MansGame
Active member
PM sent.
For anyone else, for Albert Belle, I need patterns #2, #8, #64 and #81. I would also be interested in pattern #47
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The 1998 Topps Tek Thread
- Thread starter RustyGreerFan
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For anyone else, for Albert Belle, I need patterns #2, #8, #64 and #81. I would also be interested in pattern #47
bigunitcards
Member
Well this seller's single box went for $233 and someone bit the bullet and put a last minute bid on the $1,250 five-box lot. Sold - $250 per box, a new record.
If anyone knows who bought it, or if the buyer is present, speak! My ongoing offer of $10 for RJ base cards still needed is still valid, feed me!
I would love to know who bought these boxes. I, like many other I presume, would love the opportunity to buy into a multi-box break.
MansGame
Active member
I'm in total shock. I don't understand how this can be. What is the most expensive card you could potentially even pull in a box and how much would it return auction? I'm guessing a Jeter Diffractor? What do those sell for, maybe $100? McGwires sell for like $65, so maybe $130 or 2x what a McGwire does? I mean I just don't understand the logic here.
The ONLY way this makes sense is if a group of guys, like us, were to commit to a certain $ per box for the rights to a said player. For example, I would commit to $10 a box for the rights to any Belle. Therefore, you get enough guys to do the same (different prices for different players obviously) and then you can buy up boxes for more than cost.
All I hope is that whoever pulled the trigger is busting that sh!t open and loading everything up on eBay or better yet on here lol
EDIT: Just to be clear, that was an example. I probably would commit to $10 per box but that may be a little hot lol
Right now, it doesn't make sense but what were boxes selling for a year ago? I remember thinking $120 was crazy. It could also be someone hoping to hoard the unopened boxes so prices continue to go up as supply dries up...which it has to an extent. It's going to be an interesting balance between those who have and those who need.
MansGame
Active member
I don't understand the return on buying a full box yourself to be honest. Prices can go up and up and up but the individual cards aren't really. Again, what is the most expensive card you can pull in the product honestly? It's either Jeter, McGwire, Ripken or Griffey diffractor right? Do any of those top $100 each? I mean you get 3 or 4 diffractors in a box... the returns just aren't there.
To answer your question, boxes were selling for about $120 all-in and slowly inched their way up to $150 I think and that's when most of us stopped trying to buy and do a group break because you can't make the $ and cents make sense! Even in a group break! I mean try and figure out a way to do a group break for $250?!?! I'm in for $10 for Albert Belle... now make up the other $240 plus shipping for the players left... you can't get there IMO.
Brewer Andy
Active member
- Aug 10, 2008
- 9,634
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And even that gets tricky Mac. The fewer cards you need, the less likely you are to hit something you need. So I think your $10 offer is extremely generous. I need 2 more Burnitzs and I would pass on ANY more group breaks at this point because what are the odds? Whoever busts a box, if they ended up with a pattern I need, who else are they gonna sell to anyway? I'm very likely the "high" buyer for the patterns I need but I'm not about to hit a $20 BIN like a hostage
MansGame
Active member
Well obviously it'd include any diffractors of Belle but still, yes, $10 for me is generous.
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When it comes to base cards sure you can dictate prices on most cards since the supply is there. Unfortunately for diffractors the set and player collectors dictate the prices there and you're forced to pay whatever the competition is. As far as I know there's no known 90 card diffractor set completed of any player - you'd think there would be at least one or two out there by now for a set made in 1998. Makes me think the print run per diffractor is less than 10 per card pattern.
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- #1,710
RustyGreerFan
Active member
To put this in some perspective, recall the Tek breaks that we've already done. I was getting those at, what, $130-something a box? Even then, if you didn't hit a big diffractor your slot was a loser. And when we hit a hot box in my break there wasn't really anyone who came out way ahead. My guess is that the person just has more money than they know what to do with, so why not buy a fun product to shred. Just a guess. But in the big picture this means more inflated prices for everyone. I don't see us getting to do another group break for quite some time unless someone gets supremely lucky on pricing, and even then, they might want to just resell to make a sizeable profit. I'm glad I was in on the Tek collecting for a short time when it was still relatively affordable, but that time has passed.
MansGame
Active member
Yea, we're done with Tek breaks for a while unless guys want to step up for more $ for the rights to their player.
[MENTION=4682]RustyGreerFan[/MENTION] - When we did our breaks I NEVER made money or got a single card I needed but I still didn't feel the burn like I have when buying regular Topps product today haha. That is why I'm saying some people might pay for the rights to their guy and we might be able to get there on price. It's essentially insurance that your guy hits as a diffractor or god forbid a base card you might need. I doubt this will happen because so many of us are SO close to getting all the base that really we're all just interested in diffractors and chances are so slime.
This brings me to my other point. The return on diffractors almost doesn't warrant the price of the "insurance" - I know I know this contradicts my comment above but I'm serious. I SHOULD be able to buy any Belle diffractor hands down for $20. With that said, why would I pay $10 for the rights to Belle? Given the odds, I'd probably be better off just sitting back, watching and if a Belle hits, then I pony up. For me it's not a big deal but I can see how a Jeter guy would want to insure it because his guy is tougher and more wanted and also way more $$ if one hits.
I'm probably making no sense at this point... off to get some coffee.
