Let's see some counterfeits, reprints, fakes, fugazies, Broders, etc.

[brianp-beme]

Over the years I have come across several reprints. For me quite often they have been part of a bigger lot of authentic cards, and I knew beforehand that there were some stinkers in there. The T206 with perforations, incorrect back print colors, white out and scuffing/pen over the 'reprint' designation, and the incorrect corner radius on the National Game card all fall into this category (the National Game card came from a prominent, and still in business, auction house).

I believe that the T201 cards were in a lot on Ebay that had authentic vintage cards, but I thought the whole lot consisted of only genuine cards, based on the somewhat less than clear images. In hand they were easy to pick out as altered reprints.

The third category of these reprints is the embarrassing one. I spotted the slabbed one shown below (only front was shown in the listing) on Ebay many years ago, instantly identified the card as being a Schapira Cobb card, and jumped on the BIN. I was taking a flier on a card that I thought could possibly be real, but also realizing that there was a very good possibility that it was not. I noticed that the homemade label identified it as "Ty Cobb 1909 Strip Card Authentic". I looked forward to what the postal worker would deliver.

What I failed to notice in all my haste was that label also stated 'Reprint'.

When I received it, my forehead couldn't have been thunked fast enough by my unforgiving hand. I had just bought an Authentic Reprint (in a decent sealed plastic case, by the way). I think I went back to the listing and it even identified the card as a reprint.

The moral of the Cobb story is...at least I wasn't stupid enough to spend more than $8.00 for it. I like to keep it around to humble myself from time to time.

Brian