One of My Largest Purchases: 1978 & 1979 Topps Unopened Cases

The story of one of my larger purchases, which included an unopened 1978 and 1979 Wax and Vending case in 2017. I go through the way the deal went down, how I sold through the collection, and what the overall financials were after all was said and done.
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t206 Wagner, 1952 topps mickey mantle, 1933 goudey, 1989 upper deck, 2003 exquisite, 2003 topps chrome refractor, 2012 panini prizm, PSA, Beckett, BGS, SGC, GEM MINT 10, Goldin auction, Heritage auction, Pwcc, probstein123, COMC, starstock

[@mr.bloodvessel260]

From where this story was going, I thought you were going to take a loss, glad it came out on the plus side!

[@damoncallaway5450]

same lol

[@bernieudo9072]

Hear his name is Clemenza. 😂

[@toddrichardson8595]

Chris, I find it very admirable that you are willing to openly share this kind of information. Great stuff as always and bro, your channel is on fire! New subscribers like crazy! Speaks Volumes. Thanks again..

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you as always Todd!

[@Robsay01]

Had many of us known to buy cases and to keep them back in ‘78 for future sales we would have done it!! I was nine then. However, I do remember the ink issues. My rookie Molitor was a beauty except for the printing ink stains that appeared. The 79’ set had less problems. It was more crisp and clear.

[@bigsmooth7998]

The personal stories you have are the best videos, keep them coming Chris!

[@chalupacabra1727]

I wouldn't trust BBCE to authenticate a unopened can of soda at this point.

[@EdMonet]

I am shocked at the sell prices for late 70s wax.......I collected as a kid in the late 60s-early 70s, came back to the hobby from 1988-1990 , liquidated, and came back to stay from 2014-present. Watching this , I thought about going to a wedding in Newport, RI in 1989 and visiting a card shop. I remember buying two wax boxes of 1981 Topps Football for $5 each, bringing them home, and later throwing them away as "worthless".....

[@Krysdavar]

Smart, very smart. And you both still had 2 boxes each. I'd say that was a good purchase.

[@CorePositionTrading]

me too... I thought you were headed for a big L on this one ... guess I didnt know how valuable these years were ... I wonder what they got for the 1980 sets you left on the table ... Ricky RC in there, right?

[@jaronzennaiter]

Absolutely love the money details here. KEEP THEM COMING!!

[@huskyjerk]

5:41 Wow ! That sure looked like very poor Topps quality control on that break of yours. Now I can see why you seem to embrace not breaking open sealed boxes.

[@playmaker88x51]

Great breakdown, this was incredibly fun to watch!! Thank you!!!! Very wide to keep 2 boxes each for yourselves. Wow!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Yeah we figured you dont run across those much, might be the only chance to keep them.

[@tonybrady8912]

Awesome vid as always, me brudda! Great job!

[@blisstradingcards]

One of my favorite things about your channel is the simple but clear spreadsheets. I love doing these deals where you can make a little money but also have some cards or wax to put into the investment / PC side. Awesome story!

[@corymcewen5943]

THAT'S THE PROBLEM. I'm 59, had at one time as a kid 20,000 cards at least from late 60's to late 70's and a ton more in the 80's. I've been out of collecting since early 90's as it took a dive as everyone knows. PSA graders are the ONLY people making a ton of money. Opening unopened material hoping for starts that grade 9 or better is like playing the lottery.

[@arvia1984]

2:45 "Baseball Card Exchange and Steve Hart have a FANTASTIC reputation in the hobby" That did not age well.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Ha!

[@user-hm5zb1qn6g]

I am binging on these storytime episodes today. I esp appreciate how the presentation is hi-info, low-spazz. Such a refreshing difference in today's YT world.

