Examining THE Favorite Target of Patch Fakers

I think if there is one type of fake patch that seems to continue to make its way into cards, its the Maryland flag patch that the Ravens wear on their jersey.  Because it has a busy design and multiple colors thanks to the makeup of the flag itself, the patch is a favorite of fakers since the team moved to Baltimore.  What people fail to recognize, is that the abundance of these patches in cards, especially the 2008 SPA and Exquisite sets, is not because they were actually made that way.

Of all of the Joe Flacco and Ray Rice cards on eBay, there just arent that many legit flag patches, but that doesnt stop people from chasing them like crazy. They are so abundant, that it prevents the informed people from even considering a buy, even if they are real. In fact, people are so used to seeing those patches that when a card like this goes up, people go effing nuts, despite the fact that this patch was never on a Ravens jersey to begin with. Check out the Wiki entry on this, there is no Ravens logo patch anywhere on the jersey, and yet, someone still felt it necessary to pay what they did for this obviously fake card.

As I mentioned in the SCU Scam School, I make it a point to avoid the Ravens logo cards like the plague. Its a very similar practice for the Titans’ sword logo and the Vikings head and chest logo as well. In fact, I would even go so far as saying that the Titans’ sword logo has reached similar status as the Ravens’ flag patch logo. There have been so many Chris Johnson SPA and Exquisite cards with that patch, that I actually laugh at the people who still buy.

Again, this is where literally 5 seconds of research would have avoided the problems present in the purchase of these cards. honestly, I am still shocked that people dont check before hitting the bid button. Do they really just think they know better? Its been many years since patch faking has become prevalent, but the buyers still do not cease to amaze me with their inability to do their own research.

Beware Fake Sticker Autos

I have discussed problems with the use of sticker autos many times before, and the particular problem stemming from affixing fake stickers to cards is not new. For a period of about 3 months last year, eBay was flooded with sticker autographs that had been stuck to cards that werent meant to be autos. In most cases, the autographs were so blatantly fake that it was laughable, however, some still garnered very high bids. It went away after this site and a few others, along with the message boards, posted numerous accounts of how easy it was to create.

Im not going to go into how to do it, but basically, cheap auto stickers are wiped, peeled off the original cards, re-signed and affixed to better cards. Chrome was a favorite target because the base rookie auto cards have few differences from the actual legit signed ones. Well, at least one seller has found out what to do and is bringing these cards back.

Here is the example Adrian Peterson that was just pulled from the block.  For your reference, here is a legit autographed 2007 Peterson Bowman Chrome. You know this isnt the auto version of the card because it doesn’t have the line above the sticker auto where the brightness of the photo changes to accommodate the signature. As if that wasn’t enough, you can even see the peel marks on the bottom right hand corner where he took it off the other card.

Guys, just because a sticker is on a card, doesn’t mean it is real. Keep in mind that if there is money to be made in any part of this industry, someone will find a way to take advantage of it.

Its Rare That Fakes Generate This Kind Of Money

Fake patches have become sort of a good/bad situation these days. Obvious ones rarely generate much money, and the less obvious ones generate tons. Because of the way fake patches have been covered on the message boards, blogs and other non-mainstream hobby media, collectors have been able to avoid some of the pitfalls that once plagued them. However, based upon recent auction completions, im not so sure people are wising up as much as I thought they would.

Look at how much this fake Peyton Manning that I covered last week sold for. Check out this Tom Brady too. I cant believe this Favre hit the number it did. Those are HUGE prices, despite the fact that they are ridiculously fake. My favorite fake promoting company, PSA/DNA, seemed to think they were authentic enough to slab them, and that I just don’t understand. I explained that the presence of the Captain’s patches alone should have been a tip off, but because the faker was skilled at creating these terrible cards, they passed it off. Inexcusable.

