Topps Packaging/Production Timeline Help

[jacksoncoupage]

Originally Posted by Rich Klein

In the 1980's wax always came 1st. I think we got our 1st wax in NJ on or about New Year's Day from about 1986-89..

Thanks, Rich! Do you happen to recall what usually came out last? Jumbo? Rack? Cello? Vending?

[Rich Klein]

Originally Posted by jacksoncoupage

Thanks, Rich! Do you happen to recall what usually came out last? Jumbo? Rack? Cello? Vending?

Not sure about jumbo/rack/cello but that not much after wax. Vending was offered to dealers and usually hit a couple of months after everything else.

Then the final thing to come out was factory sets/

Rich

[Chicosbailbonds]

I remember it as Wax/Cello being released around the same time, rack would be a month later, then vending much later.

[jacksoncoupage]

Originally Posted by Chicosbailbonds

I remember it as Wax/Cello being released around the same time, rack would be a month later, then vending much later.

Very interesting, thank you! Any recollection on when vending would be released? Mid or late season? I’m assuming that they are the final Topps release (excluding factory sets).

[homerunderby]

Originally Posted by jacksoncoupage

Very interesting, thank you! Any recollection on when vending would be released? Mid or late season? I’m assuming that they are the final Topps release (excluding factory sets).

In the 80's early 90's I think vending was out by March, I used to get 500-ct Topps team boxes pulled from vending and had them by opening day. The factory sets might be May or June back then? I think they were late as to not cannibalize the other sales as tons of dealers hand collated sets.

[West]

My records also show wax first, followed by a mix of vending, rack packs and cellos. These are the case codes I saved for 1989 year:

1989:
112691 - vend
112893 - wax
131693 – vend
120792 – jumbo pack case
122393 - wax
130991 -wax
222393 – Topps Big BB
332093 -wax
332098 - wax


You can see above that there was a 1989 vending case with serial number 112691. Dave from the Topps Archives, Lonnie C. and I figured out the Topps codes a few years ago (the sequence of which I was able to confirm in an interview with a former Topps employee). The first digit is the fiscal quarter, the second digit is the month of that quarter, 3rd and 4th digits the day of the month, 5th digit is the last number of the year and 6th digit was the shift that stamped it. A code of 112691 was stamped on January 26, 1989.

I have good reason to believe these codes were stamped at the shipping dept not when the case box was packed by the factory workers. This is because I have found several Topps cases stamped twice, with a "final sale not to be returned" stamp on it. That means it was returned by a seller/vendor, and restamped when a new bill of lading was filled out. I have found several cases with bill of lading receipts on them that match exactly to the 6 digit case code as well.

This means that vending was shipped out for retail sale in '89 as early as the last week of January.

Let me know if I can help with any other details, but the case codes themselves reveal quite a bit.

[West]

I also have a bunch of 1990 case codes as they didn't change much from year to year. The codes starting with a 4 were produced in Dec. '89 and they were all wax:

1990
421591 - wax
421691 - wax
422092 - wax
423092 - wax
431492 - wax
431993 - wax
110702 – jumbo
111401 - wax
111402 - wax
111403 - wax
112603 - wax
120101 - wax
120801 -vend
121703 - wax
121802 - wax
130601 – Rak-Pak
130903 – wax
131402 - wax
131601 - wax
131802 – fact. Set
131903 – vending
132203 – wax
132302 – wax
133102 - wax
210101 - wax
211902 - wax
212301 - jumbo case price club NJ

[jacksoncoupage]

Originally Posted by West

My records also show wax first, followed by a mix of vending, rack packs and cellos. These are the case codes I saved for 1989 year:

1989:
112691 - vend
112893 - wax
131693 – vend
120792 – jumbo pack case
122393 - wax
130991 -wax
222393 – Topps Big BB
332093 -wax
332098 - wax


You can see above that there was a 1989 vending case with serial number 112691. Dave from the Topps Archives, Lonnie C. and I figured out the Topps codes a few years ago (the sequence of which I was able to confirm in an interview with a former Topps employee). The first digit is the fiscal quarter, the second digit is the month of that quarter, 3rd and 4th digits the day of the month, 5th digit is the last number of the year and 6th digit was the shift that stamped it. A code of 112691 was stamped on January 26, 1989.

I have good reason to believe these codes were stamped at the shipping dept not when the case box was packed by the factory workers. This is because I have found several Topps cases stamped twice, with a "final sale not to be returned" stamp on it. That means it was returned by a seller/vendor, and restamped when a new bill of lading was filled out. I have found several cases with bill of lading receipts on them that match exactly to the 6 digit case code as well.

This means that vending was shipped out for retail sale in '89 as early as the last week of January.

Let me know if I can help with any other details, but the case codes themselves reveal quite a bit.

Wow! This is very helpful. Thank you for taking the time to outline all of this. Very fascinating stuff, too. Once I locate the product I want to open for this project, I will document my research into this card.

Does it seem realistic to conclude that no '4XXXX' code cases exist? Or '34XXX' cases? Did Topps wrap up production by late March or have you seen anything that suggests otherwise.

I know from 1991 Topps research that their factory sets (white and holiday boxes) were packed from a very specific "late-mid" run of the product, based on which variations were included. I'd assume that would be the case with 1989 as well.

[toppcat]

Originally Posted by West

My records also show wax first, followed by a mix of vending, rack packs and cellos. These are the case codes I saved for 1989 year:

1989:
112691 - vend
112893 - wax
131693 – vend
120792 – jumbo pack case
122393 - wax
130991 -wax
222393 – Topps Big BB
332093 -wax
332098 - wax


You can see above that there was a 1989 vending case with serial number 112691. Dave from the Topps Archives, Lonnie C. and I figured out the Topps codes a few years ago (the sequence of which I was able to confirm in an interview with a former Topps employee). The first digit is the fiscal quarter, the second digit is the month of that quarter, 3rd and 4th digits the day of the month, 5th digit is the last number of the year and 6th digit was the shift that stamped it. A code of 112691 was stamped on January 26, 1989.

I have good reason to believe these codes were stamped at the shipping dept not when the case box was packed by the factory workers. This is because I have found several Topps cases stamped twice, with a "final sale not to be returned" stamp on it. That means it was returned by a seller/vendor, and restamped when a new bill of lading was filled out. I have found several cases with bill of lading receipts on them that match exactly to the 6 digit case code as well.

This means that vending was shipped out for retail sale in '89 as early as the last week of January.

Let me know if I can help with any other details, but the case codes themselves reveal quite a bit.

Yup, you got it. There is an occasional curve, like with the last digit being anything other than 1, 2 or 3. They are indeed shipping date codes. Wonder if that last one ends in 8 due it being a RE (return privilege) or if it means something else. The one above it is September 20 as well but indicates 3rd shift. I think Lonnie found some that ended in 4, would have to go back and look. Depending on where the product was going, different unions packed and shipped-could mean something in that regard.