Beware…Fake high value CGC books in Pacific Northwest 14 14

[JTD]

Beware: Fake high value CGC books being sold in the Spokane, WA, area.

Saw this on Facebook. An experienced comic dealer of 40 years was sold a fake CGC Hulk #1 and Captain America #1 and didn't discover it until he had the slabs cracked. Once he put the information out there a fellow dealer discovered that the GSX1 and Hulk 181 he bought from the same guy were also fake. 

Here's the link to his Facebook post. It's (currently) in two parts. I imagine part 3 might be coming shortly. 

 

https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02b7fNDNomBXzbnXYpLss8NMf5Up4PSjMgxbWK3pvGBmRj769DFMJPcL2JCbrAFnq8l&id=100048098476162&mibextid=Nif5oz&_rdr

[lizards2]

Yeesh.  

[VintageComics]

This is pretty terrifying on one hand. 

The name of the scammer in the listing sounds like someone well known in the NW. Obviously he can't reveal the full name due to the police investigation but I think most old timers know who it is. 

It certainly reinforces the notion that collectors should only buy comics from reputable sellers. 

I also wonder if they at least checked ID before making the purchase or just bought it at arm's length. 

Edited February 20, 2023 by VintageComics

[KCOComics]

I'm glad the victim wrote about it. 

It makes you worried about how many of these duds are floating around out there.  Hopefully they catch this guy soon. 

Edited February 20, 2023 by KCOComics

[THE_BEYONDER]

Complete fakes.  Wow

[Domo Arigato]

On 2/19/2023 at 6:27 PM, VintageComics said:

The name of the scammer in the listing sounds like someone well known in the NW. Obviously he can't reveal the full name due to the police investigation but I think most old timers know who it is. 

He posted these in part two.

Edited February 20, 2023 by Domo Arigato

[Telegan]

I saw this last night on a Facebook CLZ/Collectorz forum and was going to post it here.  Man, you can't trust anything anymore.  The problem with this is that even trustworthy sellers could probably be duped into buying this and maybe trying to sell it later.  This kind of stuff pisses me off.

Edited February 20, 2023 by Telegan

[DWL]

Something seems odd.  Is it normal to request the name and address of someone you buy books from? 

And would it be possible to clarify if the Captain America # 1 was slabbed or raw when bought by the dealer?  The photo in the facebook post shows the Cap book as raw.  

[JollyComics]

I can tell the label is fake.  The fonts do not look right.

[Telegan]

On 2/19/2023 at 7:33 PM, Domo Arigato said:

He posted these in part two.

 

If anyone wants to look at Part 2, here it is complete with Giant-Size X-Men #1 and Hulk #181 : https://www.facebook.com/Themanbehindthecomics/posts/pfbid019qjUKC5TAVNesKf8Frw1t1Qx6SULntZSJ4mhm8dvvGG2d4RvZrUzvcVsu9oGhRwl

[lizards2]

On 2/19/2023 at 5:37 PM, DWL said:

Something seems odd.  Is it normal to request the name and address of someone you buy books from? 

 

I will remember to do this should I ever buy something like that again.

[BlowUpTheMoon]

 

On 2/19/2023 at 8:49 PM, JollyComics said:

I can tell the label is fake.  The fonts do not look right.

Yeah, that Incredible Hulk kerning (space between letters) is not even close. 

Edited February 20, 2023 by BlowUpTheMoon
greggy is a dork

[JollyComics]

On 2/19/2023 at 8:28 PM, BlowUpTheMoon said:

Yeah, that Incredible Hulk typeface is not even close.

Other label looks funny too.

See this book here:

 

Also, I believe the encapsulation case looks newer for GS X-Men #1 with the old label. 

Edited February 20, 2023 by JollyComics

[Dark Knight]

Gotta double check what you're buying now.  Sad to see these fakes are in circulation and can fool novice collectors, possibly harder for those who have been in the hobby longer.  I saw a fake CGC slab and book of a Marvel Spotlight #5 "CGC 9.2" in a FB comic book forum a couple months ago that someone posted.  I mentioned to the owner that the label and book are both fake, of course he said they were real.

[Terry JSA]

The label should’ve been an immediate red flag. If you’ve been doing comics for 40+ years, you would notice the 6.5 was way off.

[Hulksdaddy1]

"Please be wary, and in my honest opinion, don't hesitate to crack open a cgc slab to make sure the book inside is real."

 

[Axelrod]

On 2/19/2023 at 9:28 PM, BlowUpTheMoon said:

 

Yeah, that Incredible Hulk kerning (space between letters) is not even close. 

Is the top one the fake one and the bottom one a real one?  Because, uh, the "space between letters" looks pretty darn close to my (inexpert) eyes.  The font on the numbers looks different though? 

[Math Teacher]

On 2/19/2023 at 8:28 PM, BlowUpTheMoon said:

 

Yeah, that Incredible Hulk kerning (space between letters) is not even close. 

Well, I am going to have to be EXTRA careful, as I don't see a lot of difference between the two labels.

[D2]

Wow

 

Thank you for sharing 

[BlowUpTheMoon]

On 2/19/2023 at 10:30 PM, Axelrod said:

On 2/19/2023 at 9:28 PM, BlowUpTheMoon said:

 

Yeah, that Incredible Hulk kerning (space between letters) is not even close. 

Is the top one the fake one and the bottom one a real one?  Because, uh, the "space between letters" looks pretty darn close to my (inexpert) eyes.  The font on the numbers looks different though? 

Top (6.5) is the fake label. See how the "r" and "e" in Incredible are almost touching each other in the 6.5?  

Or how "Marvel Comics 5/62" fit differently under "Incredible Hulk #1"?