Candiman Auctions Explained

[aconte]

Peter,

I thought you were looking for a nice Red Heart Mantle. There you go!

[jfkheat]

Someone mention that this auction house has been around since 2011. I can't find anything about past auctions. Have they ever sold ball cards? They have 300 followers on Twitter. I think it is great that this is posted here on Net54 but what percent of their bidders will ever know about their relationship with battlefield? The images in the auction still look to be photoshopped. 50 year old and older cards with no blemishes are very tough to find. There is a reason that the cards are not graded.
James

[Peter_Spaeth]

So we have an auction of mostly ungraded cards, from Battlefield's inventory, by family members. Why would anyone be concerned? To the OP: if you really want to distance yourself from Battlefield, get these high end looking cards graded first. That would serve you much better than talk.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by jfkheat

Someone mention that this auction house has been around since 2011. I can't find anything about past auctions. Have they ever sold ball cards? They have 300 followers on Twitter. I think it is great that this is posted here on Net54 but what percent of their bidders will ever know about their relationship with battlefield? The images in the auction still look to be photoshopped. 50 year old and older cards with no blemishes are very tough to find. There is a reason that the cards are not graded.
James

Maybe Battlefield's scanner came with the inventory?

[pokerplyr80]

Worf summed up my thoughts on this thread and the OP pretty well.

[horzverti]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

Attachment 307899


Lot #191, although not specified in the title, appears to be 15% off.

Frank - Very funny! You're the best.

[PiratesWS1979]

how many of these are for sale again? I know the Leaf Kiner listed on Candiman "sold" with War_Eagle TWICE. Why, because I bid the first time which went for twice my bid.

Also, how come you cant supersize the auction pic like EVERY one auction site?

https://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_nkw...intage&_sop=16

[Leon]

Edited - those are old auctions. I thought they were current ones at first.

Originally Posted by PiratesWS1979

how many of these are for sale again? I know the Leaf Kiner listed on Candiman "sold" with War_Eagle TWICE. Why, because I bid the first time which went for twice my bid.

Also, how come you cant supersize the auction pic like EVERY one auction site?

https://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_nkw...intage&_sop=16

[frankbmd]

The answer is one.

Hmmmmmmm.............

“How many mailing addresses do battlefield, war eagle and Candiman Auctions have?”

[NYYFan63]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

So we have an auction of mostly ungraded cards, from Battlefield's inventory, by family members. Why would anyone be concerned? To the OP: if you really want to distance yourself from Battlefield, get these high end looking cards graded first. That would serve you much better than talk.

Agreed or clearly state the cards are altered.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by NYYFan63

Agreed or clearly state the cards are altered.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

As was mentioned by someone, Battlefield's biggest issue wasn't necessarily trimmed cards, it was cards scanned to look two grades better than they were.

[bobbyw8469]

Another big issue with them was they preyed on people's greed that they were getting high end cards, so they were bidding high end prices, for cards that would not grade numerically. If they had just been ethical about it, there are some collectors (such as myself) who don't mind an attractive "A" card. Paying an exorbitant amount of money for a card that will not ever attain the grade that it supposedly represents is just wrong.

[bobbyw8469]

PS- I have notified them of several instances of cards in their current auction being the exact same card. They claim to have two different cards, but the scans show the exact same card. Maybe that can be corrected.

[NYYFan63]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

As was mentioned by someone, Battlefield's biggest issue wasn't necessarily trimmed cards, it was cards scanned to look two grades better than they were.

