Souvenir P250 | Cartel (Factory New)

Skin overview

P250 | Cartel is a pistol finish built around engraved metal: dark slide panels covered in fine ornamental engraving, a polished steel frame and a black grip with a sugar skull emblem. In Factory New the contrast between the bright steel and the darker engraved panels is at its sharpest, and the engraving reads crisply on every part. This is the version to pick if you want the metalwork to look freshly finished.

Item type: pistol. Classified is the second-rarest weapon tier, only Covert sits above it.

Patina: an aged metal surface; wear is part of the design, so the gap between qualities is less visible.

The remaining qualities of this skin: Minimal Wear, Field-Tested, Well-Worn and Battle-Scarred. The same quality also exists as the StatTrak™ version.

Appearance in Factory New

The slide is a dark gunmetal grey with recessed panels along its side filled with dense ornamental engraving, framed by smooth polished bands and serrations at the rear. The frame, trigger guard and trigger are bright polished steel, which gives the pistol a two-tone look against the darker slide.

The polished steel of the frame and trigger guard is clean and reflective, and the slide panels show the full depth of the engraving. Edges of the slide and muzzle have no visible marks. In game at normal distance the pistol reads as a sharp two-tone piece with a clear skull on the grip. Everything looks clean.

Factory New wear: float 0–0.07

The whole float range of Souvenir P250 | Cartel is 0–0.75; Factory New takes the 0–0.07 segment (9% of the scale). The lower the float within the range, the cleaner the surface looks and the higher a copy is usually priced.

Origin of the skin

Souvenir P250 | Cartel belongs to The Vanguard Collection, which holds 14 skins.

The source is Operation Vanguard Weapon Case (on sale since Nov 5, 2014).

Souvenir version

This is the Souvenir version: such copies dropped to tournament viewers in souvenir packages; the team stickers and signatures on them cannot be removed or chosen. Souvenir items never carry StatTrak™. There is also the regular version without tournament stickers.

Which stickers suit it

Stickers in silver, black, bone white or muted gold match the engraved metal and the skull motif. Small accents of deep red or marigold orange can echo the Day of the Dead theme without breaking the restrained palette. Placing them on the slide keeps the engraved grip emblem visible.

What to check before buying

• Check where the float sits within the wear range, since copies near the cleaner end keep noticeably more shine on the steel.
• Inspect the slide edges, muzzle and trigger guard, as these parts show wear first.
• Look at how readable the engraving on the slide panels is in the inspect view.
• Note any applied stickers or name tag and whether they suit the dark metal theme.

Who should buy Factory New

• Collectors who want the engraving and polished steel in their sharpest form.
• Sticker crafters who need a clean base for a premium-looking pistol.
• Conclusion: the best choice when condition comes first.