Lizard's Rant

Remember back in August when a scam artist was busted on the Beckett forum for trying to sell off a Ciatrick Fason fake patch card? At the time I said:

Aside from the amusement, here’s what I get out of this: card companies in conjunction with the collecting community on the web are the best way to identify fakes and rid the hobby of them. Card companies know what they produce (and are obviously monitoring the auctions on eBay), and hard-core collecting communities like the ones on Beckett are educated and know exactly what to look for. Education, not authentication, is the best way to clean up the hobby. The result is probably better and everyone saves time and money sending cards in to be graded.

I was wrong (and yes, I just quoted myself…can I do that???). Anyway, I was wrong because there is a better solution. In fact, there’s a much, much better solution and it’s called Fake Patch Report. The site - started by long-time collector Jeremy Lee - is solely dedicated to exposing fake patch cards. And it’s not just posts like my blog post. There’s an actual submission process, and it’s more in depth than what JSA does to authenticate an autograph!

When you register for the site (registration is required to submit a fake patch to be investigated) you’re asked to provide references in the collecting community (eBay user ID, Beckett forum ID, dealers that know you personally, etc) and they actually check the references. The form below is where you submit a fake patch to be investigated:

The card is then investigated, and if it is determined to be a fake patch card a report is issued on the reports page. Each report includes photos of the fake card, the real card, and other pertinent information. If insufficient evidence is provided, a “suspicious patch report” is issued. Here’s the “fake patch report” on our favorite Ciatrick Fason card:

There are a number of reasons why this site is great. The thoroughness of the reporting process is commendable, but there’s one thing that really makes it work: the site is 100% free and doesn’t (at least from what I can tell) look to turn a profit, and that adds an extra layer of credibility. Authentication companies have their hands in so many cookie jars, it’s hard to tell who they’re trying to benefit the most. The hobby could use more sites like Fake Patch Report: by the collector, for the collector. Kudos Jeremy for creating such a great site.