Size Matters

 

Perhaps I should pay more attention to the size of the cards I get through COMC, instead of just putting them in the cart when I add someone new to my 2/14 collection. Although I really don't have many options other than this one when adding Howard Davis to my collection. So, this jumbo card is all I have. It is a 1979 issue, so I can at least consider this vintage as well. 

All that space does give the opportunity for a decent write-up on the back, at least. Davis would post a 36-6-1 record as a professional, and would go on to train MMA fighters in boxing, before passing away in 2015. His son followed the same career path, and is now also training MMA fighters.

There you have it!

2021 Adventures in Repacks Part 47.4 - Week of 20+1s - Baseball

 And our finale.

Here it is!

As before, here is a better look at the opener.

Minor league Expos card! Yes, this is what I'd call a great way to start in the opening group. He wouldn't see the bigs as an Expo, but would as Rule 5 draftee of Boston Plus, you have a really great sliding catch photo, and that is offset by what might be the worst photo of CC Sabathia imaginable. Could he look even more slovenly if they made an active effort to find a less-flattering image.

A hit is a hit, but it will not be as interesting of a card as the Trautwein. 

Despite not one, but two sets reappearing in this, a perfectly solid repack grouping of cards.

And with a third appearance in the repack, it is 2002 Ultra that makes the most appearances, beating out some junk wax era mainstays from 1989. George Frazier might look like a drifter on his picture, but he still has his World Series ring from the previous year. And the last of the hidden cards is a Mets card, with this one coming from one of the Panini 'National' releases.

And a player appearing to call for time just seems like the perfect card to end 4 straight days of repacks.

There you have it!

2021 Adventures in Repacks Part 47.3 - Week of 20+1s - Football

And here's another one.

The 2019 base/1989 retro throwback was such a wonderful choice for a design.

Our first grouping of cards gives us a really great photo on the Troupe, but best of all, there's a 1980 entry featuring a kicker card! That's also about as much of an action shot as you'll see from the 'no helmet logo' era of Topps releases.  And you've got a guy (nick)named Ace.

We have our hit, going back to 2017 for an old-west themed relic design. At least Dede is still in the league, albeit having moved on to the Vikings.

The handoff isn't a theme often seen on QB cards. The All-Time Fan Favorites was a nice concept to highlight memorable groups/teams in the league, but it would have to sting if nobody from your team's history qualified. Good star power here with the Manning and Taylor as well, although the latter's Progression entry was a posthumous card.

It is isn't often that player's passing is mentioned on the card itself.

That was depressing, so what in this batch can act as a mood booster? A kicker card and a photo of a valiant, but likely failed attempt at a tackle aren't too bad.

Final card? One of the 3 Watt brothers in the NFL, and the only one that earns his pay on the offense.

There you have it!

2021 Adventures in Repacks Part 47.2 - Week of 20+1s - Hockey

 

It is the hockey repack today.

Not the most spectacular card as the opener, but here's a better look at the opener.

We get the 1990 Bowman interlude early on in this one. The super-casual Rob Brown does stand out against the very generic skating around shots of this set. I'd compliment an actual action shot on the Gartner, but the helmetless nature of this would indicate it is from a pre-game skate. And it is an insert, anyhow.

No complaints when a Gretzky comes out of a repack, no matter what era the card comes from. In terms of great minor-league names, the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles certainly counts as one. Then there's the game-dated photos for the UD base card, one of the better 1990s design elements. And the general garishness of the mid 90s Fleer, your mileage may vary on those.

And here's out hit It is an auto out of Heroes and Prospects. Graham did not have the greatest career, never progressing past the CHL, but is a new card for the hits of the mask binder, and the Drummondville Voltigeurs do sport a pretty great logo.

Another nice minor league logo courtesy of the Peoria Rivermen. Glumac would see the NHL with the Blues over portions of 3 seasons. Aucoin also provides some third-jersey mojo late in the repack.

And one more minor league card to end it. Another perfectly fine ITG design.

There you have it!

2021 Adventures in Repacks Part 47.1 - Week of 20+1s - Basketball

 As I work my way through the old repacks before I get to a new one, here's the content from 4 straight hangers that promise a hit alongside 20 others.

Basketball is up first!

