2016 Japanese BBM Masterpiece "Stay Gold" Card - Yokozuna Hokutoumi

In the not-so-distant past, BBM was doing some interesting things with their multi-sport sets.  BBM, in a break from their normal conservatism, issued "Super Metallic Cards" [スーパーメタリックカード] of a handful of athletes as part of the Stay Gold subset to the 2016 BBM Masterpiece set.  2016 BBM Masterpiece has a slew of other cool subsets as well: the lenticular "Glorious 3D" subset, the holographic "Superstar" subset, the "Sparkling Hero" subset, and combo, vertical, horizontal autograph subsets.  One of the athletes they captured within the Stay Gold set is Yokozuna Hokutoumi who had risen through the ranks during the same time as the legendary Yokozuna Chiyonofuji.  Hokutoumi was strong, but his true potential was tapped down by Chiyonofuji's sheer dominance.  He ended his career in 1992 with 8 respectable championships.

These Stay Gold cards are heavy....almost 1 oz!  Since inserting these in card packs would have certainly been detected due to their weight, BBM issued redemption cards that a lucky winner would send off in return for one of these.  I have seen Stay Gold cards pop up from time to time, but I have never seen the corresponding return letter than BBM also included with the card....until recently.  I was able to pick up both the card and the letter from eBay recently.  It also reveals that even though BBM issued these as part of their Stay Gold subset, they refer to them as Super Metallic Cards!  Maybe insignificant to most, but part of the entire story that inspires me as a collector.

These don't scan well, but here are a few photos I was able to snap along with BBM's correspondence.

Have a great week and stay safe!

Unopened Box Bepop

Fuji and I have a little dual-post action going on this Saturday where each of us is posting our Top-10 favorite unopened boxes we have in our collections.  Check out his here.  It was tough narrowing it down to ten, but I was able to break them down into different categories to help me decide.  From #10 to #1, here is what I came up with:

#10 (Also known as my favorite Vintage Japanese Sport Box) - 1991 BBM Baseball

This was the first large-scale baseball set that BBM issued which also happened to contain a bunch of Hideo Nomo 2nd-Year cards and baseball legends Sadaharu Oh and Shigeo Nagashima as coaches.  My box is a bit beat up, but still a beauty and hard to believe it was 29 years ago!  30 packs per box with 10 cards per pack.  

#9 (Also known as my favorite Collector's Choice Box) - 2013 BBM P. League Bowling

I used one of my 10 boxes as kind of a miscellaneous box, or Collector's Choice Box.  Pretty girls that are bowling seems pretty quirky, but if you go watch videos of them in action they are very talented.  The P. League has somewhat of a reality show feel, but fun to watch and the ladies do not disappoint.  The autographs of these ladies are extremely well done as well.  54-card set per box with 2 special insert cards to boot!

 

 

#8 (Also known as my favorite Vintage Japanese Non-Sport Box) - 1950s Weapons "Gold" Menko



In the mid-1950s, the world saw a proliferation of nuclear weapons as well as rockets, jets and bombers filling the skies.  This set captures the imagination of the artists through weapons and destruction  What makes this set very interesting beyond the artwork, is the liberal use of gold ink on the packaging and cards.  A great example of Japanese artistry.  These boxes are considered "unopened and sealed" when the twine is present with the box.  50 packs per box with 6-7 menko per pack.

 



 

#7 (Also known as my favorite Foreign "Non-Japanese/U.S." Box) - 2019 Panini European Kimmidoll





I went through Spain and Portugal earlier last year right during the Kimmidoll craze.  Panini issued these cards only in this part of the world for a span of 3-6 months.  After I saw them, I ended up buying two unopened boxes online as well as an album.  Now you can't find them anywhere it seems.  These postcard-sized cards are strangely appealing to me and the artwork is amazing and refreshingly Japanese.  There are 18 packs per box with 6 cards per pack.

 

 



#6 (Also known as my favorite Modern Japanese Non-Sport Box) - 1986 Amada Famicon Mini Cards



I was and still am a huge NES fan.  The hours/days/weeks I spent engrossed in these games always brings a smile and air of nostalgia to me.  Amada kept the mini card craze strung along until the mid 1980s and issued these cards which captured screenshots of actual in-game play.  These boxes have 30 packs with 2-3 mini cards per pack.  I can still hear the Super Mario Brothers music playing in my head right now.... 

