Card Sleeve Discussion

RE: Card Sleeve Discussion: Preferences, Differences, Questions

Mainly use Ultra-Pro sleeves and then toploaders for singles I'm trading/selling, since I rarely buy in lots and more go for single cards I have a few lying about spare for when I do buy in lots, otherwise they just go into the folder
 
question

Hello, I have a question about sleeves:

What's the difference between regular deck protector sleeves and pro-matte sleeves and which is the best for collecting (to put in a toploader)?
Also, I don't know what brand to get, I'm thinking of Ultra pro since it's easier and cheaper to get for but I've heard that KMC is better.
So what´s the pros and cons for these brands/sleeves?

/ Adam
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

Matte sleeves refers to the back, meaning that the back is matte (not shiny) instead of glossy. Ultra Pro Pro Matte sleeves also have a non-reflective finish to the front, though it seems to me like that would dull the card and make it less vibrant.

I went through the same questions when I was swapping out the penny sleeves I kept cards in toploaders with and ended up going with KMC perfect fit inner sleeves and KMC black Hyper Mat outer sleeves, either in a toploader or binder page depending on card. The issue I have with Ultra Pro is that they have that ugly holographic circle on their front that for a collector ruins the look of the card. I also hear the new Ultra Pro sleeves may not work very well for double sleeving, so that's a consideration if you're going that route. KMC Hyper Mat also seem to be the best for playability too from what I read. As for Ultra Pro, some people hate them and some people love them, so they seem to be a mixed bag.
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

Why did you choose Hyper mat sleeves?
I've seen a lot of people here uses either mat or hyper mat, so why is this?
And does the card look different in a regular sleeve compared to a mat/hyper mat sleeve?

Btw I totally agree with you about the circle on ultra pros, it ruins the card imo xD
Thank you for answering
/ Adam
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

Just switched to Ultra Pro Matte Blue sleeves (what I thought I was using before, but I guess those were the glossy ones), because someone told me how with all of the glare that they cause, it would be better to use the Matte ones. They don't look quite as nice, but I only use them for my deck. My collection still has the glossy ones.
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

I hear Hyper Matte is on the up and up because 1. they are matte, except way higher quality than ultra pro, 2. they are clear and have no gloss unlike th shiny-ish-nes of regular sleeves or the murky look of ultra-pro matte, they have a slighter lower top edge(ie 91mm instead of 92) so the card is more uniform throughout and snug, they are great for double sleeving, they are great for shuffling, and hardly get dirty or at least do not make it noticable. I've read the only down draw is that it has limited colors (black and clear right now, soon red and dark dark blue) and that the sleeve is very open at the top so it might allow more dirt in. I'm picking up some new sleeves fpr the XY release and I'm getting these over dragons shields because while the shields are the toughest, I have never split a sleeve anyway and KMC in far tougher than any ultra pro, which I have had no problem with, plus Dragon shields are very inconsistent with their colors and cuts, even in the same box.
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

For collecting that's the main reason I use KMC, the Ultra Pro sticker pisses me off big time. Not sure of the difference between hyper matte and regular matte but if it's more expensive than the regular matte then it's a no go for me. I also don't feel like re-sleeving for uniformness so I'm sticking with KMC perfect + KMC matte black :)
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

I went with matte over glossy backs just because I think they look better, KMC because they seem the best all around quality for me and if I was going to spend the money on bulk deck protectors I might as well go for the best, and the Hyper Mat because they were the same price as normal KMC mattes where I ordered from so no reason not to!
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

Okay thanks for your answers, it helps a lot!
But I wonder one more thing, in a video they compared the ultra pro matte and regular sleeves.
The regular sleeves look very good but the matte sleeves didn't make the card "shiny", for example the EX Full Arts is shiny but in the pro matte sleeve it didn't look shiny at all.
So I wonder if it's the same way with the KMC sleeves?
 
RE: Which sleeves to use?

adam44 said:
Okay thanks for your answers, it helps a lot!
But I wonder one more thing, in a video they compared the ultra pro matte and regular sleeves.
The regular sleeves look very good but the matte sleeves didn't make the card "shiny", for example the EX Full Arts is shiny but in the pro matte sleeve it didn't look shiny at all.
So I wonder if it's the same way with the KMC sleeves?
Click to expand...

No, that's just a probably with ult pro where the mattes make them look blurry and dull, KMC matte and hyper matte to my knowledge make it look just like it would in natural light, so not shinier but more organic looking I would say, in the middle.
 
