From Our Workbench to Barry Sanders: The Story Behind One of Our Most Special Builds
There are certain projects that feel different from the moment they begin.
This was one of them.
We recently had the opportunity to create a one-of-one jumbo custom Barry Sanders piece for the PSA Set Registry Awards banquet. On its own, that would have made this a pretty special project for us.
But where this piece ultimately ended up, and who ended up holding it, turned the entire experience into something we will never forget.
And for this project, we brought the cameras along for the journey.
Going Behind the Scenes at Reclaim Customs
PSA gave us one key piece of direction for the design: draw inspiration from Barry’s iconic Bowman’s Best Atomic Refractor, a fitting choice considering the award winner owns the entire set, all graded PSA 10.
If you’ve followed Reclaim Customs for any length of time, you’ve probably seen plenty of our finished work.
What you don’t always get to see is everything that happens before that final reveal.
The cutting. The assembly. The tiny decisions. The adjustments. The details that can take an idea from something that looks good on a screen to something that feels completely different once you’re holding it in your hands.
For this project, we wanted to change that.
Our newest YouTube video takes you behind the scenes as we build this jumbo Barry Sanders piece by hand and prepare it for its eventual destination at the PSA Set Registry Awards.
This isn’t simply a showcase of the finished card.
It’s a look at how we actually make these things.
Two Pieces. Two True 1/1s.
There was another layer to this project that made it even more interesting.
While creating the award piece, I also made an Artist Proof version for myself.
The two pieces share the same DNA, but there are a few intentional differences between them. That distinction was important to us.
If we were going to create a second version, we wanted both pieces to retain their own identities as true one-of-ones.
In the video, you’ll primarily follow the creation of the main award piece, although you may catch me mentioning that second card along the way.
At the time, the Artist Proof was simply a special way for me to commemorate a project I was really proud of.
I didn’t fully know what was going to happen with it later.
Then We Took It to the PSA Set Registry Awards
This is where the story becomes about a lot more than making a card.
The finished piece traveled with us to the PSA Set Registry Awards banquet, where Barry Sanders himself was in attendance.
As someone who grew up in Michigan and has spent a lifetime around sports and collectibles, there are certain names that carry a different kind of weight.
Barry is one of them.
And eventually, I found myself standing there with Barry Sanders, the award piece we had spent so much time creating, and that Artist Proof I had made back at the shop.
I’m intentionally not going to tell the entire story here.
Watch the Full Journey
Our new video follows this project from the workbench all the way to the PSA Set Registry Awards, culminating in a moment with Barry that made an already special project even better.
And if you enjoy seeing this side of Reclaim Customs, we’d really appreciate your support.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel, give the video a like, and leave us a comment. Let us know what you think of the Barry Sanders piece, the Artist Proof, or even what you’d like to see us build next.
Those actions may seem small, but they are genuinely helpful to us. Especially during the first 24 hours after a video goes live, your views and engagement help YouTube understand that people are interested in what we’re creating and can help put the video in front of more collectors.
More importantly, that support allows us to keep investing the time and resources into telling these stories and bringing you further behind the scenes.
We have some incredible projects coming.
If you want to see more of how they actually get made, make sure you’re subscribed.
Thank you for following what we’re building at Reclaim Customs. We hope you enjoy this one as much as we enjoyed making it.
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