Hockey Cards

[danielpalfredsson]

My break went awesome. Killed the odds. 2 hits:

1. Ranatanen Brilliance auto.

2........


.........


Sam Bennett rookie auto gold /24!


Well maybe not as good as a McDavid or a Bennett RAP, but pretty amazing for me as a Flames fan, especially considering it was team random. Somebody else in the break pulled a McDavid/Gretzky dual auto, that was the case hit.

Always nice to get a pull from your favourite team especially on a random break.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

So when i was talking to the guy at the card shop and asking him questions about the different sets i felt like i maybe wasnt getting straight answers out of him entirely because i was asking him about the sets from Wal Mart and the sets he was selling. Of course he isnt going to direct me away from his business and when i asked him certain questions about the Wal mart packs and what my uncle said he was getting out of them, his answers didnt seem to line up.

So i think i should ask here. The series One and Series 2 boxes thatyou get at Wal Mart for $30, are they the same as what you get at the begining of the year?

 

[danielpalfredsson]

So when i was talking to the guy at the card shop and asking him questions about the different sets i felt like i maybe wasnt getting straight answers out of him entirely because i was asking him about the sets from Wal Mart and the sets he was selling. Of course he isnt going to direct me away from his business and when i asked him certain questions about the Wal mart packs and what my uncle said he was getting out of them, his answers didnt seem to line up.

So i think i should ask here. The series One and Series 2 boxes thatyou get at Wal Mart for $30, are they the same as what you get at the begining of the year?

They are all the same "set", they are just sold in different configurations.

Generally, those two configurations break down into Hobby or Retail.

From my understanding, the general difference between hobby and retail is that hobby has certain hits that you won't find in retail packages. I think that CCS McDavid you pulled was one of the hits you wouldn't have found in a retail offering. Because of the opportunity at greater hits, hobby is generally more expensive per pack.

With hobby, there are 24 pack hobby boxes available for $130 CDN (might vary at different stores). Although, you can buy single packs at most stores this isn't always ideal though since a sealed box guarantees you a fair amount of inserts, and you can easily end up with a dud like a Canvas or Goalie Nightmares with a single hobby pack. IMO, it is better to save up for a sealed hobby box instead of blowing a few bucks at a time on single hobby packs.

When it comes to retail there are a few different options. You can buy 24 retail packs in a sealed box for 80 bucks. There are also the tins of 12 packs and "blaster" boxes of retail that will vary on price depending on where you go, but for example a tin of 12 packs is 40 bucks at my local hobby shop.

The main benefit of retail would be if you're mainly interested in pulling the regular YGs. The cost per YG will be cheaper for retail since you can get 6 per 80 dollars instead of 6 per 130 dollars, but at the same time by going retail instead of hobby, you are opting out of an opportunity at greater hits like (I think....could be wrong) that CCS McDavid you pulled.

http://www.mirajtrading.com/2016-17-upper-deck-series-one-nhl-hockey-retail-box/
http://www.mirajtrading.com/2016-17-upper-deck-series-one-nhl-hockey-hobby-box/

Assuming those are the complete lists of inserts, compare them and you'll have an idea of what you're giving up by going retail over hobby. If your primary interest is pulling YGs and increasing your odds at a regular Matthews/Marner YG, retail would be the way to go. If you're interested in a (long shot) crack at bigger hits, hobby is better.

 

[blankall]

They are all the same "set", they are just sold in different configurations.

Generally, those two configurations break down into Hobby or Retail.

From my understanding, the general difference between hobby and retail is that hobby has certain hits that you won't find in retail packages. I think that CCS McDavid you pulled was one of the hits you wouldn't have found in a retail offering. Because of the opportunity at greater hits, hobby is generally more expensive per pack.

With hobby, there are 24 pack hobby boxes available for $130 CDN (might vary at different stores). Although, you can buy single packs at most stores this isn't always ideal though since a sealed box guarantees you a fair amount of inserts, and you can easily end up with a dud like a Canvas or Goalie Nightmares with a single hobby pack. IMO, it is better to save up for a sealed hobby box instead of blowing a few bucks at a time on single hobby packs.

When it comes to retail there are a few different options. You can buy 24 retail packs in a sealed box for 80 bucks. There are also the tins of 12 packs and "blaster" boxes of retail that will vary on price depending on where you go, but for example a tin of 12 packs is 40 bucks at my local hobby shop.