Ahh ok - good point


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[Sophiedog]

Tough Crowd

[CandimanAuctions]

Hey guys,

There have been lots of comments on the thread since I logged in last night. Instead of trying to respond to each post individually I will just try and sum everything up into one post. I know many of you are skeptical (rightfully so) but I must reiterate that my brother and I were not the owners of the Battlefield eBay store and had nothing to do with the operation of it. That business was started when we were off at college and living our own lives. We both have accounting degrees from Auburn University. We're not ignorant people and we know that being anything less than 100% honest in this business will result in failure every single time. We started Candiman Auctions knowing that we would be associated with Battlefield and that we would have to deal with the repercussions of that. I chose to post on this forum knowing we would be attacked, insulted, mocked, and not taken seriously. Many of you have stated that we are trying to defend ourselves and start over. That's not the case. We are not here to defend the actions of our family. Quite the opposite. This is our first auction. We want to be successful and develop great relationships with people in this industry. There isn't a single person on this forum that has ever done business with my brother or myself because we are a new auction house. All we are asking for is a chance to prove you guys wrong and I believe if given that chance we will be successful in doing that.

Battlefield was known for 2 things: Purchasing cards in "A" holders and breaking them out and selling them on eBay as high grade examples and photoshopping cards with flaws to look better than they actually are. As I said in the opening post on this thread we in no way, shape, or form support their actions on eBay over the past several years. Those actions are unacceptable and anyone participating in this kind of activity is doomed to fail. People in this industry are too smart not to figure out if someone is engaging in that kind of activity. We have worked hard to post accurate descriptions and high quality images of all of the items in our auction. If a card is in Poor condition it is listed as so. If a card appears VG, VG-EX, EX, EX-MT, NM, then it is listed as so.

As I said above, all we are asking for is a chance. We're not here to defend the actions of anyone. We're not hiding who we are. Leon seemed to think that everyone on here would give us a fair shot if we were open and honest and that's what we're trying to do.

Daniel

[Peter_Spaeth]

If I win a card you call NM-MT and it comes back a 5 or a 6, what's my recourse? And if you truly want credibility, you need to explain why you are selling so many purportedly high end and expensive cards without grading them.

[CW]

Originally Posted by jfkheat

Someone mention that this auction house has been around since 2011. I can't find anything about past auctions. Have they ever sold ball cards? They have 300 followers on Twitter. I think it is great that this is posted here on Net54 but what percent of their bidders will ever know about their relationship with battlefield? The images in the auction still look to be photoshopped. 50 year old and older cards with no blemishes are very tough to find. There is a reason that the cards are not graded.
James

I can see how it might be confusing, but the previous comment was just that Daniel owned or registered the name Candiman, Inc., not necessarily the auction house. The auction house appears to be brand new.

Originally Posted by Beastmode

Exactly. Looks like his name is Daniel Battles. He's had Candiman, Inc. since 2011. I'm guessing Candiman Auctions is rolled into his vast conglomerate, similar to Berkshire. Smoke and mirrors. This whole story is hard to believe, IMO. If you're buying anything in this auction, you're begging to be screwed.

[bnorth]

One question for Candiman Auctions. Do you or anybody associated with the auction house or the consignors shill bid their own or any other listings? I just want a simple yes or no answer. Thank you.

Now to be clear I am not asking if it is legal or illegal in your area. It has been pointed out by a member(auction house owner) that it is perfectly legal in his area. I am asking if you are allowing it in your auctions.

[BeanTown]

I don't understand why you don't have any card worth more than 100.00 graded. That is hurting your auction and your consignor big time with todays landscape. The first thing most people think seeing a raw high end card is ..... Whats wrong with it, and why isn't it graded?

Knowing your Mom and Dad's history, you should make sure your first auction goes off without a hitch. Most AHs offer their consignors a grading option where its done for free or at their cost.

I think you should suspend your auction, send in all your high end cards to a TPG, and then start over. You are now in the auction business where you are supposed to know your industry. Not too mention the best way to maximize your consignors investment and at the same time protect your customer the buyer. Don't act like you found a big box of cards at the local storage war auction, and then you are just selling as-is and not graded. You can't play that card, or maybe you can but it most likely wont fly on this forum.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

The answer is one.

Hmmmmmmm.............

“How many mailing addresses do battlefield, war eagle and Candiman Auctions have?”

Very interesting discovery Frank that should be worth more than a $40 question.

[botn]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

If a card is in Poor condition it is listed as so. If a card appears VG, VG-EX, EX, EX-MT, NM, then it is listed as so.

