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RIP Bob Hudson, USMF Founder

Fake, Fantasy & Reproduction Wing Examples

pconrad02

By pconrad02,
in WING BADGES

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rustywings

rustywings

Posted
Posted
Every one a hideous fake.

 

Absolutely my friend! But big money continues to be thrown down for this seemingly unending collection of crap. Did you see the final prices on the five he listed last week?

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flyingfortress

flyingfortress

Posted
Posted

Buyer beware although there are already bidders on two of the wings. Lots of fraud and deception on eBay and too many uneducated buyers. Sad commentary for the collecting community.

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pfrost

pfrost

Posted
Posted
Buyer beware although there are already bidders on two of the wings. Lots of fraud and deception on eBay and too many uneducated buyers. Sad commentary for the collecting community.

 

It is ironic because novice collectors probably have the best opportunity to learn about wings than all of us who have preceded them in the collecting world ever had. Between internet resources (like this one), the high quality and clear photographs of a wide range of wings in the first two Pinks and Greens books, websites, and even ebay, no one should ever be able to argue ignorance anymore.

 

Oh well.

 

Maybe the mods can at least move these pictures to the fakes and reproduction thread?

 

Thanks for posting them Russ.

P

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horsa

horsa

Posted
Posted
It is ironic because novice collectors probably have the best opportunity to learn about wings than all of us who have preceded them in the collecting world ever had. Between internet resources (like this one), the high quality and clear photographs of a wide range of wings in the first two Pinks and Greens books, websites, and even ebay, no one should ever be able to argue ignorance anymore.

 

Oh well.

 

Maybe the mods can at least move these pictures to the fakes and reproduction thread?

 

Thanks for posting them Russ.

P

 

 

The first act of a potential buyer, especially on Ebay, should be to size-up a seller. Not by looking at feedback ( most selling fakes have 100 percent ) but by seeing what else the seller is and has been selling. In my experience most of those selling fakes tend to be people who specialize in Militaria. Sometimes it's a means to get rid of bad purchases on their part, mostly it's a deliberate effort to defraud. But by looking at a seller's history it's often possible to characterize a seller. This is by no means foolproof, but I think when contemplating a purchase on Ebay it should the first step. Next step is to work from a premise that the item is a fake, and then work towards what makes it genuine.

 

Coincidentally an airborne wing with British-made pin identical to the one that was discussed here recently is now on Ebay, so there must be a batch of them.

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MikeK

MikeK

Posted
Posted
Larger image of Ebay #160449837702

 

 

The one in Post#12 might have been a genuine "sweetheart" wing that has been "upgraded" by punchmarking a heap of stars on the top of the shield and sticking on the "US".

 

Regards

Mike

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rustywings

rustywings

Posted
Posted

The first act of a potential buyer, especially on Ebay, should be to size-up a seller. Not by looking at feedback ( most selling fakes have 100 percent ) but by seeing what else the seller is and has been selling. In my experience most of those selling fakes tend to be people who specialize in Militaria. Sometimes it's a means to get rid of bad purchases on their part, mostly it's a deliberate effort to defraud. But by looking at a seller's history it's often possible to characterize a seller. This is by no means foolproof, but I think when contemplating a purchase on Ebay it should the first step. Next step is to work from a premise that the item is a fake, and then work towards what makes it genuine.

 

 

 

Wise words horsa. Your approach to Ebay buying is a must for us all.

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pfrost

pfrost

Posted
Posted

I concur with Russ,

 

It used to be easier to use ebay and weed out the con artists. Now, it is much harder, but with careful work and good documentation, it is still possible.

 

One really important thing to do is to keep careful documentation of all interactions with the seller. If I have ANY concerns about an item, I always ask for their return policy. Because this is always via email, it is already in writing--and I keep it filed on my computer if I win the auction. It makes returning something so much easier if I have been conned. once, I bought a wing from a guy because I thought it may have been a rare theater-made variation (or it could have been a bad casting of a wing). I was very polite and said something like "because it is hard to know from just scans or pictures, do you offer a return policy that I can return the wing if I think it is a casting or if I don't like it for any reason? If I do return it, I will be happy to pay any ebay or shipping fees, of course. Or do you have some sort of restrictions on returns?" Since they said I could return it with out any restrictions, I bid accordingly. When I got it, I was convinced it was a fake. When I tried to return it then started to hem and haw and didn't want to take it back, so I simply resent them their original email that said I could return it for any reason. It makes it a lot easier when they have said in their own words that they will take it back for any reason! They weren't happy, but they took it back.

 

If they don't agree to a written return policy, I simply won't be as aggressive in my bidding unless I am prepared to lose the money. The beauty of ebay is that something is ALWAYS being offered. Just be patient.

 

It seems to me that this guy got lucky on some auctions early on and decided to cash in with a bunch of other crud.

 

p

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John Cooper

John Cooper

Posted
Posted

One can only hope that we can help folks out with our forum... I think it is a SAD COMMENTARY as well but not on the collector community but people in general.... is not GREED one of the seven deadly sins?

 

Russ thanks for posting these it was on my list of to do's! - I will attempt to move this thread to the FAKES pinned thread so as to keep this at the top.

 

As far as fakes go these are of low quality except for the wing in post #12 which I guess falls into the hybrid fake catagory i.e. using an older wing and altering it to make it somehting else. I think the construction style of these wings will look familiar to some folks here...

 

Cheers

John

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John Cooper

John Cooper

Posted
Posted
Here's five wings currently listed on ebay by the same seller. Opinions?

Ebay #160449835332.

 

 

I forgot to add... if buyer gets it for $99 then it is a good deal compared to the catalog price for this wing from the maker which is $300... as long as he knows it is a reproduction.

 

John

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rustywings

rustywings

Posted
Posted
what about these...currently listed

 

 

Brig, it sure looks like the balloon pilot wing is made up of some of the same components seen in the pilot wing examples currently listed on ebay. Just more junk in my opinion.

 

Russ

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