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modern question: wave refractors

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walt_altmen

Member
Aug 1, 2019
168
2
have been mostly been a vintage collector primarily doing basic player collections.

about a year or so ago started to venture into the modern realm. took me a little while to get the refractor, variation, parallel verbiage and practices down, but do have a question on the red, blue, black waves...

what is the general synopsis on these, primarily the lower numbered ones?

i understand they are not original colors, therefore automatically a little less desirable.

are they widely collected or more of a niche market?
if more of a niche, have they been gaining or losing popularity?
are waves, shimmers and mojos generally considered the same thing?
on surface issues, assume they are more durable than regular refractors?

my main emphasis on these questions are in regards to the 2012 bowman chrome waves.

thanks for any and all help.
 

swish54_99

Well-known member
Dec 12, 2012
1,160
221
To me personally, they don't hold much weight at all. I look at them as a way for the card companies to create a false sense of scarcity. I would much rather have a refractor/xfractor/blue/red/etc than a shimmer/mojo/wave.
 

walt_altmen

Member
Aug 1, 2019
168
2
thank you for your brutal honesty.

thats exactly what i am looking for vs fluff.

as for the ‘12 bowman chromes, i definitely like the oranges and blues.

but the red wave looks way better to me than the regular purple refractor.

however, shimmers and mojos hold no appeal to me whatsoever in any year.

anyone else?
 

Brewer Andy

Active member
Aug 10, 2008
9,634
21
Would agree with swish, there’s just not the same demand as there is for the longer tenured parallels and I think most people do just see them as attempts to add value. They’re certainly still nice cards but not viewed as “key” parallels. Some of it is they just haven’t been around consistently year over year. It seems there’s also been a lot of inconsistency in print runs year to year. I think the randomness hurts their appeal a bit as well. In the very narrow lane I keep an eye on (Brewers), I would estimate that waves/shimmers seem land around 70-80% (could probably find examples of even less) of the value of their standard counterparts (Blue Wave vs Blue Refractor). An even more obvious example is a couple of years ago they produce Bowman 70th Ann Blue Ref parallels numbered /70 and those don’t usually come close to reaching the same value as the Blue Ref /150 from the same set. Consistency leads to collectability over time. Collectors get salty when Topps tries to add a new Refractor color or when they change print runs (ie sometimes Purples are /10 and sometimes they’re unnumbered and extremely common).
That was a bit of rambling.


Sent from my iPhone using Freedom Card Board mobile app
 

walt_altmen

Member
Aug 1, 2019
168
2
no, thank you.

a great perspective and exactly what i am looking for!

anyone else?
 

smapdi

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
4,397
221
I like them better than regular refractors. Very shiny, very twinkly. But yes, as the new kids with usually the same numbering as the flat colors, they're viewed with some derision. Sadly they seem to be a compromise, allowing Topps to increase production while maintaining the hit rate and numbering of the originals, and so are viewed a little negatively for some reason, even though they never hurt anyone.
 

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