 

 

 

#5 (Also known as my favorite Oddball Box) - 1997 Takara Basscole Fishing Lures



 Most of you are scratching your head on this one.  Me too.  Why do I have this box?  Read about it here in full detail.  But basically Brad Pitt's movie, A River Runs Through It" sparked a bass fishing frenzy in Japan which also happend to coincide with the boom in trading card production.  What are these cards?  Trading cards of bass fishing lures.  No, no the actually people bass fishing, just the lures.  A must in my collection for sure.  30 Packs per Box and 10 Cards per Pack.

 

 

#4 (Also known as my favorite Modern Japanese Sport Box) - 2016-2017 BBM Basketball

I have a PC of Yuta Tabuse...or at least a really good handful of them in my collection...and decided I wanted to collect these boxes.  At the time, the new B.League partnered with BBM to produce these trading cards.  That was back in the 2016-2017 timeframe and they have since been making these for 4 years.  This was the very first series issued back in late 2016.  20 Packs per Box and 5 Cards per Pack 

 

 

 

# 3 (Also known as my favorite U.S. Non-Sport Box) - 2018 Topps Stranger Things Series 1



I love the show Stranger Things and when Topps announced they were releasing a trading card set based on the series, I knew I had grab a few boxes.  I can't remember the exact story or controversy, but I believe the odds for special cards there was stated on the retail? packs wasn't accurate and this evolved into a lot of complaints and poor reviews of this first product.  Alas, this box stays on my shelf with unknown content....mysterious!  24 Packs per Box, 7 Cards per Pack

 

 

 

#2 (Also known as my favorite Modern Sumo Box) - 2016 BBM Sumo



I chose this year of BBM sumo cards because this was the year I connected with a great group of collectors on Facebook devoted to strictly BBM sumo cards.  It has been a great opportunity to share my passion with like-minded collectors and fans.  A sharp-looking set with great box art.  24 Packs per Box with 5 Cards per Pack. 

 

 

 

#1 (Also known as my favorite Vintage Sumo Box) - 1958 Dash 7-8 Menko



 This box is what got me into sumo card collecting in the first place. The very first sumo box I owned!  While vacationing in the southern islands of Japan, I found this box in a small antique shop in the resort town we were staying at.  I knew I had to have it!  This 1958 Dash 7-8 (Catalogue #M581) has resided in my collection as the first-ever sumo card box that I have owned and so it captures a special place in my heart and the #1 spot on my list of unopened card boxes.  I haven't counted the packs, but there are at least 100 packs with the special uncut gold prize card sheets on top. 

 

 

Well, there you have it.  Thanks for stopping by and please make sure you check out Fuji's unopened box bebop as well.  Cheers and Sayonara!

Mint Mall Musings and why Japanese are "masters of efficiency"

Maybe I am biased having lived in Japan, but I swear by Japanese efficiency.  I can get an Express Mail Service (EMS) package from Tokyo to southern Alabama faster that it takes for me to ship a package from Alabama to my home state of Wyoming via USPS.  Take for example my latest shipment from Mint Mall.  It left Mint Mall and processed through Narita early in the morning of 28 February Alabama time and was at my doorstep the morning of 2 March.  Reading online posts, most everyone has the same experience.  It seems that EMS skips some steps with customs which would explain the blazing speed.  It is amazing the USPS postal system works that fast with EMS packages on this end when they have a hard time with their own internal packages sometimes.  And my latest shipment of two 2016 BBM sumo boxes only cost around $20.  Simply amazing!

