#PaniniPylon Prizm 1/1 – Leonard Hankerson

Posted by cardboard hogs on May 23, 2013

Next up for the 1/1 series is old alligator arms, Leonard Hankerson.

I am still holding out hope that this kid comes through in a major way this season, he seems to have way too much talent to not become a star…but I could just be another Redskins mouth breathing homer. I know he’s capable of making big plays and becoming a number 1 target for Robert Griffin III.

This card was one of those bidding war cards and I may have outbid myself on this one, but i’m expecting it to be well worth it. I can’t wait to see what he does next season in the burgundy and gold.

#PaniniPylon Prizm 1/1 – London Fletcher

Posted by cardboard hogs on May 22, 2013

When Panini announced their auction for the inaugural season of Prizm Football, I was quite interested in what they had to offer. Seeing that the cards were being issued as uncirculated 1/1 parallels. I thought any and all would be way out of my price range or at the very least more than what i would want to pay for in a football card…even though they would be issuing 1/1’s of Washington Redskins. So, in a passive approach I just watched from the sidelines as the Alfred Morris card went for $200+. The thing that i noticed though, was that most of the other cards were going for $20 to $50. Your basic ‘team favorite’ kind of guys. These guys aren’t really superstars but rather guys that you like and that wear your teams jersey on Sundays. This gave me hope that I could win a card or two without going buckwild.

I still need that diaper money son!

With the auctions ending at 10am PT, this created a bit of scheduling conflict for me and work. I typically get to my desk around 7am and the project manager i’m working with rolls in around 7:30am, while the other architect on our team likes to stroll in about 9:30. The straggler likes to get settled in and start asking questions around 9:58…2 minutes before the auctions ended. My solution? Hit the john with a fully charged iphone at 9:57 and bid my ass off! Too much information, i know, but the details are important when telling a story. This technique was crazy successful and turned me in to a winner in life and in parallels…plus i got some ‘me’ time during the hectic workday.

If wildside71 is reading this, i’m sorry you had to hear of my ill techniques this way, but the bidding wars were fun!

Enough with the rambling, here is the first card I won.

London Fletcher

As you can see, these cards come in a standard issues magnetic ultra pro snap lock case with a red Panini sticker covering the magnet. The photo doesn’t do the card justice, but it is infinitely better than the my scan attempt. I think Panini did a great job with this promotion (maybe it’s gimmicky for some?) Being able to bid on a 1/1 rather than hoping to pull one from a box is much better for a team collector like me. I’m able to get exactly the guy I want without screwing around with fruitless packs or boxes. I get my guy each time. PLUS the case these guys came in is pretty cool. I’m not sure exactly what it was, but it seemed to be some type of plastic composite with black felt lining that the card was set in. Great packaging for a one of a kind item. My only critique would be that the box itself had the players name and team on the outside of the box. I’m sure this wasn’t done to cut down on costs, but if you have multiples of these things, there is no telling who is in what box? That’s a very minor issue though and i’m conjuring up ways to get the names on the boxes for proper storage and retrieval in the future.

This post is the first in a series of posts i will do on these cards. I hope you enjoy them, and again, wildside71…no hard feelings.

-HTTR!

Box Break: 2012 Panini Absolute Football

Posted by cardboard hogs on May 12, 2013

I am way behind on reviewing some of the boxes I have opened in the past few months, mostly focusing on cards that i’ve picked up at card shows. I have a few lined up, so here is the first one. Panini Absolute Football.

Like most of Panini’s cards now, you can buy a retail version and a hobby version but the quality is quite different. As a set collector this would drive me insane, but since i don’t plan on putting this set together, it’s no worries to me. I do think this is a great way to differentiate between a hobby card and something you can pick up at Target, good for the hobby and collectors in my opinion, but allows the fringe collectors to afford different brands of cards.

Card Design – 4 of 5

The base card for Absolute is pretty clean. Photo of the player on the front along with his name and position as well as the team name along the bottom. The greatness of these cards for me is the vertical gradation in the colors from left to right, or right to left depending on your culture. The gradation gives them a nice light show or a cardboard Pink Floyd laser show look to the card. Groovy.

The one thing i’m not liking about these cards is the card stock. Seems really thin for the amount of money these guys cost. I also wasn’t crazy about the overall packaging by Panini. You get the display box, and a pack box…with a cello wrapped cards inside. That’s quite a bit of packaging for a box of cards, wouldn’t you agree?

Living in the Pacific NW, all the extra wrapping is heavily frowned upon. Yes, we are those people that bring their bags to the grocery store and ride our bikes to work in the rain. Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

Photography – 4 of 5

Panini has the waist up photos locked down. They do a great job of focusing on the player, allowing them to take up most of the photo space available on the card. All the cards i’ve seen appear to be game action photos and give you a good view of their eyes. No over processing or out of control editing for these cards either. Another good job by Panini.

