The floodgates will open for new releases as the National Sports Collectors Convention approaches, including five set for release on the opening day of the show.
Courtesy of Maine Sports Cards, here’s a look at just some of the boxes that will arrive through August 7.
Panini Cornerstones Basketball (7/25)
This post-season product offers six cards per box with two autographs and one memorabilia card. The product is centered around Cornerstones cards that feature on-card autographs and four swatches of memorabilia on each card. Look for Base (max #’d/199), Crystal (one Prime swatch, max #’d/75), Quartz (two Prime swatches, max #’d/49), Granite (three Prime swatches, max #’d/25), Marble (four Prime swatches, max #’d/10), and Onyx (four Prime swatches, #’d 1-of-1).
Boxes are currently running at around $140.
Maine Sports Cards will be breaking boxes of Cornerstones this week.
Panini Certified NFL (7/25)
A long-standing brand, Certified returns just as training camps are about to get started. Each box will have ten packs of five cards with four of the 50 cards carrying autographs (on average).
Rookie Patch autographs of the 2018 NFL rookies will be found in Freshman Fabric Signatures, which come one per box. There are short print parallels and NFL shield versions.
Boxes are sitting at around $115.
Several box breaks are planned via Maine’s Breaks page.
Immaculate Collegiate Football (7/27)
Each Immaculate Collegiate box has six cards: five autograph or material hits and one base card numbered to 99 at a cost of around $280.
New this year are on-card Immaculate Duos and Trios Autographs which will feature autographs from current and former college stars grouped together by either position or school.
The Premium Patches Rookie Autographs checklist is bigger, so look for more bowl patches, conference logos and prime swatches.
Upper Deck Premier Hockey (8/1)
Another post-season high-end NHL release, Premier will offer seven cards per one-pack box for around $280. Each will have a Rookie Auto Patch, four more autograph/memorabilia cards and two base cards.
All autographs are signed on-card.
Mega Pads (goalie relics) and die-cut Legendary Sticks are among the new elements this year.
2017-18 Topps Chrome Baseball (8/1)
Back for another year, Chrome will have two configurations: the standard Hobby box with 96 cards including two autographs and the Jumbo version with 144 total cards, five of which carry autographs. There will be a mountain of parallel versions and image variations, too.
Dual Rookie Autographs are new this year and will pair two rookies from the class of 2018. Red Refractor parallels (# to 5) and 1/1 Superfractors will be among the year’s bigger pulls.
Hobby boxes have opened at around $110 while Jumbos are approximately $225.
Check out box break availability here.
2018 Panini Elements Football (8/1)
Elements is a new brand that will offer two autographs and one memorabilia card per four-card box. There’s a heavy focus on metal here. Panini literally built this product around the periodic table.
On average, each hobby box will deliver one on-card metal autograph, one trapped-metal or acetate autograph, one metal-framed memorabilia card and one base card at a price of around $115.
On-card metal autographs can be found in the Steel Signatures and RPS Rookie Steel Signatures, both of which feature Gold Signatures (numbered to 25) and Platinum Signatures 1/1 parallels.
2017-18 Panini Noir Basketball (8/1)
Noir is a high-end release, but unlike most others, it has a much darker color scheme, which collectors seem to like as Noir returns for a fourth season.
On average, each hobby box of 2017-18 Noir Basketball (10 cards per box) will deliver seven autograph or memorabilia cards for around $500.
Spotlight Signatures inserts and short-printed Metal Frame base cards are back. There are two versions of the Rookie Patch Autographs chase, including Super Prime and Jersey Tags versions limited to five or less.
2018 Panini Immaculate Baseball (8/1)
The high-end product returns as Panini makes use of its MLBPA license with a product that offers five autographs and base or base parallel for around $230.
Rookie Patch Autographs feature on-card signatures and prime memorabilia pieces with three parallel levels numbered to 49 or less. Dual Materials and Quad Materials chases will be part of the mix.
Shadow Box Materials combines a checklist of current and past greats with two swatches of memorabilia. Immaculate will also feature signatures on a variety of interesting material including parchment, tweed weave, bats, carbon stickers and more.
Maine Sports Cards will be breaking some of these products in the coming days. The company offers daily breaks of current and past products you can participate in and watch online. You can learn more about how to get involved in their box and case breaks and even sell your cards through their website by clicking here.
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