Wax Breaker

Hiatus

2008-12-11T14:07:00.002-05:00

Wax Breaker will be going on [official] hiatus until my trip back to Denver in a couple of weeks. Spud and I will be picking up a couple boxes of cards once I'm back in the Mile High City and doing some updates. Until then, I'll be doing any pack breaks and what not on Tulo Trader.

Hope this Thursday finds you well.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Back for More...

2008-11-29T23:23:00.003-05:00

It's been a long couple of months. If you have suspected Wax Breaker or Tulo Trader of "blog burnout"... I don't blame you. That fact of the matter is that Spud and I haven't been as dedicated as some of the other greats in the sports card blogospehere as of late, but we're not done yet. We've had a case of the "real life blues" which has kept us from updates, but we'll be back ASAP.

The scanner is out of commission right now, but I'd like to share with you a quick story from the latest trip to Target. I thought it'd be a great idea to pick up a pack of both UD Masterpieces Football and Baseball... well, to preface the story, let me remind you that I'm a die-hard Washington Redskins and Colorado Rockies fan.

Card #1 of UD Masterpieces Football: Tony Romo

Fantastic. Though I have the biggest man-crush on Brett Favre, I refuse to acknowledge the media's statement that Tony Romo is the next Fahv-ray.

Card #1 of UD Masterpeices Baseball: Matt Holliday

Don't get me started.

Cards to come soon, but don't hold your breath. It might be a few days. Be sure to check out the blogroll for some relevant blogs. Those guys get it done!

Updated Blogger Features

2008-09-18T00:55:00.002-04:00

This has absolutely nothing to do with wax or even the breaking of wax, but it does have something to do with blogging, specifically with Blogger.com.

A new feature that I find nifty is the 'Following' feature. It's unique to the Blogger interface and I must say I'm a fan. For all of you Blogger users, check out this informative link.

I'll have some new pack breaks soon, but I'm currently on the DL. I'm injured... injured bad.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Week 2 Still The Same

2008-09-16T14:20:00.004-04:00

Ahoy,

Week two in the NFL has just come to an end and I'm still number one in my fantasy league. My recent success in drafting my team based on football cards has got me wondering if the same method will succeed in other facets of life. For Example: Why not take 10 packs of cards to Vegas with me in October and put 100 dollars down on a 10 game parlay with each pack deciding who will win. I think it may be worth a shot....

Any who I was wondering if anyone has their want/trade lists for football cards up. Also, I recently visited the hobby shop and bought a small chunk of cards. I'll have a breakdown of all of that tomorrow on my cherished day off.

I will leave you all with this question: Who do you start in week 3...? Brett Favre or Jason Campbell.

-Spud

What Would We Do Without Our Close Friends

2008-09-11T01:45:00.004-04:00

I gotta give a special shout out to J.C.F. for "not burning the house down" while I was gone. He kept Wax Breaker going these past 5 months or so and without him you would still be seeing old posts about co-signers 08. So Thank you J.C.F. you're a damn good friend and an even better blogger.

-Deuces

Woowee It's Been a While

2008-09-11T00:57:00.005-04:00

Hello fellow bloggers and readers of Waxbreaker,

I'm finally secure with a new condo, the internet(finally), and enough fundage to keep them both in line. Its good to finally be back to see that Waxbreaker is still up and running.

On my hiatus I was still able to keep up with all things card collecting via 1-2 hour long conversations with my buddy J.C.F. I saw the rise and somewhat fall of the retro sets and the slow completion of this years baseballs sets. I'm guessing that all baseball has left this year is Topps sterling which always pumps out some sweet cards. Too bad you have to make more money than I do to buy a pack but at least I can drool over someone opening a pack online. On the other hand football is in full swing and with the unlimited amount of sets they can throw at us I should be busy for a while.

While I was away I was able to get my hands on a box of A&G and a few packs of Goudy. I must say I still love A&G. I was lucky enough to pull 3 jerseys and a bat out of my box even though I was really looking forward to pulling that Abe Lincoln pubic hair.... As far as Goudey is concerned I could give a damn what Ken Griffey Jr or Derek Jeter have to say. What a waste of card space...OY. I was impressed with series 2 Topps and their silk collection cards. To finish baseball off I picked up some of the Topps and bowman chrome. Nothing too impressive out of the packs but I really enjoy that everything gets mixed together and chromed.

Football is a different story completely. So far I have grabbed a pack of stadium club that yielded a Johnathan Stewart jersey, a couple packs of Topps, and I did my entire fantasy draft based on a box of upper deck 08. Strangely enough I'm first place in my league after week one. I felt like a moron having to take Reggie Wayne as my first rounder but hey at least i didn't pull a Tom Brady card (suckers).

Simple layout for my draft:
-First pack first card= 1st round pick
-Second pack second card= 2nd round pick.. so on and so forth
-If that player is taken go to the next card
-If you have no more spots available for that position go to next card
It is a lot of fun and somehow it is paying off. The truth is I just wanted an excuse to buy cards haha.

I really look forward to catching up on every bodies blogs in the next few days. I am also going to have a talk with J.C.F. about some contest ideas and upcoming box/pack breaks.

Thank you all for reading the blog it means a lot to see you all return day after day even if there isn't any new content.

-Spud

3,000 Hit Club

2008-09-08T11:57:00.003-04:00

Thank you to all of the readers of this little ol' blog that was started earlier this year. We have eclipsed 3,000 hits on the site and we look forward to amping it up and improving content in the near future.

Thanks and happy collecting,

J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Topps Chrome (Retail)

2008-09-08T11:52:00.006-04:00

There's a story behind this pack, which you can read at Tulo Trader. I'm just going to get right into it:

64 Mark Buehrle

97 TROY TULOWITZKI REFRACTOR

151 Curtis Granderson

215 Kyle McClellan

First Tulo pull in a while, so that was quite exciting... and a refractor!

I'll be back on the ball later this week... and word is Spud will be making his return!

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

2008 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects @ Wax Heaven

2008-09-05T22:51:00.001-04:00

Mario broke it first, like always, so head on over to Wax Heaven for a preview.

So pumped up for this set!

Reaching Both Sides of the Aisle...

2008-09-03T19:26:00.001-04:00

What are you thinking, Topps?

Set Building: 2008 UD Goudey

2008-09-02T16:59:00.004-04:00

While looking through the latest packs and blasters of cards I've bought, I have realized that I'm almost pot-committed to completing the 2008 Upper Deck Goudey set, which I hope to do within the next couple of weeks. This is where I currently stand:

Base Set: 85/200

Baseball Greats Subset (SP's): 4/30 (Carlton Fisk, Wade Boggs, Tony Gwynn, Ozzie Smith)

United States Presidents Subset: 2/20 (Martin Van Buren, Andrew Jackson)

1936 Goudey Subset: 1/20 (David Ortiz)

Sports Royalty Subset: 5/60 (Bruce Jenner, Cael Sanderson, Julie Foudy, Kerri Walsh, Sidney Crosby)

Overall Set Completion: 97/330 = 29.39%

I would say that these stats are out of two retail blasters, four hobby packs and five retail packs. I also have quite a few duplicates, mainly of Carlos Pena, Joe Morgan, Chin-Lung Hu and a few others including doubles of the David Ortiz '36. Luckily in this last blaster, I pulled Tulo's base card which I will feature on Tulo Trader at some point. I might go ahead and pick up a hobby box in the near future, seeing as I've pulled many of the same players from the retail blasters. I'm also way behind on the subsets so I'm hoping that can fill in some gaps.

Now that I am officially putting this set together, I figure I might go ahead and let you all know what I need. If you too are building this set, shoot me an email with what you need and I'll send over any dupes that I might have.

I thank you all in advance for any help you might be of, and as always, let me know how I can help your collection! That's all for today.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Video Box Break: 2008 Goudey Blaster (Retail)

2008-09-01T03:32:00.002-04:00

Another GREAT video box break of 2008 Goudey for ya. I need to start making these things a little more exciting...

Check it out by clicking on the image or the link to Viddler.com

Send Me Your Want Lists!

2008-08-30T00:51:00.003-04:00

What teams/players do you collect? What cards do you need to finish a set?

Shoot me an email with your want lists and I'll do my best to fill in the gaps! My commons box is growing to epic proportions, and quite frankly, I'd rather give the majority of these cards to good homes as opposed to a box where they'll never see sunlight again. Have a great weekend and be safe.

- J.C.F.

Great Read: Sports Cards Uncensored

2008-08-29T13:45:00.003-04:00

First, I want to note than any pieces I post on Wax Breaker are my views only and do not reflect those of any other authors, past, present or future, of this site.

On that note, check out Gellman's post over at Sports Cards Uncensored. I think he hit the nail on the head this time, like always.

Video Pack Break: 2008 Upper Deck Football (Hobby)

2008-08-29T11:59:00.001-04:00

Just a quick video pack break of 2008 Upper Deck Football. You can view it over at Viddler.com.

And no, I didn't pull this AP Auto. Photo borrowed from UpperDeck.com.

J.C.F. Want List Updated!

2008-08-29T01:59:00.001-04:00

I have completely overhauled my want list, so just something to keep in mind if you any players included are dying to hop out of your 5,000-count boxes and into the mail. Again, feel free to send me a list of players/teams you collect, and if our agendas don't conflict or a particular card is part of a set I'm completing, I'll send it out to ya if I own it. No strings attached.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Upper Deck Goudey (Retail)

2008-08-28T23:59:00.000-04:00

At the time that this post was authored, I was spent from a long day of taking Ol' Red to the vet and wedding planning. On that note, I'll keep this one short and sweet...

178 Carlos Pena

140 Ryan Howard

36 Kosuke Fukudome

166 Felix Hernandez... E-3 in the background

163 Juan Marichal

59 Grady Sizemore

40 Mark Buehrle and his giant glove

170 Wladimir Balentien... these cartoon first basemen suck.

Be sure to watch out for those "sneaky sigs"... Goudey is tricky this year.

Pack Break: 2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes (Hobby)

2008-08-28T12:01:00.001-04:00

Or, "The Poor Man's Moments & Milestones" as I like to call it. Eight cards per pack including one parallel. Scans accompanied by text directly from the back of the card.

Here we go...

162 Stan Musial
1948 - Wins third NL MVP Award
One of the most affable and accomplished players ever to suit up in the Major Leagues, Musial was a three-time NL Most Valuable Player for the Cardinals. After claiming MVP honors in 1943 and 1946, the lefty led the Senior Circuit in batting average (.376), runs (135) and RBI (131) in 1948 to add a third trophy.

53 C.C. Sabathia
2007 - Wins AL Cy Young Award
One of the game's most consistent hurlers through his first six seasons, Sabathia won at least 11 games, threw over 180 innings and fanned more than 135 batters each year from 2001-06. In 2007, the lefty won the AL Cy Young Award as he eclipsed his career highs by posting 19 wins, 241 innings and 209 K's.

166 Scott Kazmir
2007 - Leads American League in K's
After winning 10 games and topping 160 K's in each of his first two full seasons with Tampa Bay, Kazmir made a significant leap in 2007 by leading the American League with 239 punchouts. The left-hander finished the year on a roll by notching double-digit strikeouts in four of his final seven contests.

Three lefties in a row...

68 Hanley Ramirez (Green Parallel, #418/499)
2006 - Wins NL Rookie of the Year Award
Few Major League rookies have ever hit the ground running like Ramirez did in 2006. On his way to NL ROY honors, the Marlins shortstop became the first NL newcomer to score over 110 runs and steal over 50 bases. He was also the fifth ML player since 1900 with over 45 doubles and 50 steals.

88 Brad Penny
2006 - Named MLB All-Star Game Starter
With a 10-2 record during the opening half of the 2006 season, it was easy to understand why Penny was selected as the National League starting hurler for the MLB All-Star Game. After pitching in the Midsummer Classic, the righty finished the season tied for the NL lead with 16 triumphs.

155 Erik Bedard
2007 - Leads AL in K's Per Nine Innings
It was a year of strikeouts for Bedard in 2007, and that was just fine with the left-hander and the Orioles. He fanned 10.93 batters every nine innings last year, which was the best mark in the AL. Bedard had at least 10 K's on seven occasions with a season-high 15 taking place on 7/7 against Texas

191 Chase Utley - 2B, Ryan Howard - 1B, Jimmy Rollins - SS
2007 - Philadelphia Wins the NL East Division
In 2007, the Phillies celebrated their first NL East Division title since 1993 thanks in large part to the tremendous play of Utley, Howard and Rollins. Philadelphia ended the year on a 13-4 run as its trio of superstars combined for 21 homers, 59 RBI and 63 runs during the final month of the season.

