Amazing Fantasy #15 Real or Fake 2 2

[SDCOOKIE]

Hello,

I am new to the group. I signed up because I have the opportunity to buy AF 15. Does anyone have any thoughts on this one? 

Thanks Steve 

[dpressim]

Looks like a nice copy.  Would grade out at a ~ 1.8 to 2.0 CGC.  Biggest issue obviously is the spine. 

It's a huge commitment obviously but maybe you could work out a deal with the seller and send to CGC for a preview to confirm...

 

[Readcomix]

Welcome to the boards! Is there something in particular about it that’s making you think it might be fake?

[SDCOOKIE]

On 8/30/2024 at 4:36 AM, Readcomix said:

Welcome to the boards! Is there something in particular about it that’s making you think it might be fake?

Thank you for the welcome. 

There are so many fakes out there I just wanted a second opinion. This is an Internet sale so wanted to be a 100% sure before I dropped a good chunk of change. 

Thanks, Steve

[SDCOOKIE]

On 8/30/2024 at 4:30 AM, dpressim said:

Looks like a nice copy.  Would grade out at a ~ 1.8 to 2.0 CGC.  Biggest issue obviously is the spine. 

It's a huge commitment obviously but maybe you could work out a deal with the seller and send to CGC for a preview to confirm...

 

I am curious about the piece of tape on the bottom of the spine. If I purchase it should I leave that there or take it off? How does the tape impact the grading? 

[LowGradeBronze]

The effort required in faking such a low grade copy would be massive, with every extra effort involved further reducing the value of the book. Makes no sense. 

[chrisco37]

On 8/30/2024 at 8:23 AM, SDCOOKIE said:

I am curious about the piece of tape on the bottom of the spine. If I purchase it should I leave that there or take it off? How does the tape impact the grading? 

Leave it.  In it's current condition, the tape has minimal (if any) impact on the grade.   

[Dr. Balls]

There was a time I was hunting around for a low-grade AF15, and even then (when they were $1500-$2000) I was only interested in getting a slabbed copy. I did not want to plunk down that much money for something that could have missing pages, color touch, etc. CGC may have it's problems now, but I think I'd still be more comfortable paying a premium for a 1.8 in a slab. On the other hand, this book looks fairly legit - I'd be more worried about some minor imperfections that would it a purple or green label.

[KCOComics]

I'll start by saying, I have no reason to believe it's fake. 

With that said - I would be skeptical of buying from a stranger.  If it's a known Dealer with a good reputation, I would check around and could probably get comfortable with the purchase.  But in today's day and age, why would someone be selling it raw, when people will pay a premium for a graded book? 

It's a lot of coin to put your trust in a stranger. 

You may want to do a Google search of the photos and make sure the photos aren't swiped from somewhere. If you can go see the book in person (at a police station and not in a dark alley with $10k in your pocket), that would be ideal. I would bring a vintage comic book guy. Someone who knows how to spot resto, count pages and so on. 

And most importantly pay with all the buyer protection you can get. PayPal G&S. Credit card that will allow you to pull back the charges if things are fishy. Do research before hand and make sure you know what protection you have access to. Understand the timing of your protection.  It might take 2 months to get it graded,  but you might only have 30 days to undue the charges. So you need to walk away being 100% sure it's real, it's unrestored, pages aren't missing and so on.   

 

Alternatively- tell him to get it graded. And if everything comes back roses, tell him you'll reimburse the grading fees. 

 

 

 

 

[pemart1966]

Is that rust on the upper staple?

[The Lions Den]

On 8/29/2024 at 2:08 PM, SDCOOKIE said:

Hello,

I am new to the group. I signed up because I have the opportunity to buy AF 15. Does anyone have any thoughts on this one? 

Thanks Steve 

Well, the back cover appears to be correct, so that's a decent start. But why is the bottom right corner of the front cover not visible?   

[bc]

On 8/30/2024 at 5:07 PM, The Lions Den said:

Well, the back cover appears to be correct, so that's a decent start. But why is the bottom right corner of the front cover not visible?   

+1

Also, there are pics of the interior back cover & full back cover, but no full front cover or inside front cover or splash page.

Good eye man 

-bc

[SDCOOKIE]

On 8/30/2024 at 10:31 AM, KCOComics said:

I'll start by saying, I have no reason to believe it's fake. 

With that said - I would be skeptical of buying from a stranger.  If it's a known Dealer with a good reputation, I would check around and could probably get comfortable with the purchase.  But in today's day and age, why would someone be selling it raw, when people will pay a premium for a graded book? 

