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Cerebus #1 Counterfeit Detection

Started by pkveronese,

20 posts in this topic

pkveronese

pkveronese

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Posted

Does anyone know how to definitely determine if a Cerebus #1 is counterfeit? I've found several contradictions while searching for info (like silver vs. bronze staples, etc.), but I wanted to get some more info. I' recently saw one and I'm trying to determine if its real or not.

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Dr_Neff

Dr_Neff

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Does anyone know how to definitely determine if a Cerebus #1 is counterfeit? I've found several contradictions while searching for info (like silver vs. bronze staples, etc.), but I wanted to get some more info. I' recently saw one and I'm trying to determine if its real or not.

 

 

I would get it graded by CGC - that's the only sure fire way to tell, or ask Dave Sim

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helionaut

helionaut

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There are 2 main ways to tell a counterfeit #1. The one most people know is the flat vs. glossy inside cover as people have described, and that's the best way if you have the book in hand, though I have heard of a batch of counterfeits with flat covers. The real dead giveaway for me, though, is the color on the cover. In one of her editorial columns back when she was still married to Dave, Deni Sim mentioned the counterfeits, and she said that they were printed with a red background that leaned to the magenta range, while the real book was printed with "warm red." All the books I've seen matched that description exactly. As you can see in my scans, the difference is pretty obvious. I find this most useful when browsing online. Some fakes come out looking almost pink, while I've never seen a real one that wasn't pure red.

 

As to the staples, the genuine book has staples that are made of steel, I think, and all the ones I've seen were dull and sometimes almost corroded (not a good sign for the future). All the counterfeits I've seen have been stainless or maybe aluminum, and all still somewhat shiny. These can be replaced, though. There are other signs that people claim to see, but I've never examined that many in so much detail I could be sure one way or the other. There is a registration target in black ink on the back cover of my genuine copy. It's in the black area 1/2" away from the edge of the paper about halfway down the cover. My fake has that, but it's harder to see, and the crosshairs are not lined up in the exact center of the circle as you'd expect them to be. There are other subtle differences between my copies including the areas that are colored on the cover but I'd want to examine several copies to check the consistency of these variations.

 

Of course, condition is another clue, and there are some people who talk about the black ink blotching on the insides of the covers, but I've never figured that out, and it might be a matter of variations in the crude printing. In the Star Wars ad on the inside back cover, my real one has a small area of white at the top where it should be solid black, which the fake is.

 

A Sim signature is usually good, but his autograph isn't the toughest to fake. He's signed so many books it's not hard to get an examplar, and everyone knows he's written "A Real #1" since the counterfeits started, so that doesn't help.

 

Real One:

realcerebus.jpg

 

Fake One:

fakecerebus.jpg

 

Hope this helps.

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shadroch

shadroch

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Although its been many years since I've owned either a real or fake copy,I used to own several of each,and I don't remeber the colors being as different as they look in your scan.

BTW- I got Dave to sign two fakes many years ago. I forget the exact inscriptions but they went something along the lines of

To Bill,

Heres a fake autograph to go with your fake books,All the Best- John Burn.

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shadroch

shadroch

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I used to sell my "tribute/homage/bootleg" for about 15 to 20% the OS of the real Mccoy. I would think it would still go in that range.

That said,I'll gladly pay $75 for a VFish copy ASAP.I'd even buy two at that price,and perhaps throw in a few old Overstreets(hint,hint).

 

Has anyone ever seen the reported fake #2s?

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mcd-migration

mcd-migration

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$160.00 to $400.00

 

A few years back an ebay seller had a large quantity of the counterfeit book in mid/high grade & was averaging under $50 a book. I had a copy that Sims verified as a counterfeit & gave me a choice of a counterfeit N Adams or Frazetta sig on it. I chose Adams & Dave nailed the sig to a "T." Sold the book on ebay in the late 90s for around $50. I've never seen prices that high but I haven't made a career of tracking it's price either.

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Fandango

Fandango

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$160.00 to $400.00

 

A few years back an ebay seller had a large quantity of the counterfeit book in mid/high grade & was averaging under $50 a book. I had a copy that Sims verified as a counterfeit & gave me a choice of a counterfeit N Adams or Frazetta sig on it. I chose Adams & Dave nailed the sig to a "T." Sold the book on ebay in the late 90s for around $50. I've never seen prices that high but I haven't made a career of tracking it's price either.

 

Picked up a CGC 8.5 copy for $45.

 

Cerebus #1 Counterfeit detection tips

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