Maybe they are EPCC??
btw Can you tell me if the White Lions (first edition) were printed somewhere else? or If the stock was any different? I keep getting messages that tell me that, the White Lions 1st edition were the best Blaine deck (quality and stock wise) ever, UNTIL The gator backs... which people are implying are even better than those ones...
All of Blaine's prior decks are from USPC. White Lions came in a "Series A", a "Series B", "Black Label" and "Stealth Cards" (gaffs). It's the Split Spades Lions that have "1st Edition" printed on the box - and no subsequent edition was ever made. I think they were released in '09 (the year is printed on the box above the title) except for the metallic "Silver Split Spades" of last year (BTW, that was his first deck to use any metallic colors). Additionally, there were a smattering of gaff cards released (I'm sure just a fraction of the ones that were made for Blaine himself) as well as three gaffed decks manufactured as "Bicycle Split Spades" in both prototype and production editions, each with different boxes.
Split Spades Lions were very popular for the handling and stock, as were the White Lions - but the White Lions stock was a bit heavier/thicker, if I remember correctly. Some people loved this, some preferred the SSL stock better.
I'm reasonably sure that these Gatorbacks are EPCC-made, which is why there's such a hubbub about them. If they were USPC, I doubt he'd have sold any respectable amount for $5/pack by the brick - the profit margin would be pretty narrow. EPCC has gone up a little in price but they're still well-enough below what USPC charges for even a basic deck.