Help Your Foils Shine!
Gear forum
Posted on Jan. 1, 2018, 4:56 p.m. by darleen
If you love the superior protection of Ultra Pro Eclipse sleeves, but hate the way they dull your foil cards, please sign this petition to Ultra Pro. Let's demonstrate to them that there is consumer demand for a NON-matte finish version of their Eclipse sleeves.
http://chn.ge/2CCSLap
The current Eclipse sleeves have matte finish fronts which dull the foil shine almost completely to the point where they don't even look like foil cards.
January 1, 2018 9:32 p.m.
I realize this is purely a vanity request, but that's kinda the point of having foil cards in the first place. And Ultra Pro does have a clear, non-matte material which they current use on their Standard sleeves so why not give the consumer the choice for the Eclipse sleeves.
January 1, 2018 10:05 p.m.
You could also just buy different sleeves. There are far superior sleeves to the eclipse ones. A petition is not going to make a company, that will make money regardless, make a new product like that.
January 1, 2018 10:25 p.m.
Or you could just not sign the list and move on without leaving a shitty negative comment.
January 1, 2018 11:29 p.m.
Yeah, but then this wouldn't be the internet now would it?
January 2, 2018 2:55 a.m.
I think objectivly that it is incredibly flavorful that they do that. I mean, the sleeves are called Eclipse and they block out shine...
Plus, on a personal level, I dislike being blinded by the deck in front of me.
January 2, 2018 3:18 a.m.
Boza, never thought about the flavor aspect, good catch lol. Matte sleeves have there benefits for sure. They eliminate glare from overhead lights which especially great for streaming games in paper. Even so, it still makes me a little sad to see sweet foils dulled by a matte sleeve, like my Odric, Lunarch Marshal (his sword is so bitchin' in foil).
I'm not suggesting Ultra Pro stop producing matte sleeves, I would just like to have the option of a clear alternative. They do currently make a sleeve with a clear finish front, but it's there standard quality sleeves which aren't nearly as durable as the Eclipse sleeves.
Simply buying another brand of sleeves isn't that simple. The following statements are just my humble opinion. While I love Ultimate Guard's deck boxes, I find their sleeves feel thin and cheap. Now that KMC is under new ownership, their sleeves seem to fall apart and split very easily. Dragon Shields (which offer both clear and matte finishes) are durable and have a great shuffle feel at first, but they seem to get sticky and dirty quickly. I don't have alot of money to throw away on constantly replacing sleeves and individually cleaning each sleeve with Windex is a bit much.
In the end, its all up to each player's personal preference. I am just sayin', it would be nice to have the option of a clear finish. The point of my petition is merely to demonstrate consumer demand for such a product. After all, isn't the "great" thing about having a Capitalist economy that we can "vote with our wallets"?
January 2, 2018 3:19 p.m.
Yeah but the realistic thing about being a capitalistic economy is that they will make money regardless of whether even 10,000 people stop buying their sleeves. Ultra pro is a huge company that clearly does not care about the quality of their sleeves or the opinions of their consumers because they are the most widely used sleeve on the market, also the cheapest of the major brands.
I 100% agree that ultimate guards sleeves are pretty bad which is a huge shame because everything else they have is great. I also agree with the dragon shields getting dirty (although for me its more about getting worn? I guess its hard to explain, the shuffle just feels weird). I however do not agree with the KMC thing I have heard a lot of people complain but all of my decks, except my foiled out edh deck, are in KMCs and I have had one split on me in over 400 sleeves so I would say that is possible but also I have seen people split their sleeves and most of the times it is based on how they shuffle. So, I would recommend giving them another shot.
I am not trying to be a rude person and say your opinion is just bad and what you are doing is stupid because it's not but I don't think you are going about it the right way and perhaps there is another solution that could use less energy. I care A LOT about my foils, how they are treated, how they look, and sometimes even the foiling process, so I understand how you feel. I also care A LOT about sleeves. I have tried almost every type of sleeve save some of the really hard to find, bad quality ones that sell like 10 packs and go out of business. Also "voting with your wallet" would be buying other sleeves not continuing to buy their sleeves while asking them for new ones.
Legit question though, as someone who uses the eclipse frequently, do they not get dirty for you? Every time I have played against someone using these sleeves they are the most disgusting things I have seen. I know that is mostly how you treat them but they even happened to me and usually my sleeves take a while to get dirty.
January 2, 2018 9:47 p.m.
I've reached out to Ultra Pro individually and they have been very responsive to my suggestion of manufacturing clear finish sleeves.
Simply refusing to purchase any of their products isn't a clear way to send a signal either. They may just be left thinking that the current product is sub-par or that people simply do not have a need for the additional durably and opaqueness that the Eclipse sleeves offer.
If you think what I am doing is stupid, thats fine by me. You are entitled to your opinion. But that doesn't mean I am alone in my desire for a clear finish option.
Regarding how much dirt and grim Eclipse sleeves pick up over time, so far mine are just fine and dandy. Yet every set of Dragon Shields I've seen are a hot mess unless they are straight outta the box. Either way, there are many outside factors to sleeves getting dirty like how clean a players hands are, if they use lotion blah blah blah. I am just sharing my experience.
PS: Personally I think the concept of voting with your wallet is a pipedream because corps like Walmart could give a fuck less.. unless literally every single one of their customers stopped shopping there which will never happen so...
January 2, 2018 10:22 p.m.
Just a note on Dragonshields, I have been very satisfied with their sleeves in terms of protection, but indeed getting dirty easy is an issue. Not with their Matte sleeves though I have used them for about an year with no dirt problems and improved shuffle feel over their regular stuff. Regardless of thieer names, DS Matte do not dull the shine of your foils.
I have a set of light blue eclipses too. If I had to choose between the two, I would choose eclipse, specifically for the dulling effect, which for me is a plus, and their thinness compared to DS sleeves.
I think a set of DS mattes would solve this issue for you, nontheless, I support this effort of getting a company to respond to your desires.
K34 says... #2
Do they actually damage the cards, or do they just not show up very well through the plastic?
January 1, 2018 9:24 p.m.