Topps Finest Peeling Question

[sebreg]

I imagine this has been debated ad infinitum, but I'm new to the forum and was wondering what most peoples' takes were on this.

I'm a fan of the Finest Gold Heirs Kobe rookie. I guess unpeeled commands a bit more premium, but what I wonder about is over the very long term, could the plastic peel being left on degrade into the card and hurt the actual card itself? Personally, I lean towards peeled on purely aesthetic grounds, but I do also wonder about card "integrity" being harmed from the coating over long term.

[shondamon]

It looks better peeled but I don’t think the card will get more damaged if left unpeeled. I just had one graded with the coating and got a PSA 8 which I was happy with. Probably would get a 9 if peeled, but oh wells

[Uncbuddha]

I have a 94 grant hill that I attempted to peel and can’t get all of the peel off. Also damaged a 98 antawn jamison rookie refractor on the right border trying to peel from the side.

[duron]

Originally Posted by Uncbuddha

I have a 94 grant hill that I attempted to peel and can’t get all of the peel off.

That sucks. Is it the refractor? That would f'ing blow.

[Justin7]

I like it better w/ peel on.

This one is personal preference.

[duron]

Do we even know for sure that peels protected surfaces while in packs?

[stalemonkey30]

I remember getting my first pack of 94-95 finest. I refused to peel them at the time, but I'm sure some others did.

The cards really do pop when they are peeled though, especially the refractors. I would say only peel if you intend on slabbing. I've actually been debating on peeling my Garnett RC to send in for grading.

[sebreg]

Thanks for the various input guys. I do think I'll end up going for a peeled and slabbed Kobe Gold Heirs at some point. I just prefer peeled aesthetics so much, especially on this particular card where the image just pops so nicely. But I know some people consider a peeled card "not whole." Since this card would be for PC, resale value is not the biggest deal but I can't help but keep an eye on potential resale value just in case (shameless I know!).

I have the Kobe Apprentice Finest rookie, unpeeled (this one doesn't bother me unpeeled as much as the Heirs card), see if I can sell that one plus a few others first before shooting for the other Kobe finest rookie. That Kobe is a bit nostalgic for me as it's one of my favorite pulls from childhood. But trying to consolidate a bit, so we shall see.

[sebreg]

Originally Posted by shondamon

It looks better peeled but I don’t think the card will get more damaged if left unpeeled. I just had one graded with the coating and got a PSA 8 which I was happy with. Probably would get a 9 if peeled, but oh wells

Nice! congrats on the pick-up. Really love this Kobe rookie, it's prob my fav. I remember one of my buddies from childhood had this one and the Topps Chrome rookie! (he had a hell of a collection) Ever since then it's been an iconic card in my mind that I'd love to pick up.

[rogueriver]

Peel Off if Grading I know they sell for less, but is is going to be forever and I hate a Gem Mint Card with a Peel Covering the middle of the image just my preference.....PLus refractors shine after that peel comes off.

[sebreg]

Originally Posted by rogueriver

Peel Off if Grading I know they sell for less, but is is going to be forever and I hate a Gem Mint Card with a Peel Covering the middle of the image just my preference.....PLus refractors shine after that peel comes off.

Oh yeah, I wish I could pick up a refractor version! at this point prob out of my price range so I'd be happy to pick up a base version. And I agree, slabbed way nicer to have the peeled for better enjoyment. These cards have appreciated a lot, right now am trying to figure out a price range that I feel makes sense to me, and what kind of time frame I should wait on to see if things cycle back down a bit. Ideally would like to pick up PSA 9.

[Dame]

I prefer them on it’s original state which is unpeeled. I used to collect Toys and I’m one of those guys that leaves them in their original packaging lol.

[sebreg]

Originally Posted by Dame

I prefer them on it’s original state which is unpeeled. I used to collect Toys and I’m one of those guys that leaves them in their original packaging lol.

Tbh, I can better understand keeping toys in packaging because there is often era specific art and design element to a lot of packaging. Whereas the finest protective coat does not have any interesting aesthetic design elements imo, merely a hindrance for appreciating the card's design.

[stalemonkey30]

Originally Posted by Dame

I prefer them on it’s original state which is unpeeled. I used to collect Toys and I’m one of those guys that leaves them in their original packaging lol.

I have a friend that has almost every 90s Ninja Turtle toy in its original box that he and his father had been collecting since he was very little. I always make fun of him for having a terrible childhood.

[liva]

I collected three Finest full refractors sets and I always advocate for peeling... Experience showed me that, on some cards, the protection sticks (with time I guess) on the card and makes it impossible to remove without damaging the card (I killed a Kidd RC refractor because of that !!!)... Also, the cards looks way better peeled...

[mc1]

Originally Posted by Dame

I prefer them on it’s original state which is unpeeled. I used to collect Toys and I’m one of those guys that leaves them in their original packaging lol.

Nah, they look ugly.

