CSC COLLECTIBLES Full Page Ad In SCD Magazine
 

Today, May 22, 2012, I received my June 1 issue of SCD magazine. When I got to page 8, I was, and still am, shocked at what I saw.

A full-page advertisement from CSC Collectibles.

The title of the full-page ad reads Scoreboard Closeout Sales! I hope that title is not referring to the old Scoreboard company. None of the autograph items on that page are from the old Scoreboard.

I am waiting for a reply from both the publisher and editor of SCD.

As we all know, COAs from CSC Collectibles and Chris Morales are on Ebay's Banned COA list.

The sub-heading of the ad reads "We Only Use Board and Court Qualified, Forensic Examination (Not Opinions)." In other words, Chris Morales.

Here is the full-page ad:


Attachment 64230

I love where it says "We consign to auction houses and charities". Like we haven't been seing a lot of that lately. :rolleyes:

Someone still gets SCD??

Considering they never did anything about Coach's, what makes you think they care about CSC? When your ship is going down the drain, the first thing you jettison is your integrity.

Ken
earlywynnfan5@hotmail.com

Isn't that the truth.

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Ken, last year I decided to subscribe to SCD. Ironically, my renewal arrived in the mail yesterday. Not renewing.

I used to love SCD back in the late 80's. Seemed like it was about an inch think with 1000's of dealers and 100's of shows with mail order. Between CC's ads, the shortening of existing subscriptions, and minimal content, that was enough for me.

I stopped receiving SCD sometime last year but CSC would have their advertisements on the back cover ever other week or so. There was also another company who had pretty much the same items and layout as the CSC ads.

I never knew that. I only started subscribing late last year and never noticed the CSC Collectibles ad.

Was their back cover advertisement a full page?

the guy is emailing me, he said they did a private signing with ali, and if i want proof, there is a picture of him and ali on the website, and there is, but it is not of ali signing anything, just posing with the guy. he asked me to look at the photo of him and ali as proof of the signing, and what more do i want???

i asked him where is burczyk? there is a cash reward for producing burczyk.

i told him ali didnt sign like that , and if he did, where is that distinct signature on other items , like scrap pieces of paper, dinner programs, matchbook covers, airline tickets, etc that fans always have ali sign the day before, the day after, the week before, etc, in the streets? that distinct style only shows up on his signing for one day for him. that truly is unbelievable, but the guy thinks he is fooling people.

i asked him the date and location that ali signed for him so i could cross check it with harlan werner, who knows every signing ali ever did the last 25 years plus. I asked him for the contract signed by ali so i could check the signature on that contract, so far nothing. he is short on evidence, and if it was legit, he would have no problem producing all sorts of evidence.

I did a signing with former WBO heavyweight champ Corrie Sanders from South Africa, and if anyone ever questioned the validity of that signature, I could back it up with picturesm email correspondences, email addresses, contacts, and have Corrie call him on the phone if he wasn't satisfied and I would never get defensive about it even if the guy came right off the bat questioning the autograph because I would have nothing to hide. A picture of Sanders standing next to somebody would never constitute proof of a specific signing and real collectors and dealers know that and wouldn't try to pass that off as proof of a specific signing.

Like the FDEs provide some sort of objective fact rather than opinion? I don't get it. :confused:

Does anyone in the world think they are getting a real Koufax ball for $99 or Mays ball for $45?

especially since they had to pay the signer, the fde and overhead costs like storage, advertising, etc. Koufax won't sign for 90, or mays for 45, so how could they sell it for 90 or 45? They might say they got it at a bankruptcy sale, etc. but if it was a real koufax ball, you could still easily sell it for a lot more. And if it was real adn they did a private signing with these guys, all they had to do is take a closeup of koufax signing that exact style of signature, with good documentation as to the date, location, and contract, and you wouldn't need the fde cert.

