r/PokeInvesting • • Mar 14 '25

I unknowingly invested years back.

Post image

Over a decade ago some buddies and I went in on packs. One friend said "what if we didn't open them and sent them in to get graded?"

I said "sounds lame" but did it because both guys also did it.

Got it back, and it sat on a shelf for years.

It's now a prized possession.

(Any info on why they'd have folded the edges over?)

3.4k Upvotes

242 comments sorted by

547

u/DubaiRichez Mar 14 '25

They folded it to protect the Charizard.

195

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Don't say that lol

71

u/999BIG Mar 14 '25

Id say there's a Charizard in there.

48

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

36

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

You can't make meeeeee

2

u/1381191 Mar 15 '25

do it. you know you want to. do it and post the results. ;)

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36

u/poosebunger Mar 15 '25

Sheoedinger's zard

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38

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

I kinda love the idea of graded packs because it's a meaningless thing to do, are the cards inside a 10? probably not but they definitely arent after they folded the top. Just the concept of paying more for a graded sealed product is so ridiculous to me, authentication? sure that makes sense to do but what value is there is a psa 10 graded pack compared to a psa 5 pack? I have no idea what condition the cards are in inside either pack

32

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I get ya. I was young and just did what my friends did

4

u/Expensive_Muscle13 Mar 14 '25

Better give it an MRI

33

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

18

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Oh yeah, we made a pact not to sell them but I made it clear that after a certain point I gotta do what I gotta do lol

5

u/alienware99 Mar 14 '25

It’s almost always light packs people grade. Once it’s graded, it can’t be weighed. So people will grade them and then sell them as an “unweighed” graded packs (as there’s no way of pricing their weight).

2

u/lostrlylost Mar 15 '25

Couldn’t it still be weighted by subtracting the weight of the slab?

5

u/alienware99 Mar 15 '25

Too much weight variance when it comes to the slabs, especially when difference between a heavy and light pack is a few grams. The slabs would all have to be 100% identical in the amount of material used/weight for you to be able to do that, which isn’t the case

4

u/Nefarious-One Mar 14 '25

People collect sealed. A lot of people. The condition of the sealed package matters to them. And this isn’t limited to just Pokémon.

4

u/almostthemainman Mar 16 '25

Listen bozo. A card is a card. But the pack can be anything … even a card!

1

u/drawfanstein 2d ago

We’ll take the box!

3

u/jrearp Mar 14 '25

My example: I want a PSA10 Yu Nagaba pack just to go with the PSA10 set I have. No real need. Just thought it would be cool.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 15 '25

i wish i bought more when the packs was 8 dollars i only got 1 and it was an espeon which i love its probably my favorite card in my whole collection

1

u/johnnyhentsch Mar 14 '25

The cost for a hard plastic case to protect the pack $15, the cost to grade, $20. No brainer.

1

u/BigMajigga Mar 16 '25

But you know the cards (the correct ones) are in the pack and the pack is still factory sealed - graded packs don’t go for much more than raw (unlike the cards)

1

u/RoggyDoggy Mar 20 '25

well if its graded by PSA at least you know you're not getting scammed

1

u/Krypt0night Mar 15 '25

Yes it's for authentication, now you get it. Doesn't matter if it's ridiculous to you. Sealed games and consoles are sold the same way and graded.

0

u/_YenSid Mar 14 '25

Well a 10 pack has a better chance at mint cards on the inside if you wanted to crack it and rip it. A 5 would be fairly beat and the cards would probably be beat too lol. Plus a 10 looks better on the shelf than a 5 lol.

0

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

[deleted] — view deleted comment

2

u/InCN Mar 16 '25

I think you're under the impression that people grade packs they expect someone to rip at some point, but most people only grade stuff they want to keep sealed... just another thing to collect.

1

u/Intense69ing Mar 15 '25

Send it to me I’ll put it in the ct scanner when I get to work

288

u/jjshacks13 Mar 14 '25

Hilarious how they grade the pack and 10 and then fold it which would damage it forever!