127 Joe DiMaggio
1941 - Hits Safely in 56 Straight Games
Named the AL Most Valuable Player in 1941, DiMaggio embarked on a batting binge the likes of which have never been seen in the Majors. The Yankees superstar went 1-for-4 on 5/15 against Chicago to start an MLB record 56-game hitting streak that finally came to an end on 7/17 at Cleveland.

Whatcha think? This is no doubt a fun set and I'll continue to pick up a pack or two whenever I'm in the shop. The highlights are the cards of the retired ballers and how their heroic moments or feats completely dominate those of the newer guys in most cases. DiMaggio and Penny are not even worthy of a comparison, but each team is covered with at least one representative in the series. I have four more packs to break and will share those with you whenever I'm feeling the itch to type.

- J.C.F.

Instant Replay... (Cont'd)

2008-08-27T21:03:00.008-04:00

Injustice in sports, the officiating of course, on any level, is just that... injustice. Whether in The Bigs or in Babe Ruth; in the NFL or in Pop Warner, the wrong call on a play can change the entire outcome of a game. As a high school lacrosse coach, it upsets me to watch poor (and even overzealous) officiating make an appearance in a game. I know what I put my kids through each and every day in practice and to watch an official take the game out of their hands, the hands of the players who work their tails off day in and day out simply for a taste of victory, is more infuriating than many things I come across in life.

So, one would think that I would be a huge proponent of instant replay in Major League Baseball. To tell you the truth, I'm not. It took me weeks to convince myself that replay for homerun calls was something that needed to be implemented. For some reason I hold baseball to this different standard than any other sport. To me, this sport is sacred... it's our national pastime... it's historic... it's a little bit of America sliced up into 27 outs each day... it's the human element of a basic game.

But, I'm no idiot.

Garrett Atkins hit what should have been a homerun in the 163rd regular season game of the 2007 campaign. A homerun hit in a game known for a questionable call at home plate. A "safe" call when Matt Holliday came barreling down the third base line, sliding head first into home plate. A play where the future NLCS MVP had his sights set on a man in pseudo-body armor. A play that began in the right hand of Padres' pitcher, Jake Peavy, en route to the barrel of Jamey Carroll's bat. A play that saw its way into the glove of Padres' outfielder, Brian Giles, and ended in the catcher's mitt of Michael Barrett. A play that ultimately ended with a gash on a chin and countless bottles of champagne being popped throughout the Mountain Time Zone, including one in the suite from which I watched the game in-person.

But this homerun, a ball sent screaming all the way to dead center field and hitting a row of seats in a handicap accessible row, bounced back into the field of play resulting in a heads-up double by Garrett Atkins. Though I remember this "double" as if it had happened yesterday, I vaguely remember the angst associated with the call. I think I might have even demanded instant replay to be implemented on the spot. My memory, however, was far from its sharpest as I found myself lost in the midst of a magical run to the World Series and the subsequent Budweiser ingestion associated with something of this magnitude. A good friend of mine and General Manager of Jackson's Sports Rock in Lower Downtown actually called this homerun prior to the pitch from Jake Peavy. This homerun, however, doesn't exist in the record books as though the Gods of Baseball knew that leaving this game tied would make for one helluva ending.

If the Rockies had lost this game, I might have been quicker to agree with the decision to introduce instant replay to the game.

My indecision was, and is, due to my fear of what might happen. The very second that the game cracks the door open for an advancement like replay, it faces threats of a possible invasion of a technological revolution. This game and its integrity need not to have each and every call criticized by high-definition cameras and snail's-pace slow-mo, but I fear that's what might happen.

What is the strongest argument for instant replay? From a common sense point of view, it is [simply] as follows: If a play can be called right, then it should be called right.

And I agree wholeheartedly. But this same section of the population will no-doubt have delegates parting ways with their "homerun only" party members in support of the idea of replay for calls at 1st base; for balls and strikes; for diving outfield snags; for players hit by pitches. It's amazing what a single bad call against the Red Sox, the Yankees, the Dodgers and the Cubs can do to wash the brains of an overwhelming majority.

Listen, calls need to be correct and players need to be rewarded for their accomplishments. They call football a game of inches, but in many ways baseball is just as critical. Ball vs. Strike; Fair vs. Foul; Safe vs. Out...

The human element of this simple game is something that makes our sport special, but the aforementioned situations can make-do without K-Zone and the yet-to-be-named 1st base dugout cam. Call me old fashioned, call me a traditionalist, but don't tell me that the game will be better, faster and more pure with increased dissection and real-time umpire evaluation outside of homerun calls.

And whatever you do, please don't tell me that implementing instant replay at THIS point in the season is fair, reasonable or even righteous. It's no different than mandating ten defensive players on the field or running the basepaths clockwise mid-season. But, it is what it is...

... and it is blasphemy.

- J.C.F.

Images borrowed from Fenway West and The Reality Check, respectively.

This Racket is Authentic

2008-08-27T11:35:00.000-04:00

I was over at White Sox Cards checking out the latest news from the Southside when I came across a link in Steve's blogroll. As you can imagine by reading the title of the latest post on Sports Card Info, I couldn't continue browsing until I checked this out.

Pack Break: 2008 Bowman Chrome (Hobby)

2008-08-27T10:00:00.004-04:00

I'm doing absolutely no research on per pack odds with this one. Here's two packs of '08 Bowman Chrome Baseball, fresh from the hobby shop:

Pack 1:

Vladimir Guerrero

Gary Matthews (Refractor)

Elvin Ramirez

Kai Liu

Pack 2:

Chris Young

Kevin Youkilis (Refractor)

Heath Rollins

Andrew Romine

So, it looks like two vets per pack including one refractor along with two prospects. Dayf at A Pack A Day and Cardboard Junkie put together his "second annual 'Bowman Chrome Is A Crappy Rip' memorial post" earlier today featuring a retail pack of the latest Bowman baseball release. Be sure to check it out.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Instant Replay...

2008-08-26T23:20:00.003-04:00

This should have waited for the 2009 season... bottom line. Just wait for the complaints from teams a game out of the playoffs that could have picked up a win on a controversial home run call. If there ever needs to be an asterisk in baseball, it needs to be branded beside the results of each game played from replay's inception until its departure (oh yeah, and next to the names of a handful of former MLBers).

And I swear to God, if the day comes when the owners vote for replay outside of this circumstance, I will boycott the MLB.

Check out the new poll and PLEASE feel free to share your thoughts on this.

Boom... outta here

- J.C.F.

Video Box Break: 2008 Topps Allen & Ginter Blaster (Retail)

2008-08-26T16:12:00.004-04:00

Check out the exhilarating 2008 Topps Allen & Ginter Blaster Break here at Viddler.com.

2008 Bowman Chrome Baseball pack breaks to come tomorrow, so check back in!

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Topps Stadium Club Football (Hobby)

2008-08-25T13:55:00.007-04:00

I took the plunge...

I headed into the local shop today to pick up some supplies, but in the back of my head I knew that I'd be leaving with more than penny sleeves and and a couple of packs of '08 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes. For weeks it's been tormenting me... do I drop a Jackson for a pack of six cards?
--------------------------
[Begin internal monologue]

It's not worth it. You've seen the retail stock, and it is modest at best.

But there's a guaranteed autograph or relic per pack!

So what, you'll probably pull a John David Booty game-used or Bernard Yvenson auto.

Yeah, but I might get a Chris Cooley auto!

There aren't any Cooley autos in this set, jackass.

Yeah, but there's a chance, right?

No, no chance. Save your money. Buy 40 cards for the same price. Don't be a Joe Collector.

Whatever... I'm doing it.

Joe Collector...

What??

Nothing...
--------------------------

Fifteen minutes and $60 later, I was the proud owner of a pack of 2008 Topps Stadium Club Football, five packs of Upper Deck Baseball Heroes (yeah, 5... leave me alone), two packs of penny sleeves and a couple of Ultra-Pro magnetic cases. All street cred went out the door with me in a small, brown paper bag. But, you're here for the break, so let's get to it.

Product Details*:

(More per pack odds listed than I'd like to type)

Configuration: 10 packs per box. 6 cards per pack.

Stadium Club Football celebrates its return for the 2008 NFL season, delivering 5 autographs and 5 relics per box! It also features the ever-popular Super Team Cards, which give fans a chance to win a special edition Stadium Club Football Set!

EVERY BOX CONTAINS:
- 5 Autographed Cards, including 4 Rookie Autos…1 of which will be a top ten pick!
- 5 Relic Cards!
- 10 numbered rookie cards!
- 10 numbered parallel cards!

EVERY 6-BOX CASE CONTAINS:
- 1 Super Team Card!

CONTENT BREAKDOWN
BASE CARDS - 20 pt. stock
- Veterans(100)
- Rookies(100) - 1 per pack! Seq. #'d to 1499 or less(includes parallel versions).

PARALLEL CARDS - 10 PER BOX!
- Platinum Photographer's Proofs(200) - All one of one! Hobby Exclusive!
- Gold Photographer's Proofs(200) - Seq. #'d to 50.
- Photographer's Proof(200) - Seq. #'d to 199.
- First Day Issue(200) - Seq. #'d to 1499.

AUTOGRAPHED CARDS - 5 PER BOX!
- Rookie Autographs(Up to 75) - At least 4 per box!
- Beam Team Autographs(30)
- Brett Favre Buybacks(1 subject)

All autos available in these parallels:
- Platinum - All one of one! Hobby Exclusive!
- Gold - Seq. #'d to 25.
- Foilboard - Seq. #'d to 50.

FRAMED PRINTING PLATES - HOBBY EXCLUSIVE!
- Autographed Rookie(75) - All one of one!
- Rookies(25) - All one of one!
- Veteran(100) - All one of one!

NEW! SUPER TEAM CARDS(32 teams) - 1 PER 6-BOX CASE!

RELIC CARDS - 5 PER BOX!
Beam Team Relics(25)
- Gold Parallel - Seq. #"d to 99.

Stadium Club Impact Triple Relics(50) - Seq. #'d to 99.
- Gold Parallel - Seq. #'d to 10.

Stadium Club Impact Dual Relics(50) - Seq. #'d to 199.
- Gold Parallel - Seq. #'d to 25.

Stadium Club Impact Relics(50) - Seq. #'d to 799.
- Gold Parallel - Seq. #'d to 50.

*Thanks to hagansp from the Sports Card Forum

And here we go...

82 Albert Haynesworth

69 Joey Galloway (Photographer's Proof, #60/199)

163 Jaymar Johnson (RC, #1065/1799)

IR-VY Vince Young (Impact Relic, #1257/1349)... this card is also known as 'The Dagger'

23 Anquan Boldin

5 Ben Roethlisberger

Ok, so a VY relic... I could have done a lot worse. All in all, I still feel the same about purchasing this pack. It's a little over-hyped and clearly aimed at the Joe Collectors of the world, but I think I paid close to the value of the individual cards included. I never think like that... that's how Joe thinks... but it's the only redemption I have for losing the aforementioned street cred.

What do you guys think? Good set or a disgrace to the Stadium Club name? I'm not sure if I'll buy another pack, let alone a box, but perhaps when another twenty-bones are burning a hole in my pocket I just might. I personally feel that the photography in this series cheapens the Stadium Club reputation as it has always been known for some great edge-to-edge shots. The action shots aren't that thrilling and the overall quality is lackluster. I'll leave that debate open.

Again, all cards are up for dibs (except for Johnson), but I'll reserve the VY for a trade... it's all I got!

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: '08 UD Goudey (Retail)

2008-08-25T01:18:00.015-04:00

Now it's time for Upper Deck's answer to Topps' Allen & Ginter. I love retro sets, especially when they emulate their inspiration. Upper Deck didn't stray too far from the 1934 Goudey design (correct me if I'm wrong) which was the model for the '08 set.

2008 Upper Deck Goudey (Photo stolen from Mario at Wax Heaven)

1934 Goudey

Odds per pack aren't listed on either the retail and hobby wrappers, but I can tell you that there are 8 cards per pack unless, of course, you pull something real purty like a game-used relic [foreshadowing statement]. Dave at Fielder's Choice has done both the dirty work as well as complete a pretty solid product review of a couple of boxes that you can check out. Dayf at Cardboard Junkie has done an equally impressive review as well. I'll let the big guns in the blogosphere share their opinions...

... I'll just rip it and write it.

Pack 1:

7 Mark Teixeira

152 Tom Gorzelanny

100 Chin-Lung Hu's ~~on first~~ at shortstop

189 Vernon Wells

137 Catfish Hunter

228 Bob Gibson (Mini/Red Back)

48 Joe Morgan

256 David Ortiz (1936 Black & White)... chest sweat is a glaring variation from the '36 design

Pack 2:

85 J.R. Towles

M-MB Mark Buehrle (Game-Used)... All yours, Steve

205 Carlton Fisk (Black Back)

100 Chin-Lung Hu (Mini/Blue Back)

92 Chone "Not Sean/I mean business" Figgins

111 Delmon Young

Obviously the Buehrle relic was the pull of the day, especially keeping in consideration the fact that these were retail packs. All-in-all, not too shabby, though I was expecting to see a larger variety of cards outside of the base set. A "Sports Royalty" or even a Yankee Stadium Legacy insert would have been kind of nice. I'm a big fan of the "throwback" cards like Catfish Hunter, Joe Morgan and Carlton Fisk, however.