I really wanted to talk briefly about Mint Mall, a sports collectibles chain store in Japan.  There have been numerous blog posts about Team Mint from Dave over at Japanese Baseball Cards, and Ryan at This Card is Cool.  Those two guys have actually been able to go to the stores in person.  I haven't used their online service until now (actually I bought their stuff through eBay), but they have been making a big push in Beckett Magazine to the English-speaking market.  I'm hoping to be able to visit a few of them when I head to Japan in a few weeks.  Navigating their website does take a bit to get used to and you have to keep in mind that you are browsing different stores inventory as well as their web inventory.  They do have overseas shipping information here.  It does look like if you want cards from 3 or more different stores, there will be a $5 fee handling fee.  Here is their latest flyer that has the numerous stores throughout Japan list listed....take a look at Mint Shibuya....they have actually installed a bar so "you can enjoy some alcohol while breaking card boxes."  Whoop, I know where I am going to go first.

I had zero issues with the order and they actually sent some extra BBM Masterpiece sumo cards along with their pretty fancy holographic business card printed on high quality card stock.  Great customer service as always from a Japanese business! 

I walked away with nothing too fancy...just a few boxes of 2016 BBM Sumo that filled in a hole in my unopened collection.  I might open one of them for a box break review at some point.

They are pretty much on par with Rakuten as far as selection (although much more of the singles cards at Mint Mall) and they have a lot more of the American stuff for expats living abroad.  I am excited about picking up some stuff in person and I'll hopefully have some fun stuff to share when I get back.

Favorite Card of 2016

Fuji over at The Chronicles of Fuji pointed me to a contest P-Town Tom was running through 9 January 2017.  The basic premise is to post your favorite card of 2016 and you are entered into a contest to win a 2017 Topps S1 blaster.  I have too many sumo cards to choose from, but one "other" card that I do consider to be one of my favorite is this 2016 BBM Masterpiece of Sunao Takizawa who is the captain of the Japanese NEC Green Hornets rugby team.

There are three reasons this card is my favorite:

1. Takizawa-san's legs are bigger than my waist...look at those things.  Plus, his hair is flying up because he is lowering his head to ruin someone's day.  This is one of the most menacing cards I have ever seen.

2. I owned exactly one autographed card before this one.  It is a Laura Prepon 2015 Panini Americana that I picked up cheap at the Chantilly Card Show.  Other than that, this is it (Actually, this card is on its way over from Japan, but this is the auction photo of it).  Takizawa-san's signature is a really beauty and when I saw this card, I knew I needed to have it.

3. This card would not have been possible without the help of Raz over at The Raz Card Blog.  I shot him a small care package a few weeks ago and he unexpectedly dropped a little extra in my PayPal account to say thanks.  A huge gesture and this card represents the great folks I have met over the past year of blogging.  Thanks Raz!

Thanks to P-Town Tom as well for running your contest.  Cheers everyone!

2016 Year in Review

This will be the last post I get out this year as the holidays will likely tie me up over the next week. It surely has been a great year.  I really had no expectations on where this blog would take me, but I'm enjoying it and having a great time interacting with the community of collectors. I'll post my 2017 goals early next year, but wanted to mention a few of my card collecting accomplishments this year.

1st - I've been able to connect with a few other collectors and enjoy immensely their perspectives.  The Raz Card Blog and The Chronicles of Fuji are among my favorite. The Japanese Baseball Cards Blog and Baseball Cards in Japan are excellent blogs as well where I get to absorb more Japanese card knowledge than I know what to do with.  I was also able to connect with a Facebook Group that focuses on the modern BBM sets. Thanks guys!

2nd - My line of work has always been a priority right behind my family so I am fortunate to be able to get some time to focus on my collection and sharing it with the wider collecting community.  What I didn't realize is that my fellow collectors have motivated me to broaden my collecting interests too. Although I haven't dove in yet, I have ideas for next years. Thanks Raz and Fuji!

3rd - I finally expanded my proxy bidding knowledge thanks to Dave at Japanese Baseball Cards and Raz at The Raz Card Blog.  Through some spreadsheet comparisons and research I've been able to try another service besides JAUCE which has the good potential to save me money in the long run.

4th - This has been a busy year at work and we eventually moved down to AL for a 10-month assignment at the end of summer. My schedule became more predictable and I've been able to start selling more on eBay to "thin the herd" of my collection. I've had doubles and misc stuff I've had slated to sell for a while....so I've been able to move it and put some of that money back into my collection.

