what's your pack busting ritual!!!!!

[mugmasher]

ok, i was just curious to know if i'm the only nutcase out there that has a certain way or "ritual" if you will, on opening boxes or packs..ok, for me? when i get a box that i have been waiting to open..first thing i do is wait until the day that the wife works late..or is my day off..even if i get tyhe box that i have been waiting for for weeks or even months!! i 1- have to be alone..2- it has to be in my bedroom..3-i have to pull all of my supplys out and my strong box where i keep all of my high end cards in ( just in case )..4- i have to put the flat screen on with some kind of sports on..( hopefully hockey, even old re runs )..5- then i put on my glasses and slowly open one pack at a time..oh yeah, almost forgot.and when i open the pack? if there is an auto or memorabilia..i will put all of those pacls aside and save them until last...YES I AM PROBABLY WEIRD!!! but my wife is a very lucky woman...i don't drink, smoke ,go to clubs , ( i do take my wife out lol.) the only three loves in my life..my wife,,my martial arts..and my obsessed love of hockey card collecting and the uncanny way i go about opening packs..now i know i am not the only one out there that has a certain way of doing this..so let's here it..even though i just made a fool out of myself

[DarkHorseCards]

Heh interesting... a lot of this hobby is about the rituals isn't it?

I very rarely break boxes in the store. So either they've arrived in the mail or I've brought them home after a day at work. I'm usually so excited I can't wait so I end up breaking them while my wife is making dinner, then finish afterward if I don't fit it all in.

Unlike you I don't bring the card boxes down but I do take out my top-loaders and penny-sleeves. Sometimes if I'm trying to complete a set I'll write down the base i'm missing so i can cross them off as I go. Gotta clear off the table because I start with a lot of piles. And like you the tv has to be on, but instead of sports I like a good Discovery or History channel program.

I work left to right top to bottom through the box, so if its got four "columns" i start top left, and end bottom right. I take out the packs one column at a time, the rest stay in the box. I save all of my hits until the end as well. So I open the pack a bit and peek at the edges... thick brown (decoy) I open it up, thick white I set it aside. Autos I try to catch by sliding the cards when searching the packs, but sometimes those surprise me. I slide the last card over the hit slowly to first reveal the team and/or what type of hit it is and then finally the name.

Capitals and Crosby base goes in one pile. Rookies in another. Inserts/Parallels in a third. And all the jersey/auto hits in the fourth.

Then the finale of this ritual is the following morning when I'll take the piles upstairs, scan and upload to my bucket. Then usually I post the box break and see what kind of trades I can make.

[mugmasher]

Heh interesting... a lot of this hobby is about the rituals isn't it?

I very rarely break boxes in the store. So either they've arrived in the mail or I've brought them home after a day at work. I'm usually so excited I can't wait so I end up breaking them while my wife is making dinner, then finish afterward if I don't fit it all in.

Unlike you I don't bring the card boxes down but I do take out my top-loaders and penny-sleeves. Sometimes if I'm trying to complete a set I'll write down the base i'm missing so i can cross them off as I go. Gotta clear off the table because I start with a lot of piles. And like you the tv has to be on, but instead of sports I like a good Discovery or History channel program.

I work left to right top to bottom through the box, so if its got four "columns" i start top left, and end bottom right. I take out the packs one column at a time, the rest stay in the box. I save all of my hits until the end as well. So I open the pack a bit and peek at the edges... thick brown (decoy) I open it up, thick white I set it aside. Autos I try to catch by sliding the cards when searching the packs, but sometimes those surprise me. I slide the last card over the hit slowly to first reveal the team and/or what type of hit it is and then finally the name.

Capitals and Crosby base goes in one pile. Rookies in another. Inserts/Parallels in a third. And all the jersey/auto hits in the fourth.

Then the finale of this ritual is the following morning when I'll take the piles upstairs, scan and upload to my bucket. Then usually I post the box break and see what kind of trades I can make.

that is so funny!!! i do the same thing when i open my pack..i peek to see if it is a decoy..or a memorabilia..you can usually tell lol...and i do the same if it;s an auto..that is so cool..i thought i was the only nut ( no offense)..thanks for sharing!!!!!!!!!!

[bfeather]

that is some good stuff and I pretty much do the same thing but I usually like to drink a beer or take a shot/mixed drink if while opening the box. If I get a rare hit...than a shot might be necessary for celebration; this all usually happens at night or evening...for clarification. Oh yeah, and instead of having the TV on I usually play some music, mostly jamband or bluegrass. This is a really good thread, I might try some of everyones various rituals while opening my own boxes/packs next time.

[The Germinator]

When i open pack/box, i have to be alone.Usually,i open em on the kitchen table.Must clean the table and take some sleeves and top loader. I dont keep the game-used at the end, but yeah, i do check if its a crap decoy or a game used :P and i turn off TV and music all the time. Gotta be quiet, idk why lol. Cant wait to break SPA :D :D

[afholmes87]

I've only got 1 ritual. Grizzly Wintergreen. I usually have penny sleeves with me, whether I bust at the LCS or at home as well, I always put hits in pennies as they are pulled. I like to take my time busting too, I figure I just spent $100-$150 on a box, why not enjoy it?

[HammerHawks]

I pretty much just want to find a quiet spot and get away from distractions. I usually will (if possible) turn on some kind of sporting event on TV. I have found my best luck to be in some kind of a living room. My best three pulls have been pulled while in a living room.

3) Stamkos UD YG RC - My living room on the couch

2) Naslund UD Ice CT AU Patch /15 - Relatives living room after a bigger show, sitting on the floor

1) Orr SPA Gold SOTT AU /25 - My living room, sitting on the floor

Seems like the living room floor is my place.

I will usually have a few plastic boxes to put the base in for the time being. Depending on the kind of box, I will either just put the hits aside or put them in some kind of a case, whether it be a one-touch or toploader.

That's pretty much how I do it.

I think we should say what our biggest pulls were and what we did when we pulled them so everyone can do it and pull some MOJO.

[blueshirtfan2136]

I use my lucky pocketknife I've had since I was a cub scout to take the plastic off the box, and open it. I try to keep each pile even, and if there are more than 2 I go from top left to bottom right, then reverse.

I keep the base off to one side, parallels in another pile, rookies in another, and hits in a third. At the end of the break I put everything in Set number order, then pack them into a box for either Set building, PC, trade bait, or junk.

[soccer1072]

I open 1 pack a day if I get a box. Yes, that means one box can last me 36 days :)

[sko789]

bah, i wish i could say the same, i usually just snarl and growl while i tear up wax, foam at the mouth and if anything is left, thats what i keep.. :D