Articles

The 1979-80 set gave its stars the round numbers. Gretzky went between Willie Huber and Ron Sedlbauer, and a year later Topps made him card 250.

One grader saw a single Topps fake in twenty-one years, while the OPC is among the most counterfeited cards ever printed. What to check on the front, the back, the edge and the slab.

The jersey is orange, which is yellow with red printed over it. A particle blocked the red in one spot. It is called a hickey, and it is no longer proof the card is real.

O-Pee-Chee were a confectionery company and did not print the cards. A former plant manager describes a dull blade, no cutting clamp, and a cutting rig in the basement. The frayed edges are not damage.

Four PSA 10 sales, from $94,000 in 2011 to $3.75 million in 2021. Both versions sold as adjacent lots on one night, 1.8 times apart. And in December 2024 the record holder was deactivated.

Fifteen thousand graded copies, two perfect ones. How the population and the record sales stack up at every grade, from well-loved 1s to the $3.75 million card.

Same design, two printers, two countries. How to tell the cards apart at a glance, and why the Canadian printing has commanded the premium at every grade.

PSA's qualifier system explained: what an off-center 8 is, what it isn't, and why the discount it carries can be the smartest entry into the hobby's biggest rookie card.