Review: 2014 Panii Black Gold Football Hobby Box

Many months of being teased with previews of what appeared to be a great product and many drool galleries later. I finally got my hands onto this product. The previews did not serve this product justice as I was even more impressed in person.

In each box of 2014 Panini Black Gold Football there are 2 packs with 4 cards per pack meaning only 8 cards for roughly $210. Yes, that's right. This is a high end product. But, a very well done one.

BASE CARDS
They are awesome. All base cards, both rookies and veterans, are printed on a very unique shadowbox design. These cards are thicker point cards with high gloss. This kind of technology used on the base cards reminds me of something they might have used in the 90's. Kudos to Panini for thinking outside the box with a shadowbox base card design.

THE HITS!
Panini stands true to the product name throughout the product. The cards are black, the writing is gold. And the feeling of magic takes place as Panini combines both Panini Black and Panini Gold Standard to make some pretty nice hits.

My first hit from the pack was this Bortles. I have seen these with all laundry tags and patches. Look great.

GET AWAY BOYD!!! You are always in my face..I mean box. Nice design as well. I preferred pulling a Sizeable Signature that is a jersey/auto silhouette taken to the next level. Just look a few up on eBay.

 

Defensive player of the year was up next. I really like the design of these. Very nice layout.

You will find two of these Seal Of Approvals per box as well. These either contain an NFL or team logo medallion done in the thick shadowbox design as well. These are pretty cool. They are usually numbered to 149...

Unless you get a parallel. And hey look, I did. Mr. Manziel! The medallion is silver and numbered to 25.

And my final hit was BOOM. A 14k gold swatch of Teddy Bridgewater. These are limited to 20 unless you get a team or NFL logo engraved in the gold then they become more rare. These were brought in from the Gold Standard part of the product and make for a very nice addition. I would take 14K gold over any one-color jersey swatch any day!

OVERALL THOUGHTS
Very classy and impressive looking product. There is ton of potential and big hits waiting to happen here. I only had one problem with the product, the fact it was printed black. What do I mean by that? Well, some of the cards in the pack had chipping problems on the back. Not bad, but still a tad noticeable with someone who has hobby OCD....like me.

And one more tiny problem, me not having the right size cases handy for these cards. Some are extremely thick due to the shadowbox layout. Just look at them.

 

Got to be something I contact BCW Supplies about to see what they have to offer.

In a final closingnote, I am sure the price-point for the product jumped out at you for 8 cards. One thing to remember is all products you buy have risks and rewards no matter the cost. Some may have a bigger payoff in the end when you get the big hit which is why some products cost so much. If you can't afford a product like this, I still recommend getting your hands onto some of the cards for your PC. They are well done. Easier ways to do that is group breaks or buying singles.

I want to also leave it open to your thoughts on Panini combining Panini Black and Panini Gold Standard? Do you like it? Should they start over? Do you want it to return in 2015? Any changes you would make? Let me know as I would love to hear your thoughts.