[@kimsetzer4801]

Another great video Chris! My wife is going to make me use my own youtube account - she says I keep cluttering hers up! (guess I will have to deal with ads). Getting ready to go back and watch a few of your older videos. I think I have a stack to send in to get graded - I just need the extra cash to send them! - Jeremy Setzer

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you as always Jeremy... Good luck on that next order!

[@mikecraphone3229]

My biggest purchase. Paid $2.00 for upper deck 2012 football and got a robert griffin rookie card. 🤦🏽‍♂️ 😭 Wanted Andrew luck card.

[@philpockoski4411]

New to this gentleman - I love his intelligent, common sense approach. He is soft spoken but speaks hard truths. Subscribed!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that and welcome to the channel!

[@traviscoates6878]

Wow! I totally forgot about “searching.” When I was 12-13 I used to “search” packs of 92-93 Upper Deck at the local card shop. I was a punk ass kid who deserved a beating

[@Anonymouslives]

Great story man!! Should be my favorite year of cards since Lou Whitaker is my favorite player and his rookie is in there as well as Trammell’s (Moliter on the same card as Trammell too) are in there. I’m not really a fan of the four player yellow card rc’s though. I think if Whitaker and trammell were on the same card I’d be more of a fan and if Moliter was on there as well that would have been a great card. Why not throw in Jack Morris as the 4th player :) then it would likely be my favorite card. Although 1983 and 1984 Whitaker’s are my favorites particularly when signed and authenticated by PSA. Thanks for sharing your card buying and selling adventure!!!!

[@bretrath6073]

Great information! Thank you for your sharing. Stupid Question what is the best way to ship cards? Standard mail? What do you do? Thank you.

[@robdemare8250]

1978 Topps! Being from Canada, my first pack opening experiences were opening 1978 O-Pee-Chee baseball cards. I fondly remember the cards being in very rough shape coming out of the packages. The cutters must have NEVER been replaced at the OPC factory! But man, this hobby has saved me from a lot of bad experiences and negative influences as a kid. I feel like I owe part of myself to the hobby, and I am glad and also fortunate to continue to enjoy the hobby to this day. GREAT video, CHRIS!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Really cool story, thank you for sharing. The hobby has done a lot of good for a lot of people, always nice to hear about it.

[@Jetman41]

Opening old wax packs is always a losing proposition. Best way to get PSA 9’s & 10’s is to take your luck buying from honest sellers who don’t deal with graded cards and see some that look really nice

[@taylordetecting2760]

Great story. You made a great profit because you did everything right, including the fun of ripping some boxes.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you for that!

[@pepinoman9271]

Sounded like a movie drug deal, awesome

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Haha sometimes they feel that way :)

[@garygoldblatt4519]

Chris, wondering about that 1980 vending case that was opened. Why not consider making an offer after examining the contents rather than passing on it just because it was opened? Great stories, really enjoying your videos.

[@hugomoore2283]

i have the whole 1976 topps baseball set

[@cscottriffle]

I bought one of those 78 unopened boxes. Based on your video. I should never open it. Does PSA still open boxes and grade all the packs. Appreciate your thoughts. Thanks.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

I believe they would still do it, I dont know why not, although I havent tried in a couple years.

[@306hockeycards9]

so imma say it we need more story time im lovin this stuff

[@loudawgs]

Congrats on making some profit. 1978 and 1979 are notorious for being off centered and having factory smudges!

[@jcasias1976]

awesome video !!! thanks for sharing , im really enjoying your channel Chris ! keep it up

[@jimbaker5110]

You would have been better off not opening anything from that purchase and selling each wax pack individually graded. Shows you how overinflated actual cards really are as compared to their absurd packaged prices 😂

[@johnnylacey4344]

The billowy maraca biochemically lighten because art proportionately fancy over a deafening grape. round, rabid alligator

[@ZiggyNo]

Always insightful and educational. Thank you Happy New Year. Looking forward to your collaboration with Dustin (Personal Finance Dad)

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you Ziggy! Happy New Year to you as well

[@soserious4738]

Funny thing is, BBCE does all the pack grading for PSA, so you sent cards to him twice.

