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The Notorious Counterfeit Cerebus 1
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123 posts in this topic

Thank you, but may i ask how you can tell?

 

Silver staples - and the cover is a true red, not orange.

 

Open up your book and check the inside front cover - it should be matte (the counterfeits are glossy).

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There is one on eBay currently. Can anyone tell if its a counterfeit?

 

I see 3 raw copies of Cerebus #1 on eBay right now...which book are you referring to?

 

I've linked the 3 below, the last copy is by a seller I know personally, and I would say that I am fully confident in Anthony's ability to discern fakes of this book (and his right arm man, Connely) as well.

 

I know both of these cats from the east coast convention circuit, and have bought and sold books to Anthony numerous times.

 

I was set up at Terrific Con for 3 days straight this past weekend in CT, right next to Anthony and his crew.

 

I sold a small stack of books to Anthony out of my priced as marked box, Connely was the one who pulled the books and made the deal with me as Anthony was manning his table.

 

Connely and I had a discussion about books and the market in general.Dude is pretty sharp.

 

Cerebus counterfiet #1's came up in the discussion, Connely knew this book very well.

 

That said, I'd suggest trying your luck in the copy listed by Anthony, in this auction style.

 

The opening bid is certainly fair, I'm considering putting in a bid within the last few seconds, but with Baltimore onsite coming up nxt weekend, I have grading fees to cover on about 2 short boxes full of books.....meh.

 

I rarely vouch for other dealers like this, as technically speaking these guys are my "competition" but that doesn't mean too much to me but....

 

I'd rather give a top of the hat to a boardie on a trustworthy dealer and give credit where credit is due, than be a tight lipped hard arse. (thumbs u

 

 

Side note:

 

I still get a bit salty when I think about selling Anthony a raw and unpressed copy of FF 45 a bit over 2 years ago, at a small show I did one time (and one time only) in northern NJ.

 

The book was a sold VG/FN, could've been pressed into a 6.5, easy.If not 7.0.

 

Anthony pulled a stack of my partner's books, including his raw copy of FF 45 along with my FF 45 off our wall.....and my partner blurted out something inordinately stupid like "yeah, we'll take x amount for the stack".

 

This worked out to something like $50 for my raw mid grade FF 45 , basically what I had paid for the book (and I'll never get the chance to pay that low for an FF 45 again) and the rest of the sale went to my partner.

 

I think I had like $100 on the book and didn't want to budge off that price....I couldn't believe it when my partner blew out my book like that. :tonofbricks:

 

 

 

Cerebus #1-300 with #1 COUNTERFEIT (seller disclosed this in description)

 

 

Cerebus 1 BIN mid grade by seller I never heard of but offers 14 day returns and has tons of positive feedback

 

Not sure if this book is legit or not, but if purchased and you were unsure, the seller would accept a return within 14 days.

 

 

Cerebus 1 Auction mid grade Sim signed -listed by Anthony's Comic Book Art

 

Same deal with returns, 14 days.

 

 

The description notes that the Dave Sims signature has been verified as authentic and that there is some color touch on the book.The CT could be removed and the book pressed by Joey/CFP Comics with the sig verified for a Voldemort verified Signature red label...

 

Or as the signature is on the interior of the book and has no effect on the grade, the CT could be removed by by Joey or CCS and then graded by CGC for an unrestored Universal label.

 

For the record, I have no horse in this race.

 

This book is not a consignment of mine nor did Anthony buy it from me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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There are some very easy ways to tell a counterfeit from original. Below are side-by-side shots of a counterfeit (left) and original (right). The key is to note, the black cover plate on the original is much dirtier than on the counterfeit.

 

1) Look at the cover price. The $1 mark (and the "S" in Cerebus) has a lot of black bleed on the original.

 

Cerebus4.jpeg

 

 

2) Look at the warrior on the right. Again, very dirty.

 

Cerebus5.jpeg

 

 

3) Cerebus is also dirty.

 

Cerebus1.jpeg

 

 

4) Inside, the counterfeit (left) is glossy black; the original (right) is flat black.