I'm not sure if you'll see any box breaks of this '08 Goudey here at Wax Breaker, but I'll definitely purchase some more packs, both hobby and retail. I'll have a hobby pack break to come later in the week, so be sure to check back in for that.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: '08 A&G (Retail)

2008-08-24T19:15:00.014-04:00

More retail goodness today as I'm breaking some 2008 Topps Allen & Ginter retail. We'll do two packs today and save the third for later in the week.

We're looking at six (6) "Picture Cards" per pack with the following odds (hobby odds may vary):

(*Sequentially Numbered)

Short Pringed Base 1:2
Ginter Code/Worlds Greatest Victories 1:24 (Yes, I left out the apostrophe in World's. A glaring type-o on the package, though the cards are grammatically correct)
Short Print Parallel 1:13
Orange Cards 1:144
A&G Back Parallel 1:5
A&G Short Print Parallel 1:65
Black Bordered Parallel 1:10
Black Bordered Short Print 1:130
Parallel (No Card #'s) 1:151
*Parallel (Bazooka Back) 1:301
Mini World Leaders 1:12
Mini Ancient Icons 1:48
Baseball Icons 1:48
Framed Autograph:
- Group A 1:499
- Group B 1:446
- Group C 1:240
- Framed Autograph Relic 1:26,431
*Cut Signatures 1:138,500
Framed Relic:
- Group A 1:1,000
- Group B 1:265
- Group C 1:36
Framed DNA Relic:
- Group A 1:203,317
- Group B 1:264,312
Framed Originals 1:26,500

Now that that's out of the way...

Pack 1:

20 Vladimir Guerrero

57 Ben Sheets

71 Fausto Carmona

214 Dustin McGowan

WL46 World's Leaders: Tenzin Gyatso/Tibet (Mini)

US17 State of Kentucky/Brandon Webb

176 Claude Monet

Pack 2:

117 Jeff Niemann

159 James Shields... hmm, two Rays hurlers in a row.

105 Jonathan Papelbon... yet another AL East Pitcher

259 Francisco Rodriguez... hmm... yet another pitcher. This one, however, recorded his 50th save of the season this evening.

57 Ben Sheets (Mini)... Can a blogger get some offense?!?

Ginter Code/World's Greatest Victories: Jonas Salk... For some reason I'm willing to bet this guy pitched at some point in his life

122 The Gateway Arch... ahh, an inanimate object. This thing for sure has never stepped on a mound... or has it?

I realized I didn't scan many of the non-player cards like the Gateway Arch and Ginter Code, but here's the product sell sheet from Topps.com for more info and photos.

Though I realize I'm the last author in the blogosphere to address this set, I must say that I like this stuff, enough that I'd buy a box of it or complete the set. I don't see that in the near future as I just made a pretty large purchase, but I'd like to bust some more of this. The retail packs I've opened have had some nice stuff in them, though I'm 0 for 5 on Rockies, but maybe some hobby breaks can do the trick. Though I didn't pull it, I've acquired one of the cards I was hoping to in this set thanks to Eric in Minnesota.

I was happy to see that Topps made some variations and got away from '06 and '07 Allen & Ginter. They incorporated characteristics from the various original series as well, which at first glance might seem cheezy, but is a pretty solid move. The Ginter Code stuff is a bit absurd, especially considering that those cards take away from the six cards per pack, but I'm too easy going to form a particularly negative opinion on those.

As always, all cards shown on Wax Breaker (by me at least... not speaking for Spud) are up for dibs unless they're part of a set I'm building, going into my personal collection or are certain players/teams that I already set aside for traders. If you see any you like, shoot me an email and I'll let you know if they're available.

UD Goudey pack break to come tomorrow.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Topps Chrome Baseball (Retail)

2008-08-22T17:27:00.008-04:00

Wax Breaker is back with plenty of pack breaks to come. I've done my part to raid the local Target of its retail stock and here are the results:

2008 Topps Chrome (Retail)

Pack 1:

Joe Mauer (Refractor)... Beautiful card right off of the top

Travis Buck

Luis Castillo

Chipper Jones 50th Anniversary All-Rookie Team... another solid chrome card that is heading over to Cardboard Junkie

Pack 2:

Alfonso Soriano

Johan Santana

Jeff Niemenn (Blue Refractor)... gotta live shiny, colorful parallels!

Miguel Cabrera

I hated Topps '08, but the Chrome edition mesmerizes me... yeah, call me Joe Collector all you want. I'm not a fan of the four cards per pack, but I do like the fact that you seemingly get a refractor/parallel/insert/mirror/thingamajig per pack. Even the Trading Card History and 50th Anny Rooks are nice to see in each pack. Chances are I won't buy any of the hobby packs due to the ridiculous prices, but retail is fine by me. Three bucks ain't shabby with at least one decent card per pack.

As always, any of the cards that you see in pack breaks on Wax Breaker are up for dibs. Just shoot me an email if there's a card you like and I'll send it your way.

More Topps Chrome as well as some other '08 packs of baseball, football, and hockey cards to come.

**NOTE: All Yankees, Twins, White Sox, Marlins, Braves and Rockies are taken for. Any other team members are 1st come 1st serve**

Life Happens...

2008-08-11T19:34:00.002-04:00

It's been a hectic summer and this week is no different. I've been able to get some long awaited packages sent off in the past few days, so if you've been expecting one from me, keep your eyes peeled. Unfortunately, the blogs have taken some hits from the hustle and bustle of July/August, but we've got plenty of work to do including pack/box breaks of the latest '08 baseball sets including Topps Allen & Ginter and Upper Deck Goudey. Also, I'll be highlighting some additions to my personal collection on Wax Breaker as well as on Tulo Trader and Ironman Cards.

And just when you thought we were only highlighting baseball cards...

We'll have a box break of 2008 UD Football ready to go in no time.

Work with us as we get Wax Breaker [and friends] back online while we prep some great new material. Thanks for checking in!

- J.C.F.

Brett's a J-E-T Jet

2008-08-07T00:19:00.001-04:00

That's all for now... Wax Breaker is coming back online tomorrow!

Out of Town

2008-07-18T13:56:00.003-04:00

It's been too long... I'm on the road in Denver until August 1st, so the blogs will be taking an extended All-Star Break. I'm hoping to pick up some great Rockies cards while I'm here and, if so, I'll share those when I get back home to Florida.

You might have seen a post I made on Tulo Trader earlier this month about a great trader that contacted me. Well, he needs some help in both getting rid of some of his cards as well as adding to his collection. Eric was so kind to me and I'm going to help him out and post a pseudo-classified add for him.

Listen... he's got some great stuff. I was blown away with what he sent me; quality and rarity guaranteed. So, if you want to make some trades, hit him up. Here's a blurb on Eric's behalf:

"I recently got back into the hobby and went on a mass buying spree, trying to bolster a relatively anemic Yankees collection. Consequently, I am also getting ready to move to a new place and the less I have to bring with me, the better. That being said, I'm looking for other team collectors who want to do some trading. I'm getting rid of pretty much everything non-Yankee (save for the industry standards: Pujols, Griffey, Mauer) and would gladly trade a lot of 50-100 cards for a handful of guys I collect. I don't worry about getting strict Beckett value, I trust the fairness of other readers. In fact, I would rather somebody receive their cards from me first and send me what they think is an appropriate trade. If you want to send me a couple of nicer Jeter/Clemens cards, great. If you want to send me a boatload of Pettitte and Posada, equally great. Here's who I try to focus on (but am not limited to):

Derek Jeter
Andy Pettitte
Roger Clemens
Jorge Posada
Mariano Rivera
Joba Chamberlain
Alex Rodriguez
Don Mattingly
Phil Hughes
Ian Kennedy
Paul O'Neill
Bernie Williams

I don't need anything from the 80s - about 94. After that my collection really fell off. That being said, I will probably be mailing out a pair of shipments: the first would come from my place up here, which is 99.9% from the past couple of years. Back home I have a ton of cards from the previously mentioned time period, that I would rather see a team collector enjoy, and those would be mailed out in a seperate (much larger) shipment. If you're interested in acquiring a large amount of your team's cards, please contact me at epslette AT hotmail DOT com - no spam please.

Looking forward to hooking some collectors up and getting some nice Yankee stuff in the process!"

Bowman Loses a Slice of the Pie

2008-07-10T21:00:00.005-04:00

I'm heading down to West Palm Beach in the morning for two nights of Dave Matthews at the Cruzan Amphitheatre, but I wanted to give you all some reading material in case you haven't come across it already. Our 'friends' at Razor Collectibles, LLC. have really done on a number on my favorite set (Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects) in all of baseball card collecting. Haven't heard yet? Check out the links below to stories written by more talented bloggers than myself:

Razor takes a bite out of Topps? [Wax Heaven]

Razor Collectibles Signs MLB Draft Picks... [Sports Cards Uncensored]

Cutting into Topps [Stale Gum]

I'll be back in town on Sunday evening with some 80s wax. Have a safe weekend!

- J.C.F.

Operation '98 Metal Universe (Box 1/Pack 3)

2008-07-09T20:13:00.004-04:00

I can't believe it's taken me so long to get back to this. Here's pack #3 of my first box of '98 Fleer Metal Universe:

41 Scott Hatteberg with the bling of the Massachusetts Capitol Building shining in the background

185 Sean Estes... a Lefty Pitcher on the Left Coast

170 Mike Mussina in one of my favorite cards. "Moose" has the USS Constellation and Baltimore's Inner Harbor to his back

180 B.J. Surhoff... no, this Oriole isn't pictured in the Inner Harbor, but what appears to be a seaport. Good work, Fleer.

83 Hideo Nomo in Bat Country

70 Mark Grudzielanek fielding GBs near what must be the Laurentian Mountains

40 Will Clark's got it

201 Steve Woodard, like many others in this set, is out of this world

I hope I'm not wasting your time with dragging this box out. It's hard to see the scans due to the metallic backgrounds, so if you want me to focus on something else, shoot me an email. Don't worry, I take criticism well.

That's it for today.

- J.C.F.

A-Rod Singles as Yanks Have Night Off

2008-07-07T21:19:00.003-04:00

It's official (or is it?)... A-Rod's wife files for divorce

Pack Break: 2006 Fleer Ultra

2008-07-07T15:46:00.003-04:00

Here's another from the Target packs. No hits in this one... I lied.

Here we go...

SOK2 Johan Santana

130 Hank Blalock
74 Victor Martinez

18 Rich Harden
DP14 Derrek Lee

90 Juan Encarnacion
146 Garrett Atkins

52 Jorge Cantu

Good pack, good series. The inserts in this pack are pretty nifty as well. Can't complain when I pull a Mile High-er.

Happy Fourth!

2008-07-03T16:56:00.001-04:00

I'm taking the weekend off for Independence Day festivities and a trip to Daytona for the Coke Zero 400. Have a safe and happy weekend!

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2007 Topps Turkey Red [Retail]

2008-07-02T17:05:00.006-04:00

The local target it trying to get rid of some retail packs of '07 and older product and despite my need to tighten up on spending dough, how can you turn down $0.99 to $1.52 packs of cards? I snagged 4 packs today, all of which had a hit a piece (surprisingly)... not too bad for $4 worth of retail wax.

Here we go...

30 Barry Bonds, lacrosse arm guard and all

41 Barry Zito
164 Jorge Posada

59 Carlos Beltran

12 Orlando Hernandez
37 Edgar Renteria
114 Gary Matthews (Refractor, #1154/1999)

11 Kenji Johjima
## Topps of the Class waste of space

Ok, that was weird... Follow me on this:

A) Two Giants with the same first name to start

B)Posada, who plays with former Zito teammate Giambi, and currently plays in New York

C) A second New Yorker from the other team in Carlos Beltran

D) A third New Yorker that's played for both teams in the Big Apple, but is currently playing with the NL East's Mets in "El Duque" (all three are Hispanic as well)

E) A Mets' rival in the Braves' Renteria

F) Then Gary Matthews who shares a former teammate with Renteria (Mark Teixeira, Rangers/Braves)

G) And to wrap it up, another AL Wester [like Matthews] in Johjima

I don't know how valid/relevant that is, but it was kinda creepy to bust. I'm not gonna lie... the Renteria/Matthews relationship was a stretch. I just wanted to figure out a link so the pack was complete and I could hype it up even more.... whatever.