Guys, the reality of this situation is that our only line of defense is ourselves, and even a quick 2 second google search on these cards would have brought up the FCB AND Blowout thread where these fakes were outed. Ufjumper7 may be gone for the foreseeable future, but there is always someone else to take their place. Kevin Burge has been operating for as long as I can remember, and he is responsible for so many fakes that I cant even count them in an excel spread sheet. The list is that long.

Its one thing when the card generates 50 bucks or even 100 bucks, but when someone spends the cost of a month’s rent on one of these horrid fakes, we have to start asking how they think it can be real. I know if I were about to drop that kind of money on a card that obviously has doubts as to authenticity, I would do everything in my power to rid myself of that doubt. Hell, I recently bought an autograph for 150 dollars and I spent close to an hour online comparing it, despite the presence of authenticity statements from “reputable” companies. That was 1/10th the cost of what this person paid.

The sad thing is that a lot of the people who buy the fakes, refuse to admit to themselves that they cant tell the difference. I have received no less than five emails from different scam victims explaining that they know better than I do, even in the face of obvious observation. How dare I call them uninformed for not being able to recognize they were being had. God forbid. Really, the problem is the attitude more than anything, and I mean no disrespect when I say that even the most hobby saavy person is at similar risk as the newbie is. Just because someone has been collecting for 30 years, does not mean they know their ass from their elbow in a lot of these cases. The reason I say this is because of how little the mainstream hobby resources have focused on fakes in general. You can go back through years and years of Becketts, Tuff Stuffs, and any other magazine, and there wont be much to reference from. So, I don’t fault the uninformed for being uninformed in that respect. What I do fault them for is not taking the time to research their purchases, something that should be a part of buying on the internet even outside of sports cards and memorabilia. A simple five second search through completed auctions or google would have saved this person a ton of money, and that is exactly why they have every reason to hate themselves for wasting that kind of money.

I may not be the one hitting the buy it now or the bid button, but I will not stop talking about this as long as SCU is up and running. Fakes are a epidemic that have garnered the attention of national law enforcement, and I think its good to have as much dialouge as possible.

Stay AWAY From Anything Ufjumper7

Ufjumper7 is already up to no good with the recent shipment of the Percy Harvin SPAs, and its pretty disheartening that people arent recognizing his crap. This is the umpteenth time I have mentioned him on this site, and I am already tired of him. This guy will most likely be listing a bunch of Harvins, as he actually came up with a pretty good plan. He bought a bunch of redemptions when they were cheap due to rumors, and now has the jump on everyone because no one would suspect they were fake. I mean, they just started showing up on eBay, so how could a known faker be selling fakes, right?

I guarantee that his account should immediately be flagged by everyone, even if this card is real by some miracle. Expect more fakes coming soon as well, as his other redemptions should be showing up very shortly.

Need more proof? Check this one out. I bet this patch pulls right off the top of the swatch.

Ufjumper7 is the newest idiot out there, so add him to the list and watch for his name before you bid on anything.

Where The Hell Did This Card Come From?

Recently on blowout, a card came to my attention that has a lot of people questioning what is going on. This Chris Johnson national treasures auto is up on eBay, slabbed from BGS, thus begging the question of where it came from and if it is real. See, the reason there is a question about this card stems from the fact that Panini did not release any Chris Johnson national treasures cards, let alone one that has been around long enough to have it graded.

Chris Johnson’s lack of available stickers did not allow for an inclusion in Contenders or National Treasures, and its rare that a card like this just pops up out of no where. Even when seeing the card, there are questions I have for sure, mainly having to do with the autograph on the card itself. Its hard to fuck up a fake autograph of one of the NFL’s worst signers, but this one managed to do it. Im just wondering if someone got a blank card by accident and slapped a fake sticker on it. Because the card said autograph on the back, and the missing sticker had been replaced with a real one, Beckett’s people werent smart enough to reject it (typical). I also think that the card was slabbed to begin with in order to fend off questions of authenticity, as most people arent smart enough to believe that BGS is as falliable as they are.

Bascially, someone at Panini has some explaining to do, more so if more of these cards show up.