Phony Mike Ditka jersey

[slats7]

not even close

http://sports.mearsonlineauctions.co...8MEARS-LOA%29-

[both-teams-played-hard]

not even close

http://sports.mearsonlineauctions.co...8MEARS-LOA%29-

The jersey is accurate to the description. There is no mention of "game used".

[both-teams-played-hard]

However, this Ditka was made many years after the 1960s.

[slats7]

The jersey is accurate to the description. There is no mention of "game used".

Your average bidder would assume that this was an official team-issued jersey that he may or may not have used. It isn't.

[kudu]

If what you are saying is true, I could see how someone could be confused, considering it is in the "All/Football/Game-Used Equipment/Jersey" section.

[trsent]

not even close

http://sports.mearsonlineauctions.co...8MEARS-LOA%29-

So, to follow forum policy you emailed MEARS with your concerns, and what was their reply?

I don't know what you find wrong with the jersey - You say it isn't even close, but you don't give reasons why or take any time to call an item out. I'm sure there is a problem you find, but anyone can post a link and say "not even close" and it means nothing.

Explain to us what is wrong with the jersey and the listing and please, let us know what MEARS replied when you emailed them about your findings.

Then your post will hold some weight.

In the meantime, I don't think anyone who bids in the MEARS auctions believes they are bidding on a game used Mike Ditka jersey. This isn't on eBay with millions of visitors a day - This is a private auction house that has mainly game used customers and no one is that crazy to misunderstand their description.

Now, when the jersey was made could be another discussion, but you haven't given any reasons for your concerns or told us what MEARS replied when you questioned the item to them and gave them 24 hours to respond, per Game Used Universe policy. I'm really curious.

[slats7]

So, to follow forum policy you emailed MEARS with your concerns, and what was their reply?

I'm supposed to do their work for them? Interesting.

I don't know what you find wrong with the jersey - You say it isn't even close, but you don't give reasons why or take any time to call an item out. I'm sure there is a problem you find, but anyone can post a link and say "not even close" and it means nothing.

Explain to us what is wrong with the jersey and the listing and please, let us know what MEARS replied when you emailed them about your findings.

Then your post will hold some weight.

For starters, the "9" is wrong. An authentic Dallas Cowboy jersey from that era would feature sharp, 45 degree angles on the inner part of the number. I'll use this old Lance Alworth jersey as an example:



Compare it to the Mears "9," which features 90 degree angles:



Furthermore, the nameplates don't match. Someone must have mentioned this to Mears, because they changed the listing to reflect this new information.

Authentic Ditka nameplate, with widely-spaced letters:



Mears nameplate, featuring bunched letters and fonts that don't match the ones seen above:



Another problem is that the TV numbers on the Mears jersey are in the wrong place. They should be just above the sleeve stripes, not up near the shoulders.

In the meantime, I don't think anyone who bids in the MEARS auctions believes they are bidding on a game used Mike Ditka jersey. This isn't on eBay with millions of visitors a day - This is a private auction house that has mainly game used customers and no one is that crazy to misunderstand their description.

I disagree. As someone already mentioned, this is being listed under the "game-used equipment" category. Worse, the Mears jersey features a Southland Athletic tag. Southland was the official jersey supplier for the Cowboys during those years. Nor did they manufacture replicas for the general public at that time, so an unsavvy bidder might see that tag and assume it's the real deal. It's not.

Now, when the jersey was made could be another discussion, but you haven't given any reasons for your concerns or told us what MEARS replied when you questioned the item to them and gave them 24 hours to respond, per Game Used Universe policy. I'm really curious.

Or Mears could simply state, "Although we have no idea when this jersey was made, we can say with certainty that it was never worn by Mike Ditka during his tenure with the Dallas Cowboys."

To placate you, I'll email Mears with my concerns.

[trsent]

So forum rules are not for you?

The jersey's description is as follows:

The heavyweight jersey includes its identifiers in single-color royal blue tackle twill. Ditka is spaced to a durene nameplate. Situated in the collar is a Southland Athletic tag. Embedded sleeve striping and elbow reinforcements only add to the aura.

No visible game wear is present, and the player name font is not consistent with available images. Based on the inconsistencies found upon evaluation, we have determined this jersey was not worn by Mike Ditka during his playing days.

Nowhere do they try to pass this as game used. The jersey is a piece of crap pro-cut made years later, but they are not trying to deceive anyone with this jersey.

My biggest question is how you post the jersey is no good, give us a link, but don't explain why it is no good. Thanks for your help. Based on the description I believe I explained the jersey very well in the paragraph above. (a piece of crap pro-cut made years later)

[trsent]

Brendan, just so there is no confusion, here are the forum rules you were missing:

http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_f...hread.php?t=99

Rule #1 -

1. You are required to know the rules of the forum - ignorance of the rules will not be a defense.

Rule #16 -

1. In instances where a forum member is identifying an item in the hobby they believe to have issues, the poster should clearly state their findings in the form of an opinion and provide adequate rationale for why they believe there is an issue. When possible, we recommend that the poster questioning an item attempt to contact the seller of the item and allow at least 24 hours for the seller to reply before posting. This will prevent postings that may be generated based on misunderstandings of an item. In addition, while this forum is designed to help educate collectors, we will not allow comments that accuse entities in the hobby of participating in any form of criminal wrong-doing. Any posts suggesting criminal wrong-doing should be brought to the attention of the moderators immediately.

[slats7]

So forum rules are not for you?

The jersey's description is as follows:

The heavyweight jersey includes its identifiers in single-color royal blue tackle twill. Ditka is spaced to a durene nameplate. Situated in the collar is a Southland Athletic tag. Embedded sleeve striping and elbow reinforcements only add to the aura.

No visible game wear is present, and the player name font is not consistent with available images. Based on the inconsistencies found upon evaluation, we have determined this jersey was not worn by Mike Ditka during his playing days.

Nowhere do they try to pass this as game used. The jersey is a piece of crap pro-cut made years later, but they are not trying to deceive anyone with this jersey.

My biggest question is how you post the jersey is no good, give us a link, but don't explain why it is no good. Thanks for your help. Based on the description I believe I explained the jersey very well in the paragraph above. (a piece of crap pro-cut made years later)

I'll tell you what I told the Mears rep who contacted me:

If you go to your website and click on football--game-used equipment--jerseys, the Ditka jersey pops up. But it shouldn't because, as you already conceded, it was never game-used. Unwitting buyers can easily be deceived by such sloppiness. I just think you need to add some language which clearly states that it is some sort of reproduction and not a team-issued piece of equipment. My best guess is that someone got a hold of a plain Southland Athletic jersey and then added the fake numbers and nameplate after the fact.

To their credit, Mears has amended the jersey description, although it's still inexplicably listed in the "game-used" category.

Based on the inconsistencies found upon evaluation, we have determined this jersey was not worn by Mike Ditka during his playing days.