Sleeves

By Seam, in Arkham Horror: The Card Game

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Hello!

FFG's sleeves are out of stock here in Germany. As I need new ones for the upcoming deluxe espansion I am asking if someone knows of a close substitute. I know Gamegenic (spell?) took over and their sleeves are somewhat identical. But unfortunately those are not available here (yet). Any other recommendations which have the same quality and size?

Thanks

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The Gamegenic sleeves are not the same size, they have been cut down by a mm. So they're not compatible with old FFG branded greys. So if like me you have a lot of cards sleeved, like all the player cards in Arkham, with the old sleeves you'll have to redo the lot. Going to swap out the player card sleeves for something else and save that stash of greys for the scenario cards. I think FFG were the only ones to use that 92mm size so you can't mix and match with any others in the same deck. I am tempted by the Gamegenic as the packs of 200 are pretty cheap in the UK. But you might also run into the problem we have over here. Getting your hands on any sleeves at the minute is hit and miss.

Next time I hit the FLGS I'm going to clean out the stock of old FFG sleeves just in case.

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The only sleeves I’ve found that are the same external size are from Arcane Tinmen: their Original Standard sleeves (product code AT-10406).

They are different to the FFG sleeves in other ways though, in that they are only 80 microns thick compared to 100 microns for the FFG sleeves. A stack of 50 of them also has a bluish colour compared to the excellent transparency of FFG sleeves, but this isn’t really noticeable in a single sleeve.

The reduced thickness is really obvious before you put the card in, but once sleeved I actually found I couldn’t really tell them apart unless I was really looking or trying to feel the difference.

Personally, I am sad that Gamegenic didn’t directly replace the FFG sleeves as they would have had a market ready for them rather than competing with other brands. But I guess most people must prefer not having the overhang at the top of the card!

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I am pretty sure you can get Gamegenic sleeves in Germany (Fantasywelt seems to have them in stock). As has been observed, the Gamegenic are not an exact match for the FFG versions as they are shorter. I also can't detect any practical difference in thickness, which is good. I have everything sleeved in FFG sleeves so have to find an alternative. I have started buying the Gamegenic sleeves and will probably move my player cards to these and then use the freed-up FFG sleeves for campaign cards and standalones.

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You will never find sleeves exactly the same size as FFG sleeves. They are gone for good.

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20 hours ago, Villefere said:

You will never find sleeves exactly the same size as FFG sleeves. They are gone for good.

Well that sounds like a worthy challenge.

You mean just external dimensions? Or thickness too?

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You cannot mix and match sleeves at all. Even a slight difference will be noticeable

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Hi, I have not read all replies but I’ll throw in my 2 cents. I recently started using Dragonshield sleeves and love them! They don’t rip or tear very easily, they are tight but still easy to sleeve cards, they shuffle well, and are durable.

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On 8/9/2020 at 5:03 AM, Villefere said:

You cannot mix and match sleeves at all. Even a slight difference will be noticeable

I recently bought some Arcane Tinmen sleeves and they are indeed the same size as FFG sleeves, but a bit flimsier.

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As another alternative I did pick up a box of Katana clear sleeves from Ultimate Guard. They are roughly the size of the Ultra Pro clear sleeves. I would like to get the Dragon Shields but I do not like the textured back that I understood the clears to have. I would prefer smooth front and back. The plus for Dragon Shields is that they are a bit longer and so cover the cards at the top much better. The drawback with the Ultimate Guard and Ultra Pro's is that they are just long enough to cover the top of the cards but through handling and shuffling the cards move up slightly exposing the top edge a bit to damage and or wear. It is not as critical with a game such as Arkham versus a typically CCG as you shuffle considerably less I just hate picking up a card and having to push it back down from the top.

RM

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Used Ultra-Pro for all my lcg collections. Haven't had a spot of bother with them. They're durable, they cover the card nicely without too much space, and they have the extra merit of being cheap. Yes the card can occasionally come to the top when shuffling, but by my experiences at least, it's relatively rare.

Edited by Leematon
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hey question: why did FFG stop making the sleeves again? Not enough profit and they were downsizing?

cheap, sturdy and nondescript look good, so I'll check out Ultra-Pro.

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Gamegenic is part of Asmodee. I guess it made sense to have a subsidiary that focused on sleeves and storage rather than have it specifically embedded in FFG.

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Eclipse Sleeves for me. Purple for Investigator Decks Black for mythos decks and clear pro matte sleeves for double sided cards

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200 pack for $10 from Gamegenic is up on Amazon for those interested. Seems like a pretty good deal and most people have spoken well of the Gamegenic sleeves.

RM

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They are identical size but noticeably thinner.

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Sorry to bother you again, folks. What is the Gamegenic substitute for the 41 x 63 mm sleeves?

Thanks!

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Perfect, thanks!