Refractor...what exactly does that mean

[1952boyntoncollector]

Forigive my ignorance on any cards after 1985...but what exactly does 'refractor' mean...is that just for Topps...does it refract light? I know they are special cards that were sold with the regular cards as inserts in packs...but just curious as to the name...they aren't called 'inserts' they are called 'refractors'...

[Peter_Spaeth]

Yeah exactly it supposedly refracts light.

[Beatles Guy]

Refractors have a rainbow like effect when put into light and tilted. They were a great idea when first created in 1993 because of scarcity and appearance, but now they are overdone and pretty easy to obtain.

[swarmee]

They now make set with up to 12 different colored refractors. Putting together a set of the /1, /5, /15, /25, /50, etc... is called completing the rainbow. The most valuable is the 1/1 Superfractor. Colors and rarity change depending on the product and the year.

[Bliggity]

I tried to take some pictures to show what they look like, although it's hard to capture on camera. The first picture shows a refractor (Rua) next to a regular non-refractor chrome card (Herrera). You can see the rainbow effect best on the sides about 1/3 of the way up on the Rua. The entire card refracts as light hits it from different angles. The second picture shows a couple different types of refractors. Some refractors have patterns in them, like the deGrom, which is called a Prism Refractor. Others have colored borders, like the Betances. These days, the regular refractors and some of the patterned refractors might not be numbered, but the colored-border ones usually are. The Betances is #/250. I collect mostly prewar but the shiny stuff can be pretty entertaining sometimes, so long as you don't take it too seriously (like spending $10K+ on a Kris Bryant RC autographed refractor numbered #/5).

[clydepepper]

FYI

'Refractor' means 'Rip-off' in Latin.
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[the 'stache]

Here are a few from my Wily Peralta autograph rainbow.



The first is a base refractor, numbered to /499, the second is a blue refractor, numbered to /199, the third is the atomic refractor, numbered to /5.

Here's the whole rainbow. http://net54baseball.com/album.php?albumid=624

They don't show as well when scanned. But they are pretty nice.

[Eric72]

Beginning with a handful of Topps products released in the early 1990's, certain cards have been available which had a step added to the printing process that causes them to reflect light back to the observer and refract it (hence the name) into the various wavelengths of visible light. Think of a prism bending white light into a rainbow of colors.

In my opinion, it is tough to accurately capture the effect with a still photo. Two fairly common things I have seen which come close to replicating it are oil spots on asphalt and dish soap floating on water. Light reflects back to you; however, changes color depending on the angle from which you are viewing it. Diamond rings and crystals will also do similar things...tilt them one way and you eventually see red, tilt them in another direction and you eventually see violet. Along the way, you see all the colors in between. Tilt the “refractors” and you get the same results.

So, anyway...because the refractor cards are different, and produced in relatively smaller quantities; they tend to carry higher values. In a way, the collectors of modern material likely view these variations in a way similar to T206 collectors viewing the various backs available. I am not comparing the cards here...just floating an idea regarding the mindset that goes into paying extra money for the refractors.

Hope the explanation was adequate. Sorry if I wandered into the weeds a bit on the reply.

Best Regards,

Eric

[drcy]

I like shiny things and think the refractor finish is neat (Remember Pinnacle's Duflex technology? Sort of their answer to refractor),

Twenty years ago the refractor finish was scarcely added to make parallel inserts. Now it's added all the time and in many numbered variations.

The finish gives the card a sort of rainbowy surface-- like on gasoline, as mentioned.

[SmokyBurgess]

Originally Posted by clydepepper

FYI

'Refractor' means 'Rip-off' in Latin.
.
.

lol

[esd10]

instead of making a 100,000 they make 50,000 and put some shiny material on the card then say it is rare by numbering it.

[pokerplyr80]

Originally Posted by 1952boyntoncollector

Forigive my ignorance on any cards after 1985...but what exactly does 'refractor' mean...is that just for Topps...does it refract light? I know they are special cards that were sold with the regular cards as inserts in packs...but just curious as to the name...they aren't called 'inserts' they are called 'refractors'...

As others have said the term refractor refers to the way the light hits the card to make it appear more colorful. They are inserts and rarer parallel versions of the original card.

The original 1993 topps finest refractors are still very popular today, and I hope to add a couple to my collection, probably just ken griffey jr and nolan ryan. They were my favorites growing up when these cards were issued, although as a 13 year old I couldn't really afford to buy any back then.

[bnorth]

The design on the middle card is called a super refractor because of the gold color and circular pattern. All other patterns/colors are just refractors. They look really cool in hand and are fairly easy to make. I like turning old cards into super refractors.

[travrosty]

just a way to 'create' interest in chase cards, refractor, chrome, gold, silver, parallel, platinum, whatever they think of next.