henry johnson cobb

[pete zouras]

a dealer has this card and I would have to do battle with northern va traffic to see it in person. he has doubts about the card's authenticity, but from the scans it's hard for me to tell. has this card been faked and do you think it's real based on the scans and if real what's it worth? thanks in advance

[ullmandds]

if dealer has doubts...so would I...image doesn't look as crisp as it should.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by pete zouras

a dealer has this card and I would have to do battle with northern va traffic to see it in person. he has doubts about the card's authenticity, but from the scans it's hard for me to tell. has this card been faked and do you think it's real based on the scans and if real what's it worth? thanks in advance

Back font doesn't look like anyone I have seen, from what I remember., These were in the first collection.,.

[nolemmings]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1921-22-W57...p2047675.l2557

[Tao_Moko]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1921-22-W57...p2047675.l2557

Nice work!

[orly57]

Henry Johnson was a known confectioner and fraudster in the 1920s. He would sell fake cards and promise, with powdered sugar on top, that they were real.

[bigfish]

Def a reprint. A group of blank backs were bought out of an auction and stamped. So.... yes they have been faked before.

[Al C.risafulli]

Very interesting. I'd love to see the card in person. The stamp looks good to me. The cracking on the paper is very suspicious. I'd be interested in Rhett's opinion.
If it's real, it's a tough card, only a handful known, probably the second-most important card in the set next to Ruth.

Edited to add: the known fakes are DEFINITELY discernible from the stamp. The ink color is the same, but the typefaces are entirely different. Picture below.



-Al

[calvindog]

Pete, that card is a fake.

Here's a real one:

[yanksfan09]

There's a lot of e121 and other fakes that have that same cracking of the paper. If you see that same kind of cracking it's a fake from what I've seen.

These fakes are always a bit more blurry/grainy too.

[nolemmings]

Well, the one I showed had sold in October for under $21 about two weeks after it had been "sold' by the same seller on ebay for $48. Here's one that sold for $7.99, so yes, they have been faked, and yes, the one shown to Pete is fake:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1921-22-TY-...p2047675.l2557

[calvindog]

Yes but that Cobb autograph is a keeper.

[Snapolit1]

It may well be a real Ty Cobb . . . the lawyer with the big mustache.

[calvindog]

This issue is very rare and very valuable. We've been through this before but when a card like this is sold raw it's done so for a reason: because it's a fake. Anyone in 2017 selling a real card like this knows about SGC and PSA and would surely get it slabbed if it was possible.

Similar is when experienced sellers try to sell a serious card in a bullshit holder like PRO, ISA, GMA, etc. and claim they don't know if it's trimmed or otherwise altered. It is. Because even the biggest idiot seller knows enough to know that an SGC or PSA slabbed card will exponentially increase their sales price. Refusing to send it into a reputable third party grader can only be for one reason: the card won't grade. Don't let your greed get in the way of your common sense.

[Leon]

I never liked the font and the way the back looked.
Almost all rare backs will be graded but every now and then a good raw one can be found. I originally had 3 of these, all bought raw. But in my estimation (too) the great majority of raw cards with back stamps are not good. And all that said, with the spate of bad backs going around the TPG's are being too cautious on grading any of them, imo.