[@tommayrant2279]

Excellent video! Thanks for sharing. '78 and '79 were some of the first cards I bought as a kid. My first box was 1979 topps cello. Still have the cards. My best friend's mom had connections with a candy wholesaler and we'd go in and buy boxes from their cases. Bought a couple cases in 1985. Long ago opened. Still have the pics. :)

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Ah very cool! Just curious how much did a case cost in 1985 if you remember?

[@tommayrant2279]

@@collectorinvestordealer About $10 per box, so whatever that would work out to. 36 count boxes were $8 wholesale in 1979.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Different times!

[@bobo44donemilking51]

You're Information is awesome,you are very easy to understand ,and I get so much information , great job man

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you for the kind words

[@4MDK]

Great story and breakdown Chris. I'm glad you guys made some money on the deal. In 1977 I bought a 6 box rack case of Topps baseball. I still have 5 of the boxes in the original case. I've thought about selling them but recently I'm leaning towards handing them down to my sons. The rack packs do look truly pristine. I have 2 questions. 1. If you were me, would you still hold on to them as an investment? 2. Is there any company that will grade the rack packs? Thanks again for your time.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that Mark. BBCE actually authenticates rack packs, certainly worth considering for your 77s. I think unopened wax is a great long term hold investment. I would personally hold on to them.

[@jacobcacek3898]

Love hearing stories like this and seeing the actual financial breakdowns!

[@Bruul619]

Oof Steve...sketchy as fuck

[@michaelrussell346]

I have a box of baseball cards from 82 to 09 mix fleer upper deck studio and topps and so on there a few autographs two baseball's

[@sgtjarhead99]

1978 has a special place in my heart. It was the year I started buying BB cards in mass. As a kid growing up in Boston, this was supposed to be "our year". Alas, thanks to Bucky "effin" Dent, it didn't turn out that way. The love for BB cards stuck though. Played the hell out of the card game that was on the back of the cards, thus condition was very well used. My favorite player at the time was Fred Lynn, who was worth a "single" in the card game.

[@JohnJohn-gs8md]

78 was my first year also and growing up in New England the Sox was my team too, Rice and Burleson were my guys. I also played the game on the card backs many times and used the cards to play a computer baseball game which actually was like a pinball game. I ran to a friends house after school to watch game 163, then got a spanking for coming home late. That was a tough day.....lol.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Very cool to hear those types of stories. Back when cards were still basically toys for kids.

[@tampahomeinvestorsllc7559]

Such a cool story. I really like the pictures and spreadsheet info mixed in. Thanks Chris

[@themonkeyhand]

Man, I wonder if this authenticator does Magic card booster boxes. Lots of fraud happening there now.

[@boombayah4549]

How do they grade packs? That seems almost impossible, and kinda sketchy.

[@jamesmackey1229]

Great video once again. Like all of your videos it was entertaining and informative. Appreciate it.

[@franke981]

Thanks for posting that interesting deal. I’m glad you were able to turn a profit.

[@victorfrankenstein50202]

Shame you had to incur all the extra expenses on this large, expensive purchase, but at least it ended up being profitable for you both.

[@kamb8s]

Yep - this is definitely gonna be a favorite series of mine. Definitely looking forward to the blunder video. I just lost about $1,500 on a deal that I was expecting to make $4,000-$5,000 on, so seeing someone else talk about their mistakes should be nice to see haha.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Blunders are a part of the journey as well!

[@waynewilson5739]

When l found u I stop what beakers. Thanks! Chi's.

[@hillwood24]

Do you still trust Steve Hart and BBCE after his latest blunders?

[@jchmillz]

When you send packs to PSA to grade how do they score the unopened packs? is it the packs they are grading or the cards inside somehow? Sounds like a dumb question typing this at 2:30AM

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Its a great question and I honestly dont even know for sure the criteria. I believe they are grading the appearance of the pack (wrapper condition, wrapper being in tact and centered).

