[rad_1205]

How authentic is the game-used cards you pull?

Year in and year out over the past decade and a half the game used card was created. I still remember the 1997 upper deck Griffey. When that card hit the market the card world went crazy. Now its basically second nature to pull a game-used card.

Has anyone ever wondered how a player can have so many game-used cards. How many Jerseys do the players wear each year? How many do the card companys actually get of them?

I dont know the market is flooded. There is never any specific day on when the players actually wore the jersey. I wonder if some of the swatches we pull are from charity events that the players sponser.

We question the authenticity of the sticker Auto. Why doesnt anyone ever question the game-used cards.

I just find it hard to believe they are all authentic. I can go to the local mall and buy an authentic jersey of any player i want.

Its funny that the card companies can create name plate cards without using an actual jersey of that player. Take SP Authentic for example. They made a card of a player that spelled out "ROOKIE" its just wierd to me.

I just dont know whats next for our great hobby! I just wish they would do away with Auto and game-used cards for a while. Its sad to pull something that is suppose to be authenic and game worn by that player but its only worth $8. But you spent $6-$10 for a pack. The cards that we are chasing dont even stack up to the money we spend. Bring back the old classic inserts... But we cant even do that anymore everything is #d now.

WHAT IS NEXT? REALLY WHAT IS NEXT?

[jacobystealshome]

players wear tons of jerseys through the year, and you can get a ton of jersey swatches from a single jersey. for current players, i dont believe there is any issue with supply and demand. a game used jersey of even a superstar player can be had for a couple gran from teams. the red sox always sell game used stuff at their christmas at fenway event (and most teams have similar events). and that's just where regular folk have access. topps has much better access, obviously. it isnt all that expensive to get game used gear, especially jerseys. batting helmets, gloves (not batting gloves), shoes - now those are harder to come by...players dont use as many during the season (which is why the absolute tools of the trade stuff is cooler than most, in my opinion)

and of course there is a difference between manufactured letters and real ones. the manufactured ones make no claim to be authentic. i dont believe that is really the same issue you initially brought up

now, the authenticity of players from the 30's and 40's...now that is questionable. there is a lot of shadiness there

[newfiecomicguy1]

The vintage stuff will become scarce as time goes on, new modern players there is plenty of jerseys, bats, gloves, pants etc to go around.

[toddaray]

I cant believe it has taken this long for someone to start a thread about this. How many Babe Ruth bats do you think are out there? As far as modern players, eh, probably all mixed up and no way of knowing who is who. What team DOESN'T have a grey road jersey? As long as the striped swatches match the player on the card, all is well in the hobby but topps might just be laughing all the way to joann fabrics with a truckload of drumsticks.

[bustin 5 knots]

I have never heard anyone question the sticker auto, and people all the time are questioning GU cards. I frankly don't care, and don't want to know if it wasn't used in a game. Ignorance is bliss.

[calripkenjrcollector]

If you're buying and dishing out big bucks because you think that little piece of jersey / pants actually was used by that player, good luck to you. I'm with Bustin 5 on this one. The less you can prove the better for everyone including the card company (Topps). If you paid $50 or more for that stinking card, you better convince yourself it's the real deal even if the colors don't match with the player, make up some sorry excuse to convince yourself, IT"S THE REAL THING. We as collector's have no choice but accept what Topps put out. Real or not, happy collecting....

[jmc316]

I cant believe it has taken this long for someone to start a thread about this. How many Babe Ruth bats do you think are out there? As far as modern players, eh, probably all mixed up and no way of knowing who is who. What team DOESN'T have a grey road jersey? As long as the striped swatches match the player on the card, all is well in the hobby but topps might just be laughing all the way to joann fabrics with a truckload of drumsticks.

With a bat, though, you can make literally thousands of chips that can be used to make cards. Even if, say Topps, has 2-3 Ruth bats...they'll make cards for years out of them. Same with jerseys...most cards are pieces of jersey the size of a quarter. And when dealing with Ruth, Cobb, etc., their cards will usually have low ser #s anyway so rarely are these cards being mass produced.

I think the fear comes in when companies are going thru 2nd and 3rd hand channels to get materials vs teams, auction houses, or estates

[tonygwynnandcalripke]

Back when donruss was still around ( and was allowed to make baseball cards) I pulled a Game used Jersey card out of certified materials from the fabric of the game insert set of Babe Ruth (his 1925 pinstriped jersey they bought for $300,00) the documentation for these swatches is unbelievable Beckett, Tuff stuff and several news papers fallowed Donruss activities with the jersey because they announced they were going to cut it up and put it in cards and then held a news conference to actually do it ,at the time there were 3 Ruth pinstriped jerseys in existence , 1 in the Hall of fame , 1 in the Babe Ruth Museum and the one Donruss bought ( another appeared a couple years later and was extensively checked for authenticity before being sold at action to an unnamed buyer it was displayed at the national) so as for my vintage GU card i don't question for 1 second it is legit, but it seems the companies have gotten lazy about items and signatures being legit . Remember a couple years ago with UD's cut sig product and JSA not authenticating several auto's they (UD) had bought on the secondary market. and who can forget the Game used relic cards that ended up being pieces of a bench (Topps) you guys are right about the amount of shirts and pants players wear , when TG was chasing 3000 hits he changed after almost every hit he got, I worked the company that provided security at the Murph. So for baseball I don't question the Materials, now for Football thats a whole bother story the players don't own there jerseys the NFL does if fact players are fined or the team is when jerseys are not accounted for ( I also worked Chargers games and training center) every monday the jersey would go to the teams seamstress to be repaired . In fact I remember jerseys having the name and number removed and reused. I think that as collectors we like to think or have players actually used this stuff but if you actually didn't get it ( the memorabilia) from the player yourself will you ever REALLY Know for sure ?

[bustin 5 knots]

I remember watching an Astros-Reds game and when a bat broke the commentators were talking about how they give the bat to authenticators and stuff. I think most of them are legit