RE: Which Sleeves to Use?

Anyone who has ever seen me at a tournament knows that these are the only sleeves I ever buy:
th

Ultra Pro Standards (in purple only of course)
It took me awhile to figure out what sleeves I like best, and these are definitely my favorite.
 
RE: Which Sleeves to Use?

Dragon Shield sleeves are what I personally use. Lots of variety in color and great quality sleeves. 100 sleeves per box, so there's more than enough for your deck and then some. I bought 6 boxes of sleeves (all one color because I mix my Trainers around), and had more than enough to sleeve my 4 decks and all of my valuable cards that look pretty in my binder.

Sure they had some air trapped in them when I first put them on, causing some slipping, but once the air escaped after a little bit of applied pressure over time, they were perfect sleeves and I never had another issue. If any of my sleeves had gotten damaged by anything, I always had a spare.



Second to Dragon Shields I recommend Ultra Pro which also have good quality and are a bit cheaper than the Dragon Shields. You also get less in a pack. Biggest packs I've seen are 50 to a pack. But buying 2 packs of Ultra Pros costs less than 1 of Dragon Shields in my experience. There is also a much greater variety of sleeve designs and colors than Dragon Shield.
 
RE: Which Sleeves to Use?

Dek Prot is what I'd recommend since Japanese KMC is losing popularity in my area, they're alot better than Ultra Pro since they wear and tear pretty easily especially with the Ultra Pro sleeves I have made for both Cardfight!! Vanguard and Kaijudo which are still in good condition but not to the point where I'd get DQ'ed from a tournament because of it.
 
RE: Which Sleeves to Use?

The sleeves I used at Fall regionals were standard black Ultra Pro sleeves.
On day two I spliced a sleeve, all sleeves were in car but luckily I won these Celebi Pokemon Play sleeves early that day and have been using them since
BXr7l6rCQAA3PNG.jpg:large


Back up deck is in the my "noob" genesect sleeves:
181221859112


Added spoiler tags for large image ~Athena
 
RE: Which Sleeves to Use?

Does any know how different the turquoise and green dragon shield are?
Because I've been looking at different images on the internet of these but they seem to look the same for me.
So does any one have images of these or maybe just tell me what you've seen?
Thank you in advance!
/Adam

EDIT: Does the KMC Hyper mat clear sleeves have a thicker back then penny sleeves (does KMC in general have that?)
 
Clear vs translucent sleeves?

Someone told me a few weeks back at league that the Ultra-Pro Matte sleeves with the translucent front sides are better for playing because it results in less glare. However, they do make the cards look less crisp, and I'm probably going to go back. Is there a good reason to use sleeves that make the cards look unclear?
 
RE: Which Sleeves to Use?

adam44 said:
EDIT: Does the KMC Hyper mat clear sleeves have a thicker back then penny sleeves (does KMC in general have that?)
Click to expand...

They are like the regular hypermats except "clear", not anything like penny sleeves at all. so thick, grip well, shuffle well, and clear enough to see the card without glare while maintaining premium holographic sheen.

as for the reason to use foggy sleeves the only reason I can think of is if you really didn't like glare or anything shiny on your cards while playing otherwise I think they ruin the whole point of having shiny fancy cards because you can barley see the shiny fancyness. Ultra Pro mattes are the only ones that do this I believe.

I think most people deal with it because Ultra Pros are super Cheap.
 
Clear Sleeves Help Please?!

Hello! I collect Pokémon Cards, and was wondering whether I should purchase the KMC Perfect Fit sleeves, or if I should buy the Ultra Pro Perfect Fit sleeves. Thanks so much!

Here they are for help:

http://www.amazon.com/KMC-pochettes-Barrier-Perfect-Sleeves/dp/B0007N7PB2

http://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Pro-Standard-Pro-Fit-Transparent-Sleeves/dp/B005HXLH3O/ref=sr_1_2?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1395258948&sr=1-2&keywords=ultra+pro+perfect+fit

Thanks again for your help, guys!
 
RE: Clear Sleeves Help Please?!

I don't think it's a big difference between these, though I have only tried the KMC and I would really recommend them.
I don't buy ultra pro sleeves because they are not so famous for their quality.

hope I helped at least a little bit xD

/ Adam
 
When buying sleeves, keep in mind the size of your collection. You will want to sleeve all holo and glossy cards at least.
 
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