Good pack, I think. Most of them will end up going somewhere in a trade or on eBay, aside from the Posada... that's a dope card.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Operation: '98 Metal Universe (Box 1/Pack 2)

2008-06-30T20:17:00.008-04:00

I want to apologize as it's been a few days since the last post. I was celebrating a birthday last weekend and, well, things got a little crazy. So I'm back with pack #2 of the amazingly B.A. Metal Universe box break. For the record, I can't wait to get my hands on some more of this stuff... it keeps me young.

Here we go...

74 Edgar Martinez (DH) with the Space Needle appropriately located in the background

193 Gary Sheffield rounding the bases, errr check that... enjoying the sights in the MIA

11 Bernie Williams with a flexed bat... on a FREAKING FRONT-LOADER! God, I love this stuff. Have I mentioned that yet?

87 Tony WHOA-mack... yeah, that's a Cessna in the background

22 Bobby Bonilla sans batting gloves accompanied by the Seven Mile Bridge

182 Alan Benes is literally out of this world

115 Jeff King and his epic mustache caught on the tracks

59 Tom Glavine's not out of the woods yet

Aside from the general awesomeness of this set, one of my favorite aspects can be seen when comparing the Edgar Martinez card to Glavine's card in this pack. Martinez is featured in front of a prominent Seattle landmark while Glavine looks like an 'Other' trying to defend the Dharma Initiative and its cause rather than pitching for Atlanta, a town not known for its natural landscapes. All the more reason to love this set.

Check back tomorrow for pack #3!

- J.C.F.

Operation: '98 Metal Universe (Box 1/Pack 1)

2008-06-28T02:00:00.002-04:00

No, I haven't gone crazy. The title is correct. Yes, I am a 1998 Fleer Metal Universe fan and you can't stop me. I completely missed out on this set in '98, most likely because I was carried away at the time with Fleer Ultra. Anyway, a few weeks ago I was rummaging though the Colorado Rockies commons box at the local shop when I came across two cards that both made me laugh while inspiring me more than you could imagine. When I saw these beautiful pieces of work, I began to stop by the shop a little more frequently and take a look through other commons boxes of other teams for this newly discovered Metal Universe set.

Needless to say, there were only so many Metal Universe cards from the '98 series in the shop... and I came home with all of them (roughly 42). That, clearly, was not going to give me my fix. I decided to hop on the interwebs and start looking for unopened hobby boxes of the product (ok, maybe I am crazy)... and I found one for $25.99.

Yeah, I bought it and it will NOT be the last box I purchase. I was going to do a box break for ya, but I decided to break it up into individual pack-break posts so that you could savor the goodness. I'll give you some info on the set first, then get to the reviews.

According to the Sports Collectors Digest, 2008 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards (17th Edition):

"This 220-card single series release captured players over a foil etched, art background that related in some way to them or the city they played in. Metal Universe included a 15-card Hardball Galaxy subset..." "The set arrived with a parallel called Precious Metal Gems, and included the following insert sets: All-Galactic Team, Diamond Heroes, Platinum Portraits, Titanium and Universal Language."

I received the box on Tuesday, and it felt like the birthday I was to have the next day had come early. I grabbed the package from the mailbox, ran inside, and immediately started busting it with a house full of company. I digress, however...

In the box, we're looking at 24 packs with 8 cards per pack and the most absurdly amazing background shot on each card. Unfortunately, the metallic backgrounds on the cards are done no justice by the scanner.

To start, each pack comes with a 1998 Acclaim All-Star Baseball (N64) promo/official entry 'flyer' with none other than Larry Walker blessing the cover (as he did for the game as well). Unfortunatley, the deadline for all entries was September 30th, 1998.

Now that I've wasted enough of your day, I'll go ahead with the pack break (scan below):

146 Roberto Alomar swimmin' with the fishes
184 Tony 'The Tiger' Clark... I'll take the actual tiger in this footrace
37 Robin Ventura going for a chopper/fly ball on the Southside
45 Paul Molitor running away from/racing some sort of bullet train/mass transit that obviously does not exist in the Twin Cities

116 Matt Williams (displayed in an Indians uni... common theme in this set) playing third base on some scaffolding... no biggie

199 Derek Jeter with Lady Liberty to his back
52 Henry Blanco popping up on the surface of the moon, or similar
152 Mickey Morandini (Phils uni) throwing to first but playing somewhere other than Chicago

I really wish I could get a scan that would show the beautiful ridiculousness of these cards, but that technology doesn't exist (in my world) quite yet.

That's it for today, but expect some more hilarity in the future. Also, if anyone has any cards from this set and are willing to trade, shoot me an email and let me know what you'd like in return.

Completely obsessed...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2007 Bowman Baseball

2008-06-27T12:00:00.000-04:00

For a good review of the product, check out Chris' HTA break over at Stale Gum or Thorzul's hilarious [and historically accurate] pack break at A Pack A Day. I'll save most of the details and get right into it.

One pack of '07 Bowman Baseball, 10 (or sometimes 11...) cards/pack

Here we go...

36 Jorge Posada
180 Johnny Damon (is this a Yanks pack??)
20 Nick Markakis (maybe not... AL East much?)
37 Brian Bannister
211 Jerry Owens (RC)
158 Aramis Ramirez (finally, some NL action)

BC88 Duke Dardinha (1st BowChro)
BC45 John Otness (1st BowChro)

BP109 Ryan Mullins (Gold/1st Bowman)
BP79 Doug Deeds (1st Bowman)
BP96 Vincent Blue (1st Bowman)

Count it... 11 cards. Other than that, pretty standard. I must add that I picked up both this pack and the previously reviewed pack and snagged Rockies in both. I wish that happened every time. Maybe my luck could rub off on them and they could WIN A DAMN GAME.

... Outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Topps Chrome

2008-06-26T20:40:00.005-04:00

When I saw the local card shop selling hobby packs of this product for over $4, I thought I'd never touch this stuff. Well, it seems as though this price gouging was due to the early availability of Chrome as they had it on sale the day prior to official release.

Oops, should I have kept that to myself?

By now you should know the deal... If not, check it out here.

Here we go...

220 Brian Bass
38 Justin Upton
C200 Steve Pearce (Heritage Rookie Insert) [0918/1959]
185 Brad Hawpe (Gotta love a Rockies pull)

Topps '08 and I don't really get along, but Chrome wasn't half bad for the following reasons:

1) $3/pack
2) Shiny, Shiny, Shiny
3) Sweet inserts/parallels/refractors in every pack [or close to it]
4) Pulled a Rockie

The sad part is that I had planned on picking up a pack of something old school for cheap, but everything pre-2007 is outrageously priced at this joint due to the possibility of pulling ManRam, Jeter, or Jose friggin Reyes rookie cards. I guess that box of 1992 Bowman will remain completely stocked with the packs it left the factory with because $17/pack ain't gonna move any product.

I'm amazingly bitter all of a sudden.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: '07 Bowman BDP&P Sesh #5

2008-06-24T23:59:00.000-04:00

The store is officially sold out of BDPP, thanks to yours truly, but the last few packs have been pretty hot. I'll space them out, but check this first one:

BDP34 Matt Brown
BDP51 Kevin Slowey
BDPP92 Chin-Lung Hu

BDPP103 Jay Bruce

BDPP101 Johnny Whittleman (Chrome)
BDPP46 Josh Horton (Chrome Blue Refractor, #185/199)

BDPP97 Brent Lillibridge (Gold)

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Graphic Design Help?

2008-06-24T02:29:00.003-04:00

Ok, so I'm thinking Wax Breaker needs a bit of a facelift. The cute 'check out the new blog' look has come and gone after four months of operation and now I would like to extend an invitation to the readers.

If anyone would be willing to put some time and effort into designing a header/banner for the site, Wax Breaker might be willing to return the favor in a somewhat generous fashion, whether we send out a box of cards or something similar to the reader who designs the best logo.

Details to come in the near future, but keep the thought in mind. I'll also be needing some help with my new collection blog, Iron Man Cards. Thank you all and happy collecting!

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: '07 Bowman DP&P Sesh #4

2008-06-23T22:37:00.000-04:00

Busting two packs today:

Here we go...

Pack #1:

BDP7 Alejandro De Aza (Blue Parallel #149/399)... very nice!

BDP4 Chase Wright
BDPP11 Kyle Lotzkar
BDPP36 Craig Heyer
BDPP94 Greddy Sandoval (Chrome)
BDPP64 Matt LaPorta (Chrome)... FINALLY!

BDPP6 Ed Easley (Gold)

Pack #2:

BDP53 Yovani Gallardo
BDP42 Curtis Thigpen
BDPP17 Oliver Marmol
BDPP63 Jake Smolinksi

BDP26 Jarrod Saltalamacchia (Chrome)

BDPP57 John Tolisano (Chrome)
BDP46 Homer Bailey (Gold)

Not a bad day's work! I've been waiting on a LaPorta chrome since I started collecting this particular set. I've pulled seven various Evan Longoria prospect cards before a single LaPorta chrome. The scanner effect on the chrome cards is pretty dope too.

I love this series and only hope that they can continue to release it in the future. It reminds me of the essence of baseball and why we collect. Sure, a large portion of these players won't storm onto the scene in the Bigs, but it's fun to watch these guys at the local minor league ballpark and even when their names pop up on the ESPN ticker. Good work, Bowman... my favorite series of 2007-08.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Birthday Wishes

2008-06-19T14:54:00.003-04:00

I'm heading out of town for the weekend, but before I leave, I wanted to wish the Father of Wax Breaker a very happy birthday. Spud will be celebrating this weekend, though I regretfully won't be able to make it.

Happy Birthday, Brotha!

Rant: Brighthouse Networks, Jokes in the Booth, Stud Third Basemen

2008-06-18T19:43:00.007-04:00

This has absolutely nothing to do with The Hobby, but now that I am living in Orlando, I'm seeing a fair amount of Tampa Bay Rays games on a weekly basis. Here are a few observations:

A) Brighthouse Networks, the local cable provider, is a joke. This company STILL does not carry the local FSN affiliate down here in Florida. Why is this the first point I'm making? Well, the Orlando Magic, the only franchise of the "Big 4" that Orlando is home to, plays the majority of their games on FSN. Just a short drive down I-4 you have the closest Major League baseball franchise that also plays the majority of their games on FSN. Here in Central Florida, we get a game, maybe two, each week that are aired on ION which has some of the worst feed quality I've ever seen. I'm currently watching the Rays on WGN vs. the Cubbies. One thing I hate is listening to the opposing team's broadcast.

... Which leads me to...

B) I almost took the broadcast duo of Drew Goodman and George Frazier on FSN-Rocky Mountain for granted. Those are two of the best in the game and I'm just glad I appreciated it while I had it. Sorry, Tampa... your guys are as big of jokes as Brighthouse.

C) Evan Longoria is ridiculous. It's nice to be able to watch another young infielder while Tulo is on the DL.

That is all.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Topps Opening Day

2008-06-18T12:44:00.000-04:00

Big League had a monster sale over Father's Day weekend and along with killer discounts and a complimentary pack of '08 Topps Opening Day just for walking in the front door. I'm not a big modern-day Topps fan, but I'll take a free pack of cards any day of the week.

Here we go...

84 The ToddFather

36 Felix Hernandez
Matt Holliday mosaic puzzle piece thingamajig (anyone know the technical term for these? Pretty pumped to come up with some more 5280 love only 3 cards in)

168 Raul Ibanez (#658/2199)

Waste of time, money and natural resources

142 Bobby Crosby
71 Magglio Ordonez

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Bowman Baseball Sesh #2

2008-06-17T11:45:00.000-04:00

I figured I'd give this stuff another shot.

Here we go...

190 Derek Jeter

186 Aaron Hill
182 Brett "Boom... Outta Here" Myers

147 Zack Greinke
159 Gary Sheffield
BP6 Glenn Gibson
BP43 Luke Montz... sporting the Potomac Nationals gear

BCP43 Engel Beltre
BCP1 Max Sapp
37 Gil Meche (Gold)

I still can't figure out if I like '08 Bowman, but I'm lovin' me some Brett Myers and his poignant linguistic skills.

Boom... outta here.

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 1998 Bowman's Best Baseball

2008-06-16T23:45:00.001-04:00

So, what are we looking at?

'98 Bowman's Best is a 200 card set with 100 prospects and 100 veterans. Vets have a gold background while the fresh meat have silver ones. From my experience, [on average] you pull 3 vets and 3 prospects in the 6 card packs. Of the two parallels in this set, refractors are found 1:20 on average and numbered to 400 while Atomic Refractors are found 1:82 on average and numbered to 100.

Here we go...

