Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

[staindsox]

I posted this in the autograph forum, but the game used side seems to get more traffic, so I thought what you guys think. I just sold a signed baseball on eBay and the guy who bought it just emailed me 3 weeks after I shipped it and told me the signature is smeared. I sent a perfect ball in the mail and the ink was dry. I have mailed dozens of signed baseballs this way and this has never ever happened before. Has this ever happened to anyone? How could it have happened? Also, I did insure it, but do you think the post office will cover this type of damage? Thanks.

Chris

[suave1477]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

staindsox there can be a million variables why an autograph would smear.

How long was the autgraph done before you sent it?

I had a ball start to bleed months after it was signed and it was perfectly ok for like the first 3 months.

Maybe during shipping it was damaged
Maybe water some how got inside.
Did you put the ball in a cube?
Was the ball sent to an area with a hot climate?

[otismalibu]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

Did he send you a pic of the ball?

Contrary to the Book Of Lou, pictures are a valuable tool.

[staindsox]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

1) I shipped it in a ball cube, like I have dozens of times before.

2) I had it for 3 months. It was dry within hours of it being signed and certainly was when I shipped it. It is on an mlb ball (cheaper leather on non-mlb balls is more likely to cause bleeding) and was signed with a good ballpoint (cheap ink is more likely to bleed too)...I have NEVER had one bleed ever before, so I'm wondering if anyone has shipped one and had it smear. It just seems odd to me.

3) Shipped cold weather state to cold weather state.

I'm asking all this because it feels like a scam to get a return. My gut tells me he either smeared it accidentally when he opened it, although it was dry when I shipped it, or he intentionlly smeared it to get a refund.

Thanks again for the comments! I really appreciate the help.

Chris

[staindsox]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

Did he send you a pic of the ball?

Contrary to the Book Of Lou, pictures are a valuable tool.

Nope, no pic. He wants to ship it back to me, but I told him to contact the post office first since it was insured.

Chris

[BULBUS]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

As the shipper, you have to file the insurance claim. Have him return the ball and then file a claim.

[otismalibu]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

Maybe he's trying to swap a smeared one for the one you sent.

You need to get a pic first, to compare with a photo of the ball you sent.

[arl423]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

I think if it has been three weeks since he recieved the ball then its to late to ask to return it.

Did you list a return time on the ebay auction?

[zookerman182]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

Ball cubes are terrible for shipping. I shipped a few baseballs over the years and the baseball shift all around inside of the ball cubes and eventually the autographed part rubs up against one of the sides and makes a smear. I still dont know a safe way to ship an autographed baseball without possibly smearing the autograph.

[suave1477]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

zookerman very easy when you send it out in the ball cube just stuff some very cheap dry no scnet tiissue inside the cube it will stop the ball from moving around or at least moving around as much.

[zookerman182]

Re: Slightly OT: signed baseball "smeared" in shipping???

thanks for the tip. I will try that next time.