The main benefit of retail would be if you're mainly interested in pulling the regular YGs. The cost per YG will be cheaper for retail since you can get 6 per 80 dollars instead of 6 per 130 dollars, but at the same time by going retail instead of hobby, you are opting out of an opportunity at greater hits like (I think....could be wrong) that CCS McDavid you pulled.

http://www.mirajtrading.com/2016-17-upper-deck-series-one-nhl-hockey-retail-box/
http://www.mirajtrading.com/2016-17-upper-deck-series-one-nhl-hockey-hobby-box/

Assuming those are the complete lists of inserts, compare them and you'll have an idea of what you're giving up by going retail over hobby. If your primary interest is pulling YGs and increasing your odds at a regular Matthews/Marner YG, retail would be the way to go. If you're interested in a (long shot) crack at bigger hits, hobby is better.

To add to this, the key difference between retail and hobby is that hobby contains acetate, numbered hits, and other hobby only inserts such as autographs. The most popular hits are going to be the exclusive/high gloss young guns. There is about 1 Exclusive (numbered /100) Young Guns per case and a High Gloss (/10) per every 8-10 cases.

Series 1/2 is the only product worth actually buying in retail IMO. The Young Guns are the same in retail and hobby. Some of them have quite a bit of value. Obviously their exclusive/high gloss value is higher, but the odds of pulling those are not good. Value wise retail is always better. But I always bust a few hobby boxes for the excitement of hitting a large hit. Plus in the first two weeks when a product comes out, the resale value is highest, and retail takes at least a couple of weeks to come out after hobby.

Be aware that card stores will sell both retail and hobby. If you want hobby, make sure the box is marked hobby.

 

[Cubs2024wildcard]

You're right, turns out I was misinformed about the Parkhurst 3 card bonus packs being exclusive to Canada.

On that topic apparently there is going to be a stand alone Parkhurst set exclusive to Canada, so that's probably where I got mixed up.

Actually just saw that and quite honestly, it isn't a bad set for the price point.....unless Walmart decides to up charge since it's their exclusive like they did with platinum baseball(autos in that product while there's none in Parkie).

Still, pulling a numbered rookie out of this class isn't to shabby and it won't break your wallet.

 

[Cubs2024wildcard]

Be aware that card stores will sell both retail and hobby. If you want hobby, make sure the box is marked hobby.

1000x /\ this

Also, if you just want the YGs, sealed boxes, blasters, tins. I personally wouldn't bother with hobby but to each his own, why?

If you look right now online, (not saying where) you can find out where the YGs are allocated by pack per box and which box has what YGs.

Exclusives and HG are never as easy to crack by certain pack searchers, but with that info already out there I'll just stick to retail.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

Has anybody bought from Dave and Adam's Card world?
dacardworld.com

Their Hobby boxes are at good prices

 

[yay]

Has anybody bought from Dave and Adam's Card world?
dacardworld.com

Their Hobby boxes are at good prices

I have - good, straightforward store, got free shipping based on amount spent, and good prices with good hits.

They also throw in free boxes of older cards based on amount spent. I've gotten two retail boxes of 2015-16 UD Series 1 for free from them through this.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

I have - good, straightforward store, got free shipping based on amount spent, and good prices with good hits.

They also throw in free boxes of older cards based on amount spent. I've gotten two retail boxes of 2015-16 UD Series 1 for free from them through this.

Wow that's awesome! Couldn't believe the prices when i came across the site. Glad i searched through google. Could save myself a couple hundred as opposed to my local store.

 

[danielpalfredsson]

Has anybody bought from Dave and Adam's Card world?
dacardworld.com

Their Hobby boxes are at good prices

One thing to consider with DA Card World is that if you're in Canada, the prices will be quite expensive which kills some of their deals. You're also talking US dollars, so your grand total will be increased by about 25-30 percent.

If you make an order from them and choose UPS as the shipper carrier to Canada, you also will want to go through the hassle of self clearing your item with customs (google it) because UPS charges insane brokerage fees (Not duties, but an actual fee they charge you for the act of "clearing" your item with customs).

