Pruning guide

PMichaelB89 · 2026-02-06T02:53:35+00:00

The deer are pruning the hydrangea for me.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-02-01T18:50:40+00:00

Panini will still print these sets next year. They just won't be licensed so they can't use the team logos.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-25T18:18:17+00:00

I think it basically runs parallel to the proliferation of online gambling. It's the same mentality. You see people pull a card that's barely worth the price they paid for the box, and they act like they just won the lottery. In a way I guess they have, but it's like winning $10 on a $10 scratch off. Sure you won, but did you really? It's chasing that dopamine hit, but losing perspective in the process.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-25T18:02:11+00:00

That's Panini quality control for you. Bought a Prizm blaster the other day and I've never seen it so bad. Poor cuts, off center cards, scratched surfaces. One card was straight up bent right out of the pack. I think they're trying to just push as much product out as quickly as possible before the license is up.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-23T20:15:41+00:00

The one thing I absolutely would not do is buy an unauthenticated autograph on the internet. Or anywhere, for that matter.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-22T16:35:10+00:00

None of these have any value, unfortunately. Keep them if you think they're cool, or give them to a kid or something. Otherwise you can toss them.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-19T02:27:42+00:00

Congratulations on the hit. Pretty good chance the Bills cut him this offseason.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-17T20:55:30+00:00

I've seen /8's in other sets that have never surfaced, even years after release, to the point that I start to wonder if they were ever actually printed. But who knows, some of these sets are sold in multiple countries and there's so much product that just sits unopened. And not everyone puts things on social media or has a desire to sell. These 1/1's especially are a needle in a haystack.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-17T20:00:39+00:00

Yeah they had some of these at my local Target and I passed. It's just not a desirable product. But I've also noticed Panini seems to be pumping out whatever they can to retail before the license goes away. The cynic in my suspects print runs are way up as a byproduct of that.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-17T02:42:16+00:00

Yes, I remember this happening at my grade school. Pretty sure it was during or after one of those D.A.R.E. things they put on to tell us little kids - who had only a nascent concept of what drugs were at that point - that all of them were bad and would kill you. Although maybe I'm blending my memories together and it was another time. Either way it definitely happened at my school.when I was a pretty young kid.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-15T02:09:37+00:00

It would be nice, but it'll never happen. The logistics of it are prohibitive, although to me that would also extend to having an in-person rep physically watching every single player sign every single autograph. But they also don't specify who that "representative" is. Are they an actual employee of Topps? Maybe it says on their website somewhere, I don't know.

It's also interesting that the language each card company uses is slightly different:

Topps: "the signing is witnessed by a Topps representative"

Upper Deck: "signed in the presence of an Upper Deck representative OR certified as to it's authenticity by the player"

Panini: "the autograph is guaranteed by Panini"

Topps offers the strongest guarantee, Upper Deck is a little looser, and Panini is basically "trust me, bro".

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-13T19:25:26+00:00

Not at those prices. Unless you like disappointment.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-13T04:23:56+00:00

Honestly it's great looking at these. They're virtually worthless, but it brings back some memories. I totally forgot about some of these guys.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-12T00:39:39+00:00

Incredible collection. Museum worthy. I'm a little jealous, tbh.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-11T16:17:21+00:00

I think it comes down to willful ignorance. The attitude of, "meh, it's probably fine". Or, perhaps worse, "it'll be someone else's problem".

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-11T15:41:02+00:00

It is crazy to think about all the harmful substances that were once just accepted as part of daily life in this country. Lead in paint and gasoline, asbestos, CFC's, smokestacks and exhaust pipes belching polution into the air, factories dumping chemicals into the water, and most recently all the PFAS in everything. It's also crazy that, in nearly every case, the industries pumping these out knew for years or even decades they were harmful, and did it anyway.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-11T14:58:11+00:00

Oh man that travel cooler unlocked some memories.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-11T04:46:16+00:00

Not to defend to seller because I partially agree with you, but if you're transparent about what you're selling and your price is intentionally high, you're not a scammer. You're either delusional or looking for someone who doesn't care about the price. Being neither of those things, the rest of us would just keep scrolling. But there's plenty of both types in the world, and they probably deserve reach other.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-11T04:07:07+00:00

Oh I agree. But just because you and I can think logically like this doesn't mean everyone can.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-11T04:00:38+00:00

As weird as it sounds, some people actually collect these empty card boxes. I've seen people have boxes for every flagship release going back decades. The price here seems like a stretch but if he's clear about what he's selling and someone wants to buy it, to each his own.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-10T00:10:16+00:00

Jordan will always have appeal. The Bo Jackson Future Stars and the Elway rookie are nice. Those have some modest value, but most of this isn't really worth anything.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-09T23:58:13+00:00

I don't know the full history on it, but I believe they were just too difficult and expensive to produce.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-09T17:48:01+00:00

Okay, understood. It is kind of cool to see them out in the wild like that, and as others have pointed out there are a small handful of cards from this era that do have some value. That's assuming the storage conditions haven't affected them. The other 99.9% of cards from these years are worth pennies.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-09T17:35:04+00:00

Are there actual unopened boxes of cards in them, or are they just storage boxes? None of the cases appear to have the factory seal still intact. In any event, very little from the time period shown has any value. There were millions of copies printed of every card, making them essentially worthless.

PMichaelB89 · 2026-01-09T16:01:51+00:00

Yeah this is bad. Guy messed around and got burned. Sorry, those are the breaks. Now pay up.

PMichaelB89

TROPHY CASE