Hits – 4 of 5

No Redskin hits here, but when you get any card autographed and numbered to 10 it’s a good thing, and it’s an even greater thing when that player is AJ Green. This may be one of the best hits i’ve had in a long while. It is a sticker auto, but i will let that slide for a perennial pro bowler card numbered to 10! Not really a Bengals fan or an AJ collector, but the guy has proven to be a beast in his first couple of seasons.

The other hits were fairly nice as well. Brandon Weeden came through with a nice looking jersey card but he looks completely unimpressed in this photo…or thoroughly confused, you be the judge?

I Like the Terrance Ganaway autograph, it has a nice flair to it. The card itself has a ton of great color in person and is very attractive (much better than the scan!)

Review

I was pretty happy with the box i received. Nice hits and i really love the design of these cards. If i have a few extra bucks to spend on cards laying around next year, i can see myself picking up a box for 2013. Although, with my desire to spend less on boxes and packs I doubt i can justify the cost for the value.

Opening each pack was cool, although i think it was a bit excessive packaging. It was nice that i could open one or two as i wanted, can’t have everything i guess. I think Panini can do a better job of their future packaging. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

Box Break: 2012 Panini Contenders

Posted by cardboard hogs on February 22, 2013

I am finally getting around to opening the boxes that have been sitting on my desk for a while now and wanted to start with one of my favorites. Panini’s Contenders. I have always enjoyed the design of these cards and their quality. The simplicity and continuity of the cards each year with the ticket on the sidebar and singular player focus is something that I enjoy in a card. In general, I think Panini does a nice job on their card designs and this set is no different. Contenders is in their 20th year now, which i initially had no idea they were around this long until I remembered the flip box I still have from the first year with Barry Sanders on the inside cover…memories. They used to make the boxes much nicer back then…now it’s just a small box with lots of cards in them.

Now for the review…

Card Design 4 of 5

As i said in the intro, i really like the consistent design. Each card has the basic player information on the front with the name, team, position and player number. Contenders goes a step further with the name of the stadium and years the player has been a pro which is kind of a cool feature you either don’t find on a card or only find on the back. Panini has also managed to incorporate the teams colors in the left bar ‘tickets’. I personally like the Redskins cards, but am partial to the Burgundy and Gold on cards…I think it makes them punch really nicely. What’s up with Carolina Panthers and their 1984 Trapper Keeper font? I’m glad they finally decided to dump it and go with something more contemporary.

One design piece that i don’t think is that successful is the ‘super graphic’ last name ghosted in the background with a very subtle shadow line. My problem with this is that they already have the players full name on the card, so adding the last name again is simply redundant and unnecessary in my opinion. I would also like to have seen the team logo on the top right be a little larger and the helmet on the ticket gone…or maybe this could be where the larger logo occurs. It’s just a little redundant to these eyes.

Contenders does a nice job on their subsets and have continued with the die-cut love fest. The Rookie of the Year Contenders are quite nice and the die cut works well here as they fit nicely in my gentle, yet manly grasp. These types of die cuts don’t work well in sleeves or top loaders and always seems to lean to one side or another.

Another subset is the MVP Contenders and are really nice looking. The die-cut and supergraphic MVP font work very well, even though none of the guys i pulled had any real shot at winning the MVP, it’s still a nice subset for player collectors.

Photography 4 of 5

Panini has managed to gather full length photos of each of the player for the majority of the cards, keeping their knees, ankles and feet in tact! Football cards tend to be overcropped these days so it’s nice to see a full body shot of the player on his card. Each photo is crisp and there is no clutter with unnecessary background action…just the player for whom the card is representing. The photos on the back are a simple blow up of the one on the front of the card. Kind of wish they would use a different photo, maybe a portrait shot or something…different.

Hits 4 of 5

The box advertises 5 autos per box and that is pretty much what you get. I happened to get what i believe is an extra auto with the dreaded redemption card, an Alshon Jeffrey Rookie Ticket RPS. As i’ve stated in the past, i really hate redemption cards. I understand why they do it and that it just needs to be done sometimes…it’s just disappointing to have to wait months for your hit. Sometimes a guy just needs a hit.

The second pack I opened in this box had an awesomely shiny Redskins rookie card Autograph numbered 66/99…Kirk Cousins. I was really hoping for the other rookie Redskins QB, but this guy might end up being the guy…somewhere. I believe i have 5 Cousins autos now…and zero RG3 autos…FML! Here’s a fun fact. No matter what orientation you lay the card out, the serial number always says 66/99…fun with sixes and nines you kinky freaks!

The other autos in the box weren’t that spectacular and quite frankly i think the kids these days seriously need to work on their penmanship. They are probably signing hundreds of items, but the Chris Polk auto is just begging to be forged by a man of lesser character.

I got a kicker auto, that’s a little weird. Zeurlein had a great season, but he’s still a kicker. I’m just really i didn’t pull yet another Dontari Poe auto!