Daniel

It is your prerogative to sell cards without them being graded. Many auction houses do but given your close ties to Battlefield when you qualify a card's condition using the term "appears", as most if not all of the auction listings do, I don't feel that gives buyers any confidence.

Further your rules state "...We do not guarantee that our grades will conform to the standards of 3rd party authenticators (TPA's). Furthermore, we are not bound by the opinions of any authenticators, grading services, or "experts"." So that would mean we have zero recourse for cards not being in the condition stated. On eBay this would allow us to make a return as was done many times with Battlefield's auctions.

From my vantage point it seems Candiman was formed simply to avoid the returns of over graded material. Please correct me if I am mistaken.

[x2drich2000]

As a step in good faith, why don't you identify any and all lots that were consigned by any employees or relatives which would include those from Battlefield. This is not a unique option as at least one other auction house does it.

[Leon]

I agree.
I don't think those descriptions fly. I can't imagine auctioning raw NRMT - MT cards which I know, or should reasonably know, are altered and not mentioning it. IF it isn't criminally wrong it seems it is ethically wrong.Those high end cards should be in holders even in auctions with well established records, let alone brand new ones with dubious lineage. It is not being completely honest and transparent in my opinion. Here is the entire Mantle description of the card itself. Now if they went onto say something like - "WE believe this card to be altered", then that might be more like it. BTW, I don't disagree with their description(s). They just don't go far enough.

This particular card up for auction is New York Yankees Hall of Fame legend Mickey Mantle. This card appears to be in NM-MT condition with no creases.

Originally Posted by BeanTown

I don't understand why you don't have any card worth more than 100.00 graded. That is hurting your auction and your consignor big time with todays landscape. The first thing most people think seeing a raw high end card is ..... Whats wrong with it, and why isn't it graded?

Knowing your Mom and Dad's history, you should make sure your first auction goes off without a hitch. Most AHs offer their consignors a grading option where its done for free or at their cost.

I think you should suspend your auction, send in all your high end cards to a TPG, and then start over. You are now in the auction business where you are supposed to know your industry. Not too mention the best way to maximize your consignors investment and at the same time protect your customer the buyer. Don't act like you found a big box of cards at the local storage war auction, and then you are just selling as-is and not graded. You can't play that card, or maybe you can but it most likely wont fly on this forum.

[Stampsfan]

This is shaping up to be just another horror movie we've seen before.

Candyman 2.jpg

[Exhibitman]

Right...

[buymycards]

Many of the cards do not have scans of the backs. Even if I am bidding on a $10 card I want to see the back before I bid.

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by bnorth

One question for Candiman Auctions. Do you or anybody associated with the auction house or the consignors shill bid their own or any other listings? I just want a simple yes or no answer. Thank you.

Now to be clear I am not asking if it is legal or illegal in your area. It has been pointed out by a member(auction house owner) that it is perfectly legal in his area. I am asking if you are allowing it in your auctions.

Hi Ben,

Absolutely not.

Thanks,

Daniel

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by botn

It is your prerogative to sell cards without them being graded. Many auction houses do but given your close ties to Battlefield when you qualify a card's condition using the term "appears", as most if not all of the auction listings do, I don't feel that gives buyers any confidence.

Further your rules state "...We do not guarantee that our grades will conform to the standards of 3rd party authenticators (TPA's). Furthermore, we are not bound by the opinions of any authenticators, grading services, or "experts"." So that would mean we have zero recourse for cards not being in the condition stated. On eBay this would allow us to make a return as was done many times with Battlefield's auctions.

From my vantage point it seems Candiman was formed simply to avoid the returns of over graded material. Please correct me if I am mistaken.

Hi Greg,

You are very mistaken. Candiman Auctions was formed because we love this hobby and enjoy buying and selling items we have collected for the better part of our lives. We are looking forward to developing long term business relationships with the great people in this community. All of our lots have high quality pictures posted and if a card has a specific flaw it has been noted in the description. Grading is subjective and no auction house can guarantee that their grades will line up exactly with a TPG. Most auction houses have this in their Auction Rules (see Goldin Auctions as an example).

