Authentic HOF 500 HR club autos?

[bavariancream]

I had nothing to do with this auction which recently ended. Curious if there is a consensus on whether or not these autos are real. Close-up photos of individual autos @ https://shopgoodwill.com/item/233150641

[hammertime]

They look good to me. Is there a reason to think they're fake?

[Skipscards]

Yes. Could be real. Very famous painting by Ron Lewis and the prints are often numbered and signed by the, at the time, living members of the club.

[ScooterD]

Must have been signed between 1987 and Mantle’s death. Not an expert, but they all look right

[hxcmilkshake]

Looks good. Went for $600? Nice.

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[bavariancream]

Originally Posted by hammertime

They look good to me. Is there a reason to think they're fake?

No reason to think they are fake, although I had seen other Ron Lewis lithos and noticed this one was not numbered. But not an expert and know there are plenty of fakes, and I didn’t recognize the mismatched holograms on the front/back.


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[tazdmb]

This is an Operation Bullpen special and none of these are good.

[bavariancream]

Originally Posted by tazdmb

This is an Operation Bullpen special and none of these are good.

Any specific red flags? I did not bid on this auction and am in no way affiliated with the charity seller, just not an expert on auto/fakes.


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[Jsquared123]

Originally Posted by tazdmb

This is an Operation Bullpen special and none of these are good.

100%. The bad Mantle is the easiest giveaway. The Mathews is also obviously poop and this is without zooming in to really examine the rest.

[ReggieBush22]

I would never buy any auto that doesn't have some type of iron clad COA. There is an industry of people who counterfeit sports memorabilia as a living. Not commenting on this specific piece but just saying.

[ScooterD]

Originally Posted by ReggieBush22

I would never buy any auto that doesn't have some type of iron clad COA. There is an industry of people who counterfeit sports memorabilia as a living. Not commenting on this specific piece but just saying.

Don’t mind being wrong earlier, but trying to learn:

What’s an iron-clad COA in your opinion. We have several threads showing that all companies have made mistakes in the past - so what is considered iron-clad?

[bavariancream]

Originally Posted by ReggieBush22

I would never buy any auto that doesn't have some type of iron clad COA. There is an industry of people who counterfeit sports memorabilia as a living. Not commenting on this specific piece but just saying.

I had a similar thought process in deciding not to bid on it. Also, I have seen examples of several of the more famous autos, and most of these struck me as too perfect…which is not very scientific but just a gut feeling.

If they had an MLB authentication hologram, I’d have felt better but the mismatched holos seemed like it could have been something less reputable.

Anyhow, I know most folks on here have much more experience than me in this area and wanted to educate myself in the off chance I see similar.


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[ReggieBush22]

Originally Posted by ScooterD

Don’t mind being wrong earlier, but trying to learn:

What’s an iron-clad COA in your opinion. We have several threads showing that all companies have made mistakes in the past - so what is considered iron-clad?

Yeah, there is no 100% certainty that anything is legit but for me, it starts with a company like UDA. They revolutionized the space in the mid 90's with their authentication program which i feel is still the best today with their hologram on item and matching hologram on COA. That's about as close to iron clad as you can get.

Then there are other reputable companies like Beckett witness. Not the subjective opinion based authentication where they give their opinion on an item but the service where you can pay them to have a representative be in the presence of a signing and they provide a Beckett witness sticker with matching COA, just like UDA with matching serial numbers.

I also like certain Steiner products. For instance the Bonds items come with not only the Steiner hologram on item along with COA but also the Barry Bonds authentication sticker on items to boot.

[aggie4ever]

Originally Posted by bavariancream

Any specific red flags? I did not bid on this auction and am in no way affiliated with the charity seller, just not an expert on auto/fakes.

The biggest red flag is the location and angle of all of the autos. They are all signed at a 90 degree angle perpendicular to the bottom of the print. Here's a link to a PSA certified one on ebay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/388440976738

Compare the autos; the first two, Ted Williams and Frank Robinson are signed at a 70 degree angle. And if you look at Ted Williams autos, you will likely never find a real one signed straight at a 90 degree angle. Why do you think that is? (and yes, there is an actual reason).

The reason was because he was left handed. Left handed people sign at an angle since if they don't, it would smear the autograph. Going into it, I didn't know if Ted Williams or Frank Robinson were left handed, but googling it verified they did bat left handed. Eddie Mathews also signed at a 70 degree angle... google verified he also batted left handed.

The fake looks like it was done by all right handed people. So easy to tell it is a fake.

[elsoblanco]

Not real. S on Ted williams and Y on McCovey are wrong. That alone tanks the piece.

[bavariancream]

Great observations. I was admittedly tempted to bid, but too many doubts in my mind similar to a few of those pointed out by more knowledgeable folks.

The authentic one certified by PSA in the eBay link looks like a pretty awesome piece!


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[ReggieBush22]

Originally Posted by aggie4ever

The biggest red flag is the location and angle of all of the autos. They are all signed at a 90 degree angle perpendicular to the bottom of the print. Here's a link to a PSA certified one on ebay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/388440976738

Compare the autos; the first two, Ted Williams and Frank Robinson are signed at a 70 degree angle. And if you look at Ted Williams autos, you will likely never find a real one signed straight at a 90 degree angle. Why do you think that is? (and yes, there is an actual reason).

The reason was because he was left handed. Left handed people sign at an angle since if they don't, it would smear the autograph. Going into it, I didn't know if Ted Williams or Frank Robinson were left handed, but googling it verified they did bat left handed. Eddie Mathews also signed at a 70 degree angle... google verified he also batted left handed.

The fake looks like it was done by all right handed people. So easy to tell it is a fake.

Yeah, another red flag at times can be just how perfect everything looks. If 11 different guys are signing one photo, there should be some variance in terms of location/angle etc. On this item, the autos do looks positioned too perfectly.

[bavariancream]

Originally Posted by ReggieBush22

Yeah, another red flag at times can be just how perfect everything looks. If 11 different guys are signing one photo, there should be some variance in terms of location/angle etc. On this item, the autos do looks positioned too perfectly.

1/1 !


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