 

Cerebus2.jpeg

 

 

5) Flip to the splash page with the dragon. On the counterfeit (left) Cerebus is black; on the original (right) he is stippled.

 

Cerebus3.jpeg

 

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There are some very easy ways to tell a counterfeit from original. Below are side-by-side shots of a counterfeit (left) and original (right). The key is to note, the black cover plate on the original is much dirtier than on the counterfeit.

 

:applause:

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Hi all, has there ever been reports of CGC grading counterfeits as legit copies in error? The reason I ask is because I recently bought a CGC graded #1. The CGC label looks fine, I ran the registry number and it checks out, but it's so hard to tell without a confirmed counterfeit to compare side by side. Anyone ever heard of this happening? I took a close look, and it doesn't appear as though the CGC label could have been swapped out either, but there are pro scammers out there. I'd love to be able to relax with my new treasure!

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I would be floored if a fake Cerebus 1 got past CGC. The absolute first thing they have to do is check to see if it's a fake.

 

Back in the mid-80s a notorious dealer/scammer was driving from comic shop to comic shop selling fake Cerebus 1s from the trunk of his car. I bought 10 for $5 each and sold them to customers AS FAKES for $10.

 

I thought it was relatively easy then to tell the difference. I haven't seen a fake in 30 years but I can't imagine it's any harder today.

 

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Hi all, has there ever been reports of CGC grading counterfeits as legit copies in error? The reason I ask is because I recently bought a CGC graded #1. The CGC label looks fine, I ran the registry number and it checks out, but it's so hard to tell without a confirmed counterfeit to compare side by side. Anyone ever heard of this happening? I took a close look, and it doesn't appear as though the CGC label could have been swapped out either, but there are pro scammers out there. I'd love to be able to relax with my new treasure!

 

Do you have any pictures of the book?

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Hi all, has there ever been reports of CGC grading counterfeits as legit copies in error? The reason I ask is because I recently bought a CGC graded #1. The CGC label looks fine, I ran the registry number and it checks out, but it's so hard to tell without a confirmed counterfeit to compare side by side. Anyone ever heard of this happening? I took a close look, and it doesn't appear as though the CGC label could have been swapped out either, but there are pro scammers out there. I'd love to be able to relax with my new treasure!

 

Post some pictures and I can tell you.

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Any opinions on this copy that is up for sale on ebay?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Cerebus-the-Aardvark-1-NM-9-2-Autographed-Dave-Sim-Original-1st-Print/392234262990?hash=item5b52fbe1ce:g:1HYAAOSw~TdcXhcn

It seems to pass most of the check points and is signed by Sim in his actual name (assuming that wasn't forged). My problem with it is that my go to check point has always been the "handle" of the sword in Cerebus hand and the outline on the shield. The original version has the black ink bleeding badly to the point it fills in noticeably. This one doesn't have the bleed. Other than that it appears to check out.

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1 hour ago, boomtown said:

Any opinions on this copy that is up for sale on ebay?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Cerebus-the-Aardvark-1-NM-9-2-Autographed-Dave-Sim-Original-1st-Print/392234262990?hash=item5b52fbe1ce:g:1HYAAOSw~TdcXhcn

It seems to pass most of the check points and is signed by Sim in his actual name (assuming that wasn't forged). My problem with it is that my go to check point has always been the "handle" of the sword in Cerebus hand and the outline on the shield. The original version has the black ink bleeding badly to the point it fills in noticeably. This one doesn't have the bleed. Other than that it appears to check out.

And that it's tangerine orange . . . hm

 

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4 minutes ago, divad said:

And that it's tangerine orange . . . hm

 

I'm somewhat colorblind so I always had problems with the shades of red used on the background. I mentioned it to Dave when I met him years ago and he pointed out the issues with the black ink and the sword handle. as an easy look. That's what I have always used as an initial check. Then I check the Dragon page and the other checks. This one seems to have most of the checks in common with the original book, but the black ink on the cover isn't bleeding badly. I've also got a handful of autographs and none of them have that circle as the dot of the "i" in Sim. That said, the wording "Best Wishes" is perfect to the ones in my books.

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