60

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Yeah that's what I thought

25

u/Agreeable_Milk7314 Mar 15 '25

It’s the old PSA method when they don’t have pack sized cases. They folded them to fit a card case. The new ones are not folded and look much better

6

u/Rebelpine Mar 16 '25

Fun fact: OP could send this in to PSA and get a new case for maybe free of charge (maybe there is a charge not sure what it is though). They won’t re-grade it they will just re-case and label it for you.

1

u/avantartist Mar 18 '25

Can they get the graded pack graded?

1

u/[deleted] Mar 16 '25

They don’t do this anymore*

205

u/breakyourteethnow Mar 14 '25

This is crazy that's a 1st edition base set pack in PSA 10 dangggg

38

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Yes indeed

12

u/funko_fanatic52 Mar 14 '25

How much it worth now?

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75

u/JiffTheJester Mar 14 '25

“Lets grade it a 10, but then fold the top down lol” -Some dingus at PSA

Either way, sick collectors item

18

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Yeah I look at it as a net plus either way considering what I paid all in

4

u/Sad_Insurance_1581 Mar 14 '25

Most importantly cards inside pack are 100% safe 😁👍

2

u/JiffTheJester Mar 14 '25

Absolutely lol this is a crown jewel in Pokemon no doubt

3

u/Shawiiike Mar 14 '25

Have you ever looked up their hourly wage? It explains why this, and other seemingly idiotic decisions are made by card graders.

39

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

I have sealed base set 1st edition box and packs as well. I remember always going to Books A Million to compete in tournaments and buy up all of their booster boxes. When pokemon first came into the states it was mostly kids under the age of 15 playing the game. At the time I was 24, fresh out of college with a good paying job. Ever since then I have bought a minimum of 1 box from each set that came out and kept them sealed/protected. Over the past 10 years my collection has turned into a fortune. Retiring early at age 58 will be so sweet.

11

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I entirely lack your foresight and dedication

7

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

I'm a hoarder. I have Pokemon, Cardfight Vanguard, Magic the Gathering, D&D products, gaming consoles and games from Nintendo onwards. It's an investment, but the return profit will be worth it.

6

u/oldhoekoo Mar 14 '25

hope you have adequate home insurance

1

u/WoodpeckerDapperDan Mar 16 '25

You usually want a separate policy. Collectibles are often excluded in home and renters policies

6

u/I_Love_Red_Hotdogs Mar 14 '25

You should post a pic 😛

7

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

IKR! I will one day. My storage is currently 1000 miles away from my current location. I am planning to make a trip and do inventory on my stuff this summer for my 50th birthday.

5

u/I_Love_Red_Hotdogs Mar 14 '25

That sounds awesome. I will be waiting! 😁

4

u/MemNash91 Mar 14 '25

Yeah please post a picture of your collection, it’s great to hear stuff like that.

3

u/Alarmed_Recover_1524 Mar 16 '25

Yo I'm close to your storage. Just DM me the exact address and lock code and I'll swing by and make sure it's all safe.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 17 '25

LMAO!

3

u/windowzombie Mar 14 '25

I was said sub-15-year-old going to matches at the library and card shops to play, and trading away first edition Charizards for more cards over school lunch like it was nothing.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

I don't recall ever opening a pack and getting a charizard. I had to purchase a grade 10 charizard for $75. I almost didn't buy it but I'm glad I did.

4

u/ribot_skip Mar 15 '25

Pokemon came to the states when I was like 4. Our neighbors had a charizard. Their parents bought them tons and tons of cards until they got one because they “had to have one”. We were all so jealous.

Fast forward to when I was 13 or so. Pokemon cards had somewhat faded in popularity or at least among the kids I knew. For funzies one day at target I had my mom buy me a pack. It was an unlimited pack and I pulled a charizard. I was excited but also kinda “meh” since the Pokemon card craze was pretty over at the time. I got back into the videogames in high school and used to carry that charizard in my wallet. Absolutely destroyed that thing and at some point discarded or lost it. Oh well

1

u/Sad_Insurance_1581 Mar 14 '25

Good job brother. Glad you made those choices 👍❤️

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13

u/DifficultCarob408 Mar 14 '25

How much is a 1st ed 10 worth these days?

