Whoa, NEW HuCard Sleeves [Locked]

[MotherGunner]

SeymorOnion has started a new thread at link below.  Please visit to purchase your New Hucard Sleeves.

https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=12403.0


-MG



Edit from SeymorOnion - Place your order for sleeves at his link below

Here is a direct link to where the Sleeves are being sold:
wayback.seymoronion.com

[allyourblood]

Thanks for the heads-up! I'm going to try to resist but if they move fast, I might be forced to snag a few batches.

[Senshi]

Thanks MG. I bought a few sets. I'll let you know how they work out.

[MotherGunner]

I bought some too.  If they are anything like the last round, they are slightly stiffer than the OEM ones.  HOWEVER, these are way better than the ones from China IMHO.

My son has been wrecking those on his small HuCard collection.  So I need something that will hold up better to wear and tear, making these perfect.

[MotherGunner]

Hi Guys, I started talking with the seller and he seems like a cool guy.  Turns out he is an old school gamer who loves Turbo/PC-Engine.  I invited him to come and join us on the forum.  (Waiting for Aaron to approve).

[SMF]

That's cool, but $6.76 for 5 sleeve? Might be cheaper to buy a bunch of TV Sports games atleast then you get a spare case and Sleeve.

Be cool if the seller gave us a deal say 10 for $6.76. Sorry just thinking out loud.

[incrediblehark]

Pretty cool, but a little expensive for me. I don't mind the Chinese card sleeves personally. Either way you go they're both not "official," right?

[MotherGunner]

Guys he is in fact doing just that.  Waiting for Aaron to approve his account.  Be patient.  =)

[TheClash603]

Yeah, I'd rather get more and maybe get a group discount.  I know a good portion of my games (20+) have no sleeve.

[MotherGunner]

Agreed Clash, I know he will do just that which is why I invited him.  =)

[CGQuarterly]

I just bought 2 packs.  I bought some of those Chinese jobs a while back, and they're sticking to the paint on the HuCards.  So that's no good.

Chris

[SMF]

Well that's no good, No one wants there Hueys to peel.

[incrediblehark]

I just bought 2 packs.  I bought some of those Chinese jobs a while back, and they're sticking to the paint on the HuCards.  So that's no good.

Chris

was not aware of this... hmm on second thought I may want some of these sleeves

[MotherGunner]

I know when he comes on he will be willing to sell more bulk and directly at a cheaper rate.  He mentioned this to me via eBay.

[SMF]

I know when he comes on he will be willing to sell more bulk and directly at a cheaper rate.  He mentioned this to me via eBay.

AWESOME, If he does that ill deff pick up some.

[CGQuarterly]

Well, I'm still glad that I nabbed some now, but if he does come on here and sell them at a discount, then I'll grab more.  I only bought 10 of them on fleabay.

Chris

[Senshi]

Got'em. They are great. i didn't realize quite how crummy some of my others were till comparing. They are slightly wider than the original but they work well.

[CGQuarterly]

I just got mine today.  They are exactly as advertised.  If he comes on here selling them, I will definitely buy more.

Chris

[MotherGunner]

Just got mine too, I disagree, they are not wider then OEM sleeves at all unless you were comparing them to the chinese ones.  I compared them to both OEM and the sleeves being sold a few years ago (the extra stiff ones) and they matched exactly.  The quality of these are very very good.  Not as flimsy as the OEM ones but not as stiff as the other ones.  Will continue to buy many many more once he shows up.  Thanks SeymorOnion!

[c0ldb33r]

I'd like to order these, but he won't ship to Canada

[MotherGunner]

He did mention he would begin doing international.  I will ask him again.

[SeymorOnion]

Hey, guys!
I'm glad to see the forums are back!

I plan to sell my Vinyl HuCard Sleeves, through my website, at a substantial discount, compared to my eBay listings.
I'll be selling them as 25-pack bundles, but before I can do that, I need to get some custom boxes made for the packaging, and for the shipping box.
I've been working with a local box maker, and they should be ready any day now.
I expect to get them Tomorrow, but I won't know for sure until I get the call from my box guy.

I'll post an update here when they are ready, as well as on my website, so if you subscribe to this thread, and have 'e-mail notification of new posts' turned on, you should be all set. 

Using prototype boxes made by my box guy, I've already figured out the domestic shipping costs of mailing one to four 25-packs to the contiguous 48 states, via USPS First Class (for 25 to 50 Sleeves) or USPS Priority (for 50 to 100 Sleeves) and have updated the site to reflect that.

