Help Fake or Misprints?

[potentialbuyer]

I found these cards in an auction, but can't determine whether they're fake or misprints. Sorry for the tiny images, but that's all I have.

https://s30.postimg.org/g8cjt0331/diglett.jpg (Diglett)
https://s30.postimg.org/q6xifhcil/vaporeon.jpg (Vaporeon)

I know that there are holo Vaporeons without the Jungle symbol, but I can't find anything on it's non holo version. Also, I can't find a single 1st print Team Rocket Diglett that's holo outside of this auction.

 

[Epidal]

The holo diglett is most certainly fake, as holographic cards require an extra white layer that is applied before the rest of the ink in order to select which parts allow the holographic paper to show through, and I doubt that the team that lays out the cards creates these white layers for every card in the set.
Without seeing a larger image of the Vaporeon, I couldn't say whether it's a photoshop, a fake card or a scan of a real card.

 

[Surfbay]

What exactly is meant when people refer to "FAKE" cards ???

Are there people out there making forgeries of our beloved Pokemon cards.

How do we get to tell the difference. What is a REAL" Pokemon card.

 

[Epidal]

What exactly is meant when people refer to "FAKE" cards ??? ... What is a REAL" Pokemon card.

A "real" Pokémon card is one printed by either Wizards of the Coast or The Pokémon Company International. Anything else is fake.

Are there people out there making forgeries of our beloved Pokemon cards.

Yes. People *coughchinesecough* have been making fake Pokémon cards since they first started being printed. In fact, you can find a lot of them for super cheap if you search for "Pokemon Go TCG" on ebay.

How do we get to tell the difference.

These cards are usually made by scanning legitimate cards, so the quality is very poor. Combine that with the very cheap production process and you end up with something that looks like utter garbage, so you can usually tell right away when a card is fake, especially when you put it next to a real card. The key things to look for are:

• the card stock quality (real cards use ~305-310 gsm black core card stock, which is what gives it that "snap")
• the overall colour (fakes tend to either be faded or overly saturated to try and make up for the poor scan quality)
• the text placement, wording, font and colour
• the "feel" of the card (fakes use an inferior card coating, if any).

Also, if the card was made before 2003 (ie. by Wizards of the Coast), you can usually tell a fake by the poor cutting/alignment (when The Pokémon Company International took over printing of the cards, the quality of the cuts dropped drastically...)

tl;dr: it's pretty easy to tell a fake from a real at a glance.

 

[The-Kaiser]

Not sure why the Diglett is a holo unless its a misprint or fake. The Vaporeon looks legit

 

[Surfbay]

A "real" Pokémon card is one printed by either Wizards of the Coast or The Pokémon Company International. Anything else is fake.


Yes. People *coughchinesecough* have been making fake Pokémon cards since they first started being printed. In fact, you can find a lot of them for super cheap if you search for "Pokemon Go TCG" on ebay.


These cards are usually made by scanning legitimate cards, so the quality is very poor. Combine that with the very cheap production process and you end up with something that looks like utter garbage, so you can usually tell right away when a card is fake, especially when you put it next to a real card. The key things to look for are:

• the card stock quality (real cards use ~305-310 gsm black core card stock, which is what gives it that "snap")
• the overall colour (fakes tend to either be faded or overly saturated to try and make up for the poor scan quality)
• the text placement, wording, font and colour
• the "feel" of the card (fakes use an inferior card coating, if any).

Also, if the card was made before 2003 (ie. by Wizards of the Coast), you can usually tell a fake by the poor cutting/alignment (when The Pokémon Company International took over printing of the cards, the quality of the cuts dropped drastically...)

tl;dr: it's pretty easy to tell a fake from a real at a glance.

Thank you for your feedback and information you offered in your post. All very interesting and I hope to put it to good use.

What I don't seem to understand is why "FAKE" ---- from China, Pokemon Cards are so popular on Ebay. It makes me think !!!

And what about "Pokemon GO" cards, for an online game???

 

[mordacazir]

Thank you for your feedback and information you offered in your post. All very interesting and I hope to put it to good use.

What I don't seem to understand is why "FAKE" ---- from China, Pokemon Cards are so popular on Ebay. It makes me think !!!

And what about "Pokemon GO" cards, for an online game???

Pokemon GO cards are really fake, and the reason why tcg cards on ebay do so well is because moms of little kids buy them because there cheap.