If you're in Canada, it might be better ordering from a store in Canada. All stores have different prices, especially on older product, so it is a good idea to browse around and see what is out there. The prices won't be as good as somewhere like DA Card World, but when you consider shipping from the US+duties+conversion to CAD you will almost certainly be paying less.

Obviously, disregard this if you are in the US.

They also aren't necessarily cheaper on every product when it comes to recent seasons. Once you do currency conversion from USD to CAD, their prices are pretty much in line with my local card shop in Ottawa. Most of the deals from places like DA Card World and Blowout Cards come from their older liquidated products which they often have at great prices (but as I said before, shipping to CAD kills the deal in most cases).

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

One thing to consider with DA Card World is that if you're in Canada, the prices will be quite expensive which kills some of their deals. You're also talking US dollars, so your grand total will be increased by about 25-30 percent.

If you make an order from them and choose UPS as the shipper carrier to Canada, you also will want to go through the hassle of self clearing your item with customs (google it) because UPS charges insane brokerage fees (Not duties, but an actual fee they charge you for the act of "clearing" your item with customs).

If you're in Canada, it might be better ordering from a store in Canada. All stores have different prices, especially on older product, so it is a good idea to browse around and see what is out there. The prices won't be as good as somewhere like DA Card World, but when you consider shipping from the US+duties+conversion to CAD you will almost certainly be paying less.

Obviously, disregard this if you are in the US.

They also aren't necessarily cheaper on every product when it comes to recent seasons. Once you do currency conversion from USD to CAD, their prices are pretty much in line with my local card shop in Ottawa. Most of the deals from places like DA Card World and Blowout Cards come from their older liquidated products which they often have at great prices (but as I said before, shipping to CAD kills the deal in most cases).

Ya i realized after i posted that the prices were in USD. Even after the conversion some of the prices are still a little cheaper but ya the shipping thing i would have to get figured out

 

[danielpalfredsson]

Ya i realized after i posted that the prices were in USD. Even after the conversion some of the prices are still a little cheaper but ya the shipping thing i would have to get figured out

Unless your local store is really over priced, the prices on more recent product at DA are almost all the same as my LCS once you convert to CAD. Some products are a few bucks more, some are a few bucks less.

Older product (so pre 2015) at this point is where you'll find a lot of variance from store to store.

 

[blankall]

Unless your local store is really over priced, the prices on more recent product at DA are almost all the same as my LCS once you convert to CAD. Some products are a few bucks more, some are a few bucks less.

Older product (so pre 2015) at this point is where you'll find a lot of variance from store to store.

I'd agree with this. There are various warehouse like stores that will carry a lot of older product at a significant discount My LCS has older product priced the same as new. Stuff where there is a huge rookie (Crosby and now McDavid) tends to go up in price over time. Everything else tends to drop.

 

[yay]

One thing to consider with DA Card World is that if you're in Canada, the prices will be quite expensive which kills some of their deals. You're also talking US dollars, so your grand total will be increased by about 25-30 percent.

If you make an order from them and choose UPS as the shipper carrier to Canada, you also will want to go through the hassle of self clearing your item with customs (google it) because UPS charges insane brokerage fees (Not duties, but an actual fee they charge you for the act of "clearing" your item with customs).

If you're in Canada, it might be better ordering from a store in Canada. All stores have different prices, especially on older product, so it is a good idea to browse around and see what is out there. The prices won't be as good as somewhere like DA Card World, but when you consider shipping from the US+duties+conversion to CAD you will almost certainly be paying less.

Obviously, disregard this if you are in the US.

They also aren't necessarily cheaper on every product when it comes to recent seasons. Once you do currency conversion from USD to CAD, their prices are pretty much in line with my local card shop in Ottawa. Most of the deals from places like DA Card World and Blowout Cards come from their older liquidated products which they often have at great prices (but as I said before, shipping to CAD kills the deal in most cases).

These are obviously important points, and I'm glad you posted it - my good experience with them involved buying in the US, so my perspective is limited.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

Unless your local store is really over priced, the prices on more recent product at DA are almost all the same as my LCS once you convert to CAD. Some products are a few bucks more, some are a few bucks less.

Older product (so pre 2015) at this point is where you'll find a lot of variance from store to store.

