Interesting article I came across
- Thread starter PRosefan1
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I found the first paragraph of the article, but could find anything after that. This guy is ruining the hobby. I would hope to have confidence in a cards authenticity without having it verified by a grading company.
If you hit the left arrow on the picture it will take you back to the first parts of the article. Not sure why it saved that way.
I see he had the fake cards authenticated by a grading service. That's an eye opener.
And that is the scariest part of this matter. I have heard some of the biggest grading companies erroniously authenticate fake cards but I'm wondering if in this case the company in question intentionally authenticated them.
There are certain raw cards I will not buy if they are offered to me individually...........the Fleer Jordan RC, Star Company Jordans, Gretzky RCs, some early Mantles and the like. The scary thing is if they are graded by a repuatable company, I would consider buying them. I'm not sure that would still be the case after reading this article.
The biggest way I protect myself is buying large groups of cards. If there are other cards from the same set as the frequently faked cards, I know the chances the key card is real are much better. A few months ago my friend took me to a residence to buy a collection with a Rose RC in it which he really wanted. The card looked too good to be true and I told him to take it out of the holder to look it over which he did not do. My biggest concern was it looked too good and there were no other 1963 Topps cards to go along with it. Apparently he got rid of it so I'll never know if it was the real thing or not.
Making fake cards has been going on since at least the early 80s when cards became popular. Mantles, Ruths, Mays and other similar players were often counterfeits but the one I remember the most was the 1984 Donruss Mattingly was a card that was very often counterfeit. Seems hard to believe looking back on that.
I remember the Rose card being very popular with counterfeiters. One of the reasons I never obtained one. With reputable companies authenticating fakes they are really making it tough on collectors. Once a fake is in a slab, who would question it? Most people would trust that unquestioned.
My brother told me one way of iding a fake was if there was (or was not) a black line around the "C" on Rose's cap. Since my friend got rid of the Rose before I had a chace to inspect it...........he is the LCS owner who sent you the pics of the Mariano RCs before he moved 3 hours away.............I never had the opportunity to see if it had the black line or not. Have you ever heard about this? ANd if you did, is it supposed to have a black line around the "C" or not. Since I never got to really give the Rose a close look, I have forgotten which versin was the authentic one.
THe Ryan RC was another frequently faked card once he started getting close to the all time strike out records. That is another one I won't touch unless it comes with a large collection of similar cards.
I had heard several ways to detect fake Roses back in the day. But to be perfectly honest, I have forgotten them. The one guy I know that I could have asked died a while back. Im sure the info is floating somewhere out in the interwebs. Ill have to look it up.
Here is what I found courtesy of [email protected]
Have you ever wondered what the first well-known card to be counterfeited is? If so, the answer is the 1963 Topps Rookie Stars #537 card. It contains rookies of Pedro Gonzalez, Ken McMullen, Al Weis, and most notably Pete Rose. The inclusion of Pete Rose is the real value driver here.
In the earlier 1980’s, a wave of counterfeit Pete Rose rookie cards found their way into the market. A large chunk of these counterfeits were confiscated, stamped “COUNTERFEIT ORIGINAL REPRINT” on the reverse, and found their way back into circulation. It became such a big deal that some people actually seek the counterfeits just because they make an interesting conversation piece. These counterfeits were so well-made if the individual pulling the scam would’ve sold them at multiple card shows instead of dumping them all at one spot there is a good chance they might have gotten away with it.
Its important to note that not every counterfeit Pete Rose rookie card will have this stamp. Lots of non-stamped counterfeits are still out there attempting to fool uneducated buyers.
Here are some tips for spotting a counterfeit Pete Rose 1963 Topps Rookie Stars #537 card:
How To Spot A Fake Pete Rose 1963 Topps Rookie Stars #537
Posted on August 26, 2019 by sportscardinfoHave you ever wondered what the first well-known card to be counterfeited is? If so, the answer is the 1963 Topps Rookie Stars #537 card. It contains rookies of Pedro Gonzalez, Ken McMullen, Al Weis, and most notably Pete Rose. The inclusion of Pete Rose is the real value driver here.
In the earlier 1980’s, a wave of counterfeit Pete Rose rookie cards found their way into the market. A large chunk of these counterfeits were confiscated, stamped “COUNTERFEIT ORIGINAL REPRINT” on the reverse, and found their way back into circulation. It became such a big deal that some people actually seek the counterfeits just because they make an interesting conversation piece. These counterfeits were so well-made if the individual pulling the scam would’ve sold them at multiple card shows instead of dumping them all at one spot there is a good chance they might have gotten away with it.
Its important to note that not every counterfeit Pete Rose rookie card will have this stamp. Lots of non-stamped counterfeits are still out there attempting to fool uneducated buyers.
Here are some tips for spotting a counterfeit Pete Rose 1963 Topps Rookie Stars #537 card:
- Black Line (Outside Hat) – Many counterfeits contain a thin black line around the outside of Pete Rose’s white hat. Authentic examples do NOT have this line.
- Missing Black Line (Cincinnati logo) – Its difficult to see, but on an authentic example there is a black line around the Cincinnati logo on Rose’s hat. Counterfeits tend to be missing this item.
- Thin Card Stock – Counterfeits tend to be printed on much thinner card stock compared to the real thing. While looking at the card’s reverse, hold it up to the light. If you’re able to see the four circles on the other side it certainly is a counterfeit. You wouldn’t be able to see through the card if it was authentic.
- Red Tint – On some counterfeits the faces can have a red tint.
- Light Colored Back – The back on a counterfeit usually has a lighter tone versus an authentic card.
- Pixelated Heads – Upon close inspection you’ll notice the player’s heads are quite pixelated on a counterfeit. A genuine example won’t have this.
- Perfect Centering – Not that there aren’t authentic examples with good centering, they’re just difficult to find.
- Lack of Frontal Upper Edge Wear – The upper portion of the card on the front has a blue color that reaches the edge. That part of the card is notorious for chipping.
Thanks a lot for that info! That black line deal is a tell tale sign in 2 instances not just one. The former LCS owner was right about the light test in detecting counterfeit vintage cards. I know the "light trick" does no work on OPC cads most likely due to their thinner stock but woeked in every other case I saw.
Thanks again for this useful information.
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