I'd like to order these, but he won't ship to Canada

I do plan to open up sales to international customers, when I do the second run of sleeves.
I had to sink a significant amount of $ into the R&D and the tooling/dies for these sleeves, and the boxes, and because of that, I'm barely breaking even on this first run.

From what I've read, dealing with credit card fraud, from customers in other countries, can be somewhat of a nightmare.
I'll be better prepared to deal with the losses, financially, after I recover my investment in the first run.

In the meantime, international customers can probably buy extra sleeves from other members of this forum, if they open a WTB thread.  ;)

[SeymorOnion]

That's cool, but $6.76 for 5 sleeve? Might be cheaper to buy a bunch of TV Sports games.
At least then you get a spare case and Sleeve.

Be cool if the seller gave us a deal say 10 for $6.76. Sorry just thinking out loud.

Including Domestic Shipping, the prices-per-sleeve on my website will be:
 25 Sleeves for 75 ¢ each.
 50 Sleeves for 67 ¢ each. (This one is close to your suggested price of 10 for $6.76)
 75 Sleeves for 62 ¢ each.
100 Sleeves for 58 ¢ each.

Once I get the boxes, I'm going to change my eBay listing for the 5-packs to 25-packs.
The 25-packs will still be cheaper to buy through my website, as there won't be any eBay Fees to deal with, but I digress...
Anyway, what I'm getting at, is that ya'll can always sell any leftovers here through this forum, or even through eBay, as I'm going to stop selling quantities lower than 25.
That way, resellers can resell em at a competitive price, in lower quantities for people who don't need to buy in bulk, and make some $.

BTW, anyone that wants more than 100 sleeves should either PM or E-Mail me, so I can give a better shipping quote.
Also, I'll only be selling in multiples of 25, as it's much easier to keep track of my inventory that way. ;)

[MasonSushi]

I just bought 2 packs.  I bought some of those Chinese jobs a while back, and they're sticking to the paint on the HuCards.  So that's no good.

Chris

Are you talking about the credit card sleeves that were being sold on Ebay a while ago. I bought like 60 of them for 6.00 and have been using them on my trade games as well as my cheap loose games.

[Arkhan Asylum]

You guys, you know you can use the heavy duty Trading Card game protectors, right?  They're all textured/rubbery/come in neat colors....!

You can get a 100 pack for a few dorra.

[SeymorOnion]

You guys, you know you can use the heavy duty Trading Card game protectors, right?  They're all textured/rubbery/come in neat colors....!

You can get a 100 pack for a few dorra.

Got a link?

EDITED TO ADD:
I did some quick web searching, and came across these:

I saw some others that were different colored, but they all shared that same design.
Is that what you are talking about?

They look pretty thin, and don't have that extra flap that the HuCard sleeves do.

Here are some shots of the ones I'm selling:




I designed my sleeves to match the official sleeves, as closely as is humanly possible. 

[MotherGunner]

Gonna buy some more.

[MotherGunner]

Welcome SeymorOnion.  Glad Aaron approved you.

[NecroPhile]

Welcome aboard.  I wouldn't waste money on having custom packaging made - nobody here is gonna care whether or not they come in pretty boxes (heh, that sounds naughty).

[SeymorOnion]

Welcome SeymorOnion.  Glad Aaron approved you.

Thanks! And thanks, too, for starting this thread.
I probably would have been approved sooner, but that whole forum hack thing took us all by surprise.

Welcome aboard.  I wouldn't waste money on having custom packaging made - nobody here is gonna care whether or not they come in pretty boxes (heh, that sounds naughty).

Actually, it winds up being cheaper (for you all) for me to use the custom packaging, opposed to me just buying boxes at the supermarket.
Supermarkets, and the local box shops, markup their boxes at least 3 times what it costs to make them.

Also, I balanced the size-to-weight ratio in such a way, as to ensure that I can get the lowest possible shipping rates, while still protecting the integrity of the sleeves, as they travel through the postal system.

I did keep the packaging design simple though.
The Shipping Boxes themselves are a plain brown corrugated cardboard.
They are lightweight, but strong, especially in the corners of the box.
They can hold up to four 25-Packs.

The 25-Pack boxes are made out of a white cardstock; similar in thickness to the paper used to make a greeting card.
They have a single color print on two sides; a simple description of what's inside, in plain text.
They don't need to be very strong, because the shipping box will be more than enough to protect them.

