OT Kind of....2010 Topps

[slidekellyslide]

I'm not a new card buyer, but occasionally will pick up some Topps cards...usually once a year to see what they look like. So I'm at my local card shop today picking up supplies and grab one of those small 55 card Topps boxes with Jackie Robinson on the front of the box. I must say that Topps has really made some nice cards this year...I still prefer the old cardboard to these shiny ones, but they've really put a lot of vintage players into the set this year. Just out of my one box I got a Jimmie Foxx, George Sisler, Carl Yastrzemski, Lou Gehrig, Reggie Jackson (repro of his 77 Topps card), Statue of Honus Wagner, Ebbets Field, and a really neat card of Ty Cobb sliding into the base with his spikes high. I might just have to put a set together this year instead of just buying the factory set like I have for the past 10 years.

[Leon]

In going to the local show this last weekend with Rich K I got to get caught up on the "new" card hobby quite a bit. My understanding is that only TOPPS has a MLB contract and also that UD might be getting out of the baseball card business altogether, leaving only Topps. Topps is going to produce around 12-15 sets this year, which is down from all mfgs 5-10 yrs ago, when over 90 sets a year were being produced.

We also stopped by a LCS (local card shop) on the way back so Rich could pick up some supplies. We were only in there about 20 minutes and at least 5-8 people came through in that time. There were even a few pre-war collectors that came in and we chatted about T206's for a few minutes. The owner says he has been there about 16 yrs and my understanding is that he has a pretty good following. While we were there a late teen or early 20 yr old guy came in. He brought about 12 new packs up to the counter and was going to buy them. The card store owner, a nice gentleman probably in his early 60's, maybe late 50's, told the lad that he was surprised the young man was buying this much as it was around $53 total, and that was quite a bit more than usual. The young guy said it was a little more than he intended to really buy so, together, they went through the packs and narrowed it to around $20. The guy paid and left. I thought that was pretty cool. I hope more young collectors continue collecting. regards

[ChrisStufflestreet]

This year is the first in a very long time where I've been picking up packs at the store, and I've even traded with some of my long-time trading buddies. At the same time, my daughter is using the ToppsTown cards and building the virtual set there. I'm only two cards away from a Series 1 base set and while I'm not exactly thrilled to be paying $2 a pack or $10 for a 55-card "cereal box" it's neat to build a set again. I was probably 19 the last time I built a set from busting packs rather than just buying the factory set.

[FUBAR]

I will probably do Topps football this year, but not baseball. I also did Topps UFC this year, which i am very very happy with. Highly recommended if you watch the UFC

[sbfinley]

Originally Posted by FUBAR

I will probably do Topps football this year, but not baseball.

I could be wrong but I think I heard Topps lost it's NFL contract. Bummer because Topps Chrome football was one of the few modern sets I purchase yearly.

[whitehse]

Originally Posted by sbfinley

I could be wrong but I think I heard Topps lost it's NFL contract. Bummer because Topps Chrome football was one of the few modern sets I purchase yearly.

Topps did lose the NFL license but there is a rumor going around that they will be back this year. I guess we have to stay tuned for an announcement in the next few days!

[dani0100]

I bought some packs of 2010 Topps earlier this month to send out as small Opening Day gifts to some colleagues (I've decided to continue this tradition each year...should much more fun than the traditional seasonal greeting cards).

One thing that's kind of cool is that each pack contains a redemption card that gives you a code that you can enter on a website. Each code corresponds to one unique card in one of numerous older Topps sets. I put in my code and got a common from 1978. I think this is a great idea. You can trade the cards with other users directly on the website where they're redeemed. I think you can also have them mailed to you, if you want (presumably there's a shipping charge).

The more exposure that collectors of new cards have to older stuff, the better. I believe it's inevitable than as anyone moves backward in time in their collecting, they'll eventually reach pre-war cards.