BCW or Ultra Pro?

[mkygod]

Being a relatively new collector, id like gauge what your preferences are for card supplies as far as toploaders, sleeves, cardholders, and card pages are concerned. If there is a third alternative that guys like, id also like to know about it.

I've always been happy with Ultra Pro myself but never tried BCW.

[OnePimpTiger]

Wow...first vote. I've never even seen BCW that I'm aware of...of course I'm in a small town and most of my supplies come from Wal-Mart or the crappy LCS in the next town. I've been very satisfied w/Ultra Pro though, never had an issue with their products.

[dirtylittle87]

I am pretty much Ultra Pro exclusive. BCW can be found a little bit cheaper sometimes, but I've been buying Ultra Pro pages for so long that I want to keep the uniformity in my collection for as long as possible. I buy my pages in packs of 30 from Target for like $5. Also, they often have some neat sports binders (I know they have football and basketball ones) that come with 60 pages for $15. It's a thick binder, and they cover looks like pigskin (or a basketball cover). Some Wal-Mart stores also carry Ultra Pro pages, but they are the Ultra Pro silver (I believe) instead of the Ultra Pro platinum (forgive me if I have the classifications incorrect). The ones that I have been able to find at Wal-Mart don't have the same Ultra Pro logo, so I won't buy them (uniformity, again...).

As for Top Loaders, penny sleeves, etc... Again, I tend to get Ultra Pro, just because they tend to be more readily available at my card shops. I do have a package of BCW penny sleeves that are for thick cards... I don't really use them all that often though...

[garnett_21]

I have a few BCW pages, but they seem more flimsy than Ultra Pro platinum pages, so I have stuck to using strictly Ultra Pro. However, I do have other brands of screwdowns aside from Ultra Pro, but I will only use UP pages, penny sleeves and top loaders.

[gosox55]

Ultra Pro's all the way. I've used them for 15 years or so. Won't harm your cards.

[mkygod]

Where do you guys go to stock up on supplies? especially for specific size toploaders and holders that cannot be easily found at places like Target/walmart. The closest specialty store near my place is an Upper Deck store; i havent checked it out yet to know what they have or what the prices are but i imagine most items there are retail price.

I'd like to find a good online place that does not charge too much for shipping.

[dirtylittle87]

mkygod,

I've never bought any top loaders or cases from anywhere other than my local card shop. I have checked a couple online places while shopping, but I never really looked that close. I guess I never realized how lucky I am to have a local card shop that I can go to anytime I need (yes - "need", not want) cards or supplies. Especially since it's owned by an honest family-man, and not some shady creap... I like to parouse the net on my lunch breaks, so I'll look and see what Dave and Adam charge for supplies and shipping on their site, along with a couple other sites I have ordered cards from in the past...

[mkygod]

Just a side note, i tried looking up reviews for the BCW 9pocket pages. I managed to find just 1 customer review on Amazon.com, but the guy that reviewed it says he only uses it to store coupons. His main praise was that he was able to store his coupons neatly in the pockets. Lame..

[schwood]

I have used both. The penny sleeves and team bags are better from Ultra Pro. I use the BCW 1-screw holders because they are typically cheaper than the Ultra Pro. But, honestly, I use both. It depends on what is the best price when I am looking for a particular thing.

[abradley08]

BCW because i find they arnt as thin and hold up better
but I buy ultra pro toploaders