34 Fred McGriff

156 Jason Grilli
162 Chad Hermansen
44 Ryan Klesko

60 Greg Maddux
149 Mark Kotsay

Hmm... 4 Atlanta Braves of past and present (McGriff, Kelsko, Maddux, Kotsay)... what are the odds on that?

I've never been a big fan of the backgrounds used in this series, but the pulls weren't half bad in this pack.

What do you think?

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 1993 Bowman Baseball

2008-06-16T23:41:00.000-04:00

I cleaned the shop out of '07 Bowman DP&P (pack breaks to come) so I was looking for some other cheap goodies to bust. Their 1992 Bowman stock is selling for over $12 a pack, most likely for the ManRam RC which is ABSURD. God knows how long that box has been sitting in the case... not a single pack has been sold. I decided to go after the '93 set for a mere $3 and change.

'93 Bowman is a 708 card set, 14 cards per pack, with 48 "special engraved foil card[s]", 1 randomly inserted in each pack (339-374 and 693-704). These cards feature "top prospects and rookie-of-the-year candidates" (per 2008 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards, 17th Edition).

Here we go...

124 Andy Cook
165 Rick Helling
301 Bobby Witt
418 Oretes Destrade

577 Manny Alexander
366 Justin Thompson (Top Prospect)

402 Scott Bullett
180 Jeff Juden
439 Tony Pena
479 Kevin Reimer
626 Carlos Garcia
231 Ellis Burks

100 Larry Walker

381 Leo Gomez

I was a little disappointed until I hit two Rockies (at one point in time) back-to-back in Burks and Walker.

Would you guys like to see more '93 Bowman Baseball in the future? Drop a line and let me know.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Wax Breaker is Back Online!

2008-06-15T18:40:00.003-04:00

Sorry about the delay, folks. I have a new hard drive and am back in business. I'll have a new post for ya tonight along with quite a few more in the near future. I've got a lot of new breaks to share.

Thanks for checking in!

- J.C.F.

---------------------------------------------------------------

6:45pm UPDATE:

Just waiting on some scanner software to finish installing... posts to come this evening.

On the DL...

2008-06-13T15:34:00.002-04:00

Just when we got this thing going strong again, we cross another speed bump. The hard drive on my laptop went belly-up at the start of the week and I'm waiting on Apple to dial me up and let me know that the new one is ready to go. I've got 10-12 pack breaks ready to go, but I'm just waiting around to get some scans up.

Also, our local store is having a monster sale tomorrow with 40% off of all boxes, 20% off of all packs along with other assorted discounts around the store. Grant and I will be checking it out and are hoping to come home with some goodies.

I'm hoping to get the computer back tomorrow so check back in soon!

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Winner: 1,000th Hit Contest!

2008-06-09T23:59:00.002-04:00

And the winner is...

John from Old School Box Breaks!

Answers:

1) 262 Hits
2) Ichiro Suzuki owns the record
3) Ryan Drese gave up hit no. 258 (previous record of 257 was set by George Sisler in 1920)

John has 24 hours to email me with his mailing address for the contest prizes. If no email is received within 24 hours, a new contest will be held with the same prizes up for grabs.

I'm currently having serious laptop issues and might be out of commission for the next couple of days, but I'll be able to check email at least twice a day.

Thanks to everyone who participated and we hope you continue to check in as we would like to begin a bi-monthly contest series in the near future. Thanks for supporting Wax Breaker and don't forget to visit our blogroll and see what our friends are up to!

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

1,000th Hit Contest!

2008-06-09T00:04:00.012-04:00

Spud and I would like to thank you all for taking time out of your day to check out the site. Wax Breaker had it's 1,000th unique visitor stop by the site today which encourages us to improve our content and step up our game all around. We sincerely thank you all and we look forward to what will come of this little ol' blog.

To celebrate the 1000th hit, I've decided to host a trivia contest and do my best to give back to the readers. Up for grabs are two hobby packs of either '08 Upper Deck Series 2 or '08 Topps Series 2 (winner's preference), and an '07 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects B.J. Upton chrome parallel (if the bonus is correctly answered). The three part question is as follows:

1) What is the MLB record for most hits in a season?

2) Who holds this record?

3) Off of what pitcher was the record breaking hit knocked into play?

Bonus: What is BJ Upton's real/first name?

The first person to post the correct answer as a comment to this story for all three questions, four with the bonus, no later than 11:59pm EDT on Monday, June 9th will be announced the winner. Once the winner is announced, that person will need to shoot me an email at FooteMedia@gmail.com to confirm mailing address, etc.

You must get all parts of the question correct to qualify!

Only one response per reader will be allowed, so be wise with your answers! Best of luck and be sure to check back in on Tuesday for the winner of the 1,000th Hit Contest!

***EDIT***
The bonus prize will be an '07 Bowman DP&P chome parallel of JUSTIN Upton, not BJ. The bonus question will remain the same, though. I'm still looking for BJ Upton's real/first name.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: '07 Bowman BDP&P Sesh #3

2008-06-08T00:17:00.000-04:00

Today it's a two-packer (sorry about the cockeyed scans):

Pack 1:
BDP54 Mark Reynolds

BDP23 Brandon Wood
BDPP97 Brent Lillibridge
BDPP52 Charlie Culberson

BDPP25 Dustin Biell (Chrome)
BDP31 Jesse Litsch (Chrome)
BDPP21 Austin Gallagher (Gold)

Pack 2:
BDP50 Ryan Braun

BDP6 John Danks
BDPP31 Scott Carroll
BDPP108 Carlos Gonzalez
BDPP103 Jay Bruce (Chrome)

BDP40 Jeremy Hefner (Chrome)
BDPP60 Gary Gattis (Gold)

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 1991 Topps Stadium Club Pack Break

2008-06-05T23:12:00.001-04:00

I own a couple of Stadium Club cards from this and other sets, but this is officially my first break of the product. Big League has a ton of unopened product and I'm looking forward to some epic pulls.

Here we go...

282 Kevin Maas
200 Nolan Ryan

86 Howard "HoJo" Johnson (one of my favorite Mets of all time)

I find myself thinking this isn't too shabby so far...

19 Mike Scioscia

Topps Stadium Club Limited Time Membership Offer

60 Ron Darling
105 Benny Santiago
100 Doc Gooden
123 Ruben Sierra
24 Tom Henke
34 Dave West
193 Kelly Downs
10 Geno Petralli

Not bad for an extra $1 spent at the shop.

So, to all of you Stadium Club fans:

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: '07 Bowman DP&P Sesh #2

2008-06-05T20:02:00.001-04:00

Here we go...

Pack 1:
BDP7 Alejandro De Aza
BDP15 Alex Gordon
BDPP64 Matt LaPorta (dinged corner... Uggh!)

BDPP26 Julio Borbon (Chrome)
BDPP102 Gorkys Hernandez (Chrome)
BDP23 Brandon Wood (Gold)

I was forunate enough to watch LaPorta play at Florida and am really pulling for this guy. Yeah, a biased opinion from a Gator-in-law, but whatever. In '07, Matt had a .402 avg (in the SEC), slugged .817, amounted 52 steaks and crushed 20 homers in 52 games. The card also notes that he went yard twice in his first 3 games as a pro for the Helena edition of the Brew Crew.

I'm done touting, for now.

Pack 2:
BDP20 Matt DeSalvo
BDP25 Hunter Pence

BDPP9 Ryan Zink
BDPP109 Colby Rasmus
BDP19 Danny Putnam (Chrome)
BDPP17 Oliver Marmol (Chrome)
BDP41 Tyler Clippard

I also wanted to clear something up in my previous post. Technically, the base set of this series is a 54 card rookie collection (BDP1-BDP54) with a Barry Bonds waste-of-space 'base card' rounding out the set (BDP55). There are 110 cards in the insert set that feature prospects/draft picks (45 prospects, 65 draft picks).

As we all know, the RC, (RC), XRC, etc. situation has gotten out of control in the past few years and I still have trouble telling what is what. The card companies that are run by short-term visionaries and the MLBPA need to come to a conclusion that can help fix this mess. You're not fooling me with the MLB RC logo that is tainting the beauty of some great cards. Figure it out... the quicker, the better.

Here is a great post from Baseball Fever that displays a great explanation of the situation as well as the hard work done by a great collector.

**Post originally written 06/04/2008**
Grant and I will be checking out the '08 MLB First-Year Player Draft tomorrow at Disney's Wide World of Sports and we're hoping for some good things. Vinny Castilla will be there representing the Colorado Rockies along with current and future HOF-er's (Jim Palmer, Al Kaline, Dave Winfield, et al. I know we'll be lucky to see 3 draft picks in attendance, but it should be a good time. I'll fill you in tomorrow night.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

2008 MLB First-Year Player Draft

2008-06-05T02:40:00.004-04:00

Grant and I will be making an appearance this year as we're both Orlando residents once again. We'll be the two Rockies hooligans observing live from Disney's Wide World of Sports, so keep an eye out for us on ESPN2 (2pm Eastern/Noon Mountain). I'm hoping to get some live blogging done over on Tulo Trader while we're there if I can get a connection.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2008 Bowman Baseball

2008-06-05T02:00:00.000-04:00

I've done some serious work at the card shop over the past couple of weeks. I'll spread the love and scatter this week's pack breaks over the next few days.

I love BDP&P so much that I figured I might catch up with the times and finally pick up a pack of '08 Bowman Baseball.

Pack Info:

10 cards per pack

5 Base Cards (Vets)
2 Bowman Prospects (BP)
2 Bowman Chrome Prospects (BCP)
1 Gold Parallel (or mixed in goodies such as autos, scout autos, #ed parallels, etc)

The Pulls:

14 Carlos Zambrano
163 Eric Byrnes (nice haircut/slide into first/'07 playoff exit... and amazing start to '08, dammit)
174 Ryan Garko

110 Ryan Zimmerman
126 Dan Haren (Go back to the AL, will ya?)

BP5 Jacob Butler
BP63 Alex Liddi
BCP50 Austin Jackson

BCP20 Stephen Chapman

10 Erik Bedard (Gold Parallel)

There have been plenty of reviews on this product so I won't begin to waste your time, but here's your run-of-the-mill Bowman Baseball.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Box Break: 2008 Upper Deck Team USA Box Set

2008-06-03T20:16:00.001-04:00

The Product:

2008 Upper Deck Team USA Box Set, courtesy of Big League Cards

The Info:

60 card complete set
* 25 National Team Player cards
* 1 National Team Coaches card
* 1 National Team card/team checklist
* 5 National Team 'Results' cards
* 20 Junior National Team Player cards
* 1 Junior National Team Coaches card
* 1 Junior National Team card/team checklist
* 6 Youth Junior National Team Player cards (3 players per card)

9 Guaranteed Hits
* 2 Gamers
* 7 Autos

The Set:

Assorted National Teamers:

21 - Cody Satterwhite

22 - Justin Smoak

32 - Japan Series Game 5 (USA 7 - Japan 3)

Assorted Junior Nationals:

34 - Mychal Givens

35 - Robbie Grossman

36 - Tyler Hibbs (wow... what a youngen)

Assorted Youth Junior Nationals:

58 - A.J. Cole, Nolan Fontana, Nick Franklin

The Hits:

JN-6 Testsuya Kokubo gamer

JN-13 Shota Oba gamer

77 Tyson Ross (Blue Ink Auto)

89 Garrison Lassiter Blue Ink Auto)

BWE-24 Brett Wallace 12/50 (Red Ink Auto)

UE-5 L.J. Hoes 72/75 (Blue Ink Autogamer)

UE-11 Harold Martinez 181/249 (Black Ink Auto)

YE-16 Max Stassi 202/295 (Black Ink Autogamer)

Q&A-BM1 Brian Matusz Q&A Auto

Thoughts:
I must admit, I'm a fan. Yeah, it's a little strange seeing high schoolers [and younger] on cards, but it doesn't bother me. Imagine being in high school or even college and having your own Upper Deck baseball card. It's ridiculous... and I love it.

I see it as a way to commemorate the accomplishments of these players on the field and I think it's a fun set. I'm not very opinionated on this collection aside from the fact that I am happy with how it came out and am immensely attracted to most things USA... if Old Glory's on it, chances are I want it.

Grant and I will be attending the draft tomorrow at Disney's Wide World of Sports here in O-town. The majority of the National teamers are projected to be top picks so I'll be watching a little more carefully this year. Apparently Disney is really strict on autographs at the event, so we'll see what comes out of it.

I'm hoping to get some live blogging done at the event on Tulo Trader, but we'll see.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pack Break: 2007 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects

2008-06-03T18:51:00.000-04:00

I'm a sucker for this stuff... simple cards packed with info and filled with who's who's and what-coulda-beens.

