It's here - the latest Allen & Ginter offering from Topps. Joinging the box break of this fine product is SCD editor T.S. O'Connell, a big fan of the vintage-style cards. Let's get down and dirty:

Today's Feature: Topps Allen & Ginter

• 8 cards/pack
• 24 packs/box ($75)

There's a lot going on with this set, from autograph and relic cards to N43 box toppers and more insert cards that you can imagine - Minis, World Leaders, Dick Perez Originals, etc.

We busted open a box with plenty of good material, at least in the variety of content. There's too much to break down by insert/specialty, so we'll just showcase the relic cards, black borders and let the video do the rest of the explaining,

Relic cards

• Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini (boxing glove)
• Troy Tuluwitzki (jersey)
• Michael Young (jersey)
• Prince Fielder (bat)

Black Border Minis

• Jeff Francis
• Hanley Ramirez
• Michael Young

And now to the video:

Donruss has rolled out some more celebrity goodness with Donruss Americana II. Having the pleasure of opening this box is Chris Nerat of  the blog Gavel Chat on www.sportscollectorsdigest.com.

Today's Feature: Donruss Americana II

• 4 cards/pack ($40 pack)
• 4 packs/box

There are supposed to be four autographed or memorabilia cards per box on average, with some big names such as John Wayne, Marlon Brando, Adam West, etc. We didn't get anybody that huge, but here is what we did find:

2 autos: Robert Wagner (numbered to 75) and Eric Estrada (numbered to 80)
1 auto/relic: Ring Kings Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski (numbered to 352)
1 Hollywood Legends relic: Burt Lancaster (numbered to 500)
1 Proof: Peggy Fleming (numbered to 250)
1 Cinema Stars: Arielle Kebbel (numbered to 500)
1 Hollywood Legends base: Donna Reed (numbered to 500)

The rest were base cards, with examples including Jonathan Winters,Joyce DeWitt  and Fred Willard.

This is an intriguing set with endless possibilities. The autos we got were all right, and the classic shots of older stars is always nice. Here is the video:


 

It's fresh off the truck and into Bustin' Wax - Topps 2008 Football. This set is great for set collectors, and it has some special inserts such as a Brett Favre collection (had enough of that saga yet?).

Topps 2008 Football

    * 10 cards/pack
    * 36 packs/box ($60)


We got a couple of relic cards and nothing else was really earth-shattering. Check out the video to see more:

Bustin' Wax is breaking new ground in this edition, opening some wrasslin' cards. Joining me is Chris Nerat, writer for Sports Collectors Digest and author of the Gavel Chat blog on the SCD site. Check out his vintage wrestling article in the July 25 edition of SCD.  

Today's Feature: Tristar TNA Impact

• 18 packs/box ($55)
• 8 cards/pack

We didn't really know what to expect in this box except for the four "guaranteed" hits  - two autos (i numbered to 60 or less) , a event-used memorabilia card and 1 parallel (numbered to 50 or less).

Our hits included a:

• Christy Hemme event-used card (numbered to 250)
• ODB auto and Don West auto (no number run given)
• Booker T parallel (numbered to 50)

These cards are interesting to say the least. Some of the characters are a little weird, and the tatoo cards are different, but wrestling fans will love. Roll the the tape: