As a comparison, I can tell you that a friend of mine put together a master set of the 2017 James Bond Final Edition by Rittenhouse. It had Archive Box exclusive cards. It cost him around $ 3,000 for it all, and he is missing only the Sean Connery cut auto, which seems to be selling on ebay for around $ 1,500.

If I recall the Bond Archives Final set correctly, the most compelling reason to go for its archive box at the time was that Connery cut. I think the initial cost of a master was around $6,000 if you ordered straight up from a dealer.

However the cut card turned out to be unnumbered and fairly ugly looking. I certainly thought it would go in the over $5000 range, but it never even came close. So it just goes to show that you can't tell about these things even when you think you have an idea. That Connery to me is way more important than those Star Trek cuts that went for thousands of dollars each.

But here is another thing to remember, you have to have sufficient demand for the title to get high prices on even the most limited of cards. Twin Peaks has far fewer dedicated collectors than Star Trek, just as Bond collectors are fewer than Star Trek. I personally liked Bond cards, bought some Star Trek and only have a small interest in a couple of Twin Peaks autographs.

The more niche the pool is for Twin Peaks, the cheaper it will compare to prices on bigger titles. I don't see a $1000 card in Twin Peaks, not even in the archive box exclusives. I could be wrong, as I was when I overpriced the Connery cut, but the market does look soft now, so I would have to go the other way on this one. Just guessing. You would have to get a firm price from a dealer on either an archive box or a completed master of Twin Peaks to try to figure out if it would be cheaper to go all in at once or just build it yourself over time.

It also depends on whether or not you really want to work at it or just have it. Time is money too, but the real goal is in the chase for some card collectors.

I think someone did the math, and they said that there are probably 38-40 Connery cuts out there

I have seen many sell on ebay in the $ 1200-1500 range, but not more than that

The ones with higher asking prices remain unsold. There are probably a half dozen on ebay right now

With those odds 2 cases will be needed at least. If the bonus sets are in the archive box then that could be best route

Wow.

Okay.

You guys are AMAZING!

So, I have ONE last question then.......

What I have learned from this is the following......

Either....

A) Get Archive Box and DO NOT open case
or
B) Open Case and slowly collect things

Not knowing the COST of an archive box makes the choice difficult.... so.....

How important it is to start buying FAST, if I went the route of opening the case? Meaning, if I get the case and open it in 1-2 days and KNOW what I am missing, is that important as far as getting the most cards for the best prices? or does it not really matter, and I just hold off and watch things for a few weeks?

Again please excuse if these questions sound dumb. LOL! I just want to be sure that I am approaching this correctly. I am ALREADY sort of regretting ordering the case and 4 binders.

Sigh.

You guys are AMAZING!

Thank you!

Any recommended dealers, or just eBay?

B

Usually prices are HIGH just after a product is released - especially rarer cards. Star Trek & GOT archive boxes are between $1000-$1400 on ebay. There are some VERY good dealers on here (one has started a thread on the Star Trek captains set within the news and rumours (I'm English so am spelling the word correctly )

quote:

Originally posted by BrianB:
... I am ALREADY sort of regretting ordering the case and 4 binders.

Sigh...

Thank you! Any recommended dealers, or just eBay?

B

You may have saved a fair bit of money if you had ordered your case from a cheaper dealer. Check out the 'Locate a dealer' link at the bottom of the Rittenhouse Archives homepage. Not everything is up to date, but I can see a distributor selling cases cheaper than RA main site. There's also a distributor in your State.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: WOMBLE,

As you have already ordered a case, you might check back with that dealer to get a quote on an archive box, if he/she is even able to get one. However that is only if you are entertaining the idea of throwing that kind of money out at one time, which I'm not suggesting at all.

For filling your gaps if you do break your case open, quite right that prices on the better autographs and hits generally come out at peak prices in the couple of months just after release. The first round of buyers are always apt to spend more. Then the prices usually start to settle downwards, as some of these cards will never again hit those highs.

However when it comes to the more common hits and base sets and even insert sets, recent activity suggests that dealers are dumping common product a lot faster than they used to do it. So if your missing lesser cards, you might be able to find good deals fairly soon. It also might be cheaper to pick up combined lots or groupings of the lesser cards, even if a couple are duplicates of what you have.

It may take you some time to find the extremely rare cards at good prices, so you have to decide how much you may be willing to lose if you buy early on when they appear. I have found that almost everything will shake loose eventually, but it is still possible that something you pass up might not come back.

From my limited experience, opening a case can be fun and frustrating simultaneously.

I agree with those above that prices usually tend to be high just after release and then gradually fall. That will surely happen here on almost all the cards. For prices to keep going up you need the show/movie to become a phenomenon like Game of Thrones or one of the actors to take off and become a huge star. Those days have long passed for Twin Peaks and it's cast I'd say. It's very much a niche show but with a very loyal fan/collector base. Having said that the one card I would snag early if I could find it at a decent price is the David Lynch autograph. I think that is one of the cards that has the potential to actually go up in value over time once the initial market flood has dissipated. He's the daddy of this whole thing and a truly iconic filmmaker.

Thank you guys SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have a VERY clear directions now and a strategy!!!!!

The early/late pricing guidance is what I was looking for. It's actually quite similar to vinyl records.

Great! Thank you all SO MUCH!

In the meantime, I AM going to write the folks that I bought the case from and check with some distributors.