CSC sells the Ali signed 8 x 10 for 175 dollars, and Islamic pamphlets go for 150 on ebay, so a signed 8 x 10 that is real would go for well over 250-350 easy. At 175 I know a couple of people stockpiling hundreds of ali signed photos that would buy them all , all day long at that price. they aren't doing that, and that tells us all we need to know. I sold a real ali signed 8 x 10 to one of these stockpilers 2 years ago for 135, and it was inscribed, he still wanted it, because he is stockpiling ali signatures, but he doesnt want these uninscribed Ali's at csc, why not? we all know.

You know we fight these m----- f-----s like crazy but then you see an ad like this and know that they will get some response for Koufax and Mays at $45 and $95. And if collectors buy it at those prices, sometimes I think they get what they deserve.
As I have said many times they are selling for resale,to other lowlifes, but I would assume an ad in that disgusting dust magnet SCD would get some collector response.

It took forever for SCD to get rid of coaches corner after lots of people complained. they didnt want to.

Burczyk was the brainchild of a certain person, and unfortunately, the word forensic fooled tens of thousands of people (not collectors) into believing that crap had to be authentic.

I would love to see Calamusa produce proof that Burczyk examined tens of thousands of Mantle, DiMaggio, Williams, etc., autographs back in the early 1990's and yet his name (Burczyk) was never mentioned back then. That was quite a Houdini act.

It's difficult for me to believe that anyone would still sell that crap with a Burczyk COA. But then again, there are still buyers of that crap out there.

Maybe Calamusa can prove to us when and how he acquired the so-called Scoreboard inventory he mentions in his full-page ad.

csc
 

i was pretty disapointed in scd for allowing this ad to be published... i can't believe that they are unaware of csc and morales...

+1

Yeah, Chris Morales and his $10-$20 Forensic Examination Rate.

he emailed me and said they did a private signing with ali with his daughter present, when i asked for the day and location, he all of the sudden changed his story and just said the words "scoreboard" changed his story when the first one didn't work.

OK, forgive my ignorance, but I'm asking this seriously:

There is no actual person named Nick Burczyk?? (or whatever his first name is.)

Ken
earlywynnfan5@hotmail.com

Ken, I believe a Nicholas Burczyk does (or did) exist, but he never examined any Mantle, DiMaggio, Williams, etc., autographs.

I actually own stuff with Nicholas Burczyk stickers. The stickers all read 04/23/92. As a matter of fact, two of the pieces I own have a Burczyk sticker, a YMC sticker and a COA from Chris Morales.

It's amazing that no one heard of Nicholas Burczyk until a few years ago. The poor guy has had his name dragged through the mud. He never examined any sports autographs.

I believe a few papers on handwriting have been attributed to him dating back to the 80s or early 90s. That's it.

There has been speculation that he is dead or in a nursing home somewhere completely unaware his name has been used on these useless certs.

As far as authenticating autographs he was probably a figment of the imagination of the head of the Florida All Star bogus autograph team.
Right you boys in Fla?
You are going through all the all stars in the authentication business. Hopefully, to drag them all down with you.

+1

now he said the conversation is done, that if i dont know about ali and scoreboard, then i dont know ali. of course i never see scoreboard ali's. only one or two certs in my life like that and i believe they were manufactured. if ali really did a scoreboard signing, there would be tons of certs out there from scoreboard. of course we have seen a scoreboard babe ruth cert too, so those certs are hardly proof of anything.

The Babe Ruth autograph with the Scoreboard cert was offered to me some time ago.
It might have been the funniest thing that ever happened to me in the hobby.

Email sent to Editor Tom Bartsch...
 

Hello Tom,

I am writing with concern that a magazine and website I have grown to trust and subscribe to has completely let me down.

How is it possible for your magazine has the audacity to allow CSC Collectibles to run a full page ad. Advertising ridiculous prices and pictures of autographed items that scream forgery. Are you not aware of your past publications in regards to Operation Bullpen? And the fact that you are now supporting these individuals that are poisoning the hobby?

You should know who Chris Morales is and that his certifications are completely bogus.

Please let me know when you plan to pull the ad or expect the backlash to be much worse.