It's a lot of coin to put your trust in a stranger. 

You may want to do a Google search of the photos and make sure the photos aren't swiped from somewhere. If you can go see the book in person (at a police station and not in a dark alley with $10k in your pocket), that would be ideal. I would bring a vintage comic book guy. Someone who knows how to spot resto, count pages and so on. 

And most importantly pay with all the buyer protection you can get. PayPal G&S. Credit card that will allow you to pull back the charges if things are fishy. Do research before hand and make sure you know what protection you have access to. Understand the timing of your protection.  It might take 2 months to get it graded,  but you might only have 30 days to undue the charges. So you need to walk away being 100% sure it's real, it's unrestored, pages aren't missing and so on.   

 

Alternatively- tell him to get it graded. And if everything comes back roses, tell him you'll reimburse the grading fees. 

 

 

 

 

Thanks you for the great advice. I know the photos are legit as they were sent to me with a current date.

I believed it is legit, I just wanted to get a second opinion. 

As far as payment I always pay with a credit card through PayPal give me the option to reverse charges at 180 days. 

[SDCOOKIE]

On 8/30/2024 at 2:07 PM, The Lions Den said:

Well, the back cover appears to be correct, so that's a decent start. But why is the bottom right corner of the front cover not visible?   

This was the original pic I received, the other photo is what he sent with the current date to prove possession 

[KCOComics]

It looks like a nice presenting copy.  No chipping and the colors look vibrant. 

Let us know if you go through with it and what it's like in hand. 

[The Lions Den]

On 8/30/2024 at 6:46 PM, SDCOOKIE said:

This was the original pic I received, the other photo is what he sent with the current date to prove possession 

Thank you for the better photo---that does help.

But there are some other key things to consider, such as validating the page count and determining whether the interior is correct, as well as the possibility that the book has been trimmed or restored in some way---all very important factors when determining value and desirability.

And I have to ask why someone in this day and age wouldn't send a book with this amount of importance and value to a reputable certification company...do they have something to hide? 

[The Lions Den]

On 8/30/2024 at 6:44 PM, SDCOOKIE said:

Thanks you for the great advice. I know the photos are legit as they were sent to me with a current date.

I believed it is legit, I just wanted to get a second opinion. 

As far as payment I always pay with a credit card through PayPal give me the option to reverse charges at 180 days. 

I've seen many, many copies of this book over the years. It's probably the most illegitimate book you'll ever see, and by that, I mean there are a lot of copies that've been restored or cobbled together in some way, shape or form.  

There is simply no way I'd ever buy a raw copy of this book from some random internet stranger. If you choose to do so, I wish you the very best of luck and I really hope you don't get burned...  

[Dick Pontoon]

On 8/30/2024 at 6:44 PM, SDCOOKIE said:

Thanks you for the great advice. I know the photos are legit as they were sent to me with a current date.

 

Not necessarily, could be a Photoshop job. The shadows look off to me. Might be a scam where the guy doesn't even have the book in his possession. I'd never, ever drop any major coin on a random Instagram/Facebook/Internet book like this.

[LowGradeBronze]

On 8/31/2024 at 3:25 PM, dick pontoon said:

Not necessarily, could be a Photoshop job. The shadows look off to me. Might be a scam where the guy doesn't even have the book in his possession. I'd never, ever drop any major coin on a random Instagram/Facebook/Internet book like this.

This is a good point: That people can hijack other folks photos and then 'sell' something that isn't even in their possession. If you can be sure the seller is genuine, that's a start point for a conversation. But 'buyer beware' still applies.

(looking at the first photo, you may want to ask the seller to wash his hands before he handles the book again!)

 

Edited August 31 by LowGradeBronze

[KCOComics]

On 8/31/2024 at 9:59 AM, The Lions Den said:

I've seen many, many copies of this book over the years. It's probably the most illegitimate book you'll ever see, and by that, I mean there are a lot of copies that've been restored or cobbled together in some way, shape or form.  

There is simply no way I'd ever buy a raw copy of this book from some random internet stranger. If you choose to do so, I wish you the very best of luck and I really hope you don't get burned...  

@SDCOOKIE - I've been buying and to a lesser extent selling comics for 25 years, and this is the guy I still consult before a big purchase.  

 And it's not that I don't feel like I know what to look for - it's just having another unbiased person who knows what he's talking about.  The concerns he is raising are legit and should be carefully considered.