Keep in mind that each pack contains:

2 Rookie cards (Base Set)
2 Prospect cards (Insert Set, technically)
1 Gold Parallel (or sometimes, rarely, a relic)
1 Bowman Chrome Parallel
1 Bowman Chrome, Refractor or Prospect Auto (typically another Chrome)

Here's a look at the 3 packs I've picked up over the course of the week:

Pack 1:

BDP14 Mike Rabelo
BDP47 Kyle Kendrick
BDPP106 Michael Saunders
BDPP107 Cameron Maybin
BDPP103 Jay Bruce (Gold)
BDPP24 Taylor Holiday (Chrome)
BDPP92 Chin-Lung Hu (Chrome)

Pack 2:

BDP19 Danny Putnam
BDP26 Jarrod Saltalamacchia
BDPP14 Travis d'Arnaud
BDPP59 Wendell Fairley
BDP3 Justin Upton (Chrome)
BDPP96 Craig Stansberry (Chrome)
BDPP108 Carlos Gonzalez (Gold)

Pack 3:

BDP17 Jon Knott
BDP18 Joba Chamberlain
BDPP6 Ed Easley
BDPP18 Eric Sogard
BDP30 Billy Butler (Chrome)
BDPP27 Brant Rustich (Chrome)
BDPP46 Josh Horton (Gold)

2008 Upper Deck Team USA Set Review to come shortly.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Pull Yourself Together, UD!

2008-06-02T18:57:00.000-04:00

My initial intention was to let the first UD Series 2 box break set in for you while I worked on the UD Team USA box break analysis. Upper Deck decided to foil my plans with the most outrageous box break I've ever had... and not for the better.

I picked up my second box of Series 2 wax today and after opening the first pack, I knew I was doomed. The majority of the cards in said first pack were damaged and I only pulled FOUR cards that weren't duplicated in the pack.

WTF?!?!?

When all was said and done, I had the usual three hits (Team USA Patch, Team USA Auto, Team USA Autogamer) along with the gold parallel, four Yankee Stadium Legacy cards, two presidential predictors and [eight] Team USA inserts.

But these are the startling statistics from box number two:

62 Damaged (and boy, do I mean damaged) cards

(Hard to tell on the scan, but look at the top corners)

Along with that I had pulled 114 duplicates. No, not 57 cards that had duplicates... 114 cards that had duplicates of their own. Yeah... that's right.

Again, WTF?!?!?

Upon further review, I found that the majority of the damaged cards were in the 400's with some in the 600's. All cards numbered in the 500's and 700's (along with their duplicates) were in pristine condition. Duplicates were found throughout the box with no prejudice to their number.

I cannot express my frustration in words, but I'm sure all of you know how I feel. The letter to Upper Deck is being drafted as we speak.

Moving on to the brighter, undamaged, un-duplicated side of the box I pulled the following hits:

PP-10A 'The War in Iraq' (Clinton vs. McCain)
PP-14 'Healthcare' (Obama vs. McCain)

435 Jacoby Ellsbury Gold Parallel

USAJR-5 Jeff Malm
USAJR-10 Matthew Purke

USA-5 Danny Espinosa
USA-12 Justin Smoak
USA-17 Pedro Alvarez
USA-20 Ryan Flaherty

USAH-1 USA Rallies for Win
USAH-2 Danks Saves the Day

YSL-2255 Johnny Mize
YSL-2280 Phil Rizzuto
YSL-2953 Yogi Berra
YSL-2978 Tony Kubek

USAJR-JS Jordan Swagerty Auto (Black Ink)
USA-TR Tyson Ross Autogamer (Black Ink)
USA-JS Justin Smoak Game Used

Unfortunately the solid hits were overshadowed by the inexcusable and unacceptable quality of the cards and horrid collation. Obviously there was an issue with the collating process... some damaged equipment or something... I don't even know. I'm just disappointed that this has to happen.

Any advice from those who have been burned like this before? Letters will be written and I will expect compensation, however my plan of action could use some suggestions from the pros.

Be sure to check out my personal site, Tulo Trader, and keep an eye on its future sister-blog Ironman Cards as plenty of content is heading that way. Thanks for checking in and good luck to the rest of you.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Box Break: '08 Upper Deck Series 2

2008-06-02T07:59:00.000-04:00

This is my first box break/analysis, so bear with me.

However, here it is as promised...

The Product:

2008 Upper Deck Series 2 Hobby Box, courtesy of Big League Cards.

The Info:

Base Set:
400 cards (no SPs)

Parallels:
Gold (#ed to 99)

Inserts:
25 USA National Team (1:4)
20 USA Junior National Team (1:4)
12 Presidential Predictors (1:8)
Yankee Stadium Legacy Buybacks

Mirrors:
Yankee Stadium Legacy (1:4)

Autogamers:
45 USA Baseball Autographs* (numbered to 375 or less)
45 USA Baseball Jersey Autographs* (numbered to 199 or less)
45 USA Baseball Patch Autographs* (numbered to 99 of less)
10 1997 Game Jersey#
10 1998 Game Jersey#
10 1999 Game Jersey#
70 UD Game Jersey#
10 Throwback 1997 UD Game Jersey Patch Parallel#
10 Throwback 1998 UD Game Jersey Patch Parallel#
10 Throwback 1999 UD Game Jersey Patch Parallel#
70 UD Game Jersey Patch Parallel#
45 USA Baseball Jersey#
45 USA Baseball Patch#
Yankee Stadium Legacy Memorabilia Cards#

* = Stated odds: Two-per-box
# = Stated odds: One-per-box

(Thanks to Chris at Stale Gum for the info and subsequent review style!)

The Pulls:

Base Set:
295-ish of 400 (73.75%)
5 Doubles, give or take

Parallels:
1 Gold (#'d to 99):

644 - Jarrod Washburn

Inserts:

Inserts:
4 USA Junior National Team:

USJR-4 J.P. Ramirez
USJR-10 Matthew Purke
USJR-13 Riccio Torrez
USJR-17 Tim Melville

6 USA National Team:

USA-3 Brett Wallace
USA-5 Danny Espinosa
USA-9 Joe Kelly
USA-12 Justin Smoak
USA-16 Mike Minor
USA-25 Tyson Ross

Not sure the odds on these, but...

2 USA National Team Highlights:

USAH-1 USA Rallies for Win
USAH-3 USA Wins Thriller

Presidential Predictors:

PP-10 'The War in Iraq' (Obama vs.McCain)
PP-14A 'Healthcare' (Clinton vs. McCain)

Mirrors:
4 Yankee Stadium Legacy

YSL-6058 Derek Jeter
YSL-6165 Andy Pettitte
YSL-6190 Roger Clemens
YSL-6215 Andy Pettitte

Autogamers:
1 USA Junior National Team Game Used

USJR-LH L.J. Hoes

1 USA Junior National Team Auto

USJR-LH L.J. Hoes (Blue Ink)

1 USA National Team Autogamer

USA-TR Tyson Ross (Blue Ink)

Favorites/Observations:

Some amazing action shots were captured in Series 2... one reason why I'm loving 2008's product. Here are some of my favorites:

Note the Fukudome RC... something Topps seemed to miss out on. I pulled dupes of it as well... Some additional 'horizontal' love for ya:

Additionally, UD did well getting some things straightened out:

Willis, Santana, Bedard and Jones all on the correct teams along with an '07 Season Highlights with the Mets ace on his former team. Good work, UD.

Here's my big question, however:

Why would UD try and sneak these in with the stunning action shots of the majority of the base set? Additionally, why the hell would these guys agree to these snapshots?!? This isn't Glamour magazine, boys. I understand the photo of Milton Bradley taking a seat... it's impossible to injure yourself that way, right? And I'll allow the Jason Bay photo as well... he's Canadian. But the Kerry Wood and Carlos Gomez cards are unacceptable. Gimme a break.

I did pull rookie Darren O'Day's card and freaked out a little bit. This guy pitched at the University of Florida and played down in Single-A in 2007 while posting a 4-0 record and 0.75 ERA. He was called up to start the Angels' 2008 campaign and got some work in during the first week of the season. I was ecstatic not because of his stats, but because his girlfriend played lacrosse with my fiance, Grant's sister, at UF and is a pretty good friend of ours (and a Colorado native). Congrats to Darren and best of luck in the LAA organization.

Thoughts/Opinions:

I said it before and I'll say it again... I love UD's 2008 set. The photography alone is worth the price of admission. If they keep this up, I'll gladly pay the extra bones for this set over their competitors product.

The Team USA pulls were amazing. I love these cards for their overall appearance and quality, but I also like that the 2007 gold medalists are getting some rep. I know some people have some issues with high school players on cards, but until I form an opinion on that topic, I'll stay out of the argument. Until then, I'll keep my hits closed up in a 5k-count box out of direct light in the safety of my closet.

I'm a fan of the low number of inserts... I can handle the Presidential Predictors and tend to think there's some decent humor behind them. I'm a big fan of the Yankee Stadium Legacy cards. The Team USA inserts are stellar and I'm sure are quite appreciated by the young men who represented our colors last summer.

I'll be sticking with UD this summer for sure. Keep up the good work, but don't forget there are teams outside of New York and Boston that have players worthy of gracing future boxes of UD product.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Completely Overwhelmed...

2008-05-30T00:20:00.001-04:00

Howdy, folks. I'm helping out/filling in for Spud at present while my boy is doing some serious work back in 5280. I just made the move back 'home' from Denver to Orlando and I've been a little slow to pick up any new cards, let alone make any contributions to the blogs. I was completely overwhelmed with the day's purchases and will get down to the nitty gritty this weekend. More content on this subject to come (once I get the scanner hooked up), but here's the teaser:

Today I purchased my first box of '08 Upper Deck Series 2.

I pulled:

1 Game Used
1 Auto
1 Auto + Game Used

None of which were MLB-ers... and I was quite excited. All hits were Team USA players, both Junior National and National members. We'll see how that stacks up against the second box which will inevitably be purchased within the next week.

After quickly returning to the shop to share my hits with the staff, I was introduced to Upper Deck's 2008 Team USA set. I loved the pulls from the UD Series 2 set and when I saw this box, I had to have it. Needless to say I spent a little more today than I had planned.

In short, this is a $65-75 box that contains the entire 60 card base set of National and Junior National players along with 9 guaranteed hits (7 autos, 2 game used). Japanese college players/studs are featured in game used cards (possibly autos as well, but not that I know of) of which I pulled two. Don't worry, Kazuo Uzuki is not included/gimmicked in this ridiculously gorgeous set.

I also pulled quite a few Colorado Rockies including the Troy Tulowitzki team checklist in the UD2 box. I'll touch on that card among other Rockies singles that I snagged at my new store down here in FLA over on my main site, Tulo Trader. I raided the shop of their Rockies and Cal Jr. inventory and snagged some goodies.

Scans, details and thoughts soon to come. In the meantime, do yourself a favor and pick up a box (or two... or three) of Upper Deck's 2008 Series 2. I'm hoping to complete this set by the end of June and will have plenty of pulls to share with ya.

That's all I got...

- J.C.F.

Sorry

2008-05-17T14:53:00.002-04:00

Hi all,

Sorry there hasn't been many updates lately. I have been working 2 jobs in order to prevent taking school loans out for the fall. Needless to say its been kicking my ass. I haven't even been able to think about cards let alone open some to share. Luckily I have a birthday next month so I should have some fresh material.

I must say I'm looking forward to SPX which has had too many release dates to count and this new Bowman set that dropped last week. My mom has been keeping the addiction alive with random packs of cards here and there. She actually brought me a pack of Bowman 2008 and I pulled a Matt Dominguez X-Fractor numbered to 250. Other than that Topps Series 2 2008 is supposed to hit on 5/29 which looks promising with "a hit per box". I'm just praying that they spare us all the stupid autographed gimmicks.

-Well... back to work :(

They've Gone to Plaid

2008-05-04T20:27:00.001-04:00

Greetings,

I must say that I am addicted to Hyper Plaid cards from Co-signers 2008. So far I have 6 of them including one auto. For the better part of an hour the other day I sat and gazed at the hypnotizing plaid foil. I think it would be really nice to collect a "rainbow" or two from this set and it will be my next goal to do so. Guess I'm lucky that my birthday is coming up and all I have asked for thus far is cards. Even though Co-signers has not shown to be a terribly strong set, it has got to be one of my favorites so far. Sure some of the hits may not be that great or existent(tons of redemption cards) but I find comfort in all the different parallels. That may sound kind of suckerish but I'm not very tough to impress.

Anywho I thought I'd leave you with this:

-HAHAHAHAHAHA

Video Box Battle of Co-Signers Baseball 2008

2008-04-30T16:50:00.002-04:00

Yo,

For about the past month Mario and I have been planning a friendly box battle of co-signers 2008. Well the product just so happened to release today so I went and picked up my box. I was lucky enough to get a free box from All C's which is a great local hobby shop here in Colorado. Since they gave me a free box I will be posting their Ebay name, email, and business cards on my sidebar. They sell 100-300 cards a day up on Ebay or in the shop. I have known them for almost 11 years and feel honored to get a free box from this family owned/operated business.

