For a mere $650.00, you could own.....

[stogieman]

..... this really disgusting, FAKE, First Class Star of the Red Eagle Order from Prussia!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=13965

Check his other listing, a nice FAKE 1870 EK1 for a mere $450.00

[JensF.]

What a wonderful and well made star! Could be Wagner or Godet.

[Vadim K]

and guess what, folks, someone just took Stogieman's advice and bought it... What a wise way to invest $650!!! And whoever bought it HAD to use Buy It Now as they simply could not wait to add that fine decoration to their collection.
I love the part of his description where he says: "It is NOT the heavy silver Prussian State Mint issue ($5000.plus),it is the Jeweler (Paul Meybauer)example for wear in place of the incredibly heavy issue example,which was impractical for wear" Hear that, folks? Impractical to wear!!! Live and learn...

I have looked at this guy's auctions for a while, the only real stuff he sells is books... And yet he manages to have 99.2% positive feedback.

[Brian S]

Nicely aged fake. He passes it off as a wear model by Meybauer. Why would anyone buy wear models to go with a nice Wagner or Godet? Were there cheaper versions of these awards? I suppose if you were going to slam down a few shooters with the Feldwebel you would not want to pin on your best.

[Rick Research]

Let this be Yet Another Grim Object Lesson to those of you who believe that "reference books are a waste of money when I could be buying STUFF."

"Trophy buying" based on profound ignorance (I'm struggling to be charitable ) and apparently unlimited pockets is a sure GUARANTEE of having a house fullo The World's Most Expensive Worthless Junk.

Bet on it-- if you collect by betting you can make sharp deals this way.

[Daniel Krause]

Ach Du Sch......!!!

It is not even a well-made copy that an unexperienced one can jump on it! Information is really everything.
And the description is really nonsense!

[eschena]

...and yet, the real tragedy is, because someone DID buy it, more fakers will be lured into the apparently VERY profitable trade of Peddling to the Gullible/Ignorant, with the side effect of helping to make the real stuff that much more more dear (and hence more expensive)

<sigh> moremad

[JBFloyd]

It's long been obvious why this guy runs private auctions -- it keeps his elite clientele in the dark (like mushrooms).

He also doesn't respond well when told that his stuff is crap. He threatens all concerned with every possible dire consequence.

[indyarchie]

Scary

Unfortunately this guy is from southern Indiana. He set up at booth at a recent militaria show here in Indy...a 3 day show....he packed up and left after the first night, after the other collectors/venders let him know what they thought of his fakes he was passing off as authentic.

I was glad they did that.

[Tim Tezer]

I think what's particularly interesting (and shocking) is that this piece looks like it was never intended to be a deceptive fake. It probably was a toy item sold as a trinket or maybe given away in a cereal box. It's not even close to the real thing. So it was really just a cheap copy until someone decided to describe it as a "jeweler copy" - then it became a FAKE.

I have seen this seller on Ebay, and I usually get a good laugh out of him, but these poor fools that are buying his junk probably won't find it so funny.

Tim

[paddywhack]

he treats his clients loke mushrooms
ie keeps them in the dark and feeds them bulls**t!!
(kinda like how i keep my parents about what i collect!! )

[RichardC]

Fakes on Ebay

Hey guys...i was just wondering do any of you ever warn the high bidders of potential fakes on Ebay that they are fakes ..before they spend hundreds of dollars on them?..if so what are some of the responses you get? What about contacting the seller and "calling him out' on his rip-off scheme?...i'm a newbie at the collecting game..but i sure enjoy the reading about scam auctions on Ebay on this site..now i look at all the auctions with a little caution..especially the ones from other countries....

[Vadim K]

Richard, we had a few threads about this already. Some of us do it, including myself. You have to proceed with caution though as both buyer and seller can technically report you to Ebay and get you suspended: buyer for "unsolicited e-mails", seller for "interfering with the auction".