Mantle/Mays autographs originals??opinions needed

leadoff4

Quick story... put an ad in the paper, an older gentleman(75+) calls and says he has cards, autos and old photos. I get there he has these 2 balls plus other autos. He's from New York originally. Says he was a member of the Yankee Hot Stove club(whatever that means). Has lots of old 60s and 70s yearbooks and programs. Has a COA on the Mays ball and pictures of him with Mantle during the signing. I have no reason to doubt him.... but any thoughts on these. He also has a photo he took of Nolan Ryan dated Aug. 1968 and Steve Carlton is in the background. I'm thinking of purchasing several items including yearbooks and programs. He has an autographed scorecard from the 1966 Kansas City Athletics with Killebrew's auto on it. Thanks for opinions. The Mays is on a Major League Ball, the Mantle is on an older Rawlings ball. Both are new.

storm888

The Mantle is a little disturbing.

I will post a PSA/DNA one in a minute.

airjoedan

They certainly look good to me - both match up to some authenticated ones I have/had. Great items, the Mantle ball looks fantastic!


- Joe


*edited to add: I'm not an expert, just comparing to some authenticated ones and they look so similar I truly can't tell the difference.

storm888

This is PSA/DNA

leadoff4

Keep the thoughts coming. The little bubble looking places on the Mays are from the camera being so close. Like I said, I have absolutely no reason to doubt this guy.

Southerncards

Mays is good, Mantle is a fake.

Allen

The "l" in Mantle looks odd to me. Maybe it is just me. If he has the pictures of him signing it then I would think there is no question. The Ryan pic could be a good one to get the negative of.

Allen

Now I know it is fake, the Mantle says right on it that it was signed in China, haha

beef316

The Mays looks a little funky. I have an 8x10 here he signed in front of me that I am comparing it to. Everything Looks good, but the 'M' doesn't have the flair to the right on top. I could be wrong. I am by no means an expert.

RipublicaninMass

both look fake to me, MAntle "moons" are TOO perfect same as was posted on the LAST "auto"

Willie doesn't even attempt to make squiggles, it is just basical Vttttt in script of course

cravetopps

Here are both my balls....

cravetopps

I am no autograph expert but both look questionable to me compared to the one's I have in the scans.

leadoff4

Bump! Just wondering if the type of pens used makes a difference.

cravetopps

I am sure it does, as do other factors. I don't sign my name the same way all the time. I guess the experts would have to judge. It's no big deal to submit these to PSA. Why they had these guys sign balls made in China is beyond me, though. That would kill it for me.

storm888

"Just wondering if the type of pens used makes a difference."

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Yup.

Time-periods, noted-illnesses and impairments, standing/sitting, etc. all make a difference.

That is one of the reasons why the huge assembly of exemplars at PSA/DNA is so valuable.

The subject autos may be just fine; unless I could steal them, I would not buy them without
PSA/DNA taking a look. (Your seller could be insulted by such a request, if he personally
obtained the sigs.)

leadoff4

Yeah, I think I can get the Mantle and Mays together for $100 or $150 at the most along with several nice old programs, etc. He also has a nice post card signed by Joe DiMaggio and Ara Parseghian. It's a hotel post card.

leadoff4

UPDATE... I'm pretty sure they are originals but the guy wants $100 for the Mays and $250 for the Mantle. I know the Mays isn't worth it to me and I probably won't get the Mantle either. I emailed PSA/DNA to see if they could do a quick opinion even though it's not an eBay auction. Has anyone tried that?

storm888

The guy's prices are too high.

Tell him to sell them on EBAY.

Or, that you will help him sell them on EBAY, after
he pays to get them authenticated.

Call PSA on Monday and get the straight scoop
on Quick-Opinion.

stevek

That Mantle autograph is a stone cold fake - no doubt about it!

DirtyHarry

I have both Mays and Mantle in person, and they look good to me.

Stone193

Authenticating is just plain hard - the Mick had a few ways he signed his "M's" - the first one here is from UD.

They look close but I just don't know.
mike

storm888

"They look close but I just don't know."

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That is why PSA/DNA needs to take a look at stuff
before we buy it.

stevek

When I commented, I didn't know there was a third pic on the right side in the first post, until I saw Mike's comparison. It's a tougher call now seeing a clear view of his first name. A very tough call. Like an ump who just called "Out" on a bang-bang play but is thinking of switching the call to "Safe" - LOL

leadoff4

Thanks for all the help guys. Like I said, he has a COA with the Mays and a picture with Mantle signing also but he's too high in his prices I think. There's a banner in the back of the Mantle picture and I think it has the letters UDA and then what the letters stand for or somethign like that. Anyway, I'm not big on autos, I just thought I could get these cheap. Anyway, he mentions eBay yesterday(after I showed he and his wife how to check email and use the internet) and says the Mays balls go for $100(which is wrong unless it's a PSA/DNA 9 or something). Again, thanks for all the help. I love this board and all the great members.