Thanks,

Daniel

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

The answer is one.

Hmmmmmmm.............

“How many mailing addresses do battlefield, war eagle and Candiman Auctions have?”

Frank,

Candiman Auctions mailing address is NOT associated with Battlefield, War Eagle, or anyone else. I'm sure there are people on this forum who purchased items from those others who can verify this if you don't want to take my word for it.

Daniel

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by Leon

I agree.
I don't think those descriptions fly. I can't imagine auctioning raw NRMT - MT cards which I know, or should reasonably know, are altered and not mentioning it. IF it isn't criminally wrong it seems it is ethically wrong.Those high end cards should be in holders even in auctions with well established records, let alone brand new ones with dubious lineage. It is not being completely honest and transparent in my opinion. Here is the entire Mantle description of the card itself. Now if they went onto say something like - "WE believe this card to be altered", then that might be more like it. BTW, I don't disagree with their description(s). They just don't go far enough.

This particular card up for auction is New York Yankees Hall of Fame legend Mickey Mantle. This card appears to be in NM-MT condition with no creases.

Hi Leon,

What you are saying is exactly what we have done (see Lot #'s 7, 8, 26, 32, 45, 52, etc.) So if I'm reading this correctly what you are saying is that we should say that all of our ungraded cards are altered even though they measure correctly and show no signs of alteration? I'm a little confused.

Daniel

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by buymycards

Many of the cards do not have scans of the backs. Even if I am bidding on a $10 card I want to see the back before I bid.

Hi Rick,

We can provide back scans for any item you are interested in. Just let me know which ones you would like to see.

Thanks,

Daniel

[sycks22]

As expressed by multiple people it would be beneficial to grade the top 5 lots so you don't get push back when a Near Mint card comes back Vg and there's no recourse.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

Hi Ben,

Absolutely not.

Thanks,

Daniel

Thank you for the answer. You do have a few low end lots that interest me so I will be signing up to bid on them.

My only other question and I do understand it is almost impossible to answer with any accuracy is. What kind of shipping fees are you going to be using, how are you going to ship lower end lots? This is big problem with some AHs and the reason I ask. Some have very reasonable shipping and some use it to make a huge profit.

My point being I don't want to win a $20-$50 lot and have to pay another $$20-$30 to ship some low end cards. Thanks

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by sycks22

As expressed by multiple people it would be beneficial to grade the top 5 lots so you don't get push back when a Near Mint card comes back Vg and there's no recourse.

Hi Pete,

I understand that concern. We are going to place a much bigger emphasis on adding more graded cards for our next auction and work with consignors to get the more high end raw cards graded prior to the auction. With that being said, I don't see how a card that looks NM, measures correctly, has no creases, good centering, and minimal corner wear could possibly grade VG. We have posted high quality images of all lots in the auction. Those should give any potential bidders a good idea of the estimated grade. I sincerely hope that the winners of our raw cards get great deals and are rewarded with nice grades when the cards are submitted for grading. I think that will go a long way to proving that we are here for the right reasons. As I have said we are looking to develop long-term business relationships with the great people of this community.

Thanks,

Daniel

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by bnorth

Thank you for the answer. You do have a few low end lots that interest me so I will be signing up to bid on them.

My only other question and I do understand it is almost impossible to answer with any accuracy is. What kind of shipping fees are you going to be using, how are you going to ship lower end lots? This is big problem with some AHs and the reason I ask. Some have very reasonable shipping and some use it to make a huge profit.

My point being I don't want to win a $20-$50 lot and have to pay another $$20-$30 to ship some low end cards. Thanks

Hi Ben,

We will be using FedEx exclusively probably for any invoice over $250. For an invoice under $250, I don't see a problem mailing the items via USPS in order to lower the shipping costs if that is what the buyer prefers. We would never charge someone $20-$30 to ship items for a $20-$50 invoice. That would be way too much.