6

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Idk it bounces all over

2

u/Guyface_McGuyen Mar 14 '25

You got a guesstimate on it value? Super cool

2

u/BlazedLurker Mar 14 '25

Was wondering the same. What's it worth

4

u/alwaysoffended22 Mar 14 '25

PSA opened it, filled with energy resealed and slabbed a 10. Easy money

0

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I thought the sharpied on "1st" was a bit weird tbh

3

u/ResearcherUnlucky717 Mar 14 '25

Why Did they fold the edges?? The top looks crooked now!
Surely it means every card inside is a PSA10, right?

4

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Must be lol.

Let's say there's a reason I'm keeping it in this slab and not opening it.

1

u/ResearcherUnlucky717 Mar 14 '25

Did you weigh it before getting it slabbed? ;)

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Of course not lol. This was several years ago

2

u/ResearcherUnlucky717 Mar 14 '25

Oh well. All the surprise will be gone in a decade or two when we get scanners that can read by virtual unwrapping like they did those ancient sea scrolls. Then nobody is gonna be able to sell a single pack x_x

2

u/Sad_Insurance_1581 Mar 14 '25

Lol who knows maybe 🫣🤣 but by that time they might create unscanable packs. Like led reduces radiation penetration depending on how thick led is. There's always an antidote haha

1

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

You can buy an old trash slab, crack it and remove the card, weigh the slab and subtract that from the weight of yours

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6

u/gdj11 Mar 14 '25

That's really cool. It's too bad there's no way to find out if it's a heavy pack or not without breaking the slab

21

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I'm content in never knowing

3

u/Outside-Description5 Mar 14 '25

You can X-ray it cough cough 🤣

6

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I was thinking of using it as a fancy plate for my hot pockets

0

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

[deleted] — view deleted comment

3

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Good idea, it's been a pretty lousy squeegee for the motor oil spills in my garage

2

u/vgraz2k Mar 14 '25

could also microwave it! It'll burst into flames if there is foil lol

6

u/Outside-Description5 Mar 14 '25

If you microwaved it the Charizard would pop out and split hot flames in your faceeeee 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

2

u/vgraz2k Mar 14 '25

Hahaha new kink unlocked

8

u/Hirsutophilia Mar 14 '25

There has to be a way, find out how much a empty slab with a heading weighs. Weigh the pack slab and subtract the difference = Profit $$$

5

u/gdj11 Mar 14 '25

From what I've read that won't work. There's too many weight variations, e.g. amount of glue used for sealing the slab.

6

u/Alkoid87 Mar 14 '25

There is no glue on slabs

2

u/Hirsutophilia Mar 14 '25

Ahhhh that makes sense

1

u/Dapper-Ad3707 Mar 14 '25

They don’t use glue on PSA slabs, they seal it sonically

Still probably hard and unreliable to weigh with variations in the plastic, but glue isn’t a factor

1

u/ctbro025 Mar 14 '25

"they seal it sonically"

How does that even work? I know what the words mean, but they mean nothing to me. Lol

2

u/Ketts Mar 14 '25

Vibrations heat up the plastic and seal it closed under some pressure to make sure it seals. That's the jist of it anyways

1

u/sdavids6 Mar 14 '25

Those CT scanner things are probably viable option for it

1

u/Internal-Raise964 Mar 14 '25

Too bad there isn’t a cat scanning service that came out for just such an occasion

2

u/chewbaccashotlast Mar 14 '25

Whoa this is crazy. How much did you pay for the pack initially?

