Dumb question, but I have to ask....(1933 Goudey Ruth)
 

First of all, I don't claim to be an expert on pre-war cards, which is why I'm posting this in the first place. I'm 99.9% sure this '33 Goudey Ruth is fake, but that .1% doubt is enough for me to post this anyway.

Can the forum let me know if you think this is fake? More importantly, I'd love to hear WHY you think it's fake for my own education.

Thanks for your replies! And sorry I don't have a better picture. It was sent to me and this is the best I have to work with right now.
Travis

I don't think I have ever seen one that nicely centered and with that sharp of corners. Does that answer your question? Unless this is a set up and and you are showing me a "9" (if there is one) then my first statement should tell you what you want to know. I am sure there are other "tells" but the first thing I look for is absolutely perfect centering. If it has that then there is a 99% chance it's not real, from my experiences. Also the lithography just looks off, but that is a bit harder to quantify than the perfect centering and pinpoint corners.

Im not an expert but looks fake to me, besides the sharpe corners those eyes and teeth arent right imo

No bleedthrough on the back, which happens on a lot of Goudeys due to their stock. You have the card in hand. Does it feel like a modern baseball card?

The color is the first thing that looks off to me .

It looks like a photo copy .

I kinda feel like the dimensions look off the boarder looks weird .

I looked at the bleedthrough too from the picture. I see it on the bottom but not on the rest of the card. I don't have the card in hand yet. I hope to tomorrow.

Actually that it DOES seem to have bleed through (or wet sheet transfer) seems like the best thing in its favor. It looks (to me) like there's a dim red bar and visible boarders on the back. But really the biggest tell, to me, is that it's a mint condition 33 Goudey Ruth. I mean, come on.

And the centering certainly is suspicious.

Not a Goudey expert, but it looks real to me. It also looks trimmed (wavy right border with a bulge at the hands, bottom and top don't look quite straight). It also looks like the top right edge (from the back) has a little damage. Tough to tell from these pics though.

ruth
 

Its..... GOOD !

Do you really think so?

Card stock looks thin and fake. sorry........

The back is really close, but the front just looks off and the borders look big. Without a better scan I find it questionable.

I agree with Leon:

The centering and corners look far too perfect.


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Fake
 

First of all, never buy a $10k card after looking at a shadowy cell phone photo. If the seller really wants top dollar from this card he will provide some decent scans, and he will spend a few bucks to have it graded.

One of the things that I look for on Goudeys is the logo's on the front and back. On an original Goudey the circle and the printing within the circle will be very precise. On many of the fakes, the thickness of the ink on the circle will vary and the printing within the logo will be grainy. The one that I am showing is real, but has a little water damage.

Also, on your card, the front of the card appears to be glossy and the paperstock appears to be modern. You might want to try a black light on the card if you are able to see it in person.

I nothing about these cards but is it normal to have a big space between "Goudey Gum Company" and "Boston" like this card shows?

I know my eyes aren't the greatest, but it looks like something has been erased in that space? :confused:

I have the same reprint, it is really well made. An ebay seller slipped it in with some cards that I bought. Mine is beat up a bit, crease with rounded corners. It passes all of the usual quick tests including bleed-though. The paper stock isn't quite right however and under a loupe you do not see the "dot matrix" print pattern front with solid ink in the back font.

And this is why I love this site so much....

Thanks for everyone's input here. I definitely learned something!

Many I see are beat up too. They can sometimes be hard to authenticate especially over the net.