Thanks,

Daniel

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

Hi Ben,

We will be using FedEx exclusively probably for any invoice over $250. For an invoice under $250, I don't see a problem mailing the items via USPS in order to lower the shipping costs if that is what the buyer prefers. We would never charge someone $20-$30 to ship items for a $20-$50 invoice. That would be way too much.

Thanks,

Daniel

I registered and put in a bid. If I win I will post in this thread how the transaction went down.

I figure we can't hold what someones parent(s) done against them. My parents make theirs look like Mother Teresa. Not that long ago my dad broke into my house and stole a title to a car I own(ed). He had my step mom who worked in the treasurers office process the stolen forged title and then sold my car.

[Batpig]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

Hi Pete,

I understand that concern. We are going to place a much bigger emphasis on adding more graded cards for our next auction and work with consignors to get the more high end raw cards graded prior to the auction. With that being said, I don't see how a card that looks NM, measures correctly, has no creases, good centering, and minimal corner wear could possibly grade VG. We have posted high quality images of all lots in the auction. Those should give any potential bidders a good idea of the estimated grade. I sincerely hope that the winners of our raw cards get great deals and are rewarded with nice grades when the cards are submitted for grading. I think that will go a long way to proving that we are here for the right reasons. As I have said we are looking to develop long-term business relationships with the great people of this community.

Thanks,

Daniel

The problem is that altered isn't just trimming. It could be recolored, have rebuilt corners, or simply have been in a screw down that compressed the corners.

This is basically your only chance to gain credibility on this board and elsewhere, and if people here start reporting that their won NM auctions are coming back altered, you aren't going to get another chance. If you're sincere, you really need to consider either getting the cards checked by a TPG or resetting the auctions and changing the descriptions.

[egbeachley]

Originally Posted by bnorth

I registered and put in a bid. If I win I will post in this thread how the transaction went down.

I figure we can't hold what someones parent(s) done against them. My parents make theirs look like Mother Teresa. Not that long ago my dad broke into my house and stole a title to a car I own(ed). He had my step mom who worked in the treasurers office process the stolen forged title and then sold my car.

I agree with your first sentence. But I am intrigued by your last and what happened next.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by egbeachley

I agree with your first sentence. But I am intrigued by your last and what happened next.

TMI for the internet.

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by bnorth

I registered and put in a bid. If I win I will post in this thread how the transaction went down.

I figure we can't hold what someones parent(s) done against them. My parents make theirs look like Mother Teresa. Not that long ago my dad broke into my house and stole a title to a car I own(ed). He had my step mom who worked in the treasurers office process the stolen forged title and then sold my car.

Hi Ben,

Thank you very much for registering and placing a bid. I hope you win and do post your experience with us on here.

Thanks,

Daniel

[CandimanAuctions]

Originally Posted by Batpig

The problem is that altered isn't just trimming. It could be recolored, have rebuilt corners, or simply have been in a screw down that compressed the corners.

This is basically your only chance to gain credibility on this board and elsewhere, and if people here start reporting that their won NM auctions are coming back altered, you aren't going to get another chance. If you're sincere, you really need to consider either getting the cards checked by a TPG or resetting the auctions and changing the descriptions.

Hi Jeff,

Believe me I understand this is our chance to gain credibility on this board and that is 100% our goal. We want anyone who wins items from our auction to post their experience with us on this thread. That will help us immensely. My greatest hope is that after this first auction people do share their experiences with us and others see that the cards are what we describe them to be.

Thanks,

Daniel

[Peter_Spaeth]

a 52t Jackie in a 7 is a 7k card. if you really believed it was nm, you would grade it, or at the very least you are doing your consignor a huge disservice. imo.

[jfkheat]

I see that you have two more auctions scheduled. Will these auctions also have cards from battlefield?

