Category Archives: scams

Just Because The Card Is Worth $500, Doesnt Mean Someone Wont Destroy It

Posted on by
Reply

A few readers sent in this auction link of a seller who wanted to prove that a recently sold Peterson chest logo SPA Patch Auto was fake. See, of all the patches to fake, I would expect that this one would be the least likely to top the list due to the shear scope of the cost of the card. Then again, we have seen Exquisite Peterson fakes, and other fakes of this SPA card, so the lesson is this:

JUST BECAUSE ITS HIGH END, DOESNT MEAN YOU ARE SAFE.

The too good to be true rules still apply, and basically it comes down to not taking a chance. Yes, it is a cool card, but why risk the fake patch? Why not buy a 3-color for a similar price and be sure it is real. SPAs are frequently faked, though UD has been good about removing the auctions they know to be fake. Some of them will continue to get through as I have mentioned here before, but its still something that needs to be planted in the minds of collectors. Nothing is safe anymore, and if someone can make a buck or two by switching out the patch, THEY WILL. They are fucking scum, and should be castrated to prevent more of them from entering the gene pool.

Listen people, dont be idiots out there, and though there are quite a few people who will continue to be idiots, it does not give you free reign on both ends of this scam.

ADDENDUM: Just because a card is slabbed does not mean it is real, just another way the scammers get you. See, even though Beckett may authenticate the card, there is nothing they will authenticate about a patch. Now, aside from the arbitrary and exceedingly stupid practice of authenticating cards (especially post 1995), the scammers use this available resource as a way to lure you into a dumb purchase. Even if Beckett were to say something is real, a la SPA NFL Logo patches from Tomlinson’s RC year, why would it be in your best interest to believe them? Why are they the preeminent authenticators of patches, especially with all the fakes out there? Yes, yes, I know some are ridiculously obvious, but when it comes to others, they arent necessarily a green smurf in smurfville. I dont put any trust in Beckett either way, but some of you might when it comes to seeing the authentic slabs. In fact, if a card was in an authentic slab, I would AUTOMATICALLY stay away, as it waives red flags all over my alarm system.

Again, why even risk it?

When Stupidity Attacks

Posted on by
Reply

I am putting the scam pulled by MelbourneBrokebackCowboy at the same level as this ridiculous auction. This seller is selling his “UNCIRCULATED” Jonathan Stewart UD heroes auto, and I almost want to shoot anyone who even thinks of bidding on this card.

Here are his words:

“08 UD FOOTBALL HEROES- JONATHAN STEWART UNCIRCULATED AUTO RC SP# 158/250! PANTHERS! PERFECT TO GRADE![…]DO YOU REMEMBER A FEW YEARS BACK, TO COLLECT YOUR FAVORITE STAR ATHLETES WAS REALLY FUN? YOU WOULD COLLECT, AND HAVE AS MANY DUPLICATE CARDS AS YOU COULD HANDLE. BUT, IN THE SAME TIME IT WOULDNT PUT A DENT IN YOUR WALLET! (OH YES, THE GOOD OL’ DAYS!) WELL, I AM BRINGING THOSE DAYS BACK HERE AGAIN! WITH ALL NEW AUCTIONS BY TRUBLUE87! ALL OF MY AUCTIONS WILL START OUT AT $0.55! AND I WILL COMBINE ALL SHIPPING COSTS!!!!!! ALL CARDS ARE IN NM-MT CONDITION (UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED!)”

Good story. Compelling, and rich. Despite all the caps, the stupid concept, and the ridiculous description, there is one simple problem with this auction that most people would spot in a second…

…the card is a UD card in a Topps uncirculated holder.

Good call there chief, really top notch work. On top of all this, the person brings forth a follow up to my post from yesterday, or more importantly brings forth the fucking stupid ass idea of grading an uncirculated card. Why in god’s name would you de-case an already encased card, just so that you can get it into ANOTHER ugly holder with an obvious grade. Stupidity at its finest, I really love these.

YouTube Scam Exposed

Posted on by
Reply

I kind of feel obligated to talk about this, as a public service, despite Mario already covering it. A lot of people have been talking about the group break scams that have been run by some douche named MelbourneCowboys. Apparently, he busts some boxes of Exquisite, but only shows 5 of the 6 packed out cards from the break. There is a pretty heated video analysis thread going on over at FCB, and I think everyone is pretty sure that this guy has stolen quite a bit from the people in his break. Its one thing to rig the team drawings, as that is much harder to track, but to actually leave a card out of the break, that is crazy, and fucking obvious.

See, if you had a link to the videos – they all have been taken down – you would see that he clearly has six cards from one of the breaks, but ends up only mentioning 5 (see screen cap below). The other card is then either kept, or sold under his eBay name. If you look at his completed auctions, he has some pretty nice stuff. However, its not ridiculous enough to draw attention. According to some people who have questioned him about the breaks, the cards were obtained when he “went to a shop” and “busted them.”


(CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Regardless of what is analysed by the people on his videos, this guy clearly has a lot of demons and youtubers to deal with. Im not sure which is worse. People may shit on ARPlatinum for participating in his own breaks, but at least he shows the cards in a clear camera with the pack IN FRONT of him. I think it bears repeating that you buy into the integrity of the breaker as well as the box itself, and I wouldnt have trusted this guy at all. Here’s hoping the guys from the break can file claims and get their money back.

On another note, stay tuned for another SCU break coming up…

…kidding.