Wayne Gretzky Card - Real or Fake

[mkaminsk]

Hello there! I posted a Gretzky rookie card on here not too long ago that I was about to trade for. Unfortunately the seller backed out so I've kept on looking. I found this one and want to know where you guys think it is real or fake. I don't really card for the back as I'll be getting it framed and only the front (which is quite nice) will be showing.

http://i41.tinypic.com/ossf9k.jpg

http://i41.tinypic.com/svmlup.jpg

Thanks!

[JayT_59]

It's always tough to tell without a high res scan if you don't have it in person but it looks real.

My experience with fake Gretzky's is that I actually bought a fake and sent it to an authenticator. When it came back fake I met him in person and he discussed with me the differences between a typical fake and real Gretzky OPC RC. I since have purchased two authentic Gretzky OPC rookies.

Some people say that you can tell the difference between a real and fake by the print dot on Gretzky's left shoulder, but seriously - how easy is it for counterfeiters to include a white dot on the shoulder when they are printing them? It's not a sign of a fake, My fake had the print dot. Some also say that an authentic Gretzky OPC rookie has two thin blue lines down the middle of the back of the card. Not true as there were two print runs of the card. The first print run had the blue lines, the second didn't, so don't reject a Gretzky OPC rookie as counterfeit because it doesn't have the blue lines on the back.

There's the difference in card stock, and the cut, and the ink, but a good way to tell if the card is fake or not without having the card in hand is by observing how the card was printed. Real OPC Gretzkys were printed with printing plates and if you have a big enough scan of the card you can see that the edges of the black border lines and the player name at the top of the card, and the Oilers logo are all smooth and straight because they were printed with the original OPC printing plates.



As opposed to the counterfeits which are typically printed through a printer and leaves dots along the edges instead of a clean straight line like this.



So if you want to make sure this Gretzky is authentic, have the seller send you a 600dpi scan so you can see the details stated above.

[RGM81]

Looks good on first glance. The centring is a bit off and the corners look a bit worn, but the usual tell-tale signs of a legit Gretzky RC are there.

[CoolHandLuke]

I can add that most fake card would not be that damage. So if you pay what it's worth due to the damage then it's fine. Make sure you evaluate the card damages and then make the price you pay it reflect the damage and it should be a fair deal. Most of the time a fake would simply look much better and bad condition is often a sign the card is a real one.