[MENTION=4682]RustyGreerFan[/MENTION] - When we did our breaks I NEVER made money or got a single card I needed but I still didn't feel the burn like I have when buying regular Topps product today haha. That is why I'm saying some people might pay for the rights to their guy and we might be able to get there on price. It's essentially insurance that your guy hits as a diffractor or god forbid a base card you might need. I doubt this will happen because so many of us are SO close to getting all the base that really we're all just interested in diffractors and chances are so slime.
This brings me to my other point. The return on diffractors almost doesn't warrant the price of the "insurance" - I know I know this contradicts my comment above but I'm serious. I SHOULD be able to buy any Belle diffractor hands down for $20. With that said, why would I pay $10 for the rights to Belle? Given the odds, I'd probably be better off just sitting back, watching and if a Belle hits, then I pony up. For me it's not a big deal but I can see how a Jeter guy would want to insure it because his guy is tougher and more wanted and also way more $$ if one hits.
I'm probably making no sense at this point... off to get some coffee.
Will Style 13
New member
I'd have to think box prices will die off. This diffractor madness has made gauging prices impossible. When commons can command anywhere from $5 to $75 there is no baseline. Perhaps the buyers are thinking it can only go up?
olerud363
Active member
Maybe with the talk of 2014 Tek coming out there are people buying with hopes cashing in on renewed interest.
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- Rodrick
MansGame
Active member
Not a bad point.
MansGame
Active member
I'm not that excited about the 2014 Tek. I'll be honest, hope Belle isn't in it. Going to be a flood of disaster on eBay. Seriously, shaking head.
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Buying Albert Belle cards! PM me!
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SINFULONE
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- Sep 26, 2008
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Why?Sell sheet that bad?
Fairly certain if there was a sell sheet available for the product it would have been posted here already. I have a feeling that 2014 Topps Tek will be of stars of today. Highly doubt they put in any players from the 1998 set (unless they plug in players who weren't in it like Will Clark). Looking forward to chasing Tulo and Cargo Teks!
Wonder how mad everyone would be if Topps goes the lazy route, changes the checklist to 90 stars of today, but keeps the same 90 patterns schematic from 1998? Nightmares ensue.
MansGame
Active member
I would love to watch the 2014 Tek release and not see Belle in it. Probably cool for anyone who collected in the '90s to maybe get them back into collecting or even the Tek set collectors from the '90s to dive in and go after another large massive set, etc. I totally get it.
For me, I don't need the F'ing rat race to chase 100 patterns and all sorts of stupid parallels IMO. Look at the 2014 Topps release... there is a base card of Belle which has swamped eBay and everyone and their mother is looking for $2 plus $3 s/h for it! LOL! I mean this is going to be a disaster... eBay will be flooded with every single card in the release - including all base, etc. Sorry but that is just a disaster and I'm just not interested in it. Good luck to everyone else but I'm hoping he isn't in it but god knows he will be.
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RustyGreerFan
Active member
That would be pretty awesome in my book. And going back to the checklist - just think how many duds are in 1998 Tek while some future HOFers (like Rickey) or otherwise fan favorites (like Rusty Gr... er, I mean Will Clark), and somewhat recent retirees like Mattingly, Puckett, and Sandberg were ignored. Throw in guys like Mariano that were just overlooked altogether. What I'm getting at is when you have 90 cards in a set the set should be jam-packed with awesome so that every Diffractor, or Gold, or whatever, is probably a pretty good one. Of course, the double-edged sword is that if the checklist had been that awesome, would Tek have flown under the radar for so long? (Why is my enter key not working?) Here's a post of mine from the second page of this thread: Now that we have 14 years to reflect on this release, we have the ability to Monday morning quarterback Topps for the decisions they made about what players they included and excluded. I don't really blame Topps. At the time (and really still to this day) there was a lot of pressure from collectors to include the hot prospects. This meant that some pretty popular players had to be excluded.
Taking into consideration careers and popularity with collectors, just think of how valuable unopened product would be in this scenario...
Remove the following 12 players:
AJ Hinch
Derek Bell
Richard Hidalgo
Brad Fullmer (although he seems to have at least one or two collectors)
Quinton McCracken
Mark Kotsay
Todd Dunwoody
Jeff King
Tony Clark
Jeromy Burnitz
Ellis Burks
Javy Lopez
(There are quite a few young guys that would be easy to cut in retrospect, but would have been awfully hard to cut at the time - Erstad, Grieve, Cruz Jr, TWalker, TLee, OHernandez, for example)
Add in the following 12 players:
Mariano Rivera
Rickey Henderson
Ryne Sandberg
Jose Canseco
Hideo Nomo
Wade Boggs
David Ortiz
Will Clark
Roy Halladay
Lance Berkman
John Smoltz
Fred McGriff
Some other guys w/ good careers or fan favorites (that played in 1997) left out in the cold - Cliff Lee, CCarpenter, Deion, Hoffman, Garret, SGreen, Gaetti, JCarter, Giambi, Hershiser, Eck, Pettitte, Daulton, and of course, Rusty Greer :mrgreen:
Actually, with how long and strong the Nomo craze lasted, would there be any unopened Tek left? :razz:
But seriously, instead of $160 a box, how much would this product be going for now?!
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