What Is Breaking? How To Find A Sports Card Break Group

Sport card breaks, or “breaks” are when a single person (or business) buys an entire box of sports cards, then charges individual collectors for the opportunity to “buy in” and keep a selection of cards from the box.  Typically the format is to enter a group on Facebook. The business/breaker makes a post stating which box(es) of cards will be part of an upcoming break, and gives a day, time and entry fee. If you want to enter the break, you pay the fee (usually via PayPal), and give them a number or team name.  HOW TO PICK A GOOD BREAK GROUP Admittedly, I don't have a ton of experience in break groups, and I've never conducted a break and don't plan to. :)  Still, I can offer some solid basic but important tips on how to pick a good break group.  1. Make sure you price out the box they're breaking against what they're charging. I've stopped entering breaks with a particular group because they were charging around $60 for a break slot, and breaking boxes that were about $60 for the entire box. Why would I do that? It made no economic sense whatsoever. Now, to their credit, they were including autographed helmets of significant NFL stars to people who got the lowest numbered card in the case they opened. So their overhead cost was likely a bit higher than just the cases they were opening.  2. Make sure they will mail you your cards free of charge regardless of which cards they pull for you. Some breakers will only mail out the "case hits" free of charge. "Case hits" are typically considered autographed cards, memorabilia cards or serial numbered cards. Another reason why I stopped breaking with the earlier group I was referring to is because they would charge to send you your regular cards, or hold them for months and send them all at once. I kind of thought this was a bit sleezy, even though it may be common. Not entirely sure.  3. Go with someone educational and entertaining. A group like @wildcardboxbreaks on Facebook is a perfect example of someone to go with. They are more educational than anything else. Getting entertained should be a given, but getting educated about each player they pull is super important.  More than anything, sports card collecting and investing is about acquiring knowledge. Knowledge about players, potential, situations, card manufacturers, sets, brands, inserts...EVERYTHING!  Wild Cards does this with all sports, but they're especially experts in Baseball, which can be the most complicated to understand which cards are actually valuable.  Participating in Breaks can be like buying lottery tickets. You get your hopes up, only to get crushed, honestly.  But it can be very economical, entertaining and educational and FUN if you pick the right group.  THIS IS WHY MY PICK IS WILD CARDS. THEY ARE THE SPONSOR OF THE VIDEO / SHOW SEEN HERE. MORE ON WILD CARDS (AND WHY I LIKE THEM) IS BELOW.  https://www.facebook.com/groups/338734097765425/permalink/371206284518206/ Wild Card Box Breaks is a break group, and the simple way to identify a break group is to buy bulk products and sell slots to individuals looking for specific players, teams, or divisions. For example, Wild Cards breaks baseball, football, and basketball, and their clientele desired other sports, we would do that as well. They are getting into soccer soon! So I'm pumped about that and encourage you to join here if you want more information on any of their upcoming breaks! What makes their group unique is the informational and educational aspect and the focus on the players from a value and fantasy perspective. They love to give background and history on the players on the cards and give their knowledge out for people that may not be as knowledgeable as they are. They buy and sell their slots on their Facebook group @wildcardboxbreaks. Most of their breaks are between $30-50 per team with the occasional premium product.