[@jchmillz]

@@daveb2280 I appreciate the response. Thank you. Also do you know if I were to get a card signed would it drop the value? I have a rare McDavid rookie card but want to get it signed if it would increase the value. Is there a better way to go about this? Have him sign a sleeve or case?

[@tyleryurasits9352]

Awesome video. Please do more like this!

[@BRSBRS-uy6vv]

Great video! .. look forward to each of your video’s. Thank you .

[@electriceyeslide5959]

I could have made $75K on that stuff... Yikes.

[@daylight2nd]

best video yet, no one ever talks about the actual figures!

[@scooterscards6888]

Thanks for ur content! My mom and I love ur channel.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that!

[@Aut0KAD]

have you thought about reaching out to some of the other financial themed youtube channels such as meet kevin? might be interesting to see the two worlds come together for a video

[@ripkobe5390]

Great purchase , will you show us your psa 10 collection ?

[@collectorinvestordealer]

At some point I will probably do a personal collection video.

[@PushnButtons62]

Gem Mint 10!!! On the deal, the story, the records, just EVERYTHING! Have a wonderful new year

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you and Happy New Year to you as well!

[@bernieudo9072]

Enjoy your sharing your story. Given the attention to vintage (pre '81) you wonder what hasn't been opened by now. Still have the cards I collected when I bought packs & racks in high school back in '78 &'79 & so I know what to expect. You deserved better. Racks are the way to go. (if you can find a bona fide case) You're the voice for the collector.

[@alanobrien3138]

I am running low on marijuana. Where can you sell Barry sanders score rookie card?

[@johnlewis5105]

Man nice flip and u get something for urself too....better than the streets

[@bobo44donemilking51]

I've done the same thing cracked a psa 5 Murray send it back in and got a 8

[@jude999]

What keeps BCE from undercutting you?

[@zoom_wrld1084]

Another great video

[@btchimcuter]

i don’t follow sports or card collecting at all but love this channel!

[@jacobbetten9266]

I'm from the schererville, IN area and never knew this was over there.

[@nickmorgan8078]

Great video!! Thanks again Awesome video!!

[@sportscastercanada]

Cool story! The $19 Fisk was a steal! 😂

[@yycvintagecards]

Wow.. what an interesting story.. thanks for sharing!

[@rhmidwestcomics]

This was a really enjoyable video to watch. Appreciate how much information you shared and the whole story behind the transaction. This is the 1st video I have watched of yours, but I am looking forward to the next one.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that and welcome to the channel!

[@ASMRPeople]

Yeah you don't want vending boxes from unsealed cases. I had a friend whom used to search vending boxes and resell around the mid 2000s. If he pulled a high grade star he'd replace it with an off center version so the buyer wouldn't get suspicious.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

I think thats common with vending boxes unfortunately

[@JonsSportsCards]

This was great! The general public has no idea what goes into these deals. Thank you for sharing!

[@bttt2075]

You two need to do a video together!

[@jimsimpson1886]

What in the world is happening? Just going through my Baseball cards from the 70's and came across some 90 NBA Hoops cards I bought when i got back into the craze in 90-91. Are these PSA10 prices for real? $100 for Jordan All-Star? $165ish for regular Jordan card? $250 for Mark Jackson Rookie? And on and on...WTH? This can't be right.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Yeah, thats all happened in 2020. Total booms on prices in everything in PSA 10s

[@maghinay299]

Fun experience

[@johnchan5413]

I watched your video about the 2 boxes that you sent to PSA for grading the packs which give me a thought of sending my 2 boxes of factory sealed 1996-97 e-x2000 basketball boxes to PSA. Do you think I should keep the 2 boxes sealed or send the 2 boxes to PSA for grading all packs? Great video with inspiration, thanks!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Nice item you have there! You can play it any which way, and they all make sense. I personally would probably leave it sealed as a box and either hold onto it or sell it that way.