I had paid $140 for that box from my local store. I just bought two more from a place in Toronto for $110 and a couple boxes of 15/16 Series 2 Hobby on sale for $63

 

[danielpalfredsson]

I had paid $140 for that box from my local store. I just bought two more from a place in Toronto for $110 and a couple boxes of 15/16 Series 2 Hobby on sale for $63

63 CAD is a good price for series 2 hobby boxes. Outside of Eichel, the YG class is a bit weak. But I think the harder to pull inserts like Acetate YGs, Rookie Breakouts, etc are much more exciting than series 1.

 

[blankall]

63 CAD is a good price for series 2 hobby boxes. Outside of Eichel, the YG class is a bit weak. But I think the harder to pull inserts like Acetate YGs, Rookie Breakouts, etc are much more exciting than series 1.

The issue with last years Series 2 (as well as Series 1) was that they held so many hits back for the E-packs. The premium for buying hobby over retail last year really doesn't make sense. Yes, the acetates are great, but the odds are so long.

I'd stay clear of 2015/16 Series 2 in general. I guarantee you'll be able to find blasters for about $15 CAD shortly.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

Curious. I am assuming that Canvas young guns are more rare/valuable than regular young guns. Wondering for if i was to come across one

 

[ElysiumAB]

I've had good experiences with Dave & Adams. Quick shipping, well packaged, they send what I ordered.

One thing I will add, is that when asking my local store to match their prices - they had absolutely no problem doing so. Sometimes they'll even include state tax so the price is exactly what D&A would offer.

If you want to get a product right away or support a local business, I'd recommend stopping in and asking - I don't think most of these places are in a position to be turning down business.

 

[ElysiumAB]

Curious. I am assuming that Canvas young guns are more rare/valuable than regular young guns. Wondering for if i was to come across one

Check ebay. I'm sure they're worth more, but unless it's a big name they're still not worth much / anything.

 

[ElysiumAB]

I got back into buying some cards just in the last year, it's been pretty fun to explore what's out there now.

I'm a big McDavid fan, so this was a fun pull and I wouldn't have imagined selling it until I found out how much it was going for.

 

[blankall]

I got back into buying some cards just in the last year, it's been pretty fun to explore what's out there now.

I'm a big McDavid fan, so this was a fun pull and I wouldn't have imagined selling it until I found out how much it was going for.

That's a nice card. The McDavid hype is strong.

The first cup RPA just sold for over $12k.

 

[ElysiumAB]

That's a nice card. The McDavid hype is strong.

The first cup RPA just sold for over $12k.

Yeah, I guess this one was valuable because it's on the check list for the set, and limited to 999. So, if you don't have this, autographed, you can't complete the set. At least that's what the guy at the store was saying.

Sold it for $550 without any trouble.

 

[blankall]

Yeah, I guess this one was valuable because it's on the check list for the set, and limited to 999. So, if you don't have this, autographed, you can't complete the set. At least that's what the guy at the store was saying.

Sold it for $550 without any trouble.

Probably could have gotten $800-1000 on Ebay, but that's a lot of trouble. People always pulling scams. Stating they didn't receive stuff or using phony credit cards.

Technically all the FWAs are in the set. Even at /999 that's an expensive set to finish. People are also spending 10s of thousands to crack multiple cases of the Cup, so obviously some people have more money to spend on cards than I do.

 

[danielpalfredsson]

Probably could have gotten $800-1000 on Ebay, but that's a lot of trouble. People always pulling scams. Stating they didn't receive stuff or using phony credit cards.

Technically all the FWAs are in the set. Even at /999 that's an expensive set to finish. People are also spending 10s of thousands to crack multiple cases of the Cup, so obviously some people have more money to spend on cards than I do.

I've sold a lot on eBay (not hockey cards) and have never had one issue. I used to be paranoid about this going in, but through dozens of sales, nobody has ever tried to pull a charge back scam on me. Sell with tracking+insurance and print the shipping label directly from Paypal and you'll usually be covered. I would probably have sold that card on eBay, or at least played hard ball trading it into a hobby shop because you know with how hot McDavid is, they can flip it in a day and make 100-200 bucks on it even if they pay you 75 percent of its value. Typically, it is normal to expect 40-50 on a trade in, but with something so in demand, you would think the seller would have more leverage.

Granted, I understand when you're selling cards valued 1-10 dollar, you have to bite the bullet and ship via letter mail, which is untracked, so I can see where that would leave you open to a scam.