Please check www.net54baseball.com for additional complaints regarding this ad.

James Graham
Jgmp123@yahoo.com

Not that I expect to get a response, but additional letters to the editor may force their hand.

I emailed both Scott & Tom at SCD this afternoon. No reply yet. Maybe tomorrow.

Response from Tom.....
 

Hi James,
* *Thanks for your e-mail. Yes, we are quite aware of Morales and his
reputation in the hobby. The running of such an ad was due to poor
communication to say the least and won't be happening again. Thank you.

Tom Bartsch
SCD

I emailed Travis some information and I'll post it here.

Muhammad Ali signed 1500 pieces for Scoreboard. Scoreboard had Ali signed to a 1-year autograph contract and he only signed 1500 pieces. Those 1500 pieces were either sold on TV or to Hammacker. I doubt very much if Scoreboard had Ali sign 5X7 photographs.

As for Mark Calamusa (CSC Collectibles), he's on Ebay's Banned COA list. Second, we've shown hundreds of examples of the crap he sells. Third, whatever he claims is a reflection of the autographs he sells.

Poor communication?
How about desperate for advertising?
I would bet if they were not called out on this by Net54 that CSC would have had a chance to be a regular advertiser. Not that it means much now, considering their subscriber base is probably 5% of what it used to be.
Good work guys.
Good to see that people are taking action.

Richard,

I couldn't agree more...The company is struggling and a paper medium is dying. I have to assume they will try to figure some way to take money from csc.

I agree, Richard.

If HOFAUTOS is correct that CSC Collectibles was advertising in SCD last year, I think that speaks volumes.

This company has way more than 1500 signed ali signed photos in my opinion, about 40 or 50 different poses, multiple sizes. they must have thousands upon thousands, they have them authenticated by burczyk, morales, stat, and maybe gai.

for them to claim they are 'scoreboard' ali's is laughable. they don't provide any scoreboard certs, even though those aren't proof of anything, they don't have any, they have equally worthless burczyk certs with no pictures or matching stickers, no chain of custody.

And take a look at this FUGLY Koufax ball from their website.
Man wouldn't you just love to have this on display?
Samly Koufx?
And it is $150 on the website. Guess you should order through the SCD ad if you want the good price :D:D:D.
This is so painfully drawn, looks like Samly is only making about $30 an hour :D:D.

To top it off, looks like a fake plastic China ball.

Imitation ball for an imitation signature.

The real Sandy Koufax is getting $350 (?) per ball.
If those autographs are real we can break the company if we all order baseballs :D:D.
But this is signed by Samly Koufx so I am sure Samly is much less expensive than Sandy.

+1

Harlan Werner is Sandy's agent now and is doing a private signing with him and the prices are even higher than that for both balls and photos.

but the "real" ones this company carries can be sold off at a cut rate price.

Any way to get in contact with Harlan to have a cease and desist letter sent to CSC?

Yea I also agree if guys on NET54 wouldn't have gotten ahold of SCD they would still let CSC advertise. They say Bad Communication? Wouldn't there be any proof readers at SCD or wouldn't a red flag go up when you see a FULL PAGE AD of CSC on the back cover before it goes to press or gets released to the public for mailing? SCD is a joke anymore. I was a subscriber for 20 years and after a few years ago they refused to dump CC and I dropped them and have not regretted it ever.

How about this horrific piece of crap presented to you by Mark Calamusa of CSC Collectibles. Authenticated (hahaha) by Stat Authentic who writes Why not trust all your hobby and authentication needs to someone who has lived and breathed the hobby for decades? Very funny, Ted.

Ted, you're (TTA/Stat Authentic) on Ebay's Banned COA list for a reason.

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Thirty years a trial lawyer but wondering how you get a court to "recognize" an exemplar file.

That's the kind of wording they use to impress the new (I'm being polite) collector.

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Oh yeah, we can't forget Florida's new COA.