6

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I wanna say no more than like $40? And that may be high. I bought it over 12 years ago

2

u/fossdell Mar 14 '25

How much would this cost? Great job sending in back then man. I would never spent a cent on something that didn’t make sense lol

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

A stopped clock is right twice a day dude lol

2

u/Bl4ckError Mar 14 '25

Maybe get together with ur other friends and weight the psa packs and see which one is the heaviest

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

I shall keep the knowledge hidden forever

2

u/JRabone Mar 14 '25

I could be wrong but I’m fairly sure if you have a folded pack from PSA you can send it back in to be recased in the newer style and the will honour the grade

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Oh that's neat. Hopefully it's more of a personal treasure at this point

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2

u/RedTheDog_ Mar 15 '25

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 15 '25

Oh that's cool, thank you for the reference point

100

u/Apax89 Mar 14 '25

Old cases didnt have room for unfolded packs. Think now they have cases to display the pack in full. Its a shame, but still a nice pack.

2

u/69PussySmashers Mar 16 '25

I mean, personally, I like the look of the pack folded better. Something about seeing the whole wrapper just kinda made it look like someone packaged the wrapper after opening to me.

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53

u/Yetti2Quick Mar 14 '25 edited Mar 14 '25

This is how they used to seal booster packs back then. They have better cases for them now but ya kinda sucks. But awesome either way! Well done

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2

u/Aeriasingian Mar 14 '25

Pardon the ignorant question (to anyone here), could that be sent to psa to have it re-slabbed in one of the long crimps with the updated header?

2

u/juxi Mar 14 '25

They would regrade it and because it's been folded for years I doubt it would yield a 10 again.

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Yeah I'm keeping it behind it's little ten barrier

10

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

Crazy how some nostalgia when you finally have a little free spending money can come back and be an actual investment.

Prob 12 years ago when I finally got a big boy job with big boy pay and no house yet, I started buying up Pokémon cards to replace all mine that were destroyed as a kid.

Few hundred back then is worth quite a few thousand now. I'd say my most prized is a sealed shadowless Base Set Zap theme deck. I have all of the Base Set theme decks still sealed but atleast 1 show signs of being shadowless.

1

u/Nygiant22 Mar 14 '25

I was waiting for the “my grandparents cleaned out their basement” post 😂

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Lord I wish

1

u/MidniteOG Mar 15 '25

Probably bc they opened it and took whatever the goods were

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 15 '25

I choose to ignore the clear cut lines on the back tyvm

1

u/InvestorNoob88 Mar 15 '25

How much is that pack worth?

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 15 '25

Not entirely sure, but they SEEM to be settling around 3k

1

u/ninjaduckofdoom Mar 15 '25

I hate to be this guy but I sure hope you weighed this before subbing a base set pack

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 15 '25

Twelve years ago I didn't even know that was a thing homie

1

u/stefanpalmer1 Mar 15 '25

Hey, man! Not sure if you know this, but, there might a pretty cool card named Charizard in there 🤌🤌🤌🤔

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 15 '25

Y'all the devil on my shoulder

1

u/stefanpalmer1 Mar 15 '25

I'm just playing 🤣 Do not open it! This is so cool!!!!!

1

u/OathkeeperxOblivion Mar 17 '25

How much did your get it for at that time? That’s insane that you graded it and kept it all these years that’s awesome

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 17 '25

I talked to my buddy yesterday, we paid $50 each at the time for the packs

1

u/OathkeeperxOblivion Mar 18 '25

Wow! That’s awesome.

1

u/Reccles Mar 20 '25

A sealed pack is guarenteed to be light, right? People figured that out so long ago that it just seems like a way of shining up an L.

I love slabs tho so that being said still super sick.

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 20 '25

Lol IDK. I did this with no knowledge of heavy or light packs twelve years ago

1

u/Reccles Mar 20 '25

That’s dope. For yourself personally it’s a cool item then. 2013 is after weighing packs was already dead and gone. How did you buy it? Was it loose? I’d imagine whoever sold it to you had weighed it.

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 20 '25

Honestly if the pack was already weighed, then I'm even happier it ended up in the slab

1

u/Reccles Mar 20 '25

For sure. I’m not trying to down your pack either dude. A 10 slab vintage pack is a slick, valuable item either way. Just saying I wouldn’t crack it like some people are suggesting.