[@jackiechapman8189]

Gr8 video and content Chris... You guys certainly came out on top on this deal... If you had to do it over again would you?? Also what was your biggest and best collection purchase ever?? Well done again... Stay safe homie...👍💕🔥⚾😷

[@collectorinvestordealer]

I would definitely do it again, and would probably not open anything (maybe 1 '79 vending). I would grade more packs and keep more boxes. I'll do videos on some of my larger purchases in the near future.

[@cardmanjohn4916]

Well thought out process, glad you took the time to cover your bases with BBCE in advance and slabbing the packs was brilliant! Happy Ripping, though I know you don’t rip wax....

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Thank you, appreciate it!

[@investinthebest778]

For the $28,000, what kind of deductions did the seller have? As far as taxes. With that amount, I’m assuming it’s over a certain limit and there were some sort of taxes/deductions later involved for him?

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Good question...I'm really not sure how the seller handled that.

[@schuncke]

Rather buy Apple stock .I’ve made more money from Apple off a $3000 investment

[@etwproductions]

Great story!

[@jonathanflemister7208]

Chris , I have recently put together a 1957 Topps set and I am wanting to get some of the HOFers graded. What service do you recommend ? What is the turn around time? I have subscribed to your channel and have enjoyed your stories/ videos. Many Thanks, Jonathan

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Hey Jonathan, appreciate that and welcome to the channel! And very cool set you have put together! I would recommend either PSA or SGC for vintage cards. PSA is the bigger brand, and command higher prices. But their turnaround times are bit crazy at the moment... 9 months for their bulk service.

[@benjaminlyng7297]

Not surprised by the results of your box break. This past summer I decided to buy $1,000 in junk wax, and got essentially nothing. Get this - the yield on my largest purchase - a 1984 Topps BBCE wax box - was the sale of the empty box for $20. The condition of this stuff out of the box is brutal. Most you can set aside just from centering alone. Then comes obvious dings on one or more corners, then wax or gum marks on 2/15 of the cards in each pack. This is before you even get out the centering tool and 10x glass. Obviously looking for 10s or maybe 9s to send in - they are just not in there.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Agreed, I wont be doing that again. Thats funny you say that about the empty box... that was the same with me in the one 1978 box we opened! Dont remember what we sold the empty box for, but it was definitely more than any single card we pulled.

[@chrisc4264]

Chris, I saw your video with Dustin today and decided to take a look at your channel. I've been in and out of the hobby since 1987. As a new subscriber to your videos, I look forward to seeing more of your purchases. I myself collect sealed product and buy individual cards. Wish I could afford vintage boxes like those. Thank you for your sharing your experiences and have a Happy New Year.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that and very cool to hear. Dustin is a fantastic dude. Welcome to the channel!

[@MavTN7]

Great video, as always. Looking forward to the next one! Quick question...what's the best app/site for tracking a collection? Any that you use or would recommend?

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that. I actually dont use anything to track my collection, so I dont have a good answer for you. I know Beckett.com has one although I dont know how good it is.

[@gadgetsponge]

Thanks for all the transparency. Something you don't often get to see. Glad you all made a profit for the work you put in!

[@edwarddebolt6954]

Hey I got a couple cards in 2018 just wondering if I should sell them and re-invest in new card since the market is so high Or hold 2003 tabs pristine gold reflector LeBron James BGS 9

[@collectorinvestordealer]

There are very legit arguments to hold and also to sell. I wouldnt really advise one over the other.

[@JunkWaxInvestor]

Awesome story, I really enjoyed it. That is a big purchase. Great numbers from those PSA packs.

