This should stop smoking......

[Brian Van Horn]

Can you imagine a three pack a day habit at these prices:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/POLAR-BEAR-Tobacco-SEALED-1910-NEAR-MINT-Pouch-T206-T205-baseball-brand-pack-/361089013176?pt=US_Baseball&hash=item54129515b8

[1880nonsports]

for three hundred and change. Multiple lot with 2 polar, couple Jack Frost I think and maybe 2 Brownies all unopened hammered around 600.00 in a recent aution. They're out there - not hundreds but quite a few. I've sold 4 or 5. The real key like any unopened pack is to find one with the right attributes. I guess I've seen 15-20 overall and almost every one where the cancel can be discerned - there rests a late 1920's (couple) or later stamping (majority 195?). Sometimes a seller or AH will suffice their description with "1910" stamp and ignore what might be a salient date to the purchaser who thinks there's possibly a card inside. Sometimes ignorance, sometimes deception. At times there is no cancellation or it has faded. Strange how often I've been able to read the factory info but - wait for it - haven't been able to decifer the date. Sometimes the last couple of numbers seem to have fallen into an abyss.

[rdwyer]

Why would someone shrinkwrap this pouch? If it was leaking tobacco, maybe.
But it's not. Someone could open it carefully and pull the card out. Then put it back together and shrinkwrap it to make it look like it's unopened. Sounds fishy to me.

[auggiedoggy]

Why would someone shrinkwrap this pouch? If it was leaking tobacco, maybe.
But it's not. Someone could open it carefully and pull the card out. Then put it back together and shrinkwrap it to make it look like it's unopened. Sounds fishy to me.

I want an MRI done! Ok, at the very least a CAT Scan or an X-Ray.

[lug-nut]

but didnt tax stamps get used for multiple years? meaning, the pack it was placed on was regulated, taxed, followed, coincided with, etc. the tax stamp of that particular year? so a pack from 1912 or 13 could very well have a 1910 stamp on it

[steve B]

but didnt tax stamps get used for multiple years? meaning, the pack it was placed on was regulated, taxed, followed, coincided with, etc. the tax stamp of that particular year? so a pack from 1912 or 13 could very well have a 1910 stamp on it

Yes, sometimes for a really long time. The key would be the cancel, which should show the company, factory and at least the month and year. The one in the link doesn't seem to have a legible date. I can make out A.T. and maybe part of Co. , but none of the date. And of course of all the pics included that's the one with bad focus and glare off the shrinkwrap. I'm betting the date if it's legible isn't in 1910. Or even 1911-12.

Steve B

[rdwyer]

This is a picture of a Honest Long Cut tobacco pouch that I own. It appears to be unopened. But it's not. Shrinkwrapping it makes it look like it's unopened.

[canjond]

That packs dates to the 1930s. There is red overprinting on the tax stamp, which has conveniently been erased on this pack (you can still see the areas where the red overprinting was). I'm not trying to imply it is the current seller who did this, but the red overprinting on Polar Bear packs is very prominant, so someone clearly wanted to remove that date.

[lug-nut]

the pack itself doesn't look like its from the teens, i was thinking the late 20's or 30's as well...someone may be trying to pull the wool over an unsuspecting buyer.