COLLECTING BUCS GAMES ON DVD (OR VHS) can be very rewarding as a hobby. Ive been at it for four years now, and as a result I now have over 584 games on DVD, the largest collection of Bucs games on the planet!
So how do you go about getting Bucs game on dvd? Well when I started, I found some games on ebay, but they have long since been removed, and are pretty much no longer for sale. The NFL does not sell games, at least as far as I know. They should, I know I would purchase some that I still do not have.
Garage Sales are a great way to find some Bucs games, its amasing how many people recorded games on to VHS tape over the years.
You can also find Sports Game Trading sites on the web, where you can find a game you want, and offer up a game you have as a trade. The problem here of course is you have to have some games to trade! Getting started can sometimes be difficult, but you could offer to record a CURRENT game for someone.
One good site, dvdQB.com has closed down it seems. Running a website can be expensive and time consuming, I can attest to that. Doing a google search a few months ago, I found a few other small sites that could prove useful for a beginner.
THIS GREEN BAY SITE isn't a bad place to look, as it sounds like they have other games for trade too.
While THIS NEW ORLEANS SAINTS site may look like its flirting with the enemy, I've worked a trade or two with him, and hey, the games we play are AGAINST the enemy right?
THIS GENERIC DVD site shows a lot of baseball stuff at first, but most people who trade NFL games also trade Baseball, Basketball, and there are tons of Hockey traders out there too.
GET A GOOD VCR/DVD Combo machine! Check out this page for reviews on such products....http://dvd-players.toptenreviews.com/dvdvcr-combo/
IS IT LEGAL?
One thing I would like to point out, while I did not record all of the games in my collection, I was able to amass it completely legally. The NFL Does not seem to mind you trading your games for others; they have never said anything to anyone about trading sites!
BUT DO NOT OFFER MONEY for games! Its a sure way to get yourself put on a blacklist, and no one will trade with you. You may have people tell you that you have nothing they want, and that they will sell you the game.
That is illegal, but that is your call on whether you feel comfortable doing that or not. This site does not CONDONE the selling of games, and all games should be free for trading.
Some people will say they will trade games for blank DVDs. Technically, that is still for material gain, but it's grey area, and you have to use your conscience.
WHATS THE ETIQUETTE?
Like anything else, be friendly , be courteous, and if your a newbie, be honest. Everyone started out at some point, and some one helped them out. If you try to act like a know it all, and it will be obvious your not, your likely not to get as much help that way. Many traders, myself included, will go out of our way to help out a newbie if they just ask for it.
There are somethings that just about every trader however has in common.
1) Don't mark disks- Everyone has their own system of cataloging their collection, when you mark disks you could ruin that, plus the dye in markerss can, no make that WILL deteriorate the dyes in the dvds themselves. You should always mark DVDs with CD/DVD markers, you can find them specially marked where ever markers are sold.
2) Use sleeves- Don't just send your DVDs all piled together. Some people do not want more than one DVD per sleeve. I will put 2 in a sleeve, bu never more. You can get sleeves where ever dvds are purchased.
3) use quality blanks- This is a tough one here, because even name brand disks have poor ones, and even some poor brands will have some quality runs. Basic rule of thumb is never trade STORE BRAND disks. Don't use Office Depot, Staples, etc, at the very least use Verbatim, Sony. However, a lot of traders even consider these to be poor quality. If your going to start out, you want to develop a good reputation. Taiyo Yuden is considered a strong quality disk brand name, and you can get them for the same price if not less than the Office Brand ones. SUPERMEDIASTORE.com is a great place to buy, and you can get better prices than local stores more times, for far better products. If your not sure ask your trader what he wants. That goes a long way!
4)ALWAYS MAKE GOOD QUALITY COPIES! Never hook up a dvd player to a dvd recorder and make a copy that way. That degrades the quality, and will get you blacklisted fast, because youll be watering down the hobby you want to join! Saving the best quality of games is the duty of every trader. If your going to record games from the TV, always use the best settings for the highest quality even if it means a game spans more than 2 disks. I have some games from 1979 that are on 4 or 5 dvds. The quality has to be preserved at all costs. Once its lost its lost for good. ALWAYS MAKE DIGITAL COPIES using your computer's CD/DVD copy software. Or, if your going to get serious, look up the price for a good duplicator, Supermediastore.com has them at good prices!
5) ALways state if your game is NOT an original broadcast. If someone wants to watch the 1981 NFC Championship game, and you say you have it, they are assuming you have THE ORIGINAL BROADCAST, not the NFL networks replay of the game. Thats another good way to have your name dragged in the mud! Just let people know you have a rebroadcast, they may not care. But most traders want the real deal.
When all else fails, Just ASK!
UPGRADING
Even though I have just about every game that is available, I'm still active in trading because I try to obtain the best possible version of a game. Below are some screen shots to show how much better you can get by looking for an upgraded version someone may have. Sometimes the difference can be 2 or more letter grades improvement!
below is an upgrade of the 1979 NFC Championship game the right was the old version a 2 dvd set. The left is the master copy, a 4 dvd with each dvd set to sp. A noticeable difference huh?
Next up, the 79 Playoff Game vs Eagles. The left is from a 2 dvd version. The right is from a master copy, put on 5 DVDs. Same scene!
Here is an example of poor copying. The original copy is on the left, but it was probably copied at least twice the wrong way, to get where it is now. Its faded, color is washed out, and is a perfect example of why you should make digital copies of games. Not Player to recorder with cables.
Sometimes though, you can improve a game by importing video from a VHS into a computer TV capture device. With that you have more control of Contrast, sharpness, color, etc. This 80 Houston vs Bucs game was enhanced by Elgato's eye tv.
And one more for the road, a nice upgrade of a 1980 Game @ Minnesota.
THE BUCSTOP.COM VIDEO LIBRARY
Here is an up to date list of all the games I have acquired. NO! These games are not available for sale! They are available for trade however, so if you want one, you'll have to have something to trade.
The following links are to PDFs and will take some time to load. Its not unusual for 5 to 10 minutes to load the two big ones, Pewter or Orange Bucs. They will be worth your while though..screen shots of each game I own are zoom in-able!
BE WARNED- LEGAL NOTICE BEFORE READING PDFS BELOW....
by visiting this website or e-mailing me you acknowledge the following statements and when e-mailing me include in your e-mail that you agree with my notices and disclaimers otherwise I will not deal.
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