Personally, I prefer Ultra Pro over Dragon Shield. Price point is lower for nearly the same quality. Personally, I've had more DS sleeves rip over UP in the same amount of time. Besides, if you need supplimental sleeves for a deck, much easier to buy a pack of 50, than another box of 100 in a pinch.
Art backs, I'd only recommend in non-foil, for casual decks only. Reason being, is because of the potential for mis-aligned cuts can cause marked cards between packs. This is only a major issue in tournaments, thus casual only decks.
NEVER EVER buy foil backed anything for sleeves. The wear rate and tear rate on those sleeves is so abysmal, it's not even funny. I had someone at our store buy a pack of foil backs (50), and 3 of the backs tore within two games. Satin backs (reflective, solid color backs) are really bad about collecting dirt, fingerprints, and scratches. These will only last a few games before they become marked to the near point of uselessness. Avoid these at all costs.
Jace on the other hand gives you card advantage for no life cost. On the contrary, Jace can actually take some damage for you. I'd think that makes him better than Arena.
I think in a previous incarnation of this thread, someone posted the results of a series of tests of various sleeves and how well they endured different types of shuffling.
To some extent, it does matter, how you shuffle. Side shuffling is probably less damaging overall, but some say riffle shuffling actually leads to fewer split sleeves.
What's your opinion? Purely from a sleeve longevity standpoint, not from any argument over which shuffling method is better for random assortment of the cards.
So I'm totally new to the idea of buying sleeves, so I've got a few questions if someone could help. I'm just a casual player, so the idea of dirt marks on the backs isn't terribly distressing to me. Marked cards just isn't a huge issue. But I am tired of watching my cards wear out. Especially tired of them getting these gradual bends in them.
So, I'm looking for sleeves that will help me prevent that. I was thinking, I've seen two kinds of sleeves. These flimsy ones, that you can fold in half without causing any permanent damage, and heavier ones that will break or get permanent creases if you were to bend them in half. I definetly would want the heavier ones, but I worry that if I buy sleeves, I'll open a package to find the flimsy kind. Anybody know what I'm talking about?
And what about carrying cases? I mean a good box for carrying several decks at a time. Anyone have any advice on this sort of thing? Thanks in advance.
I use Ultra Pro clear sleeves that I bought a ton of back in the mid 90's. They are super snug on the cards, shuffle well, and kinda throw some people off that the back is clear. So many people are used to seeing colored or decorative sleeves, I like seeing the actual cardbacks.
I use Dragonshields. They are the best sleeves to shuffle with, though they may show wear quickly. I like them, anyway, because they're nice to look at and are super-nice to shuffle. I've used some Ultra-Pro as well, and while they do have a great variety of sleeves, when it comes to quality too, I prefer Dragonshields.
Dragon Shields are indeed the best ones out there. But if you don't like the idea of spending the extra for them and just need some quick sleeves don't feel so bad about buying Ultra Pro plain color back sleeves. They wear slightly quicker than D-Shields but it's not that big a difference in my experience with them. Lower gloss on the back however... That can be a blessing or a curse depending...
There's nothing wrong with the plain colored Ultra Pros (they're cheap and they work), but the ones with images on the backs have a tendency to split while shuffling. Dragon Shields are slightly more expensive but they also last a bit longer than Ultra Pros, so if you're going to an event where you'll be shuffling your deck several dozen times you should probably get those. I've also tried several other brands and there is a Japanese one that I really like (it just has kanji on the package so I don't know what they're called), but generally when I need sleeves I can't wait for an internet order so it's Ultra Pro or Dragon Shield (depending on the event). Hope that helps.
There were heaps and heaps of Sleeve threads. With the advent of the newest one, I have merged the old threads on this that I could find with a quick search. This is the official sleeves discussion thread. If you want to talk about anything regarding sleeves, post it in here.
I've been using the el-cheapo KMC super-holo sleeves (starcity has them for $1/pack) - they are ugly (and apparently tournament-illegal) but they hold up really well and are easy to shuffle. I don't like the holographic front one bit, and I would never buy this style for full-price, but for cheap they are great.
I use Player's choice and sometimes the Japanese sleeves. I find the Player's Choice sleeves to last a lot longer then anything else I have tried before(I have used Ultra Pro and Dragon Phield before).
So far (after having tried UltraPro, Dragon Shield, KMC, and some others) I think the Dragon Shields hold up the best, but their cuts are inconsistent, so if you (like I) buy multiple packs of the same colors, you can usually tell which sleeves came from which packs, because the sizes are very slightly different.
KMC is what I'm using currently, but I haven't opened my second pack yet to see if they're any more consistent than the Dragon Shields.
Has anyone tried the Official Magic Ultra Pro Sleeves? (shown below)
I'm thinking of switching to using Ultra-Pro's thick plastic Toploaders; instead of using the regular thin plastic sleeves. Because the moment you shuffle your deck, the cards inside it get bent that causes creasing, small dents appearing, and paint cracking after several weeks of play.
