Collector Lingo

Through-out the site, and even all across the 'net, the first-time collector may come across different types of trading cards and terms used by those involved in the industry. On this page I've described each type of non-sport card you may come across and what exactly they are.

What Is A Trading Card?

A trading card is a small card usually measuring 2.5 inches by 3.5 inches, made out of cardboard or thick paper containing an image on the front and a short description of the picture along with text on the reverse. Non-sport trading cards often feature cartoons, comic book characters, television series, or movie stills.

Common/Single Cards

These are the cards that make up the 'base' of the entire set. Usually numbered 1 through to 90, depending on the manufacturer, the front will have a movie or tv scene and the reverse a short summary of what is portrayed on the front.
It's quite possible to get an idea of what happened in one season of a tv show (such as Buffy, Supernatural, or Charmed, etc) just by reading the backs of the cards.
A pack consists of anywhere from 5 to 7 single cards, all different. Many collectors begin a set by buying a couple of packs or even a box. Out of these many cards may be duplicates and that is how trading starts.

Insert/Chase Cards

Inserts, or chase cards, are the 'special cards' found in packs, seemingly random, but on the back of each pack are the ratios which are usually 1:3, 1:5, 1:7, 1:9, 1:11, so you know how many packs you would need to open in order to find one. Occasionally a manufacturer may include another level at one per box, which would be 1:24 or 1:36

Inserts have several tiers. Most often just the three (including box loaders). A six card set, a nine card puzzle set and a three card box loader set. Box loaders are sometimes listed as inserts. These aren't available inside packs. You'll find one as soon as you open a sealed box.

Case Loaders are another type of insert card but much harder to obtain for the average collector. These are only available one per sealed case. A case usually consists of 8-12 boxes, depending on the manufacturer and card series. Buffy Season 7, for example, had 12 boxes to a case, 36 packs per box, 7 cards per pack and one case loader.

If you have any questions, or don't understand something, feel free to email me.