Don, by "Coming Soon" on the idea "An Ombudsman that knows the ropes of producing decks and helps others speed their design/production path.", could this be The House of Playing Cards, we've all been waiting for 
[lawyer steps in front of podium]
"My client has no comment at this time."
[lawyer steps back]
Next question?
Don, I would expect a deck with a metal case to be around 30$: no more than a porper clip.
Please, stop and think about what you're saying for just a second. You want to make a deck of cards where EVERY PACK costs $30!? Just buy a metal case separately! Get the Elite Card Guard, if you can find them - they tend to sell out quickly.
Looks like this thread is getting off topic. Thought this was a topic to post what you wanted to see? Looking like it is turning into a "criticize what others want to see" thread. So which is it?
I would like to see better made tuck boxes. Mainly the glue that hold is together needs to be reformulated to hold better.
I agree, this is a brain storming session, let's not make this into an idea bashing session.
I would like to see more variants of the tuck boxes eg. Flip top boxes.
Sorry about straying from the topic, but it's not really straying to discuss the ideas at hand. Some of these ideas really are totally awesome.
Better glue would be a good idea. Or just better application of existing glues - it's more of a quality control issue than a new glue issue, I think. If we can glue a construction worker to a steel girder, I think we have the technology to make a few pieces of paper stick together...
(For anyone who wasn't a kid in the US in the 1970s, it's a reference to a TV ad for one of the most popular "super glues" [a.k.a. cyanoacrylate adhesives] in the country, "Krazy Glue". In the ad, a few drops are added to the tpo of a construction worker's hardhat, then pressed into a steel beam from underneath - cutaway to the worker hanging from his hat, arms wrapped around it to keep from falling off the beam.)
As far as flip-top boxes, we already have them. They're sometimes called "cigarette" boxes, after the crush-resistant hard boxes some cigarettes are packed in. Brahma offers them as part of its product line. They're more common in Europe than they are here for some reason - I happen to think they're cool.
They're probably not used as much here because they cost more to produce or something, meaning they're not great for common decks, but for an "artisan" deck, hell, yeah! I'll do that idea one better and suggest that the box be made of a thin, light hard plastic similar to the cover of some brands of spiral notebook - a flip-top box that's also weather-resistant but still inexpensive!
Oh, and something else I thought would be cool..
Instead of using a clear cellophane to wrap the tuckbox, how about using a different color.
So let's say you had blue on your tuckbox, and used a yellow cellophane.. it would look green.
Probably not the best color example.. lol
Or an opaque cellophane that could have printing on it (i.e. the gargoyles Expo deck).
Comic companies use this on occasion as well, like the Death / Return of Superman books
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CBJ
It could have it's applications, I guess. It would have allowed De'vo to show the entire box of his April Fool's Deck without giving away a single thing about the contents, and at the same time he could have changed the actual box's art to match the deck more closely!
The only issue I'd have with it is that collectors would feel compelled to have a deck sealed with the colored wrap as well as unsealed to show off the actual box - or worse, they'd want one of every color of plastic wrap used! At that point, the packaging is the product more so than its contents. Manufacturers would love it though, since it would mean the chance for more revenue. For the general market, it would be a fun fad, harmless, and potentially stimulating to deck sales, so that's a win-win.
Scented decks anyone
Now on a more serious note better detail, and maybe finish sprayed on the inside of the book st that way cards don't get stuck in the box. Not a big deal, but it's annoying when the box warps, and the cards don't always come out.
Different shaped seals would be pretty sweet, and guilded decks that handle well would be awesome!
Believe it or not, there'd be a real market for scented decks! Young children and girls would have a blast with them, and girls in particular are less likely in general to buy playing cards than boys as they get older. I could see it being a huge hit in Japan! Imagine selling it with lip balms, candies or chewing gums that have the same fragrance! I seriously think you hit on a big idea there.
I can't speak for the warped-cards-stuck-in-box scenario, since I've never experienced it. I think that problem has more to do with the cards absorbing too much humidity in the first place. Use better stock and you'll no longer feel the need to coat the inside of the box, I think.
Different seal shapes - why not? They were never a uniform shape to start with when they were government tax stamps.
Gilded decks that can perform? Hmmm... Great idea, but I don't see how it could be executed. Doesn't mean it can't be, just that I don't see how. Maybe if thinner coatings were used, combined with a dip-coated card lamination applied after the cards were cut. What do you think? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller...?
An air-cushion type deck with a varnish that doesn't warp in humidity.
And deck seals that don't leave a sticky residue. Sort of like post it glue. Not exactly like post its, that would effect the purpose. But I think you know what I mean.
That air-cushion idea - really, textured stock - isn't an impossible one, but it would require some stocks that are much sturdier than what we have now. Smooth stocks tend to resist bending more in the first place. It's those little dimples in the paper that make it a little weaker in each dimpled spot. Perhaps a superthin plastic-reinforced layer in the paper would make a difference? I think no matter how you slice it, this would require a paper stock that's at least a little thicker than what's used now - either that, or more fibrous and dense. Fibrous and dense are the hard parts, though, with all the recycled content in papers today; making a more pure paper would mean making a less eco-friendly deck, and they're bad enough as it is in that department with all the chemicals used in their production.
That seal idea - you want a sticker that doesn't leave a residue. But most stickers that I know of that come off without a residue also don't provide a very strong seal in the first place.
What do you think of this idea: a sticker that's fully incorporated into the box design, complete with a perforated area that's designed to break right at the edge of the box back? The seal, rather than looking like some kind of afterthought added on after the box was designed, becomes part of the box itself. Otherwise, if you're going to make a sticker that's that easily removed, you might as well just leave the seal off and cellophane the box closed, like a lot of current designers are doing. It increases the production cost to have such an easily-removed sticker which would later only be discarded - just start without the sticker and save the money.
Do you have any ideas for a better way to implement your concept?
That goes for everyone's ideas I've mentioned in this post. I'm not bashing anyone's ideas - I'm tossing around the practical aspects of it to see if it's truly something feasible or even desirable. I welcome with open arms any ideas that can accomplish the desired goals in a better way or that make the impossible into the practical. It's a great thing to say "I want this," but it's even better to be able to say "I want this, it's good for this reason, and this is how it can be achieved." Think of it as the difference between theoretical science and applied science!
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