The Rules(subject to change):
Mario and I both post video breaks of our boxes.
We both do a little review of the breaks.
Post a voters poll so people can vote on the best box.
2 guest judges write a post about who's they think is better.

My Video Break (sorry I had to rush through to save some time)

My Thoughts:

This is your standard co-signers baseball. 12 packs per box, 6 cards per pack, 3 autos including 1 co-signer. This year instead of 9 parallel cards you get 12 and there is a chance to get a quad singed or cowhide signed card. The base cards are similar to last years co-signers gray and white background with a color action photo of the player. The parallels are still colored and shiny with the color determining the serial number. Some of the parallels changed to only having one player instead of 2 which is probably the reason you get 12 now instead of 9. The back of the card didn't change much either. They still have a nice color picture on the back and the previous 3 years of stats. Lastly, instead of Moonshots autos they have an array of boxers which alot of collectors have been very interested in.

My hits:

Co-signed Jack Cust and Mark Ellis from the Athletics
Solo Signed RC of David Davidson #230/400 from the Pirates (who just walloped the Mets 13-1 WOW)
Solo Signed Boxer Joan Guzman 28-0-0 with 17 KOs
12 parallels including an A-rod numbered to 200

From talking to Mario at Wax Heaven, it sounded like he was going to be picking up a box today. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled from his break in the near future. Since I really like co-signers I'm very happy with this box and the product. I really hope that Mario gets a better box though he hasnt opened cards in a while.

Thanks for watching be sure to think about who's box you like better, voters polls should be up soon!!

-Word

Three Days is a Long Time to Go Without Seeing Cards...

2008-04-28T02:02:00.001-04:00

Exhausted,

I finally arrived back at home today after a 15 hour drive back from Rolla, Missouri. I spent my weekend playing the last lacrosse game of the regular season. I have never been so relieved to get some time off(unless we get a bid for nationals). The best season I have had in my career aside from playing with injuries that will come back to haunt me in old age *uneasy chuckle*.

Even though I was only away for 3 days I felt so detached from cards. Without the internet I was unable to check out any blogs or make a blog of my own. For that I apologize. This week is looking up with the release of Co-Signers '08 which my local hobby shop is hooking me up with. As most of you know, Mario from Wax Heaven and I will be doing a video box battle in which our loyal fans will be able to vote on the winner. I's expecting everything to be posted on that either later in the week or early next week. Other than that I should have a few boxes of Topps '08 coming in the mail for my gold collection. In addition I will be sending out all the trades I have been working on. So people have been waiting for over a month for cards and to be honest school and lacrosse have been destroying my time. Luckily that is all coming to an end in the next couple weeks.

With all that said I can barely keep my eyes open...

-Till Monday

Holy First Ebay Sale, Waxman

2008-04-22T15:34:00.002-04:00

Woot,

After 7 grueling days of watching people bid on my best card so far, its finally time to say goodbye. Today a little after 3pm eastern my 2/2 Derek Jeter Spectrum auto sold for 228.50 for my first Ebay sale ever. The price is about what I figured it would go for and I am very happy to get some money into the baseball card fund before the box battle with Mario.

I must say that even though selling something on Ebay can be risky it is really fun at the same time. I sat glued to my computer hitting the reload button for the last hour of the auction. I'm glad that a feeling like that will never lose its gusto seeing as I don't plan on selling many cards I don't like to open cards and see dollar signs I like to open cards and see heroes,history, and a pastime.

Bye Bye Mr. Jeter I hope you find a good home :)

Terrible Thomas Timing

2008-04-20T19:24:00.003-04:00

FFRRRAAANNNKKKK,

Today was a tough day for me after waking up to the news about the big hurt being released. Ever since I was a kid playing little league ball I have looked up to him. I remember the days where the only baseball I would watch was if ol Frank was playing. I also recall my dads disgust when I would pick Thomas for the home run derby on World Series Baseball 1995(with 11+ homers every time how could you not pick him?)

Of course his release comes the day after J.C.F. at Tulo Trader handed me a sick Thomas card. Oh well I'm sure he will get picked up by some AL team that will get to see the Hurts middle and late season 302 or so average. Personally I'm hoping to see him go to the A's to pick up where Mike Piazza left off or to the Orioles so he can look like a big pumpkin.

I hear that there is a lot of talk about bad blood between the Jays and Thomas. However on baseball tonight he was interviewed about the subject. At the end of the interview he assured Chris Berman and the baseball nation that there are no problems. I'm sure we will get statements from both parties again in the next few days.

I still plan on collecting Frank Thomas and Mike Piazza cards even though both of them will be watching baseball on their couches for a little bit.

-have a good weekend

p.s. I would add scans but at the moment I'm exhausted from lacrosse yesterday

Where is my mail?!?!

2008-04-18T13:22:00.001-04:00

It has been a almost a month since I purchased a regular old box of Topps 08 Series 1 on ebay. Ever since then I have been checking my mail box like a little kid shaking presents around Christmas time. So far I've got nothing. So like any good ebayer I contacted the seller before I got to worried. The email was nice, I told the seller that I live in an apartment and sometimes it takes them a day to sort through all the packages. After a week I got no response so I emailed again. This time I got a response stating that the package had been sent and that they would send another on Monday. Wait..... what? Someone tells you they didn't receive their item so you bite the bullet on a 50 dollar box and send another one? I'm worried that I might be getting burned on only my 3rd ebay purchase ever.

If anyone can offer some suggestions or their input on this it would be greatly appreciated.

-Spud

Baseball card makers putting in half the effort?

2008-04-15T20:54:00.000-04:00

HI,

I'm sure that it has come to some of your attention that cards lately are not matching up. Many cards I have been looking at lately have players that have been traded. Them being traded doesn't bother me at all. The thing that bothers me is the players being in their old uniforms while the card has the new team name on it.

One that bothers me the most thus far is Johan Santana. He was dealt to the Mets at the beginning of the year. I know that most pictures had already been taken of him in a Twins uniform but i feel that in the later sets coming out, they could take a new picture. Another player I see often in the wrong jersey is Miguel Cabrera. He has been with the Tigers for some time now but in every card I get of him has a big ol fish on it. Now I know the finest card shown is a finest moments card that he achieved when he was with the Marlins. Its cards like that I can except as having the wrong uni.

I'm sure there are some key facts/secrets about cards I'm missing. However as a new collector it annoys me a bit. In hindsight I guess its better to see them in an old jersey than a victim of a shotty airbrush job.

-Good Day

A Sunday I Will Never Forget

2008-04-14T23:50:00.000-04:00

Heyo,

Sorry its been a few days since the last post, Ive been getting flooded with baseball cards.

My father and I had a talk recently about cards. He said he had been holding onto about sixty 1000 count boxes of cards from 69' to 98'. He told me that he always wanted to pass on his cards to me and with the responsibility I was showing with my own cards, he decided the time was now. So after a 25-5 win in my lacrosse game on Sunday I made the trip up to his house to check them out.

When I arrived he took me into his office to haul out five plastic tubs of cards. Each tub must have weighed 100-120 pounds. After that grueling ordeal I opened my first box. Wow, a complete set of 1969 Topps Baseball in mint condition. Every card was in order by number with a checklist or two at the end. The box opening continued 60' Topps, 75' Topps, 90' upperdeck. Every time I opened a new one my dad would be standing over my shoulder talking about the rookies, studs, prospects and so on. I looked like a kid that had just been given the keys to a toy store. One of my favorite moments was talking to my dad about how the hobby has evolved. He was very interested in trading card history in which some of his favorite sets held new players where some of his heroes used to be.

As the evening continued I got down to an incomplete set of Topps 1972 Baseball. Thrown off I asked my dad why the set was incomplete. In a choked up tone he responded "that was the year that your grandfather died, I guess I just lost interest for a while." At that moment i realized the unspoken sometimes unseen bond that cards bring to a father and son. My grandpa was killed in a car accident when my dad was only 9 years old. Up until then my grandpa and dad shared the same moment that my dad and I were sharing every time my dad bought a pack of cards. After we shared a few tears which is rare in my family, I gave my dad a hug... one which I will cherish for the rest of my days.

The night ended with me having a very enlightened sense of why I collect cards. I don't plan on putting any scans of the cards up but as I promised to some collectors, I pulled a few cards to send out.

Dedicated to my dad, Kelly Thornton, and to all the father/son duos out there.

-Spud

Wax Breaker Gets Another Case Hit... I Think

2008-04-14T23:00:00.004-04:00

Word,

I have been searching for Upper Deck Spectrum now since it came out. I call the hobby shop close to me everyday, but it always seems like they have no idea what I'm talking about. So after traveling down to Aurora to another card shop, I hit my big break (haha get it, Spectrum has famous actor/singer autos aww I'm a goober).

Anyhow you get 24 packs in a box, 4 cards a pack, and 4 hits on average. The cards are nice and snazzy with a blue background and a nice big picture of the player on the front. The back is something that I have never seen from UD....STATS YOU CAN READ. In addition there are different colored parallel cards with color indicating how high numbered it is. A box also promises an auto of a famous actor or recording artist, another auto which can be a player or famous person, and 2 game used cards which can be dual from 2 pieces from each player and so on.

Here is what some of the parallels look like:

The pulls:

Vince Neil from Motley Crue:

Christopher McDonald with the edges cut out numbered 17/25

"I was in the woods on 13 and I saw 2 fat bikers having sex....how am i supposed to chip with that going on!!"

Derek Lee Spectrum Swatch #65/99:

My first pinstripe... YAY

Last hit of the box.... 4 piece game used #62/99 of 2 Cy Young winners:

After all of this I thought I was done but I remembered that I grabbed a random pack of Spectrum.

Boy was I excited. Its numbered 2/2 but there is a catch. There are 100 Jeter RetroSpectrum cards. Each card has 2 autos(at least its not like Moments and Milestones. Still a great auto its my lowest numbered card yet.

I really enjoyed this set after not buying UD for a while. Yeah its another premium type set in which I will probably only buy packs of because of the 100.00 price tag but its nice none the less.

-Hope you all enjoyed

Football Curiosity gets a hit

2008-04-11T17:43:00.003-04:00

Happy Friday,

I don't fancy myself a football card collector but at times I get curious at what it has to offer.

J.C.F. and I headed down to Bill's today and fed our card addiction with a couple packs of cards. It was nothing fancy just some heritage from previous years. While I was at the counter I noticed that they were reloading their stock of co-signers football from last year. Packs were 10.00 with fewer odds of getting a hit then baseball. I figured what the heck and bought 1 pack.

When I got into the car I cracked the pack open and to my surprise there was a rookie dual auto in it!!

Brandon Jackson and David Clowney co-signer

As far as I know Jackson is still with the Packers after posting some good numbers last season. As for Clowney I saw he was with the jets but for the life of me could find any stats.

Regardless its of card of one of my favorite teams, and will go nicely into my personal collection.

Don't worry... This curious football pack will not kill this baseball card collecting cat.

Topps 08 Gold parallels

2008-04-10T16:15:00.000-04:00

Ahoy,

Its snowing here today in Colorado. While I was in class I got a text saying that there would be no practice today. With the day wide open I went down to Bill Sports Memorabilia to trade some cards and work on my Gold parallel set from Topps 08 Series 1.

With my trade I was able to pick up a box of hobby packs knowing full well that I would get 4 gold parallels. To my surprise I still have yet to get a double of any of them.

The Pulls:
Justin Morneau #110
Kevin Frandsen #117
Josh Beckett postseason highlights #217
Alfredo Amezaga #227

With these four cards my total on the set comes to 77. If anyone has some gold/black parallels to trade let me know I have a lot of 08 cards to offer.

-Thats all for now

The Scum of card collectors...

2008-04-10T02:53:00.000-04:00

I'm Pissed,

Things are kind of slow tonight so I decided to watch some box breaks on youtube. Ive have never seen such scummy, skeezy, lame, I don't even want to call them card collectors. I may have only been in the game for a couple of months but I can pick them out just as good as a seasoned veteran.

These specific skeezballs were opening everything from Moments and Milestones to Topps Heritage 08. Instead of talking about the cards and appreciating a chance to relax and open cards, they ripped through the packs like a wood chipper. These scumbags would shuffle through each pack only breaking to breathe and search for relics or autos. The rest of the cards would go unheard of and stacked up in a leaning tower of cardboard. Once a relic or auto was found they would immediately judge its value instead of appreciating its beauty. Of course they didn't know half of what they were talking about and were usually wrong about there pricing predictions. They were also terribly star struck getting excited only about the players they knew instead of taking a chance on a player they have never heard of.