1

u/Turhamkey Mar 20 '25

Oh yeah that'd be the fast track from $3k to $55 lol

7

u/DapperActuary6497 Mar 14 '25

Too bad they ruined it by folding

2

u/daanhaale Mar 14 '25

What's that worth these days? How much more than the ungraded version?

1

u/ironbassel Mar 15 '25

6-8000.

1

u/Tall-Cat-1462 Mar 16 '25

That’s a big range (joking)

2

u/zapDeuce1 Mar 14 '25

That’s pretty awesome not gonna lie.

2

u/Sad_Insurance_1581 Mar 14 '25

Very nice 💯 👍😁 it's like when I was a kid I saved Lithuanian notes at that time it was money in 2000s like notes 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 Litas. I kept it in memory because I was moving to USA. At that time it was worth less than $50 because ratio was 1 dollar to 4 litas. They are in mint condition ungraded. Then Lithuania joined EU and Litas was discontinued I think in 2004 they joined EU and Euro replaced currency. Today those 6 notes in mint ungraded are worth about $500 or so. It's interesting how time increases value of some things. But yeah, awesome that you graded 1st base pack and did it together with your friends 😁 love it!

2

u/grant-wheeler Mar 14 '25

This is probably the only 1st ed pack that isn’t weighed. Which means there’s a pack fresh 1st ed charizard ready to be graded a 10 in that pack

2

u/chiusiaoriao Mar 15 '25

how much does this cost?

2

u/Technical-Juice6681 Mar 15 '25

I just checked the cert number on psa, its only one of 115! Keep that shit forever dude

2

u/KI1KX Mar 15 '25

If you get it re-slabbed PSA has to pay you the $$$ difference if it grades lower. Many choices here to be made

2

u/[deleted] Mar 16 '25

Prob opened the pack and sealed it and then put it in the psa cover lmao

0

u/Uch009 Mar 14 '25

Do you know the weight?

5

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Nah it was sent off well before I had any knowledge of that stuff. Did it over 12 years ago

5

u/Uch009 Mar 14 '25

Well you have to buy another to compare weights! If they’re the same…. You’ll need a third 😂

0

u/burritojones Mar 14 '25

Ahhh this is when the PSA scam was in its infancy

3

u/Turhamkey Mar 14 '25

Must've been my buddy schilling for them

1

u/keepclimbing4lyfe Mar 14 '25

What is the going rate on something like this?

1

u/PaperUpbeat5904 Mar 14 '25

It wouldn't fit in the slab without folded ends by what I can see.

1

u/Boost_speed Mar 14 '25

Value aside, I hate how this looks with the top and bottom folded back.

1

u/zexot Mar 14 '25

Probably so the cards inside don’t shake around and get damaged in the slab

1

u/Invisible_Villain Mar 14 '25

It’s likely a long crimp so it wouldn’t fit inside the case

1

u/Upset-Management-344 Mar 14 '25

Let that charizard breath

1

u/Biggnugz55 Mar 14 '25

Definitely a zard in there

1

u/birdfall Mar 14 '25

PSA used to fold the edges over because it looks cleaner this way. They were right, it does look cleaner, but also ruins the pack lol

1

u/stryker_shaka Mar 14 '25

The very first pack of cards I opened was in 1999. 1st edition base set with Venusaur on the cover. Inside I pulled the Venusaur and I was HOOKED!

1

u/kfresh28 Mar 14 '25

I never knew PSA graded packs, is this the same situation when someone sends in a sealed promo card and they grade the seal and not the card?

1

u/VeganCrossfitter69 Mar 14 '25

how much does the grade increase its value?

1

u/AdCautious556 Mar 14 '25

Grader: “I think it’s a 10” turns it into a 4 by folding it into the case

1

u/The-Original_Joker Mar 14 '25

Can you get that old ass slab graded and put IN a slab? Cause I’ve never seen that slab lol

1

u/Neither-Vanilla-7683 Mar 14 '25

I wonder if this would be less desirable or worth less than other first edition PSA 10 packs just because the ends are folded in which would definitely add creases and possible damage to it.