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Page #8 IS the back cover. :D

Good one, Dan...:)

Does Chris Morales own a database of exemplars? If he does, I'd love to see his Mickey Mantle exemplars.

Does Chris Morales have a rejection folder? Has Chris Morales ever rejected an autograph that he's been paid to examine?


Does Chris Morales actually use the Stereo Microscope that he shows on his website?

MYST-O-GRAPH? Really? Shouldn't it be MYST-E-RY, as in it's a mystery who actually signed those autographs?

Court recognized exemplar file,, WTF is that??
Who dreamed up those words??
I didn't know courts were in the business of recognizing exemplar files.
What a scam.
"Our autographs suck and there is no way you can prove they don't."
And who is going to "verify" the file?

SCD Scott Tappa Tom Bartsch Sports Collectors Digest
 

I was hoping to hear from either Scott Tappa or Tom Bartsch from SCD after I emailed them yesterday.

Although I am disappointed that I didn't hear from them, I am certainly not surprised. I guess they are still mad at me for my criticism (my YouTube videos) of both TS O'Connell and SCD when Coach's Corner was still advertising their garbage in SCD.

And now SCD allows a full-page ad from CSC Collectibles. Some things never change.

Does he have a court recognized exemplar file?

Once an enabler always an enabler.

I know Judge Michael Fusz was not at all impressed with Chris Morales.

So Chris I guess I see why I got the response...:D evidently I haven't been added to the banned (no response) list that SCD stands by...

From Coach's Corner to CSC Collectibles. They must be proud of themselves.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. I'm amazed that SCD is still in print form, I honestly thought they were gone until I read this thread. Maybe they should go with a breast feeding cover to boost newstand sales.

You can all read the above comment where Tom Bartsch, editor of SCD magazine writes to James "The running of such an ad was due to poor
communication to say the least and won't be happening again. Thank you."

Well guess what, it did happen again. On page 57 of the SCD issue dated August 10, 2012, Volume 40, NO. 17, is another full page ad from CSC Collectibles.

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Chris, guess full page ad revenue wins

Absolutely, Jay. Just think of all those full-page Coach's Corner ads in SCD all those years. Sickening!!!!

Do you mean to say that the "leading" publication in the hobby actually lied??
OMG,,, what a shock, shocked to find SCD shilling for their very few advertisers.

chris how do they get away with it unreal .:eek:

I actually extended an olive branch to Tom Bartsch last year hoping for some peaceful communication. I even went a little further to show my sincerity and purchased a 6-month subscription to SCD magazine.

Mr. Bartsch never replied. Then earlier this year I noticed the CSC Collectibles full-page ad. I emailed Mr. Bartsch about the CSC Collectibles ad and never got a reply. James Graham, a Net54 member, did receive a reply.

Yes, I bashed SCD fervently during my days of my YouTube videos. They deserved every bit of bashing they received by myself and others.

Mr. Bartsch replied to James Graham with The running of such an ad was due to poor communication to say the least and won't be happening again.

Well, Mr. Bartsch, it did happen again. Poor communication again? Are we to really believe that?

I talked with a former staffer at SCD recently, and he told me how draining it was to check his values at the door and watch CC get so much advertising. He realized his paychecks depended on garbage. He said the whole feeling at the place was depressing.

Ken

I just spoke with Tom, and I hope he doesn't mind me coming on here to share. I get the feeling he likes these ads just about as much as we do, but he's locked in a battle with the advertising department (which does pay the bills.) I don't know the business enough to say which department has more power, but I'm sure a hefty check makes a strong point.

Ken

Ken, I appreciate your efforts to try to get Mr. Bartsch to comment here on Net54 about the recent CSC Collectibles ads.

If Mr. Bartsch hates those CSC Collectibles ads as much as we do, he's certainly not going to post that here. I just can't picture him coming over to explain those full-page CSC Collectibles advertisements.

I will also state that SCD Magazine has the right to accept any advertising they wish, but in the eyes of collectors, it doesn't make them look good.

Sad.