5th - I've been able to regularly add new cards and menko to my sumo collection throughout the year for which I'm very grateful. I thought the older stuff,that I don't already have, would dry up, but I keep finding more and more of it which prevents me from working on the more modern stuff.  No complaints though, since the older stuff is much more rare and harder to come by.  There is too much to mention specific things that I've added, but all of it will be included in the 4th edition of my Sumo Book.

 

6th - My vintage Japanese Pro Wrestling PC has come a long ways this year. I added a few more cards to my 1974 Yamakatsu New Japan Pro Wrestling Master Set. I'm also 1 card away from completing the base 1976 Yamakatsu All Japan Pro Wrestling set, not to mention all the other cards I've added to that Master Set. I've also been able identify the complete 16-card Japanese Pro Wrestling Menko set from 1974. In one me card away from completing that set as well.

Cheers and everyone have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2016 BBM Masterpiece - Sumo Checklist

 A few months ago, BBM released a 127-card multi-sport set titled "Masterpiece" with a ton of insert cards.  It focused on both current former players from a variety of different sports to include badminton, swimming, sumo, baseball, and rugby to name a few.  There are a variety of different subsets as well within the set and I've highlighted several of those below.

Here are a couple of spreads from the last two Sports Card Magazine (SCM) on the set.

I was able to pick up the base set of 6 sumo cards fairly inexpensively.  Each of the cards has the wrestlers squatting just before the match begins with the Masterpiece tag above his name in both English and Japanese.  The back highlights his career statistics and a small paragraph under his picture with more anecdotal info.

  The first subset is titled Glorious 3D and are numbered to 50.  I have not seen one of these in person (image above from Yahoo Auctions), but they look pretty sweet.  There are three sumo wrestlers in this subset: Akebono, Musashimaru, Hakuho.

The second subset is the Stay Gold Subset although I have yet to see any of the actual cards come up for auction and have only see photos of these cards in SCM.  Right now they are issuing exchange cards, see above(image above from Yahoo Auctions), for the actual card in the near future.  There are also three sumo cards in this set: Chiyonofuji, Takanohana, and Hokutoumi.

Yokozuna Hakuho is the only sumo wrestler in the Superstar subset, but there are different parallel cards of him for this subset.  A base card, a gold parallel numbered to 200, a hologram parallel numbered to 100 and a hologram PP parallel numbered to 100.  I am not sure what the difference is between the two holograms, but one of them is shown above.

 There is also a Sparkling Hero subset, but no sumo wrestlers appear in it.  The biggest draw, though, are all the autograph cards as seen above...each one comes in a vertical and horizontal orientation with different numbering.  My biggest complaint if I was to get any is the sticker autographs.  BBM is notorious for them and I am not a big fan....but when they are the only game in town you have no choice.  Some of the sumo signers in this set I would love to own especially Musashimaru, Akebono and Takanohana.  Although, I can't see myself paying for a few squiggles in the case of  Takanohana or Akebono.  If I do get any of these, it would be the Musashimaru as he has the cleanest of signatures.

Here is the complete sumo checklist for the 2016 Masterpiece Set.

Base:
#78 Chiyonofuji
#79 Hokutoumi
#80 Akebono
#81 Takanohana
#82 Musashiyama
#83 Hakuho

Autograph:
Musashimaru-Horizontal  (#ed to 90)
Musashimaru-Vertical (#ed to 60)
Takanohana-Horizontal (#ed to 90)
Takanohana -Vertical (#ed to 30)
Akebono-Horizontal (#ed to 89)
Akebono-Vertical (#ed to 60)
Hokutoumi-Horizontal (#ed to 82)
Hokutoumi-Vertical (#ed to 60)

Super Star:
#SS12 - Hakuho
Gold Parallel (#ed to 200)
Hologram Parallel (#ed to 100)
Hologram PP Parallel (#ed to 100)

Glorious 3D:
#3D06 - Akebono (#ed to 50)
#3D07 - Musashiyama (#ed to 50)
#3D08 - Hakuho (#ed to 50)

Stay Gold:
#SG05 - Chiyonofuji (#ed to 50)
#SG06 - Hokutoumi (#ed to 50)
#SG07 - Takanohana (#ed to 50)