When you take the costs-per-box, and divide it by the number of sleeves I'm putting in them, it winds up costing either a little less than 1 cent per sleeve, but no more than 3 cents per sleeve, depending on the # of 25 packs I put in a shipping container.

I can fit about 50 sleeves in a 'free' small flat rate box from the USPS, but that costs $5.00 to ship.
With my custom boxes, I can charge $2.60 for S&H for one 25-pack, or $4.35 for two of em.

Or, I could buy some bubble envelopes, or jam them in a standard paper envelope,
but the odds of them getting damaged, while en route, would be high.

Oh, by the way, I got the Shipping containers a little while ago.
5,400 of them. (I have to buy in bulk to get a decent price).
I just finished bringing them all inside.

Here's some photos of em, in their temporary resting place:
   

I'm going to put them up on some shelves tonight,
in the room I've set up to be my Shipping Department.

They are going to deliver the 25-Pack boxes tomorrow, (at least 5,000 of them)
and I'll finally be able to start selling the sleeves (which I bought in bulk as well)
through the website then.

When you bulk order custom stuff, like boxes, sleeves, or any plastics, most companies have a policy you have to agree to called "Overages and Underages".
Basically, they state that you agree to pay X up front, for Y amount of product,
and the actual Y amount they make, can vary by 10% more, or 10% less, than the desired quantity.
After they are done with the run, I pay for how many they actually wound up making, at an earlier agreed upon price-per-unit.
That way, I can lock in the price per unit for the Y Quantity's Bulk Rate, and only have to pay that much for each one.
So, if they make a little less than I wanted, it won't revert to the higher-priced, less than Y, price-per-unit cost.

Whew. I hope that made sense.
To be honest, it took a while for me to wrap my head around that one myself.  

[esteban]

I don't think I need any HuCard sleeves, but, for some bizarre reason, I want to buy new sleeves.

I do have some horribly yellowed sleeves that could be replaced...

[MotherGunner]

I just bought 2 packs.  I bought some of those Chinese jobs a while back, and they're sticking to the paint on the HuCards.  So that's no good.

Chris

Are you talking about the credit card sleeves that were being sold on Ebay a while ago. I bought like 60 of them for 6.00 and have been using them on my trade games as well as my cheap loose games.

These are different and better.  Read my comments above.

[nat]

This guy's sleeves are top of the line. Indistinguishable from the "real" thing at a glance.

I bought 10 of them a bunch of weeks back through eBay, but I need some more. Unfortunately, I don't need 25 more. I should probably have just waited.

Oh, well. Free endorsement.

[edojapan76]

As soon as you are ready to ship to Canada I would like to place an order.

[NecroPhile]

I bought 10 of them a bunch of weeks back through eBay, but I need some more. Unfortunately, I don't need 25 more. I should probably have just waited.

I'll split some with you.  I could use a few to replace some skanky looking ones (games bought new yet the sleeves look like they've been owned by a two-pack-a-day guy), but I don't need 25.

[SeymorOnion]

As soon as you are ready to ship to Canada I would like to place an order.

Make sure your e-mail account's spam filter won't block Thread Update Notification E-Mails from these forums, subscribe to this thread, and you'll know when that'll happen, without having to go to my site every day. ;)

Once I have a couple more product lines going, I plan to set up a newsletter; ie: learn how to. XD

Anyway, the 25-Pack Boxes are going to be delayed, for a few days, because my box maker has tons of orders to fill, and it is, apparently, the most popular custom box type that they sell.

The current estimate (from the box guy) is any day this week, before Saturday.
I'll let ya'll know when I actually do get em.

On a semi-related note...
As I was writing this post, the city inspector came by and, well, Inspected my new electric heater.
I had it installed last month.
This place used to have a Gas Heater, Stove, and Water Heater, but I changed them all to Electric for you guys.
I also removed all the Gas Pipes in the building in the summer, (after the Gas company came out and turned off the gas @_@) and capped em off.
I was worried that the smell they add to Natural Gas would get in my products, and didn't want that to happen.
 

[nat]

I bought 10 of them a bunch of weeks back through eBay, but I need some more. Unfortunately, I don't need 25 more. I should probably have just waited.

I'll split some with you.  I could use a few to replace some skanky looking ones (games bought new yet the sleeves look like they've been owned by a two-pack-a-day guy), but I don't need 25.

Sounds good.

[SeymorOnion]

The Boxes have arrived! 



I have the 25-Packs of HuCard Sleeves up for sale on My Website,
at the new low prices, for people in the contiguous 48 states.