ALL the dealers listed at Rittenhouse Archive are defunct in my area. The ONLY one who answered their phone no longer deals in non-sports cards! LOL!

B

quote:

Originally posted by BrianB:

ALL the dealers listed at Rittenhouse Archive are defunct in my area. The ONLY one who answered their phone no longer deals in non-sports cards! LOL!

B

This is a sad state of affairs but has been coming for years. Cards just keep getting more expensive and long time collectors just keep walking away.

Another questions for you lovely folks!

LOL!

The Rittenhouse website says this about the Twin Peaks cards:

18-CASE INCENTIVE:
Twin Peaks Trading Cards Archive Box
--Piper Laurie as Mr. Tojamura Exclusive Autograph Card
--Sheryl Lee as Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson Exclusive Autograph Card
--Set of 4 Printing Plates used to make the front of one Base Set Card

Does this mean that the Piper Laurie as Mr. Tojamura & Sheryl Lee as Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson Exclusive Autograph Cards and set of 4 Printing Plates are included INSIDE the Archive Box, or are those three bullet-points things that are in ADDITION to the Archive Box?

If I got an Archive Box, from a dealer, would I get those three things as well, or are they three ADDITIONAL things that I would need to seek out?

Are promo cards included in Archive Boxes?

What, if anything is not, and/or how does one find out?

I can't say enough how much this forum has helped me!!!!!!!!!!

(I don't know the price yet, but I have first dibs on an Archive Box from a distributor!)

Is this the best (cheapest) way to get them, or can they be inflated because they know the people reaching out to them REALLY want them?

Thank you again! This is so, so epic!

I feel like I'm 12 again!

LOL!

Brian

So I have no personal experience with archive boxes because they are too rich for my blood. I do like looking at the box top pictures though.

Promos are not included in them, that much I think I know.

When and if you get a price, be sure to ask the seller what is included. Don't assume that the 2 signed cards and printing plates are inside the box. Don't assume anything, ask. You can ask Steve directly on the RA website to be sure. I would hope that you could get all the exclusives at the same time as the box, but if they are not sealed up inside, the seller has options. Find out for sure before you commit is my best advice.

Which brings up the value of the actual archive box. If you open up that box, your cards become worth their individual value or the value of a master set if it is complete. They may also be subject to grade inspection, since they are now technically circulated. If you keep the archive box intact, all cards are mint and untouched. The value becomes the market value of the archive box as one unit and it will increase or decrease in value as goes the demand of the whole product at any given time.

For that reason many collectors would not open an archive box, but it is counter productive to those who want to see and display their master sets. There is no right answer, just what makes more sense for you, but once unsealed you can't go back. Enjoy!

Got it.

Thank you.

This looks to be a HUGE wait and see game. LOL.

I want a master set to display. Period.

The most affordable way to that -- buying, selling, trading, etc. -- is what I want to do.

Thanks again!

quote:

Originally posted by BrianB:
Another questions for you lovely folks!

If I got an Archive Box, from a dealer, would I get those three things as well, or are they three ADDITIONAL things that I would need to seek out?

Are promo cards included in Archive Boxes?

What, if anything is not, and/or how does one find out?

...Brian

Keep an eye on the product page on Rittenhouse's site, as they usually update it with a link as they finalize the set.

An example - http://www.scifihobby.com/prod...cs/abox-contents.jpg

Apart from the parallel cards, I would not expect any exclusions for the Twin Peaks set.

quote:

Originally posted by BrianB:
Another questions for you lovely folks!

LOL!

The Rittenhouse website says this about the Twin Peaks cards:

18-CASE INCENTIVE:
Twin Peaks Trading Cards Archive Box
--Piper Laurie as Mr. Tojamura Exclusive Autograph Card
--Sheryl Lee as Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson Exclusive Autograph Card
--Set of 4 Printing Plates used to make the front of one Base Set Card

Does this mean that the Piper Laurie as Mr. Tojamura & Sheryl Lee as Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson Exclusive Autograph Cards and set of 4 Printing Plates are included INSIDE the Archive Box, or are those three bullet-points things that are in ADDITION to the Archive Box?

If I got an Archive Box, from a dealer, would I get those three things as well, or are they three ADDITIONAL things that I would need to seek out? They are inside the archive box, not separate

Are promo cards included in Archive Boxes? Sometimes, but not always. Same thing with case toppers if there are any in this product.

What, if anything is not, and/or how does one find out? Usually the 6 and 9 case incentive cards are not included in the archive box. Also if there is a numbered parallel or insert they are not included or just a few.

I can't say enough how much this forum has helped me!!!!!!!!!!

(I don't know the price yet, but I have first dibs on an Archive Box from a distributor!)

Is this the best (cheapest) way to get them, or can they be inflated because they know the people reaching out to them REALLY want them?

Thank you again! This is so, so epic!

I feel like I'm 12 again!

LOL!

Brian

Answers in red above. As for the cost of an archive box it really depends on the release. I wouldn't be surprised if at release the asking price is between $1,800 and $2,000.

You can send Rittenhouse a message and they will answer you.

Again... Thank you all SO MUCH!!!!!!

Anyone know if Non-Sport Update Magazine has done a write-up on the TP cards, or if they will?

Hell, this should be on a COVER! LOL!

quote:

Originally posted by BrianB:
Anyone know if Non-Sport Update Magazine has done a write-up on the TP cards, or if they will?

Hell, this should be on a COVER! LOL!

Might be in the next issue