How much fraud detection expertise is needed today to build any set from ~1949-1979?
 

I've never acquired and completed an entire post-war set entirely on my own from commons boxes, eBay, etc. but am considering it as something fun to do.

I'm less concerned with ending up with a doctored card as I am with ending up with a completely fake card or reprint (especially with today's high quality scanning and printing technology). For those who have built postwar sets and don't mind taking a minute to answer: how prevalent do you think full-on fake cards are for the years ~49-79, besides the key rookies (or near rookies in the case of the 52 Topps Mantle)? Is fakery prevalent enough for cards of that period that the average buyer needs to be highly educated on the details of each card to do something like this? And if yes, there are known fakes of every brand/year, is it only on those of more than nominal perceived value (say a 65 Topps Eddie Matthews)? Or even the commons?

For example, my father-in-law is maybe 15 cards short of finishing the 1965 Topps set. Mostly commons, but I know the Mathews card is one he needs. He approaches it very casually; he basically just carries a list in his wallet of what he needs and browses tables and commons boxes when he sees them. Do you think the average buyer like him can generally trust that what they're buying for a set like that is going to be an original card? Or have cards from even less valuable sets been found to be fake? I suppose buying cards encapsulated can give some piece of mind (if you trust the TPAs) but that seems like real overkill, especially on commons.

Just wondering how educated I need to be (from design, to card feel, to print dots) if I'm interested in doing this, and how y'all approach eBay sales where you can't touch or even closely see a card. If it's helpful, 56 Topps is what I'm considering. Thanks in advance.

You can buy almost all of them from www.comc.com and be assured that they scan for fakes and attempt to determine trimming/recoloring during their inprocessing. They also accept returns on any card you find questionable within a certain time period.

Dealers' common boxes are not going to have many, if any, fakes. And if you have any question as to their authenticity while at their booth, you should feel comfortable asking them. To my knowledge, there just aren't people faking 1956 commons, even high numbers. The cardstock would be difficult to replicate, they're an abnormal size, and there's no guarantee of a return on investment.

Stars, sure. I would be slightly leery of, but again, I hear more about 1952 reprints and 1959 fakes than '56.

Doctored Cards / Fakes
 

You will always have issues with counterfeit high value cards in any set. However, for most post-war issues - I don't think you have to worry as much about Fake/Reprint cards as doctored or trimmed cards.....certainly not to the degree that pre-war collectors experience. Some of the pre-war fakes I see now are getting hard to spot - unless you have the card in hand. This is why most collectors will pay more to buy from a collector they know, has a generous return policy or is experienced in selling pre-war cards.

The real issue with most sets that are post-war, in my opinion, is buying trimmed or doctored cards. Trimmed cards are very difficult to spot with only a picture. And some issues, like 1971 Topps have black borders which often times are enhanced ie artificially blackened to obtain the perception of having a higher grade and then trimmed to take the color off of the edges. I imagine once it becomes economically viable to make good fakes on a wholesale basis - it will become a more pronounced problem.....but right now the issue of buying fakes or reprint cards of, say the 1956 Topps set, isn't a major issue.



Z

Y'all are awesome thanks for the replies.
 

Very much appreciated.

If he's collecting the set, he should have not trouble identify reprints. Reprints will stand out as different to the experienced eye The experienced eye is a sophisticated tool, and people normally fooled when it's an issue they are new to.

However, he and you can also compare cards to ones he already has, as shown below:

Reprint identification through comparison

If you're trying to do a 1956 Topps or similar set in low grade, I don't think reprints is a big issue anyway. I doubt commons and semistars are ever reprinted, and really only the big guns (Mantle etc) is where you should be extra careful.

Also, if you're experienced with an issue, you can usually identify reprints in online pictures too. To seasoned T206 collectors, 99% of reprints and fakes on eBay are obvious just from the pictures. And sellers of fakes will usually use tell-tale fishy language "Unauthenticated, so according to eBay rules I'm selling as a reprint."

eBay has a good return policy and, after you have some 56s in your collection, you should have no trouble identifying reprints once the cards are in hand.

i personally don't think there can ever be enough...