Isn’t the “fake” card just a real unlimited Dragonair with a fake after production stamp? I am confused why you were comparing the HP and name text and such. I do see differences but that may just be due to the difference between unlimited and shadowless/1st?
@rattlebear nice work on all this, very interesting but be sure to be clear with defining the various samples. Is my above assumption correct?
Unlimited and Base 1st are different runs. I would think this comparison would be better had between a real base 1st card and a fake stamped shadowless card. These were from the same print and then we could be comparing apples to apples. I don’t know who, but I am sure someone has one kicking around. I forget who here have dealt with the graded fake stamp cards.
The fake 1st edition dragonair card showcased is a scanned and reprinted unlimited dragonair that had a fake stamp added to it(likely after scanning but before they printed it). The manufacturer of the fakes likely did not know or care that 1st edition base set cards do not have a shadowed border. My best guess is these are old fakes from overseas.
The differences shown on the fake card are exclusive to it and do not show up on any versions of the base set. The originals are printed using templates that would not produce the artifacts shown in all the fake card images. The point of all the images at various locations was just to highlight that the artifacts are on the entire card. This showcases the fact that the whole card was scanned and the stamp was faked.
I agree that the most useful stamp comparison would be those that were added to shadowless cards. We can certainly look into fake stamps placed on shadowless cards but I do not have one at the moment and I could never morally purchase such a thing from someone who makes those fakes. If anyone already has one and would like to send it to me, we can certainly look at it. I am certain that no one is going to be able to create a perfect replica.
I have a small pile of fake cards that I pulled out of large lots that I have purchased. My plan is for this to be an ongoing project where we can look into and educate everyone on identifying the different fakes, misprints, etc…
GREAT work bear, and discussion. If anyone has an aftermarket stamped shadowless card please send it to bear. I can 100% vouch for him. Plus, I put the odds of a microscopic difference between the two stamps at 99%
Next up on the chopping block: Gary’s smudged 1st edition stamp
Close up of smudged 1st edition stamp on phone:
Smudged stamp(20X):
Non-smudged stamp for comparison(20X):
Same scale bars were used to confirm that they are the same size. Height: 3.18 mm, Width: 4.39 mm
Other than the smudging, the ink is spot on.
As Gary showed me in person, there are many 1st edition energies with white marks on the back where they got stuck to another sheet after being stamped. This looks like a similar case where the ink from the stamp was not completely dry when they stacked it.
It looks like there could be some extra ink that might have resulted in a slower dry time.
That is so cool. I’ve had several smudged stamps but never a 1st Ed Base besides the energy’s.
I see I double dotted it which means it’s mint. That’s even better:)
It should be agreed that my boy bear can certainly read what’s counterfeit now.
Real card (30x loupe & Galaxy S9+ cell phone camera):
Keep in mind that it is very hard to get a nice picture with the loop and cell phone compared to the microscope. You can actually get a lot more information than appears in the above pictures using them with your eye. The 30x is more useful than the 20x if you only wanted to order the one.
There is no reason a collector shouldn’t pick one of these up.
I use one of those cheap 30x loupes for counterfeit detection in MTG cards, works great, never needed anything else. If I was ever going to get another I’d maybe get the one with a light attached to it.
This is absolutely one of the most fascinating threads I’ve come across. Thanks a lot rattlebear. You’re doing the community a great service with this work.
Could I make a suggestion?
Would it be possible for you stitch together images of the full cards you examine, both fake and real, using the highest reasonable magnification? I’m not sure how laborious that would be for you but those images could prove to be a very useful reference of all the details inherent to the cards, particularly for those who might be interested in a section of the card not the focus of the post.
If at some point I get my hands on a scope with motorized stage it would be easy to do. Not quite sure how the manual stitching can be done but something I can look into.