So doing the right thing, doing something good for their readers, once again takes second place to making a meager profit.
With the circulation of SCD their ad rates should be about $50 for the back cover.

If he hated these ads like we do they would disappear.

This publication lost whatever credibility it had in the hobby many years ago during the Coaches Corner fiasco.

It's unfortunate that Mr. Bartsch seems to be caught in a no-win situation here. If the advertising department refuses to drop the CSC ads, then the only thing he can do is resign or risk compromising his own integrity. CSC is banned from eBay and eBay is KING, like it or not. It's pretty hard for a legitimate business to justify this on any level. It's like the New York Times running an ad for Bernie Madoff investment services after he was convicted.

I never understood why any publication would put a short-term gain ahead of the long-term brand viability. Most collectors aren't stupid (at least that stupid) and will figure it out - maybe after they were burned on that Koufax sig. The result? More dropped subscriptions = fewer readers = smaller subscription base = lower ad rates = less money.

I do believe there is still a market for SCD if they could get past these issues, bring back quality content and serve as a Watchdog in a hobby that desperately needs one.

Scd
 

I just received the 2nd issue of my "new" SCD subscription (I was a subscriber for at least 15 or 20 years until around 2010) and I am happy to be back. I agree that it is a shame that CSC is allowed to advertise, but I actually have found myself looking forward to going through each issue so far. I will introduce myself to Mr. Bartsch tomorrow at the National and say nice things as well so that maybe the publication can continue to get better and grow again.

BTW, how can anyone at all think that a genuine Koufax autograph ball can be had for $95? Anyone who is willing to pay $95 for anything should have a little bit of knowledge about what they are buying IMO.

Jeff

Hey Jeff,

Since you will be talking to Tom tomorrow, Go ahead and ask him why he emailed me directly and apologized for the advertisement and that it was an oversight and wouldn't happen again...:confused:

Follow up email sent....

Hello Tom.


I received a response from you back in May regarding an ad that allowed to run in your paper. Well, you sent me the response below, but chose to go ahead and allow CSC to run another ad in the June 1st issue. Now you told me that it was due to poor communication..Has this happened again?


Please let me know what is going on over there. I'm not sure if my concern is with you or with your advertising department, but you and I both know that if a Sandy Koufax ball is listed at $95 it's a fake.


I look forward to your response.


James Graham
Jgmp123@yahoo.com

Response:

James, I'll get back to you on this in a day or so. Just got into baltimore for the national.

Tom

Response received today from Tom...

Thanks for your patience James,
As you might imagine, I heard plenty at the National Convention regarding CSC and its negative impact on SCD. I don't want them running, period, but alas my word is not the be-all, end all for the magazine when it comes to advertising. All of the CSC comments I am handing over all feedback to my ad manager and publisher to insist they are are not featured again. Thank you for your time.

Tom Bartsch
SCD

I took the time to speak to Tom on Saturday morning and he was very nice. As he said in the e-mail to James, I get the sense that he isn't the final word on this. I do think that he understands where "we" are coming from though.

Jeff

SCD and ads
 

Hi all
I have recently joined and will make myself available to anyone who ever has a question about a Score board contract, if an athlete signed an item for them, etc.
just PM me and send images when can.
I cannot tell you over the years how many emails and letters i have written to SCD about coach's corner and others they let advertise
also feel free to email me at ken@goldinauctions.com
if sending files that may be best

they claim the funny looking muhammad ali signed photos are scoreboard warehouse pieces, but i know that is not the case. can there be anything done for them to stop claiming this?

And if you sign up for their email list they will send you emails for penis enlargement pills, Canadian viagra, and fake rolexes. After all, if you're buying fake balls, you probably need fake erections and watches to complete the ensemble...

This is NOT an image that was ever sold by SB, nor is it an image that ALI ever signed for SB.
And anyone selling fraudulent autographs 'can be stopped'
nothing happens at the pace we like.
I think that my getting very vocal about what was signed, and calling people out in a very specific, irefutable way is going to help, a lot.