Tobacco top loaders
 

I just got a pack of BCW top loaders and boy do they stink. The cards literally fall out if the holder is tipped upside down. Time to go back to ultra pro.

Top Loaders
 

Do you put them in penny sleeves first? Just curious

I did. From comparing the two brands BCW appears to be a much wider gap (more room).

Had the same problem, if the cards move the holder is absolutely useless.

This totally works for me. I could, and do, slip a T206 (or name you own Topps/Bowman/Leaf/Fleer/Red Heart, whatever poison) into a penny sleeve, it then goes into an UltraPro toploader, or on occasion, maybe a CardSaver. Sometimes a card may slip around and not be lined up in the horizontal/vertical realm of the physical sort of T-Square thing. But never, ever, have I had a card slip out on its' own. The best part is, as far as a collector, is when I want to handle a card: I reach in and nab it buy the sleeve. I might even then turn the sleeve upside down and have the card in hand, which I love to do. Then it goes back inside. No officiated holder on this end. Just love.

Do you use the standard or tobacco sized top loader?

Hi Alex, my fellow collector. No matter what the card, I use a standard sleeve and loader that would fit a sixties Topps. and a T or an E does just fine too. Uh, some fifties Topps just over the vertical limit size will stick out over the top of the loader. I don't care. But never ever has a card ever gone south, unless I want it to.

Interesting. I use tobacco top loaders and the cards slide right out.

Then don't use them. I'm no pro, but the technique I've described works for quite a few board members. In fact, I am in the minority in a recent poll about how people store and display their stuff.

Team Bag
 

Alex,

It won't solve your tobacco toploader problem, but to avoid cards sliding out of regular size top loaders, I put the toploader in a team bag (penny slip, toploader, team bag sealed). It has the added benefits of keeping dust out and preventing scratches on the toploaders as you handle them. I hate when you handle them a lot and they get dull. The major issue with this is the extra width it adds prevents storage in regular row boxes. But I use vault boxes anyway and they fit great.

A side comment, my experience is that bcw makes some great supplies and I buy a lot of them. Toploaders and pages are not in that group. I will only buy Ultra Pro toploaders and pages (platinum only).

I think the problem is the spacer that is used for separation between the front and back panels of these toploaders is the same thickness as those used for larger sizes, but because of the small size of the tobacco toploaders, the front and back panels are not able to flex inward as they do with the larger sizes. Without this inward flex, you lose the friction between the panels and the card that would normally keep a card in place until you knock or jostle it enough to overcome that friction. Using the penny sleeve inside the toploader helps a little, especially if it is wide enough to give you friction on the sides/spacers as well, but I've had the same experience with the tobacco toploaders. I finally just decided there was nothing to be done about it and just switched over to Card Saver I's (which have no spacers, so you always get the friction you need to keep things in place).

^ I think you are right about the spacing with the BCW. Luckily there is less space with ultra pro.