Brown Old Mill -- This must be a mistake, no?
 

I just saw this on Ebay. I dont want to scuttle someone's auction, but as a Brown OM owner and someone who may want another (especially at this "negotiable" price), please let me know your thoughts.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1909-T-206-O...QAAOSwpuBZwn8q

First, how is it graded numerically? Second, where is the hand cut? Third, and I compared it to mine, the back does not look brown like mine - at best its a funky brown and more likely its a faded black.

I agree, it looks like the faded/dull black and not brown.

In hand and with good lighting they are fairly easy to tell apart. I had a fellow member send me a few brown backs by accident once. He was in a hurry and had bad lighting in that room of his house. Lucky for him I am honest and returned them because he never noticed the mistake.

Apologies for the bad pics, but this is best I can do right now. The Card on the left is my Sid Smith Brown Old Mill, and the one on the right is the Ebay "Old Mill Brown" -- although, the Ebay version looks lighter on the ebay scan and my pic does not do it justice, so please see link for better view.

You're right, it's a mistake by PSA. The brown should be lighter, matching the brown on a Hindu back. And it should be hand cut, so it couldn't get a numeric grade.

The expression "buy the card, not the holder" was never more applicable than on this card.

Funny thing, he looks like a good seller with some experience with T206 cards. I hope that he took this card on consignment.

Faded black. (Really bad) PSA mistake.

Let the seller know.

saw this weeks ago and shook my head.....
 

ALL brown old mills are 100% printers scrap....

HENCE- all must be hand cut and graded "AUTH" because NONE were factory cut....all are southern leaguers ( Texas not included)

if you have to ask "is it brown??" or " does this look, uhm, brown??" then it is not a brown old mill:D

I believe there were 5 different brown old mill sheets that were chopped up.... some of the "scrappier" nature and have overprints on front, or are multi struck on back...some are super clean and cut neat like Sid or Dutch.... I have been wanting to write an article on this! (just like my "writing articles on proofs, yellow/brn sc fact 350 no prints, and other scrap projects I have not completed:o)


Thanks for posting Ryan....your example is GORGEOUS! and a true piece of history...:)

the color of brown old mill is a cross between broadleaf and hindu brown ... a beautiful color to me.....

extremely distinct and apparent , and they "jump" out at you....


:)

Thanks for shout Johnny- I know you are a fan of this brown OM!!

Look, it's clearly not a brown OM; I was just trying to be democratic and couch my whistle-blow as a discussion. How can PSA do that??!! Is it me or does PSA have an awful record with big time t206 cards (and probably all other t206) - a fake Magee error, this BOM and of course the Gretzky Wagner, among others. Yet their flips get a major premium over SGC. As a collector of t206, I personally think PSA sucks ass and SGC is far superior. Hell, I may take BVG over PSA.

PS, REA has a gorgeous, and REAL, brown OM.

I think that the Brown OM in REA used to belong to Jim Rivera. He had a great Dutch Revelle back run. :)

Ryan
 

you are 100 % right! btw, when I was saying if you have to ask is it brown? I didn't mean you, meant the general public:)

Sean

yes, that was jims:)

Unfortunately this is not the only numerically graded Brown Old Mill by PSA. There's also 4 others. I've always questioned it personally to myself but this is the first time I've actually seen one of the 5 numerically graded examples and it's not Brown.

So has anyone contacted PSA about getting it back and reholdering it?

I contacted the seller (via ebay) and explained him why it is not a Brown OM -- no response and listing is still up there last I looked (clearly looking to get over on some unsuspecting person who trusts blindly in the flips). I will not contact PSA, however. Not my problem -- I just didn't want it to become any board member's problem....

Personally I have never cared for the brown color varieties of rarities. They look too much like black to me :).