[RoundMound]

Peel them! They are much more vibrant. YOLO!!!
That said, never going to risk that now with my own after 25 yrs

[sebreg]

Originally Posted by RoundMound

Peel them! They are much more vibrant. YOLO!!!
That said, never going to risk that now with my own after 25 yrs

Yeah, even if a good deal on unpeeled came up, I wouldn't risk buying it and peeling it myself. I'd rather just buy peeled straight up and enjoy the card in that state. I don't trust myself to peel a 25yr old card.

Like it was mentioned in this thread, some real horror stories around peeling after it's been on for so many years.

[sebreg]

Originally Posted by liva

I collected three Finest full refractors sets and I always advocate for peeling... Experience showed me that, on some cards, the protection sticks (with time I guess) on the card and makes it impossible to remove without damaging the card (I killed a Kidd RC refractor because of that !!!)... Also, the cards looks way better peeled...

What a bummer, Kidd refractor RC would be such an amazing card. I have the base rookie, love that card.

[2010GBPackers]

Glad to see the tide is finally turning! Below is a snippet of what I posted on this issue in my Top 10 PC cards countdown thread. BTW, the Finest Kobe Heirs gold was my #1 card.

I'll pause here to address an issue that will continue to be argued over to the end of time: To peel or not to peel. I am a peel guy, let me get that out of the way. However, I do understand the "not peel" crowd. As long as the text does not go over the player's face or a section of the card that is important, I can live with it. However, to say that a card w/ peel looks as nice as one without the peel is like saying a refractor looks better in a BGS case than a PSA case. That is impossible. In order to release the card's true refractor qualities, you need to peel the card. If people don't want to and want to keep it how it came out of the pack, that's cool, but you're never going to get the shine of a peeled card. Additionally, the peel on these cards slowly bubble over time, which means any PSA 10 that was graded years ago would most likely not be a 10 anymore. I have seen multiple, multiple examples of old PSA 10 labels where the micro-bubbling on the peel has taken over. Just saying.

[sebreg]

Originally Posted by 2010GBPackers

Glad to see the tide is finally turning! Below is a snippet of what I posted on this issue in my Top 10 PC cards countdown thread. BTW, the Finest Kobe Heirs gold was my #1 card.

I'll pause here to address an issue that will continue to be argued over to the end of time: To peel or not to peel. I am a peel guy, let me get that out of the way. However, I do understand the "not peel" crowd. As long as the text does not go over the player's face or a section of the card that is important, I can live with it. However, to say that a card w/ peel looks as nice as one without the peel is like saying a refractor looks better in a BGS case than a PSA case. That is impossible. In order to release the card's true refractor qualities, you need to peel the card. If people don't want to and want to keep it how it came out of the pack, that's cool, but you're never going to get the shine of a peeled card. Additionally, the peel on these cards slowly bubble over time, which means any PSA 10 that was graded years ago would most likely not be a 10 anymore. I have seen multiple, multiple examples of old PSA 10 labels where the micro-bubbling on the peel has taken over. Just saying.

Thanks for sharing! I checked out your OG thread, absolutely fantastic. Loved the history and context along with the cards you posted.

I bit the bullet and picked up the Kobe Heirs card (non-refractor, PSA 9). Will post soon as I get it. Very excited to add this one to my collection. I'm mostly a basketball base rookie card guy, focused on Lebron/Kobe but one of these days would love to pick up some of the iconic vintage rookie cards in 61 fleer, and Dr J, Kareem...

[PLB9eight]

Was sitting here earlier looking at some older Finest cards I had stumbled upon. Nothing of any value. Was peeling some just to see how difficult it was to start removing. Picking at the corner seemed to damage a couple no matter how careful I was. I had the idea to take duct tape and stick it the corner to grip the peel. Worked light a charm. It pulled the peel up at the corner and allowed me to easily remove the peel. In my opinion the peel has always looked bad, even though I’ve always left it on. Anyway, this may have been discussed or thought of before, but I wanted to pass it along.


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[90skid]

Originally Posted by PLB9eight

Was sitting here earlier looking at some older Finest cards I had stumbled upon. Nothing of any value. Was peeling some just to see how difficult it was to start removing. Picking at the corner seemed to damage a couple no matter how careful I was. I had the idea to take duct tape and stick it the corner to grip the peel. Worked light a charm. It pulled the peel up at the corner and allowed me to easily remove the peel. In my opinion the peel has always looked bad, even though I’ve always left it on. Anyway, this may have been discussed or thought of before, but I wanted to pass it along.

that's a great idea with the duct tape, I may try that out. I've got a PSA 8 Shaq that still has the coating, and I'm pretty sure the coating is the reason why it got an 8. I got it for cheap so I'm considering cracking the case, peeling and resubmitting just to see if it'll turn into a 9.

[evileddie]

Can anyone tell me if the Topps 40 Chrome refractors have a protective peel on them? I bought a Pippen recently that feels like it has a protective peel on it.

[90skid]

Originally Posted by evileddie

Can anyone tell me if the Topps 40 Chrome refractors have a protective peel on them? I bought a Pippen recently that feels like it has a protective peel on it.

As far as I know, every card that's got the peel also has big black text indicating to PEEL AND REMOVE so it should be very clear if it's still on there or not.