While you purchase Prizm for the shiny factor, not the photography factor, there's still some real nice stuff to be found within, as we take a closer look at the opening card.

Even though I've certainly got more than one of those Lowry cards already, it is always nice to find Raptors content in these. It is also nice to find envelope fatteners for a future Ann Arbor mailer as well.

And the hit pops out early! A relic that thankfully came from before Gobert's status as the NBA's Patient Zero. 

And we are returning to the base. That Karl Malone really screams 'mid 90's' with the design, and Nate McMillan's entry really gives a perfect court-length view of the action. 

The Sam Vincent card has an interesting story behind it. It was a replacement for one from the first printings of 1990 Hoops, one that featured an odd cameo. That earlier card with Jordan was a photo that was taken on 2/14/90, so of course that qualified it for the 2/14 collection. In something that is even more amazing, should you want to add a 1990 Hoops of Sam Vincent to your collection via COMC, the card pictured here would cost you more. 

Aside from that, there's also one of my favourite background choices when the usual background is wiped - the team's logo. And there's even more court-length photos here.

More foil action on the final card, with someone who is better known for having a heated gaming moment. Ouch.

There you have it!

Allure Box Break

What was in this box of Allure that was a bonus in the break I posted yesterday? Let's find out!

The first 100 cards in the base set are a mix of stars and rookies, while the final 50 are SPd rookies (with some repeating among the base rookies). The latter, with the design shown on the Angello, fall at 1-per-pack, but with the e-packs, finishing that part of the set doesn't feel too intimidating to finish.

It is also not-so-intimidating because even though the release was late, it lacked some of the main rookies that other sets had. No pack-pullable Stützle, Kaprizov, Sorokin or the ilk. They're available in redemption form on e-pack, but not in the base set.

Black Rainbow parallels are the most common parallels in the set, appearing 1:2 packs. 

There are no Black Rainbow parallels for the SPd rookie portion in the base set. Instead, the 101-150 portion has Double Rainbow parallels, and there are no such parallels for the first 100 in the set.

Instead of separate sets, the design changes for the Red Rainbow portion. Here, the 1-100 gets the flashing pattern for the background, while the SPd just end up with a standard, shiny red background. In fact, the design background also changed for the other parallels I landed as well. 

Here's an orange slice parallel.

But this was probably the big pull for me in the box - loud, obnoxious and numbered to only 10. 

The inserts are pretty generic, with Diagnostics being an excuse for more veteran content, and Grand Entrance adding some more rookie content. But, seeing as I like 1993 Leaf, I do like the City Celly, if for nothing else but the cityscape background. 

There's one autograph per box, and here's that to wrap up the post. If I can't land a Wolverines alum to send off the Ann Arbor, I might as well land a Wings card instead. This is a /75 Magenta parallel as well, and is set aside for a future stateside mailer.

There you have it!

Knights Cap

Back to group break land, and a hockey break where I picked up the Vegas spot for S&G. It ended up nicely for me, with a good variety of cards for the collection. The Peyton Krebs card leading off this post is a fine example, with a swatch colour only the Golden Knights can provide.

A box of 2017-18 Series 2 brought me Fleury updates in both regular and retro format. Twice the mask binder content!

Being that he was born in Vegas, his cards make an interesting addition to team sets in 20-21 releases.

I wonder if he ever imagined he'd get cards for himself playing for a team in his hometown while he was growing up. 

The SPX box was really good for the Vegas spot. 4 cards, with two of them giving me autographs. 

Metal Universe and Allure were also really nice for me, as those boxes only promise one autograph, with both of them going towards the Knights spot. This break turned me into a Shea Theodore super-collector. 

The best of both worlds! A partially golden swatch, along with an on-card auto. A nice way for another notable Karlsson to enter the binders. 

And what better way to end this than a 1/1?

Well, there was a randomizer at the end of the break, and I ended up with a hobby box of 20-21 Allure as well. I wasn't planning on breaking any of that product, but a bonus box is a bonus box, and I'll show off some of those next time.

There you have it!

Buttfumble Mojo!

 

Oh sure, I could get a Mark Sanchez relic to salute the fumbler, but being the collector I am, I'd much rather add a card from the possessor of the Butt in my collection.