Authentication Lies

[WMMRMATT]

I need a little advice from the experts. I recently purchase a 500 homerun club signed baseball (Mantle, Williams, etc, 11 members) from a local Sports Card Store. The ball was authenticated by STAT Authentic, which I never heard of so like any smart investor, I had the ball examined by James Specer.

Spencer ruled the ball was a fake. I then tried to return the ball to the store and I was told by the owner of the store and then the owner of STAT that Spencer was lying. They claimed Spencer ruled the ball a fake to hurt the reputation of STAT.

What should I do now? The store claims the ball is real, Spencer says fake.

Suggestions??

[Tedw9]

Re: Authentication Lies

Being a collector of autographs, I can tell you that James Spence is one of the top authenticators in the buisness. That is not to say that he does not make mistakes, but I feel comfortable with purchasing an item authenticated by him. His reputation seems to be good with everyone I have talked with.

Will the store owner come to some sort of compromise with you? Is there an authenticator whos opinion he would agree with? I find it odd that if the owner was so sure that the autographs were real that he would refuse a refund. I won't buy autographs from a dealer who does not offer a 100% return policy.

One thing you can do for a second opinion is to post good close up pics of it in an Ebay auction. Set the starting price high and put NOT FOR SALE in the description. Then have PSA/DNA do a quick opinion. That will only cost you about $8 and give you a reputable second opinion. If Spence and PSA both say it's bogus, then chances are it is. And if the owner still gives you a hard time, I would look into other avenues of forcing his hand.

[bigtruck260]

Re: Authentication Lies

Here is the deal...

STAT is basically the authentication company for Coach's Corner Auction House (CCA). I have looked over their "STAT authentic items" and there are many questionable signatures (in MY OPINION, 25 years of collecting stricly Cardinals memorabilia). Personally, I steer clear of anything with a STAT Coa simply because of the conflict of interest situation with CCA. If you have ever seen the final bidding totals from one of their auctions, most of the items are far lower than they would have sold if they had a Spence or PSA LOA.

Coach's Corner also uses Christopher Morales as an authenticator....

Do some research and draw your own conclusions.

If the store owner will not return you items, then he is a poor business person. Hobby stores need customers nowadays and anything negative will send folks packing. Customer service is key to a good hobby business.

[sammy]

Re: Authentication Lies

Hi,

Post some clear photos, and I will inform you if it is real or not.

[WMMRMATT]

Re: Authentication Lies

All great advice.

I will post photos Monday. Thanks.