I'm going to be working through the night, filling these boxes with Sleeves,
and I'll start shipping out the orders tomorrow. 

[MotherGunner]

Thanks Seymor! These look great and very professional.  You have proven you are very serious about presentation here.  I will be placing another order in a few days and I updated the top of the page. Quick thing these guys will notice right away is the future HuCard Trays (for CD cases) you plan to sell.   Got any pictures of the prototypes? Description?  I know all of us here will eat those up.

[SeymorOnion]

Thanks Seymor! These look great and very professional.  You have proven you are very serious about presentation here.  I will be placing another order in a few days and I updated the top of the page. Quick thing these guys will notice right away is the future HuCard Trays (for CD cases) you plan to sell. Got any pictures of the prototypes? Description?  I know all of us here will eat those up.

I don't have any pictures of the prototypes for the HuCard trays just yet, but I can describe them.

The idea is to make a tray that will accommodate HuCards, and be designed to fit in any standard-sized single CD Jewel Case.
It will look very similar to a CD Tray, except that the center of the tray will have the four curved "L's" found in standard HuCard Trays, and a tab that will hold the card in place.

The design of the tab that holds the HuCard itself is not final yet, but I'm thinking about doing something similar to those tabs found in PS2 Game Cases, that hold the manual in place.
Whatever tab design I go with, will have to be short enough to not mess up, or obstruct, HuCard Manuals, and I also hope to position it in such a way, so that you can use it with an Arcade Card as well.

The Arcade Card is the one with the thicker part/lump, that's opposite the metal contacts, right?
Anyway, are there any other HuCards that have thick lumps on them?
I'm going to need to buy any weird, lumpy, HuCards I currently don't own, later on down the line, so I can test em' out, when it comes to the actual prototyping phase.
Any suggestions on what Lumply HuCards I need to put on my list, would be most helpful.

I need to sell roughly 120,000 HuCard Sleeves, in order to be able to raise enough funds to get the trays made, so it may take a while.
That's roughly 4,800 of the 25-Packs. 
I'm hoping that opening up sales to other countries (once I sell out of this first run) will help me reach that goal pretty fast, but I won't know until I try.

In the meantime, Sparky might want to spend some of his free time prototyping Rear Tray Inserts for every HuCard ever made,
so he'll be ready to print and sell em once I'm able to get the new trays made.
I wouldn't recommend he print them out en mass though, at least, not just yet, but instead wait until I'm able to get the trays made, as 120,000 sleeves are A LOT OF SLEEVES to sell... 

I'll send him some pre-production samples of the trays for free, if he wants, once I get that far along, so he can test em out with his Rear Tray Artwork, if he decides to make it.
Once I have the pre-production samples in my hands, it will take at least two weeks for the trays to be mass produced. Probably longer.
It depends on how many I have to order, to achieve the quantity-discount sweet-spot.
I estimate that to be somewhere between 30,000 and 100,000 trays for the first run, including the mold cost.

The mold will cost anywhere from $15,000 USD to $ 100,000 USD, depending on multiple factors.
Ideally, I'd like the Mold Cost to work out to be one cent or less, when you divide it by the # of trays I make on the first run.
And, of course, I need to make sure the per-unit cost of the trays is as low as possible.
It's a tricky balancing act, especially since, like the Sleeves, I'm going to have the trays Made in America as well.

Actually, there's a local Injection Molding Plastics company here in Texas, about a 45 minute drive from my home, that I'm probably going to go with.
I've spoken with them a number of times, and showed them my sketches, and they seem confident that they'll be able to make them, no problem.
I only have rough estimates on prices to go by at this point though, and they are subject to change.
The mold itself will consist of two (or more) huge blocks of metal, and as you know, when you are dealing with that much metal, it's cost is determined by two main factors.
What metal it is, and what it's market value is.
Also, the metal I choose will determine how long it will last / how many trays I can make, before it wears out; it's another thing I have to take into consideration...

On a lighter note, I re-tasked my old PC Speakers, and have them throughout my warehouse, playing internet radio while I work.
What can I say...? It helps to keep me sane.   

Lately I've been listening to either Anime NFO or Japan-A-Radio.
Somehow, it seems to set the right mood, as I work on the vintage gaming stuff.
You can find em on SHOUTcast, if you wanna listen to em too. 

[nat]

The mold will cost anywhere from $15,000 USD to $ 100,000 USD, depending on multiple factors.

Wait, what?

