Collecting The "Card Collector Help" Thread

Not just that way, I specifcally remember a section dedicated to unreleased cards there. I think a search with that exact wording (unreleased cards) should bring up that section, which I'm pretty sure is alphabetically done. It should be about 200 cards per list with a few pages. Each card named will have a link to their site that takes you to the specific card info, including picture.
 
Just search on google for Pokemon TCG sellers and see what comes up or maybe you can buy them from the Japan Pokemon Center. IRC Zi think it is in Tokyo but I may be wrong.:)
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort.

I just sleeve them and put them in a binder. More organized, a much smaller chance of losing your EXs, and after several years of collecting secret rares, my oldest ones are still in a new mint condition.
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort.

Reggie McGigas said:
I just sleeve them and put them in a binder. More organized, a much smaller chance of losing your EXs, and after several years of collecting secret rares, my oldest ones are still in a new mint condition.
Click to expand...

The primary advantage of using top loaders over regular binder pages is the added protection from warping due to the stiffness of the material. That said, a good binder can still provide this to at least most of the cards contained, as all cards are pressed by the weight of those above them. You just need to be a little more careful with the use of binders and pages to make sure they themselves are not constantly curved.

Top loaders are also generally preferable when transporting cards (especially by mail) because they offer significantly increased protection from bends, folds, and dents. That said, these are all generally non-issues if you just keep the cards in one place all the time (like a cabinet), in which case both solutions are fairly equal.
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort.

I will keep my really high value/really sought after cards in a good quality sleeve in a toploader. If you want to go completely over the top you could make a make shift Cardboard card holder, and tape it.

The only reason to do this is if you are taking this card to a tournament or an event to trade. If you just want a pristine collection I would consider a maybe just store it in a binder with a sleeve on it. Just make sure you don't mess with your binder too much because it could get a crease.
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort.

I keep my ex's/ultra rares in penny sleeves then in toploaders. I usually will put a penny sleeve halfway into the toploader because I find the cards scratch along the sharp edge of the toploader.
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort

Another great way to store these cards and this will block all dust particles WITHOUT the use of tape. Take a sleeve. Then put the card in the sleeve UPSIDE DOWN. Then put the open end of the sleeve in your binder and the card will be right side up when you put the upside down sleeve into the holder and all dust will not get into the card at all.:)
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort

I keep all my EXes and up in sleeves and toploaders. Originally this was because I ran out of binder space and wanted to keep them nice, but even though I've restocked on binders and pages, I still plan on keeping those separate. It's very easy to sort and flip through and keeps them safe, clean, and flat with a minimal of fuss.
 
Best Way to Display TCG Related Pins on a Budget?

I need to know for when i have the money, and pins.

I want to display them properly either on my dresser or my wall in such a way they dont get dust all over them.
 
RE: Best way to display TCG related pins on a budget?

Yeah I wonder about how to do this too.

So what's a shadowbox?
 
RE: Best way to display TCG related pins on a budget?

A shadowbox is like a picture frame but for 3-dimensional objects instead of 2-dimensional photographs. They come in a large variety of shapes and sizes and can be acquired rather easily from most craft and/or homey stores.

Another option for a pin display is a cork board. :) That's what my mom uses to display her Disney pins. You can remove and store the backing of a pin and push it into the cork like any regular push pin. To make it look a bit fancier, you could cover the cork board in a cloth and/or border of some kind, and it could also be paired with the aforementioned shadowbox if you want a way to keep the pins dust-free.
 
RE: Best way to display TCG related pins on a budget?

Pikachu6319 said:
Yeah I wonder about how to do this too.

So what's a shadowbox?
Click to expand...

Athena explained it but this is what it looks like,
Here's a picture of my fathers coast guard shadow box he got when he retired:
eajiae.jpg
 
RE: Best Way to Display TCG Related Pins on a Budget?

I see. I've seen them before but I never knew what they were called. Thanks for the info.:) Might have to see what I can find and go this route.
 
RE: Best Way to Display TCG Related Pins on a Budget?

Im hoping i have $ for one this or next year :)

I Thank your father for his loyal service AlexanderTheAwesome :)
 
RE: Best Way to Store EX Cards and Other Cards of That Sort

If you are storing in top loaders put the card in the normal sleeve upside down then put the open end in the toploader slleve opening going in first and then your card(s) will be 100% safe from dust and everything else. I should maybe start doing this with rares but that might be hard since my cards are back to back in my binders. Maybe not.:)
 
Do "W-Stamped" Commonly Have Small Holes in Them?

