Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

LEGENDARY INK
The Card: Undertaker 2022 Panini Revolution WWE Sunburst Autographs (/99)
The Reason Graded: This cost me less than what two boxes would have when I bought it raw -- and then I submitted it to grade after seeing that some typical problem spots for cards from this brand weren't really issues. (In my view, the back corners and edges can be funky for both years.) Why grab this? Undertaker was not a regular signer for a long time and even when has signed cards in recent years he's been more limited since his signing fees are always high -- seemingly far higher than others -- based on public signing prices. I have his ink on a few items sold direct from WWE in the past, but I hadn't rally bothered with anything for cards and figured this could make for a nice slab -- even with sticker ink -- as the photo is as iconic as it gets for a legendary character in WWE history. This would be a perfect kind of auto card if it had an on-card sig ... and it's still not far off as it is with that photo. It's also a perhaps-overlooked brand in the Panini WWE portfolio.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: A nine I'm fine with -- so no worries here -- but anything less than that I would have been kind of mad at myself for trying it. Why? Generally, I don't like pricey surprises with grading, so I don't slab as much ink as I should as I own plenty of them raw. I need to do more slabs like this, but a miss on cheaper, oddball cards that are interesting aren't as risky in my book.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ...

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MORE LIKE TOPANGA NOW
The Cards: Danielle Fishel 2023 Topps Now 10-pack (/4,993)
The Price: Bundle price from Topps
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This is among the newer pick-ups for me from Topps this year -- there have not been that many, really -- but the novelty of this one got me to bite on some Topps Now hoping for maybe landing a parallel and something that might draw an elite grade. I got nothing on the parallel front and, well, maybe one of this 10 might be slab-worthy at some point ... but this one was not cleanly made (at least in my batch) with some corner issues and surface spots (lower left side most often). That made this not as fun as I had hoped but I did it anyway as I missed on the auto packs that were reasonably priced -- I would have bought one had I not missed the drop -- and those who have landed unsigned parallels are asking prices that are even higher than what ink cost ... so this one's novelty appeal is strong -- for now. Hopefully, more unusual cards will show up among Topps Now offerings in the coming weeks and months. Novelty Now will get my attention as stuff that's different and unique will have more appeal in the long-term than some might think. I still think a single auto (or maybe a low-volume auto parallel) mixed into regular Topps Now orders could draw more buys, too.
Grab a box right here: Nothing for this one but MLB boxes are here.

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys.

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A FIRST FOR ME ...
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Topps Archives Snapshots Autographs
The Price: More than I like to admit ... but less than a lot of his autos out there
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This guy has almost become my default go-to player recently for MLB, but since he's popular, on a rising team and been on cardboard for some time I haven't really gotten in stuff on on the lower side of things. That's OK -- I don't need a third "personal collection" guy in my cardboard lifetime to do the chase-heavy approach. I'll just dabble. What is this? It's my first autograph for Bo Bichette in a small-but-growing stash that has plenty of typical raw pulls but also plenty of slabs (including a fun one of his brother) to go along with a game-used ball (a past post here) and then even a signed game-model bat for his dad somewhere in my stash. It'll be a while before I add a Bo Bichette game-used bat based on the price, but I could see it happening sometime down the line. (I dabble in a lot of directions.)
Grab a box right here: 2020 Topps Archives Snapshots

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

Continue reading →

Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys.

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL ICONS
The Card: Paul "Bear" Bryant & Knute Rockne 2010 Panini Century Collection Souvenir Stamps Sports Combos (two stamps dual material) (/100)
The Price: More than I'll admit ... but it's a keeper.
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This is just the second time I've grabbed one of these key memorabilia cards with a piece of a fedora worn by Bryant and a jacket from Rockne -- two of the greatest coaches in the history of college football. Rockne has a number of memorabilia cards out there (more than 50) but Bryant only has a literal handful of cards -- and almost all of them were in this release. Why? Hats aren't all that big. As far as I know, all but a 1/1 card or two is in this release ... meanwhile, the prices for the few Bryant fedoras that may exist -- if they ever hit the market again -- won't be card-conducive in the future since they are pricey. The last two Bryant houndstooth fedoras auctioned? Together, they topped $100,000 on the auction block. These are limited to only 100 copies and I hadn't picked up one of these in a long time. Why this time? You never know when more might pop up.
Grab a box right here: 2010 Panini Century Collection (when available)

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