

2008 Topps Chrome Trading Card History (In):

TCHC_ 5, 6, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25

2008 Topps Wal-Mart Exclusive Dick Perez Painted Cards (In):
8, 9, 10


2008 Topps Heritage Wal-Mart Exclusive Dick Perez Painted Cards (In):
1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9

2009 Topps Turkey Red (only the retired players):

1, 3, 10, 20, 30, 50, 59, 61, 79, 80, 85, 87, 90, 93, 97, 100, 101, 105, 113, 133, 150

2009 Topps Propaganda (In):

PP_ 2, 3

2009 Topps Allen and Ginter Highlight Sketch Cards (In):

AGHS_ 12, 22

2010 Topps Heritage (Checklists, World Series Highlights, and Baseball Thrills)

CL: 17, 98, 189, 273, 361, 423, 437SP

WSH: 306, 307, 308, 309, 310, 311, 312, 313

BT: 401, 402, 403, 404, 405, 406, 407, 408, 409, 410

If you have any cards that are on my want lists, feel free to comment or send me an email and we can work out a trade

Leaching, and Fading, and Damage, Oh My!!

NOT SAFE

NOT SAFE

SAFE

???

So we all have heard about the older card protecting products that will damage your cards by leaching chemicals over time. This same type plastic has been a culprit in more recent warnings about Nalgene water bottles. Maybe I'm taking the threat to seriously, but this risk scares the heck out of me when buying things to protect my cards.

If the product doesn't advertise that it is acid free and archival safe then I don't usually buy it. I figure, if a lot of products advertise being archival safe, then wouldn't every company want to make sure to advertise this feature if their product is in fact safe? It's like foods and the idea of "all natural"; if the company goes through the effort of making something the "all natural" way, then wouldn't they make absolutely sure to have that feature in their ad?

If I notice penny sleeves becoming yellowed or faded I immediately switch them out for a brand new one. The card shop owner must think I have the best card collection ever because I am always in there buying penny sleeves and top loaders.

But there are a few mysteries that I have yet to solve:

1. "The Condom Factor" - The penny sleeves that I buy are archival safe, but often I can't find top loaders and/or semi-rigid holders that are advertised as archival safe, and sometimes they say "archival safe when used with a polypropylene sleeve". Assuming the worst (they are loaded with PVC, acid, and HIV), Is my thin little polypropylene condom going to be a strong enough barrier to ward off the danger? For instance, I know that Lays potato chips in a plastic sandwich bag will manage to leak their grease right through the bag and then soak into the outer paper bag as well. If it turns out that the chemicals will go right through the penny sleeves, you guys might all be getting a large shipment of top loaders that I will be removing from my cards.

2. Snap Tites - Recently I bought a couple snap tite holders for some 1/1 sketch cards I had gotten. They didn't advertise as being archival safe, but the shop owner assured me that they were. He may have just been trying to make a sale, who knows. They are a dollar a piece, so I tend to think that the company would make them archival safe (especially since they are used without penny sleeves). Does anyone know if any of these snap tites are a no-go in terms of chemical leeching?

3. Mystery Wal-Mart Boxes - I bought a plastic box from wal-mart that is meant to store cards. I always prefer the plastic boxes to the cardboard ones. Again, it was not advertised as archival safe, nor was it produced by a company that I recognized, and it even has a kinda foggy look to it. It has gutters along the sides so that the corners of the cards don't get damaged. Would a company really have the awareness to design the box to protect the corners of the cards but neglect the chemical leeching problem? The box is a soft plastic rather than the hard plastic that the snap closed boxes are made with. Idk what to think.

Woah, looking for pictures to insert into the post, I just found this box. It looks effective. Seems to have precise corners, has adjustable dividers, and has side slots to fit your fingers in when taking out cards. I might jst have to get a couple of them. And apparently it holds up to 800 cards, which is bigger than I thought based on the picture.

This site has had every supply that I have ever thought about buying, check it out.

Advise is greatly appreciated, even if it's a sentence-long response :)