Its people like this that are ruining the hobby. Dr. Wax Battle even mentioned something about these types of people in his broadcast on April 2nd. It can be viewed at his website thebackstop.net under his video archives. I recommend that every collector serious or casual take a listen. You will be surprised at how wise he is.

PLEASE...IF YOU ARE GOING TO OPEN CARDS TAKE A MOMENT TO ENJOY THEM. It's amazing how much fun you can have.

-ugh

Topps '07 Co-Signers Baseball Review

2008-04-09T03:44:00.002-04:00

What a day,

Today I had probably the greatest bit of pulls I'm going to have for some time. I finally mustered up enough guts to do my first video box break. The box chosen was Topps Co-signers 07. When I bought the box I was a bit worried that all the good cards had been bought up. To my delight I was totally wrong.

The box guarantees 3 autos with one of them being a co-signer. In addition the box guarantees 9 numbered parallels. Each pack contains 6 cards with 12 packs in a box.

The cards looked great! Each card is somewhat mirrored much like Moments and Milestones. The parallels have 2 players, one is a mirror image and the other is a regular colored in picture.

As always the dust and scratches are from the top loaders and scanner...

The First auto I pulled was a rookie parallel numbered to 125... Angel Sanchez. i don't know much about him but I plan to research this Kansas City Royal.

The second was the best hit I have ever had... Ortiz, Wright, Howard Tri-signer...WOW

After that pull I figured that card was my "co-signer"...how wrong I was.

I have to say that this set is my favorite so far. I am looking forward to a co-signer 08 friendly box break war with Mario from Wax Heaven that we are trying to set up.

Thats not all...
While I was waiting to do my box break I opened up a Topps Finest mini and got some exciting pulls.

Finest Moments Miguel Cabrera:

Rookie Redemption Card #5:

Lastly RACHEAL THE RIP GIRL...OY:

I don't know if you can see it well in the scans but it looks like somebody at Topps got a little "excited" with this card. One of the corners is bent, the ink is running, on the back it looks as it someone tried to stab a chunk out of it. I'm not upset about it but I got a really good laugh out of the whole thing. The best part of the card is a question on the back that reads "what is your favorite part of being a rip girl?" The answer... "having fun with the rip master and the other rip girls" HAHAHAHAHA my feeble 20 year old mind thinks that is priceless.

-I hope you all enjoyed

2008-04-08T17:14:00.000-04:00

Here is the first box break on Wax Breaker. Hope you all enjoy!!

Part 2

Look for a review later tonight with scans of the autos that I pulled. As always if there is anything anyone wants let me know and I'll see what I can do.

-Happy Breaking

Just when I think I'm out, they drag me back in.

2008-04-05T17:17:00.004-04:00

WOW Topps Finest,

I stumbled upon some extra cash today so I made a trip down to my favorite hobby shop. As I looked around I randomly grabbed some Topps 08, an M&M pack to see if I could help J.C.F. with his Tulo collection, and to top it all off I decided to see if I could grab a good auto or two out of some finest minis.

Every pack paid off...even the finest which I have been bashing on recently.

The Topps '08 had a gold parallel that I didn't have yet. This card brings my total up to 72 of the gold numbered parallels. If I havn't mentioned previously, I'm trying to put together the entire numbered gold parallel set from Topps 08. So far things are looking good. The Moments and Milestones pack had a Tulo as the first card in the pack. To finish it all i opened my finest packs. I picked them totally at random out of the 12 minis available. The 2 that I picked had some great cards for my collection. A Frank Thomas base card wooohoo didn't have that one yet, a Joba base card that looks exactly like his bowman prospects card, and a grip of Rockies. The first auto was one of my best ever a Clay Buchholz rookie auto. I have liked the kid since I started collecting. I think he has a lot of potential to be a full time stud for the bosox. THE SECOND AUTO. . . hmmm thats weird ANOTHER CLAY BUCHHOLZ ROOKIE AUTO. How weird but how nice when you think about how much these cards could be worth in the future. Hopefully the odds of getting this auto are high and I just got really lucky. I'm sure however that its the other way around.

Here are the scans of both cards:

Something I just noticed is the chain that he is wearing in the picture makes it look like clay has a dube in his mouth...

-Thats it for today

Something I think should be fixed

2008-04-03T00:26:00.000-04:00

Just a quick note. . .

To all the baseball card creators out there,

If you are going to honor a man by making a game used jersey card for him, make sure you give him the right number, or team.... please.

-Spud

Topps "Overpriced" Review

2008-04-02T23:47:00.000-04:00

I still don't know how to feel,

I bought some of Topps Finest yesterday. i thought about writing about it right after practice but i decided to think about it for another day. I'm really glad I did...

Master boxes at my hobby shop are going for 145.00 with the minis going for 50.00. With my discount I got about 20 bucks knocked off. Each mini pack promises an auto and each master includes 4-5 numbered parallels. In addition each mini has 6 packs with 5 cards.

Being a new collector this year I enjoyed that all the cards are chrome refractors. The base cards were refreshing to me all with nice photos of some of my favorite players. After thinking about it for a while I came to realize that a lot of the parallels look very very cheesy.

The almost neon green, blue, and red colors just don't do it for me. Another problem I have is that the Topps Finest logo is gigantic and very distracting to the eye. I feel that they could have made it smaller to allow more room for a picture. The back of the card leaves me with a bad Moments and Milestone taste in my mouth. The back of the card features only last years and the players overall career stats. Being a Topps 08 collector I was very disappointed in the lack of stats. I also happened upon about 8 dupes including inserts. With how large the set is I didn't expect to pay 150.00 to have doubles in my first box. The last thing that upset me was the whole point of the box... the Autos. The autos I pulled will not give me enough return to want to buy another mini. It may sound selfish but selling off the cards I don't want gives me a nice fund to buy cards with.

After all this complaining this is what I liked. The team favorites inserts are well done and appealing to the eye. The base cards are good looking to me seeing that Ive never pulled any chrome cards. Along with the base cards I got my favorite player, Frank Thomas. As far as autos and parallels go I pulled a Brandon Phillips auto that looks like he had a seizer while signing it and a gold numbered to 50 Dice K. To end it all I pulled a rookie redemption card #4. Glad I get to wait till November to get that one.

Phillips goes 30/30

Gold Dice K

Well thats all i got I hope you all enjoyed. The box may say "Topps Finest" but to me it seems like "Topps Overpriced".

Wait a second whats this. . .
AAAAAHHHHH rookie auto blue parallel make it stop!!!

-Spud

As I Promised. . .

2008-03-30T23:30:00.002-04:00

Howdy,

As promised I finally got all of my relics and autos scanned. For the sake of space I will put up some of my favorites and create an album that you can find at

Wax Breaker's Full Collection

If anyone is at all interested I am always open to trade. Leave me a comment and I'll get back to you asap. I can assure you that the dust and scratches come from the scanner and top loader. All the cards are placed in top loaders when i pull them.

Lets start things off with my #1 favorite.
Anyone who can grow this kind of beard is my hero. . .

The Rookie Autos I pulled out of Moments and Milestones:

MLB Stars:

Papi going yard like always.

Jeter being Jeter.

Nice Mini Jerseys:

Well that about wraps it up for today. Enjoy the scans. A special thanks to my friend J.C.F. for helping me with scanning and picasa.

-Spud

Topps needs a new printer

2008-03-22T20:14:00.000-04:00

Oy!!

Its days like today where i wish i video taped box breaks. I went down to my local hobby shop to grab a hobby box of Topps 08 series 1. At 40 bones there was no way i could turn it down.

I broke the first pack to find that the last 3 cards were missing all of the silver foil writing. As I broke the rest of the box it turned out that ever pack had 2-3 cards like this. Some of the cards even have silver ink spooed all over them. What the %$*# Topps?

I'm not sure whether to be happy or upset. On one hand I could be looking at 100 "error cards" that could have some value. On the other i could be looking at 100 worthless cards with foil spoo on them.

If anyone has come across this or tell me what to do with all of them, please leave some comments.

On the upside i got some gold borders that I needed and some of the inserts im missing

-Spud

Topps Jumbo Box Break Pack 2

2008-03-22T19:53:00.000-04:00

Another day another jumbo pack,

Base Cards: 1, 5, 11, 16, 23, 25, 36, 37, 51, 59, 67, 68, 70, 87, 102, 131, 141, 157, 175, 188, 196, 205, 214, 237, 246, 253, 257, 264, 266, 274, 276, 284, 285, 286, 288, 293, 324.

Gold Foil: #53 (Hank Blalock) and #183(Paul Byrd)

All-Star Rookie Team: Todd Helton AR44 WOOOHOOO looks so weird without the goatee

Home Run History: MHR504

Year in Review: YR56 Jeremy Accardo

OWN THE GAME: OTG24 Brad Penny

Trading Card History: TCH23 Chien-Ming Wang

Campaign 2008: Barack Obama

Mantle Story: MMS52

-Till Easter

Topps Jumbo Box Break

2008-03-21T17:14:00.001-04:00

*Sigh of Relief*

After a short break from baseball cards due to a hard bit of lacrosse, I grabbed a jumbo box to share.

Pack One:

Base Cards-9, 20, 32, 53, 65, 95, 99, 105, 109, 111, 123, 126, 129, 134, 150, 163, 183, 202, 207, 212, 216, 217, 245, 256, 269, 281, 263, 290, 291, 300, 302, 307, 314, 322, 323, 326, 329.

Gold Foil Parallel: 194(Chad Billingsley), and 291(Eugeno Velez)

Gold Numbered to 2008: Jason Michaels 1748/2008

Campaign: John McCain

Year in Review: John Smoltz YR54

Own the Game: Ryan Howard OTG14

Trading Card History: Alfonso Soriano TCH21 (one of my favorites)

Mickey Mantle Home Run History: MHR502

All Star Rookie Team: Kenny Lofton (one i need for my set)
woo this is gonna take longer than i thought....
I think ill space this break over 10 days

-Word

Oh no Topps Heritage and a nice M&M box

2008-03-08T18:08:00.000-05:00

Wha Wha What,

After hearing about the latest from Topps Heritage, I don't know if i even want to finish the set. I counted my heritage yesterday and found that i was 110 cards short from the set(with a couple of Sp's but oh well). Then i come to find out that there are 2 variation cards that are near impossible to get(Johan Santana, and John Smoltz) OY. Now I have to decide if I want to break a couple more boxes and try to get lucky or pay about as much for one card as an entire box. Hmmm decisions, decisions.

On a lighter note, I got the itch for some moments and milestones 08 so I went and picked up a box. I was pretty impressed with the design. Most of the cards have a picture of the player and a faded version of it behind them. The box also "guarantees" 2 autos per box but I have seen people get burned before. In addition every card is numbered from 150, 25, 10, and 1/1.

Price tag on the box was 100.00, which i was able to get knocked down to 90 because i buy all my cards from the same shop. What a steal woohoo for perks. Aside from the great price the cards inside the box were better than i thought.

3 autos(2 rookies), and a Ryan Howard 1/1 (filthy) and of course the usual 5 or so rockies cards to add to my collection.

I know I've promised scans in the past but this week of lacrosse has been very time consuming. I'll try to get some up here in the next week.

Word Up

Topps Heritage a breath of fresh air

2008-02-28T23:44:00.002-05:00

Word up,

Yesterday i had the opportunity to pick up a couple of boxes of Topps Heritage.

After much anticipation I got together with a good friend from Denver, J.C.F.

**06/08 Edit**

He runs his own blog called Tulo Trader, where you can check out his growing Troy Tulowitzki collection as well as other Rockies favorites and blasts from the past.

**

On a side note I would like to mention "Cardma". Its something that i truly believe in. If you give cards away, cards and hits will come back to you in return.

As we broke open our first packs I started to realize how great of a set this is. Short prints in every pack, old school inserts, chrome refractors, returned 1959 topps, old and new autos, well done relics, and team checklists that i feel are far superior to '08 Upper Deck.

mentionables that i can remember: A grip of Rockies which will go straight into my collection, a tommy carrol auto, and a great i-rod chrome.

Scans will be up tomorrow night and if the addictions is right another bit of cards.

along with some side notes about what i don't like.. (would finish now but i have company)

Happy Breaking

Welcome to Wax Breaker

2008-02-26T02:01:00.000-05:00

Hello Collectors,

Welcome to Wax Breaker! A brand new sport card collecting site just in time for all the fresh 2008 wax...

I'm a first time collector of sport cards and would like to share as much of my wax breaking joy with you as possible...

Expect to see many updates this month including: My first box break(with scans of the keepers), trade/want lists, worthless packs of the week and much much more.

Feel free to leave some comments once things get rolling. Please remember: that I'm a rookie at this so try not to tear me a new one write off the bat.

-Spud