[@JohnJohn-gs8md]

Expenses play a huge roll, imagine if there was no deal, you would of been out of at least a 2k. Taxes are probably another whole deal to work around. 78 and 79 i would imagine are 2 of the worst years you could of opened for grading, looks like you hit some bad sheets. A bank is probably one of the best places to make a deal, with cameras all over the place. Did the seller think you were gonna bop him over the head and go running with a dolly of baseball cards. I find it kind of funny if the muscle had been brought for protection but I guess it is good to have someone else there. Unopened cases or boxes of 70's have to be so hard to find now but I'm sure they're still out there.

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Very true that if the deal didnt go down, we would have been out some up front money which would have been annoying. The muscle friend was actually super friendly, but yeah sort of funny to think about...

[@zeebags9885]

The details of the bank, the cameras, the instant transfer of the money, maybe a dolly for the boxes and a tough guy for protection is what make the story so great! Fantastic stuff... now just need a film crew and a director with a little artistic license and you’ve really got something!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Haha I have experience in pitching films so maybe I should put together a pitch!

[@charlieodom9107]

WOW!!! No money in cards any more!!! Such a shame, cause I once had a really nice small collection of cards I collected as a kid. I remember taking my binder to school and showing my friends my cards, not the really good ones of course, but I only remember having a few that I would consider good ones. Back then, I remember having a Ken Griffey Jr rare card that was valued around 150. The others were close to that as well. I think a Darrel Strawberry rare one was pretty pricey.

[@jamesross160]

Plenty of money in cards today. In fact cards have never been more expensive. Even the last 24 months has seem tremendous growth, probably 20% growth.

[@drewbravo5042]

I bet after you got done opening the 2 boxes you did some hard swallowing. Imagine if you would've picked the absolute 2 best boxes to open. Any chance you got feedback from the buyers, if they opened anything?

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Yeah that was an "oops" moment. Im pretty sure most of the buyers of the boxes were keeping them sealed.

[@thomasbossie2174]

Nice video I am just a collector and enjoy it can not wait for shows to open back up. I really do not follow value of cards because its my hobby but my friends just freak out when they see every Topps set complete from 1971 to today. I am working on completing my 1966 and 1967 sets now

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Very cool, always admire meeting a "true collector". The 66 and 67 Topps sets are tough because of the high numbers!

[@UncleLesterCam]

Fantastic story. Thanks for sharing! I love the approach to how you and your partner allocated the various boxes and packs. Question: How many times a day were you checking the online shipping status when you were originally sending the package from Seattle to the vendor to certify? I would have been a wreck!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Haha yeah I dont remember but I am sure I checked it daily :)

[@Illinois1234]

I’m from the Chicago area. I inherited about 10 huge plastic bins of baseball, football and hockey cards. Do you know where can sell?

[@collectorinvestordealer]

If you want to send me some pictures to my email, I might be able to help. [e-mail]

[@KLeeMr]

Another great video. Please let me know if you two are looking for another investor. I’ve got some capital and I’m looking to play cards. Also, keep me in mind if you ever need to do another deal in Seattle. I can save you a trip and be your eyes and ears for a small fee. I can be your surrogate 300lbs of muscle. Well, more like 200lbs, but you know what I mean!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Appreciate that, will keep you in mind. Could always use more muscle! :)

[@paulburket]

I love that you don’t overproduce the videos. Keep up the good work!

[@DawnBTVS]

Great video! When you both went in, did you have a profit margin or idea of the kind of profit you wanted to make in total (e.g. 1.5X, 5X, or break-even)?

[@collectorinvestordealer]

I would generally come up with the range of potential outcomes (best case, worst case, and median result). And then we would weigh the risk/reward versus the time and money commitment.

[@luke5947]

Awesome story 😊👍risk taken 😎

[@TheRmm1976]

Did you have any issues with gum in the packs you opened? Just curious. I recently watched a Jabs Family video where an entire vintage box was ruined by gum bleeding through all the cards!

[@collectorinvestordealer]

Yeah, it wasnt the entire box by any means but at least one card in every pack was ruined by the gum, and often more than one