Calling all Colgans Chips experts

[Archive]

Posted By: Ed Hans

Picked these up at a local auction. It is difficult to tell from this scan, but the card on the right has violet printing. I haven't handled that many Colgans before these, but I've never seen one with printing other than black. Can anyone supply any info? Many thanks in advance; and a Happy New Year to all.

[Archive]

Posted By: John S

Ed,

I am not an expert by any means but a few of my Colgan's have a violet tinge overall...possibly from the gum, container, or the aging process of the photo itself. Do you have a scan of the front of this card?

My Collins below has a pink/violet tinge that is more noticeable in person.

[Archive]

Posted By: Frank Wakefield

Like John S, I have seen the cards with a pinkish tint to them, and I too thought that might have come from the gum, maybe some paper insert in the tin, or aging...

But my recollection of the backs is that the printing on the back was always black.

[Archive]

Posted By: Rhett Yeakley

I have found some with that same tint to them. I doubt it is necessarily from the product as the cards were normally found under a blank disk that protected the cards from the product (you sometimes find the blank discs still in the containers, I have 5-6 of the discs), they may not have been in every container though. Here is an example of the tint differences (they are somewhat subtle though). The Ames is the "violet tint" while the Abbaticchio is normal. Not sure exactly what caused them, but they are a little different...
-Rhett

[Archive]

Posted By: Frank Wakefield

It could be that the images took on a pinkish tint with prolonged exposure to sunlight... Rhett, is Ames back tinted? And is the ink on the back violet or black??

[Archive]

Posted By: steve

For clarity, general focus and real photo images, Colgans get my vote for best images of any card.

I realize folks prefer color, but black and white can be exceptional - take a look at Ansel Adams' photos.

Question: What vintage card issues may have as good or better all around realistic actual photo images? I collect T206's and the colors are beautiful, but the players are not nearly as "real" as the Colgans.

steve

[Archive]

Posted By: Joe Jones

Ed,

I have had a few colgans with the same printing color on the back. I asked another collector to look at the backs of his colgans, and combined we had a handful of cards with the different color printing on the back. I think we looked at a total of around 300 colgans.

[Archive]

Posted By: Ed Hans

Thanks to all who replied. Here's a scan of the front. The White is the one with the violet printing on the reverse. I really can't detect any tint differences on the front. Seems to be just a back color variation, like blue/black/red Crofts, brown T206 Lenox or brown 207's.

[Archive]

Posted By: Ed Hans

Joe,
Do you still have any of the violet printed Colgan's? Or perhaps a scan of them? I'm trying to get SGC to put the variation on the label. I am told that I need other examples to prove that it wasn't just a printing freak or error. I think that the violet printing (to go with the violet tin) is powerful evidence, but it may not be enough. Does anyone else have any examples (slabbed is preferable) they can share? Thanks again.

[Archive]

Posted By: Joe Jones

Ed,

The colgans are gone, but I do have high resolution scans. I will upload them tonight and post them here.

[Archive]

Posted By: Matt

SGC seems very arbitrary when deciding what they will list as a variation on their flip; you say that they are considering purple printing on the back of a Colgan, yet they flat out denied my request to denote the different backs on M116 issues, which is not just a different ink color but an entirely different format and text on the reverse.

[Archive]

Posted By: Ed Hans

Matt,
The subject of the M116 backs came up during my conversation with Michael Goldberg. I think he indicated that they were going to begin labeling those back variations. You may want to check with them again. I really don't think their decisions are arbitrary. They seem to have a set of objective criteria, including other examples, that they use in determining whether a variation can be labeled as such. Quite properly, they seek to avoid classifying all printing freaks and color shades as variations.

Ed

[Archive]

Posted By: Matt

Ed - I talked to Michael about it 2 weeks ago. He said he went and consulted with their team and they decided they would not be noting the different M116 backs on the flip in the future. If in the last 2 weeks, they have changed their minds then I stand corrected.

[Archive]

Posted By: Ed Hans

Joe,
Have you been able to find those scans of the violet printed backs? The card is leaving for SGC tomorrow, and I still need some ammunition if I'm going to convince them to list it on the label. Thanks in advance.

[Archive]

Posted By: Frank Wakefield

Ed, the White card looks a bit paler. Seems to me if the card had been subjected to sunlight for a long time it might bleach out like that... or if the card had been affected by a solvent.

Sometimes solvents would affect the ink and it loose some of its blackness, resulting in something somewhat purple.

If your card had a normal front I'd think you'd have a better chance of trying to get something mentioned on a slab about a violet variation. As it is, I doubt they'll go for it.

[Archive]

Posted By: Joe Jones

Hi Ed,

Thanks for the reminder. I am forgetful and completely forgot about it. I can post more examples if you would like. These were scanned next to each other and not at different times.

Joe