A guy at work wants to sell me his cards, and among them is a Dark Arbok, with the Gold W stamp, and it has a very small hole close to the W. He says it's normal, and a lot of those cards are like that, but i have my doubts. What are your thoughts?
183665.jpg
 
RE: Do "W-Stamped" commonly have small holes in them?

A hole thru the card?

This W stamped card i think was the hardest to get back then.
 
Considering Switch to Japanese

Hello everyone,

I'm considering switching from English to Japanese cards. I've done a lot of searching online and on this forum and think I've found a good amount of information on English vs Japanese cards, like:

- Cheaper boxes
- Better Pull Rates per box? Or, similar pull rates to English boxes, despite having less cards?
- Better quality, glossier cards (I have always preferred the backs on Japanese cards, too)
- Smaller sets (although, I guess it depends on the set), but could you almost complete a set with one or two Japanese boxes the way you could with one English box?

Some things I still would like some more information on:
- The thing about English sets is that I could sell off all my bulk to sites like Troll and Toad (except Exs/Full Arts, etc I'd sell on eBay instead). Is there any site I could do the same with Japanese cards? I really do NOT want to end up stuck with a ton of duplicates.

Also, paying $90-$95 on my last box (was my first, too), I sold the code cards and am selling off most Exs/Full Arts I don't want (more so if I didn't get some Ex/FA cards I wanted and would buy as singles), and then bulk sell the duplicates. Would it be worth getting Japanese sets if I spent about the same in Japanese boxes?

- Reverse Holos: I kinda like them, but are they even existent in Japanese sets? I guess I could always purchase reverse holo English cards of cards I REALLY want, if I have to. It may also be worth the less expensive box price to just give them up (even though I do like them xD).

- Pricing: If I am missing a few rarer cards that I really want from a set, how are prices in Japanese vs English cards on sites like eBay, and what are other places I could buy singles from at good prices? I've noticed that in one case I saw, the Japanese cards were cheaper, but am not sure if that is the case all or some of the time.

I think that's pretty much it. I'm really leaning towards making the switch, but am still thinking about it. Any info would be helpful! Thanks! :D
 
RE: Considering Switch to Japanese..

Ooohhhh exciting~
It's always nice to see someone considering to switch. Hopefully these'll answer some things for you!

Selling Japanese bulk:
- If I recall I believe Collector's Cache buy bulk Japanese spares. The only reason I have never tried to do it is because the cost of mailing them in from where I live would be ridiculous, so I have... a lot of Japanese spares after 7 years of boxes etc. That being said you could just sell bulk lots of commons through uncommons on eBay for cheap if you don't mind doing a bit of that legwork yourself.

Box prices:
I believe yes, if you're spending that much on a single English box, the fact you could get 3 Japanese boxes of a single set (or 4 of a dual set block, see: Gaia Volcano and Tidal Storm) for approximately $80-$120 is pretty phenomenal. Are there less cards overall? Yes, since you're looking at 5 cards per pack and 20 packs per box, but still, that's anywhere between 300-400 cards all up with a higher pull rate. No dealing with non-holo rares either, those are uncommon in the JP scale and rares is saved for the holos alone.

Reverse holos:
Nope. We've had a JP variant called mirror holos before, which were vastly different in quality to the english reverse prints (better; had a slightly matte finish that made them easier to read) in the Legend era and then again in EX Battle Boost, but they're a rare commodity.

Pricing for spares:
You'll find that since they're not used for play anymore outside of Japan alone, the cost of RR, SR, and UR singles can be pretty cheap if you keep your ear to the ground. eBay is always a good trawling ground, but you can use things like a middleman to access Yahoo Japan auctions direct where the BIN price on those are usually really cheap -- and often even with middleman fees can turn out cheaper than eBay. All depends on the card in question. Sometimes it's good to wait to get those set spares too, as by the time the next set comes out the prices on prior set cards will drop in the English market because they're not the latest and greatest.

The only exception to this rule usually is extremely sought after or hyped up Pokemon like Charizard. And of course people who buy boxes just for the RR/SR EX cards and the UR cards for PSA grading will have expensive versions of those up because they'll usually be graded right out of the box. Gotta love that one, haha!

Pricing when it comes to promos though? Can vary wildly because that's where the majority of the (western) fandom collects when it comes to the Japanese PTCG. If you're planning on sticking to sets vs promos outside of maybe a select few, as it sounds like you're someone who enjoys collecting specific types of cards from sets (?) / specific Pokemon and/or artists, you won't run into that problem too much.
 
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