$100,000 for a mould for a freakin' jewel case tray? What the hell? Granted, I know nothing about this sort of thing, but it seems like I'd be able to fabricate a suitable mould myself for > $500. Maybe less.

[SeymorOnion]

The mold will cost anywhere from $15,000 USD to $ 100,000 USD, depending on multiple factors.

Wait, what?

$100,000 for a mould for a freakin' jewel case tray? What the hell? Granted, I know nothing about this sort of thing, but it seems like I'd be able to fabricate a suitable mould myself for > $500. Maybe less.

Yeah, it can get insanely expensive, if I make the wrong choices.
One of the factors I didn't mention, is how many jewel case trays that a single mold can make.
At a certain point, a mold can be too big, and not cost effective.

[NecroPhile]

It will look very similar to a CD Tray, except that the center of the tray will have the four curved "L's" found in standard HuCard Trays, and a tab that will hold the card in place.

I suggest making 'em like the original trays.  The little pegs that catch the HuCard sleeve (did ya make any sleeves with the holes?) could be omitted, as they're a bit of a pain and not really necessary; I've used hole-less sleeves on my Tennokoe Banks, and they haven't once made a break for it.

Anyway, are there any other HuCards that have thick lumps on them?

There's just four: Street Fighter II', Populous, Tennokoe Bank, and the aforementioned Arcade Card Pro (the Arcade Card Duo version is flat).  I haven't scrutinized 'em side by side, but I believe they're identical in exterior dimensions.

[Arkhan Asylum]

The mold will cost anywhere from $15,000 USD to $ 100,000 USD, depending on multiple factors.

Wait, what?

$100,000 for a mould for a freakin' jewel case tray? What the hell? Granted, I know nothing about this sort of thing, but it seems like I'd be able to fabricate a suitable mould myself for > $500. Maybe less.

It's because they have to do machine tooling to create the mold properly.  The upside is once you do the mold, it costs next to nothing to make as many as you want.

I work with people sometimes who own a spincast machine to do miniatures ( www.armorcast.com )

They basically do the same thing.  Pay tons for mold to be made, then pay nothing to start cranking out miniatures and selling them.

I was going to have them do HuCards, but the cost to make the card mold itself is way-too-expensive.  It doesn't justify itself very well, especially because then using the right kind of plastic to make a sturdy card jacks the manufacture price up too.

So the whole thing is just a bad idea all around.



Jewel cases are more of the same.  I wish SO the best of luck with this, but man, it's a steep mountain hes climbing here.

[nat]

Still. I can believe it can get expensive, but $100 grand? Jesus. Someone, somewhere is making a shitload of dough.

Time to get into the mould-making business.

[edojapan76]

So how's the shipping to Canada thing looking???

[SeymorOnion]

So how's the shipping to Canada thing looking???

I've been looking into shipping to Canada, and it's pretty straightforward, that is, if I manually generate an invoice through PayPal, for each order.
In other words, I'll have to take Canadian Orders through this forum, for now.

I can start shipping to Canadians as early as tomorrow, in fact, as I plan to go by the post office anyway to drop off some orders from domestic customers.  

All I need is a PM with the quantity desired (in multiples of 25 for the Sleeves)
and your Name, Shipping Address, and an e-mail account to send the invoice to.
I only accept PayPal at this time, and you should pay in Canadian Dollars.

I can ship by USPS First Class International.
It's the least expensive method, but can take up to two weeks to arrive.
Using this method means no brokerage fees, but I am gonna have to charge a bit more to cover the costs of converting Canadian dollars to USD.
It's not much, but my margins are so tight, I can't afford to absorb the costs of currency conversion myself, just yet..

Anyway, here's a price chart for Canadians:
--------------------------------------------------------
                               The Price
Quantity                       Per Sleeve    Total Price
One   25-Pack   ( 25 Sleeves)  ($ 0.88 CAD)  $ 21.88 CAD
Two   25-Packs  ( 50 Sleeves)  ($ 0.76 CAD)  $ 37.98 CAD
Three 25-Packs  ( 75 Sleeves)  ($ 0.70 CAD)  $ 52.46 CAD
Four  25-Packs  (100 Sleeves)  ($ 0.64 CAD)  $ 63.32 CAD
--------------------------------------------------------

USPS First Class International Shipping, and the Currency Conversion Fee, IS in included in these prices.

[edojapan76]

PM sent.

[SeymorOnion]

Invoice Sent ^^

[Bernie]

Man, I cant believe I have overlooked this thread.  Looking over your site now, and getting the ole wallet ready....  VERY nice work!!