James

[botn]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

Hi Greg,

You are very mistaken. Candiman Auctions was formed because we love this hobby and enjoy buying and selling items we have collected for the better part of our lives. We are looking forward to developing long term business relationships with the great people in this community. All of our lots have high quality pictures posted and if a card has a specific flaw it has been noted in the description. Grading is subjective and no auction house can guarantee that their grades will line up exactly with a TPG. Most auction houses have this in their Auction Rules (see Goldin Auctions as an example).

Thanks,

Daniel

Thanks for the reply Daniel. I do not expect you to keep taking the time to respond to each of us who make an inquiry but I would challenge that the images you are using are high quality. They are actually pretty small making it impossible for a buyer to determine for themselves if your assessment is accurate. I must have missed the lots in which you disclose flaws. I seemed to see a great deal of your descriptions simply describing the player or the set the card came from with only one line about the card appearing to be in specific condition.

I did state that all houses sell raw cards but not all houses are selling cards that belong to family members who defrauded and misrepresented the product they were selling.

So you are affirming that you would not accept a return on a card that came back from PSA or SGC as EX that you described as appearing NM-MT?

Thanks,
Greg

[sycks22]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

Hi Pete,

I understand that concern. We are going to place a much bigger emphasis on adding more graded cards for our next auction and work with consignors to get the more high end raw cards graded prior to the auction. With that being said, I don't see how a card that looks NM, measures correctly, has no creases, good centering, and minimal corner wear could possibly grade VG. We have posted high quality images of all lots in the auction. Those should give any potential bidders a good idea of the estimated grade. I sincerely hope that the winners of our raw cards get great deals and are rewarded with nice grades when the cards are submitted for grading. I think that will go a long way to proving that we are here for the right reasons. As I have said we are looking to develop long-term business relationships with the great people of this community.

Thanks,

Daniel

I had an auction house describe a card at NM+ and when I got it graded it came back a SGC 35 (2.5). A simple grade would've saved me over a grand

[pokerplyr80]

Originally Posted by CandimanAuctions

Hi Pete,

I understand that concern. We are going to place a much bigger emphasis on adding more graded cards for our next auction and work with consignors to get the more high end raw cards graded prior to the auction. With that being said, I don't see how a card that looks NM, measures correctly, has no creases, good centering, and minimal corner wear could possibly grade VG. We have posted high quality images of all lots in the auction. Those should give any potential bidders a good idea of the estimated grade. I sincerely hope that the winners of our raw cards get great deals and are rewarded with nice grades when the cards are submitted for grading. I think that will go a long way to proving that we are here for the right reasons. As I have said we are looking to develop long-term business relationships with the great people of this community.

Thanks,

Daniel

Since it appears most of your auction is made up of cards from battlefield expecting a grade of VG on a card you describe as NM seems pretty optimistic to me. I would expect them all to come back altered. I am surprised any knowledgeable net54 members would even consider bidding in this auction. I will be sitting this one out.

It seems much more likely to me that this auction is nothing more than a battlefield auction moved off of eBay. I am pleasantly surprised to see eBay finally did the right thing and got rid of you guys.

[BoyWonder089]

Hi Daniel and Justin,

First off, good luck with the auction. I hope everything you have said up to this point is honest and filled with nothing but good intentions.

This is merely a suggestion, but might you two be willing to post a video introducing yourselves and the auction site a bit more? Maybe provide some close up highlights of the auction?

I think many people realize how easily photos can be shopped, so maybe a video might add some additional trust?

[conor912]

Daniel,

If I could make a suggestion...I think it would go a long way with earning the trust of the board by offering to give full refunds, plus the shipping, insurance and grading fees, for any of your cards that come back altered. My guess is that you already know that most of them are, otherwise you would have graded them yourself, but if you're serious about gaining trust here then you're going to need to figure out a way to assure people they won't be out one cent. And, to be honest, I'm not even sure that would work, but I think you're gonna need a hail Mary here.

[Peter_Spaeth]

with all the smooth talk and reassurances and self-promoting narrative, I am still waiting for the explanation why you would choose not to grade cards that obviously would be worth substantially more if in fact they are in the condition you claim.