Stay Away From SP Authentic and other Hot Packs

Posted on 02/12/2010 by gellman

I have some simple advice for you, but honestly, if you arent living by it already, something is wrong. Basically, from the beginning, I have said to stay far away from advertised hot packs on ebay unless you enjoy cheap jersey cards. This has become even more true with the recent release of 2009 SP Authentic, because its so easy to tell where the main box hits are in each box. In addition, there are sellers who will try to scam you into thinking that a retail pack is actually a hobby pack, thus putting you even further into a bad situation.

Now, many people think pack searchers are the scum of the hobby, but I have a little bit of a different take on it. Although I don’t support their trade, I don’t see how its that relevant anymore, unless it’s a case as stated above. Frankly, if you are going to Target to buy packs for hits, you should know that it is about as futile and worthless as another Indiana Jones movie. In addition, the sales of hot packs have hit the floor lately since jersey cards arent worth more than a few dollars anymore. Therefore, it really isnt that big of a deal when you see someone searching packs these days. Its mainly because of the fact that they probably wont be able to recoup cost so its their loss to try. Without getting into my case against retail purchases versus hobby purchases, SP Authentic creates a different problem for people who don’t know any better.

Because the retail products and hobby products are so different (they are completely different checklists), but still look similar in name and packaging, it leaves a window for exploitation. On top of that, hobby packs advertised as a guaranteed “something” are either resealed crap hits to make you think you have a shot at a Sanchez, or left over packs with the base rookie autos that arent worth anything. It is almost NEVER the case that you have a non-tampered or non-scouted pack, so don’t even think about buying them.

AGAIN, DO NOT BUY HOT PACKS – YOU ARE WASTING YOUR MONEY.

I know most of you are aware of this scam, but I wanted to post it for the newer readers who don’t know the history.

SCU Breaks – 5 Boxes 2009 SP Authentic Football

Posted on 02/11/2010 by gellman

This will be a 5 box break, standard rules, one slot equals two random teams. 16 slots at 33 bucks a pop to cover paypal fees and shipping supplies/cost. There is a limit of two slots per person, and your name will not be posted until you have sent paypal to the address. If money is left over because of a cheaper box price, it will be refunded.

If you are interested in non-numbered non-rare base cards, please let me know ahead of time. There is a ton of them for this product, and I would much rather avoid the extra costs for EVERYONE by not including them in the price of shipping. I will oblige if you are nice, but with 3 hits per box and 15 hits total, hopefully there will be something for everyone.

Payments need to be sent to gellmana@gmail.com, and you will receive all cards from the teams you are randomly assigned. I will NOT be participating in this break, so there wont be any reason for me to scam you. Videos for random and break will be posted on the SCU youtube channel for your viewing pleasure. Slots are listed below, please allow me time to see your payment before sending me hate mail.

1. Brian R (PAID)

2. Leonard G (PAID)

3. Chad C (PAID)

4. Voluntarheel (PAID)

5. Voluntarheel (PAID)

6. Thomas W (PAID)

7. Thaddius D (PAID)

8. Daniel V (PAID)

9. Bruce H (PAID)

10. Bruce H (PAID)

11. Ryan LF (PAID)

12. Ryan LF (PAID)

13. Andrew H (PAID)

14. Eric I (PAID)

15. Eric I (PAID)

16. Josh B (PAID)

NOTE: There were four people who wanted in for the last spot, and I will refund your money and keep you on a waiting list. If spots open up, they will be inserted automatically. Sorry!

Countdown to 2009 SP Authentic Football – ONE FREAKING DAY.

Posted on 02/11/2010 by gellman

Man I am excited, because tomorrow, 2009 SP Authentic Football goes live per numerous reports. Although the quality of the final product is still very much up in the air due to recent lawsuits against Upper Deck (as well as numerous delays), my level of anticipation is still in the stratosphere.

Personally, I wasn’t too excited about the design when it came out a few months ago, but now, thanks to the lack of good products, its prospects have me raring to go bust a case and a half. The product is slated to feature 100% on card autos, which is a breath of fresh air from Panini/Topps sticker city, though again, quality is yet to be determined on what is going to be in the actual boxes. The autos could be tons of redemptions which I will not waste my time on, or they could be mostly packed out, to which I will be making my paypal account cry.

My favorite new additions to the set are definitely the jumbo patch autos, and if we have gotten any clues from Ultimate Baseball, these could turn out to be the best cards of the year. I am one of those people that loves signed memorabilia cards, and to have a shot at some in this product is ridiculously cool. We already know they are going to be a big part of Exquisite, and these look to be the precursor to everything.

Most importantly are the rookie super patch autos, which look great for the umpteenth year in a row. If you want to see consistency, run through my retrospective I did over on the UD blog. There isnt a bad year, and that is INCREDIBLY tough to accomplish. The only other product that comes close is Topps Chrome, which I raved similarly about earlier this year.

Regardless of how you feel about the actual company, its hard to argue against a product that produces the way SPA does every year. Although it hasn’t been without problems in the past, the cards that people covet run rampant through this set because of the awesome designs and concepts that have graced the cardboard since its inception.

You may be pissed that SPA has been delayed for multiple weeks, but to that I say that quality is quality. If it indeed lives up to the billing, which is at about 50/50 odds right now, this could be one of the best products in a long time. If it falls short due to recent problems with the company, I am going to be one pissed off motherfucker. You don’t fuck up SPA, it’s the one final bright spots in the year, and right now things arent looking promising. It will only take a matter of days to get a true grasp, and I am praying for a rain of awesomeness.

Upper Deck Blog: SP Authentic Retrospective

Posted on 09/14/2009 by gellman

Yes, yes, everyone knows that I love SPA. Its my favorite set of the year, so I put together a look back at the different rookie patches and rookie auto patches as a complement to the recent previews. You can take a look at the article over on the UD blog, hopefully the set will live up to my expectations this year. Looks pretty good so far.

SP Authentic Rookies: A Retrospective

First Look: 2009 SP Authentic Football

Posted on 09/04/2009 by gellman

Upper Deck posted the SPA photos today on their facebook page, and when I saw the post, my heart jumped. SP Authentic is my favorite set of the year, which means that its pretty much a holiday when I can see how its going to look. This year, I kind of had an initial poor reaction to the new design, but I think I have warmed up now. Of course, now that SP officially stands for “Smoky Players, ” ill let you guys see for yourselves why I had the initial reaction I did.

I will say this, the rookie jumbo patch signatures look like they could be some of the coolest cards released during the entire year. Football hasnt seen signed swatches like this since 2006 Exquisite, so Im glad to see that they are making a comeback. Also, the Rookie Authentics dont look all that bad, and the team color elements on a white background does look nice. Im not getting why UD chose smoke as the theme for the set, as the simplicity of the design without the smoke would be amazing. Maybe we will get lucky and it wont be as noticible.