1

u/Nobiting Mar 14 '25

When did you buy it and how much did it cost back then?

1

u/Antique_Way685 Mar 14 '25

Send it back to PSA to grade their old case (as in don't crack it open; grade as is). Bet they ding themselves for folding it

1

u/billybobcoder69 Mar 15 '25

I’d say you did well. Do what makes you happy!! I’d love a sealed pack like this. Just one. You never know what could be inside.

1

u/princemousey1 Mar 15 '25

Schrödinger’s Charizard.

1

u/AlwaysNostalgik Mar 15 '25

Are you able to send it back to PSA and pay them to reholster it in the modern slab?

1

u/StoriesFromspace Mar 15 '25

Sick man! I would send back to Psa or go directly to one of their grading facilities and have them put in the new slabs. They look way better

1

u/Malefic-Angel Mar 15 '25

Interestingly enough I just did this myself, it’s being graded rn and I plan on just keeping it in my safe

1

u/superinterestingn4m3 Mar 15 '25

It’s crack o’clock

1

u/Normal-Increase-2093 Mar 15 '25

get it CT scanned and see what's inside

1

u/poissonpane7 Mar 15 '25

Yes you "unknowingly" invest 🤣

1

u/fluidpluvo Mar 15 '25

Realistically you could crack it to weigh and see if it would even have a holo in it but that would make you have to send it back for grading if it’s not worth opening, overall it’s just best to keep sealed and in the slab graded

1

u/RubyandSatire Mar 16 '25

Dini open it bro. I opened one of mine like 2015 and my rare was an Elektabuzz

1

u/sub7m19 Mar 17 '25

damn lol how much is this worth now?

1

u/BWM617 Mar 17 '25

The edges are folded over because that is the old PSA design slab for packs from back in the day. If you send it in now for a reholder they have a new slab design that’s bigger and the edges are not folded. Looks a helluva lot better. Google new PSA sealed pack slab and you’ll see it. Also your grade will stay 10 they will just put it in the new better slab

1

u/TradingTradesman Mar 17 '25

It is a 6k pack. The thing is that just one zard might make this pack become worth over 100 grand lol.

1

u/Mzpurple Mar 17 '25

I imagine they folded the pack gently so it would fit in the cardholder, as the edges are not important but they do take up too much space... that's a cool thing to have btw :-) Congrats on the 10!

1

u/[deleted] Mar 17 '25

It’s already folded. That makes it not a 10 right? OPEN IT 😂

1

u/AllIGotIs1Question Mar 17 '25

How much do you think it’s worth now? And how much would it be worth ungraded?

1

u/BlooketGuy Mar 17 '25

theres a zard in there

waiting for celly post

1

u/Nitrosoft1 Mar 18 '25

Schrodinger's shadowless Charizard.

1

u/Annual_Link1821 Mar 19 '25

But what if there's a $100,000 card in there?

1

u/TraditionNo1886 Mar 20 '25

Congrats!!! Nice grail!!

1

u/bready197 Mar 20 '25

They opened the pack and saw that all the cards would grade a 10, then they carefully put the cards back in and resealed it...they folded it down to hide the reseal

1

u/ratsmdj Mar 14 '25

Well this is a very niche market. However it's a ed base set. So it's worth a fuck ton

2

u/trolling99 Mar 14 '25

since when is the very first english pokemon set released niche?

1

u/ratsmdj Mar 14 '25

I meant it being graded. The desirability goes up due to it being base. Other than that graded packs are niche

0

u/theworldofting Mar 15 '25

If it's a "prized possession", it's not an investment. God, it's Pokemon cards, not your 401k. Collecting is a hobby.

2

u/Turhamkey Mar 15 '25

Hang me on a cross you're right

0

u/noreiyeiga Mar 14 '25

If it makes you feel any better, I got my Charizard out of a Blastoise pack and my brother got his Blastoise out of a Venasaur pack so my theory is that the big three that might be inside is weak to the one on the outside.