2007 Ultra Hobby/Retail Help

[Xdj511]

I know this is an old one, but I worked my way down to needing just one more common rookie to finishing this set, then realized there were both hobby and retail versions of the set! The difference that is listed is that the hobby has holofoil on the front and the retail has solid silver foil. Well, about three different times now I've started to pull the set apart thinking I've figured out which cards have holofoil and which cards have silver and every time I've given up after about the first 20 cards. Keep in mind we're only talking about a sliver around the names and the ultra logo on front. After a while they all look either shimmery or silver. I'm dead set against picking up the last card, version be damned and considering it a complete set, but I don't know how I'm ever going to figure out which card is which (Thank you very much Upper Deck. At least this is the last year they put out an Ultra set). So I'm reaching out to see if anyone has any foolproof ways of telling the hobby and retail versions apart. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[dragonslayer913]

Is the hooby version card stock slightly thicker than the retail?

 

[reickholt]

There is a basic "outline" here with a few pictures. May not tell you anything more than you already know.

http://baseballcardpedia.com/index.php/2007_Ultra

 

[Xdj511]

dragonslayer:

I don't really see any stock difference. All the sites only reference the difference in the foil which I can't figure out.


reickholt:

Thanks but you're right it doesn't give much more info. It's always good when a set release annoys collectors so much that it ends a 17 year run.

 

[cmcjr99]

when seeing them side by side , i think its almost impossible to not see the difference...as mentioned , the retail is merely a silver foil but the hobby holofoil is so much more...it has - well , for lack of a better term , depth...it's very similar to a refractor finish

 

[David K.]

Why does it appear that the Holofoil cards....the Players name appears to be encircled......and the silver foil the players name is not encircled? I could be wrong as I'm looking at the cards on ebay. Wish I had the actually cards in my hands. Best regards, David

 

[Xdj511]

I don't know, maybe it's because I'm somewhat colorblind. Some cards start out looking solid silver and then I tilt them and they look holofoil, some cards start out looking like holofoil and then they look like solid silver.

 

[3greyhounds]

Wow, I never knew about the hobby version! Probably a good thing...

At least, knowing I did the set a few years after its release, I can be fairly confident it’s the retail version.

 

[Xdj511]

Yeah I've basically decided to give up, build one set and call it a day. My heirs can deal with whether or not it's all hobby or retail or whatever after I'm gone!

I had another headache with 2015 Bowman's Best, another set where there's a refractor version that you can only tell by looking at the card and seeing if it... refracts. I am fairly certain there are refractors in the set I just bought but I wasn't sure which ones were and which ones were just a little shinier and just gave up.