The Bucs and the Cardinals guys are not on my radar, if anyone has an idea who they are or just needs them for a PC, let me know. Otherwise they are ebay bound.

This Panini product seems to give you a good number of autos, but nothing spectacular.

Review

All in all i am pretty happy with the box. I managed to get quite a few Redskins, no RG3, but i did pull a serial numbered Kirk Cousins auto. By the way, i used to write just like Captain Kirk when i was in the 5th grade. At least his auto is clean and legible…looking at you Chris Polk! Contenders is a box that i tend to buy each year and will continue to do so…but one a year is more than enough for me. The cards are great and you get a good amount of inserts, I just don’t know if the price justifies the cards you pull and their value.

This years subsets look great as usual. I mentioned the MVP Contenders and the Rookie of the Year Contenders, but the subset I love is the Rookie Stallion cards…the name is a little…um…weird. But the photos are great and i love the layout and use of fonts.

Not too crazy about the Legendary Champion cards, nice idea and great player selection, just don’t love the design.

Here are the Redskins from the box!

That’s it folks. I have a couple more breaks to cover and i will be caught up! Hope you enjoy the reviews.

Box Break: 2012 Panini Prime Signatures

Posted by cardboard hogs on January 30, 2013

Ok, i had a little time this evening with the baby and lovely wife off in the other room having some reading time. So I thought I would open one of the Panini boxes I received last night…and I decide to open…the single pack Prime Signatures Box.

I have purchased two of these boxes this year in the faint hopes of pulling an RGIII to no avail, BUT I am not a quitter and purchased one more box from the Panini online store. The box was purchased last weekend when they had the 25% sale, so i managed to get a really good deal on the box…and i couldn’t pass up a good deal and an opportunity to pull a guaranteed autograph.

The box is simply one pack with 4 cards in each pack…so it’s always a gamble as to what you will be pulling from the box. My other breaks have been fairly uneventful and something i was definitely bracing for with this box. Although there were thoughts of better pulls since it was from the company that manufactures the cards.

So much for the long winded intro, here are the cards I pulled!

LeSean McCoy 452/499

‘Mean’ Joe Greene 497/499

Steven Jackson Prime Proof 17/99

Pittsburgh Steelers Rookies Chris Rainey, David DeCastro, Marquis Maze

Card Design – 4 of 5

The main reason i keep going back to these cards is their design. It’s simple, clean and always clear who the card is for and what it’s about…which I love. The super thick card stock and clingy sound when the cards stack on top of each other is a fantastic feature for me. Each card appears to have 3 intermediate layers with a face and backing for the card making 5 layers overall. The text is also very clear and easy to read, due in part to the white background…although i would like to see cards of this design with a cleaner font, maybe something without serifs? That’s my only real complaint though…very nice Panini

Photography – 4 of 5

Each photograph on the cards are very sharp, with the exception of the Mean Joe Greene card, but that’s due in part to older technology and repurposing an older photo. That’s not a big issue. I’m sure there are Steeler and Mean Joe collectors out there that are excited he is in this set. One thing i like about the photographs is the vignetting around the player to focus on one player, one player in action. The cropping on the Mean Joe Green card appears a little off though..bye bye arms!

Hits – 3 of 5

With 4 cards and 1 hit…it’s literally hit or miss. Pulling a three autograph card is pretty cool, in fact I have never pulled such an auto card before, so this is a first for me…so embarrassing…As a Redskins fan, I tend to only pay attention to Redskin players and have no idea who these guys are. I have heard about Chris Rainey and apparently so have the Pittsburgh Police Department. I am also aware of David DeCastro…but a Guard isn’t always an exciting hit…not something you want to pull. The other guy Marquis Maze is someone I know nothing about. Maybe a Steelers fan out there has a clue for me?

Review

Overall, i am pretty happy with the box. Although i didn’t pull any Redskins, i can’t complain about my 3 auto hit and the other 3 cards are/were solid football players. This is definitely a product i would buy next season…and if I can find another good deal on a box, i just may have to see what’s inside.

Hope you guys enjoyed my first box review. I have a few more to go right now and have some cards on their way very soon…could get really busy in the next few weeks with all the new baseball releases and the tail end of the football releases coming out. If there are any Pittsburgh Steeler fans out there, send me an email and let me know if you have any interest in the autographed card or the Mean Joe Green…I’m looking at you Steven Jackson and LeSean McCoy fans too! -HTTR!

Panini America Delivers!

Posted by cardboard hogs on January 29, 2013

Just got home from work after another late night at the office, and i see two large boxes by the door…what could it be? My Panini order has arrived! Nice!

Since i’m still on a deadline and dealing with a sick wife and child it may take a few days before I can enjoy what’s inside these beautiful *small expensive boxes. I will be sure to post the results here along with my review of each product. Here’s hoping i can pull an RGIII auto…or at the very least some nice Redskin hits.

come back soon! -HTTR!