For a fee, I'm happy to be your back-door man...

[MattDMC]

If anybody needs any proof to an ITG backdoor look no further than the member over on HI who sent a card into ITG to be replaced and that card has since resurfaced by one of the big 3 (Steelcity, DA, NO7). How does a card sent in to be replaced come back on the market?

[iidaemmi]

Ive always said North-of-7 is just slang for back door ITG.

Ive said this for the last 5+ years, has been an ongoing joke here in Vancouver.

All of which have long been involved in the card collecting understand it. How else it would be possible that the seller open all the time tons of boxes and sell them on eBay. The seller gets something under the table, otherwise it would not be profitable. He don't love us some much that it would be the reason.

Harri

[mortuus]

If anybody needs any proof to an ITG backdoor look no further than the member over on HI who sent a card into ITG to be replaced and that card has since resurfaced by one of the big 3 (Steelcity, DA, NO7). How does a card sent in to be replaced come back on the market?

Yes thats hard to disagree with, clearly there is something going when certain sellers have all theese rare cards and many which are clearly overproduced by their stated print runs.

[30ranfordfan]

If only we had a mat with different conclusions on it, that we could jump to. LOL

[comfortably9numb]

I've heard from other places that cards like this were never pack-inserted:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2001-02-BAP-...-/331561586908

This one, and a Patrick Roy one as well:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Patrick-Roy-...item541b26bb5f

Is there truth that these two cards were not pack-inserted? I checked a checklist, and could not find either of them on it.

[30ranfordfan]

That is correct.

These cards were both on the original checklist, and then removed. Can assume that they did not get the signatures back in time. Now they are available for sale.

There was a Mike Vernon Motown Madness Auto with a similar story. Didn't exist on the checklist, and then the card became available.

I've heard from other places that cards like this were never pack-inserted:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2001-02-BAP-Signature-Series-LCJ-Curtis-Joseph-Gold-Auto-SP-/331561586908

This one, and a Patrick Roy one as well:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Patrick-Roy-2001-02-ITG-Be-A-Player-Signature-Series-Autograph-Auto-Card-XLPR-/361232776031?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item541b26 bb5f

Is there truth that these two cards were not pack-inserted? I checked a checklist, and could not find either of them on it.

[Sharky94]

Now there is growing evidence that print runs may not have been as low as stated. It's certain that this is the case for some cards, and it's impossible to know the scope of the issue. If someone is selling 13 sets of 100 cards, that are supposedly limited to 30.... that tells me that there are probable 43 sets AT LEAST that have been made. Maybe 50? Maybe 60? Maybe there was 100 ? I don't know.... or maybe that seller has 13 of the 30.

It isn't only ITG, though. I have seen the seller (who happens to be a sponsor of SCF) list multiple copies of Panini cards at the same time -- like four copies of a card supposedly limited to 10. That just seems a little TOO convenient/coincidental to trust. So that is why I do not buy singles from that seller. Now it is totally possible that they do such good business that the companies reward them with multiple copies of these giveaways. But I refuse to pay such exorbitant amounts that they charge for cards they are given for free.

[TRDouble]

That is correct.

These cards were both on the original checklist, and then removed. Can assume that they did not get the signatures back in time. Now they are available for sale.

There was a Mike Vernon Motown Madness Auto with a similar story. Didn't exist on the checklist, and then the card became available.

This happened with a Decades 80s Hasek too. ITG got the auto too late to be inserted into the product, so they put it into the National Decades 80s box instead.

[4ant4]

This happened with a Decades 80s Hasek too. ITG got the auto too late to be inserted into the product, so they put it into the National Decades 80s box instead.

I bought a crap ton of sealed cases and boxes of the Chicago National Decades 80's from who else but SteelCity after the convention ended. I shredded it because I was working on a master set. I can confirm that at one point I had 7 or 8 of those Hasek autos and got good money for all of them. It was at that point that I got a sick feeling that something wasn't quite right, not because of the Hasek's, but because in those Chicago National boxes/cases, I was pulling 2 or 3 copies of emblem or patch cards that according to the ITG website, there were only 2 or 3 made. These National boxes were just like the regular Decades 80's release, no special stamping or anything, they were the same cards you get in the regular version except you got an extra quad card made just for the show of all Blackhawks, and the Hasek autos were randomly inserted. I knew there was no way, or at least highly unlikely, that ITG would keep all copies of certain limited patches/emblems and only insert them in a National release. I also knew that I had seen a few of those same cards sold on EBAY as I was working on the master set, and it was usually higher profile players who player collectors bid crazy money on to get because they thought there were only 2 or 3 total copies available, so the bidding wars started and I wasn't willing to go that high. It all clicked and I said screw it, I sold off the entire collection piece by piece and I was maybe 20-25 cards short of a master.

I also know for a fact that I sent back a damaged patch that was supposed to be /3, they did replace it. I knew who had the other 2 copies of the card so all 3 were accounted for. I sold mine as part of the sell off and was very surprised to see the damaged card I sent in up for sale on one of these back door sellers EBAY page. Sad and lame all the way around.

[pwaldo]

If anybody needs any proof to an ITG backdoor look no further than the member over on HI who sent a card into ITG to be replaced and that card has since resurfaced by one of the big 3 (Steelcity, DA, NO7). How does a card sent in to be replaced come back on the market?

Not saying this was the case in this case of the ITG card but I've seen people post a card on here that wasn't that badly damaged from let's say Topps or Upper Deck and ask if they should send it in for a replacement. Most people say it is fine and why would you get a replacement but there is some very minor detail wrong with the card. So they mail it back in to Topps/UD/etc. Later another person ends up getting the same card from that company when they have another card replaced. Understandable as the companies aren't going to just throw out the cards that get sent in as replacements as they will themselves use them as replacements. That's why some are so liberal at taking stuff that's damaged back because they just send it right back out to somebody else.