Monday, June 17, 2019

The Bane that is Short Prints

I've come to expect that each year I'll have to track down a short print or two in the Topps flagship set. Photo variations, retired stars or hall of famers, you name it and Topps has done it all for the sake of adding cards we collectors must chase if we want to have a "complete" team set. Sure, I could choose to ignore them completely and stick with only collecting the standard checklist, but the ocd portion of my brain would always be stewing over these cards. Of course it wasn't always like that. I still remember the junk wax days fondly knowing that I could put together a Reds team set for less than $5. Now it's not uncommon for me to spend around $20. If there's a super short print involved then all bets are off. That being said, I just noticed this past weekend that Topps released it's series 2 set for this year and I wasn't surprised to find out that there were 3 short prints in the series. I was able to track down the 12 card base set as well as the 3 short prints on eBay for just over $23. I wonder if there will come a day when Topps decides to go back to the way things were and put a stick of gum back in a pack of cards and remove those nefarious short prints from flagship. Who am I kidding, that's just asking too much.

6 comments:

GCA said...

I should set up a poll to see if there are really any collectors out there who actually buy more packs or boxes in order to chase short prints like this. Do they build multiple base sets because of all the extra cards they end up with? Does it work?
Or does everyone do what I do and look for them on the secondary market or trade SP's for SP's to get the specific ones they want?

GCA said...

Oh, and I long for the day that Topps finally comes to their senses and puts all the base cards in at the same rate in packs like the old days. Every time they do it, that product is more popular. But they never figure it out.

Fuji said...

I collect A's and Padres... but don't get caught up on having every single card out there. However... I've been in your shoes. Back in the day, I was addicted to getting as many Owen Nolan and Tony Gwynn cards. These days, I just take what I can get without paying any premiums.

Reds Card Collector said...

It's gotten to a point where I don't bust packs anymore. It's just too expensive to try and put together a team set that way. I'll just track them (and the short prints) down on eBay. Way cheaper. I think most if not all collectors would be content if short prints ceased to exist...at least in the flagship product.

Reds Card Collector said...

I'm almost to that point Fuji. It's almost become a chore to collect short prints and I know that when something becomes a chore it ceases to be a hobby and becomes work.

mike32 said...

DO YOU WANT A BUSINESS/INVESTMENT LOAN? Credit House IS HERE FOR YOU: lantexcreditfinancier@outlook.com

We’ve provided over $180 million in business loans to over 15,000 business owners just like you. We use our own designated risk technology to provide you with the right business loan so you can grow your business. Our services are fast and reliable, loans are approved within 72 hours of successful application. We offer loans from a minimum range of $5000 to a maximum of $500 million.

We are certified and your privacy is 100% safe with us. Worry no more about your loans or finances.
____________________________
Contact us today via:
lantexcreditfinancier@outlook.com

Get your instant loan approval today.