Either that, or I have to very, very carefully shuffle my deck during play.
I use this wierd brand that says MAX at the bottom. I cant even remeber what was on the packaging. i bought them cause they had NINJAS on the back, NINJAS!!!!!!
one more thing, can anyone imagine a deck out of hard plastics?
I use this wierd brand that says MAX at the bottom. I cant even remeber what was on the packaging. i bought them cause they had NINJAS on the back, NINJAS!!!!!!
one more thing, can anyone imagine a deck out of hard plastics?
I think you're talking about MAX PROTECTION which is a brand I've tried and haven't had many problems with. Considering their cost (usually $1-3 cheaper than Dragon Shields) they're worth it. I don't think I've had many cases split on me. The only problem I remember having is the same one I've mentioned before about different batches having slightly different sizes.
I use Ultra Pro clear sleeves that I bought a ton of back in the mid 90's. They are super snug on the cards, shuffle well, and kinda throw some people off that the back is clear. So many people are used to seeing colored or decorative sleeves, I like seeing the actual cardbacks.
Thank you. I also love the clear Ultra-Pro. They are very durable, and old school. The only problem is they arent that easy to find. I always have to order tham on-line, and pay about $10 a pop.
To paraprase martin luther king people should be judged on the content of there character. None of this should matter and people should not care about posts. I only have 2 posts but i can already tell that im going to be a better poster than many posts i ve read.
I've only bought sleeves once and they were the red Ultra Pro ones. I'm a pretty casual player so none of my sleeves have split or anything, although they have become wrinkly near the top. I think durability has a lot to do with your shuffling style. I usually pile shuffle and side shuffle, occasionally I riffle shuffle but I don't want to bend my cards. After hearing all this praise for Dragon Shields I might try out those red ones the next time I go to the city.
IMO, sleeves-wise, Player's Choice > Dragon Shields > Ultra-Pro > Max Protection > Rook. I use the first three right now, although I'm using Ultra-pro more simply because no local stores sell Player's choice, and i don't want to use up my supply. Has anyone tried out the import Ultra-Pro sleeves? They come in the five colours of Magic, and I hear the quality is much better than American made ones.
Thank you. I also love the clear Ultra-Pro. They are very durable, and old school. The only problem is they arent that easy to find. I always have to order tham on-line, and pay about $10 a pop.
Oh, I love to see cardbacks too, but my cards have far too varied wear to allow me to use my old clear ultra-pro sleeves. I must agree, though, they are very snug and durable!
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Art backs, I'd only recommend in non-foil, for casual decks only. Reason being, is because of the potential for mis-aligned cuts can cause marked cards between packs. This is only a major issue in tournaments, thus casual only decks.
NEVER EVER buy foil backed anything for sleeves. The wear rate and tear rate on those sleeves is so abysmal, it's not even funny. I had someone at our store buy a pack of foil backs (50), and 3 of the backs tore within two games. Satin backs (reflective, solid color backs) are really bad about collecting dirt, fingerprints, and scratches. These will only last a few games before they become marked to the near point of uselessness. Avoid these at all costs.
To some extent, it does matter, how you shuffle. Side shuffling is probably less damaging overall, but some say riffle shuffling actually leads to fewer split sleeves.
What's your opinion? Purely from a sleeve longevity standpoint, not from any argument over which shuffling method is better for random assortment of the cards.
So, I'm looking for sleeves that will help me prevent that. I was thinking, I've seen two kinds of sleeves. These flimsy ones, that you can fold in half without causing any permanent damage, and heavier ones that will break or get permanent creases if you were to bend them in half. I definetly would want the heavier ones, but I worry that if I buy sleeves, I'll open a package to find the flimsy kind. Anybody know what I'm talking about?
And what about carrying cases? I mean a good box for carrying several decks at a time. Anyone have any advice on this sort of thing? Thanks in advance.
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I've got a case. I call it my Nerd bag. I'll post a pic in a second.
That's the only pic I found.
KMC is what I'm using currently, but I haven't opened my second pack yet to see if they're any more consistent than the Dragon Shields.
Has anyone tried the Official Magic Ultra Pro Sleeves? (shown below)
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Either that, or I have to very, very carefully shuffle my deck during play.
one more thing, can anyone imagine a deck out of hard plastics?
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I think you're talking about MAX PROTECTION which is a brand I've tried and haven't had many problems with. Considering their cost (usually $1-3 cheaper than Dragon Shields) they're worth it. I don't think I've had many cases split on me. The only problem I remember having is the same one I've mentioned before about different batches having slightly different sizes.
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Thank you. I also love the clear Ultra-Pro. They are very durable, and old school. The only problem is they arent that easy to find. I always have to order tham on-line, and pay about $10 a pop.
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Oh, I love to see cardbacks too, but my cards have far too varied wear to allow me to use my old clear ultra-pro sleeves. I must agree, though, they are very snug and durable!
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I would saw worth the cost definatly.