Friday, September 11, 2009

Tristar Obak Review


I recently opened 2 boxes of Tristar Obak. If you were/are a fan of Topps T206 or Topps Allen & Ginter's then you will like this product.


It is based on a 1909 T-212 Obak design.

Some of the unique features are that the boxes are numbered to 3600.

It is a mixture of minor leaguers, rookies, historical figures and old timers.


Some of the historical figures are the Wright Brothers, Presidents Taft and Obama and Francis Scott Key.


Rookies include Tommy Hanson and Gordon Beckham and the old timers include Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Duke Snider and Tom Seaver.


A complete set is 114 cards. In the 2 boxes I did not complete a set.

There is also a miniature set which is 68 cards.


There are lots of short prints. The short prints can be told when you see a circle, triangle, diamond or square around the number of the card. I thought this was a nice touch. There are also color variations.


The autographs I received of old timers were Gregg Jefferies numbered to 50 and Al Rosen numbered to 25. I received 2 minor leaguer autographs numbered to 200.


I like the artificial color but I would like to see baseball products really be baseball products and not have Presidents and other historical figures and celebrities (I did receive a Bing Crosby mini card). Products for Presidents exist and some are very good such as Topps Heritage American Heroes.
I don't like the box topper which is a 4 card T-212 mini uncut strip. I don't like it for 2 reasons. Both cards were cut poorly and I would prefer a card that fits in a regular top loader. All these oversized cards need special top loaders and the cost of the top loader can be more than the value of the card.


If you are a set builder you will love this product. If you are someone who likes the big hit this product is not for you.
If I was a movie critic I would give this product 3 out of 4 stars.

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