ignorant buyer

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Posted By: tim

yes, i am a newbie, and have been burned by the aaa papercuts, and the fro joy...etc...

is there any chance at all this is a good card...

i appreciate the input....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2771028863&category=31719

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Posted By: Hankron

I would pass.

A good point of advice when bidding on eBay sports card auctions: Unless you know and trust the seller, do not bid in 'private auctions.' Private auctions are where the bidders identities cannot be viewed by you ('User ID kept private'). Making auctions private like this is a common tactic of people selling fakes and problomatic cards, because this prevents the bidders from being contacted by others and being told what they are (or are not) bidding on.

Also be wary of auctions where All Sales Are Final and No Returns. Legitimate sellers on eBay have a reasonable return policy, in particular if an item turns out to be a fake or has other serious problem.

You will notice that this seller has both private auctions and does not allow returns.

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Posted By: Rob M

....

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Posted By: Scott Polin

no chance it's real. this is the same seller from Washington State that was scamming under multiple IDs on Yahoo. Same exact reprint cards.

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Posted By: Shammus

Also, if you notice, he uses the ever popular "...just bought this from an huge estate sale..." line. Scammers always seem to use that line when they're trying to justify as sellers how they've all of a sudden managed to acquire a massive collection of high-dollar cards. Notice how they never seem to acquire any commons from these glorious estate sales.

After reading the description a little further, this seller hints at a possible trim-job even. Not that I needed any more incentive to stay away, but that was pretty much the clincher for me.

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Posted By: Robert

No way this is real his shirt color should be the same color as the boarder. Rob

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Posted By: jay behrens

Cracker Jacks are not a set for a novice to be getting involved with online. There are way too fakes out there, but they are easy to spot. As with this card and all most other fake CJs you see, when the uniform touches the boarder, there should be NO disction between the uniform and boarder. No white color was used in the printing process of these cards. Anything that should be white should be the same color as the boarder of the card.

My advice is to buy a few legit CJs at a show from a reputable dealer so taht you can get a feel for what these cards should look like. This will go a long way in helping you with those big dollar purchases down the line.

Jay

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Posted By: runscott

Cracker Jacks are one of the easiest vintage sets to collect safely, buying online. The reprints are among the easiest to spot and you will sometimes find steals because people are so afraid of reprints. If you ever see a CJ online that you have doubts about, just evaluate the seller as well as possible based on descriptions, feedback,etc., then ask questions: e.g - "send a clearer scan", "what size is it?",etc.

I have had great luck buying CJ's on ebay.

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Posted By: jay behrens

For the KNOWLEDGABLE collector, CJs are a fine set to chase online, but for the NOVICE, no way. The learning curve isn't as steep as some sets, but it's still not a set for novices becuase there are so many fakes out there.

No matter what you want to collect, going out a getting some cards at shows or thru a reputable dealer's catalogue are the best route to go so you can get familiar with what you are collecting and what to look for in a real card.

Jay

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Posted By: MW

I have to agree with runscott on this one. Cracker Jacks are one of the few issues where convincing reprints have never been made. As far as vintage baseball cards are concerned I've ALWAYS been able to discern between an original and a reprinted 1914 or 1915 Cracker Jack solely by viewing eBay auction images. The cropping and border discontinuity give them away every time.

There's no question about it -- the Joe Jackson is clearly a reprint.

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Posted By: Julie Vognar

...instead of all that stuff about "be careful whom you buy from." Point here is, "IT'S A REPRINT." (Color of his face is ridiculous, too.)

I agree that fake CJs are easy to spot, and that it's a reprint.

Maybe everyone should have a rule for self: don't buy the first card you've ever seen in a set on ebay. Buy it face-to-face, or where you can at least return it if it's not satisfactory (over the phone from a reputable dealer).