Stogieman Posted October 21 Author Posted October 21 I laughed when I saw the ribbon bar! Keeping my eye on it for chuckles!!
VtwinVince Posted October 21 Posted October 21 Indeed laughable, especially the Braunschweig Bewaehrungsabzeichen! But the Albert is far more worrying, as these latest Belgian fakes are getting downright scary.
Stogieman Posted October 22 Author Posted October 22 (edited) Good Morning! I agree wholeheartedly with you Vince. Not only Albert Order, but the Saxon Merit Order and a number of others from the duchies have been appearing. And they’re selling, so more keep flooding the market. I feel very strongly that this will ruin this hobby. It’s getting to the point where if it’s not coming out of an old collection it shouldn’t even be considered. Even at that, I’ve seen some questionable pieces at auction. As long as the uninformed keep buying, these copies will simply keep coming. Take a look at this variation of the “cased pilot set”. This seller from Germany has one a week! Plus PLMs, Grand Crosses, etc. I mean, at some point, you would think the buyer would say wait a minute. But they just keep selling and for stupid prices! The EK1 here looks good to me, but the case and Austrian badge are copies. The set sold for $607. The unmitigated greed of the seller gives me serious pause. But as long as there’s a group of willing buyers who can’t be bothered to do the research, this will continue. I started this thread with the hope of keeping the members informed of what’s happening and going on in the market. At this point, I’m getting more discouraged and depressed just looking back through the thread. Can you imagine how these buyers are going to react/feel at some point if they try to put their “collection” on the market with a legitimate seller or auction house? I simply cannot imagine having the resources to be pouring my money into a hobby but not spending the time, money and effort to do some research and get an education. I remember years ago, a former member of this forum reached out to me saying he wanted to collect ribbon bars and medal bars. Asked to buy an extensive list of pieces I had for sale at the time. My reply was that before buying the items he should invest his money in multiple reference books, read/study them. Reach out to the community and ask to visit/inspect/handle their collections and listen to their advice and experiences. I get the impression this just isn’t happening anymore. I don’t know if it’s because the internet has caused us to all become distant and isolated. I don’t think people are going to the major shows and events like OMSA anymore. Even I have let that membership lapse but I will leap at an opportunity to see/visit an older collection. There’s simply no substitute for handling the real deal. Once you’ve had 3 or 4 real PLMs in your hands you will never mistake what the copy is again. Yes, the fakers are getting more and more accurate and sophisticated but they haven’t achieved perfection yet. But you have to do your research. At this point, I’m beginning to start looking at and considering the lesser medals simply because there’s no real money in faking them! All of the sudden a Saxon FAM has more appeal to me than an Albert Order! Which is rather a shame as back when I started collecting I quickly fell quite enamored of Saxon enamel!! I don’t know where our hobby will go but I fear the plethora of fakes is diminishing the hobby.. At this point, I’m just sitting back and watching the decline. It’s making me feel very sad. Edited October 22 by Stogieman 2
Stogieman Posted October 22 Author Posted October 22 I really got amused at some of these offerings, how about this “1813 EK1” for $461?
Bernd_W Posted October 22 Posted October 22 3 hours ago, Stogieman said: I’m beginning to start looking at and considering the lesser medals simply because there’s no real money in faking them! https://www.warrelics.eu/forum/orders-decorations-third-reich/fake-1914-1918-ehrenkreuz-hindenburg-cross-422255/ Yes, I know, a collector would spot this easily. But it exists.
VtwinVince Posted October 22 Posted October 22 Rick, I completely agree with your synopsis of the hobby. I said some years ago that the fakery would ruin Imperial collecting, just as it did Third Reich a generation ago. I had an old acquaintance get in touch with me because he wanted to collect German flight badges of WW1. Unfortunately he decided to buy some without asking for an opinion first. When I told him that he was stuck with fakes, he wouldn't accept that and broke off all communication. Sometimes reality can be a bitter pill to swallow. And Bernd is right, I bought a group of items and in amongst them was a fake FEK.
Giannis S. Posted October 22 Posted October 22 But why would anyone bother making a fake Hindenburg cross or a similar value medal?
Bernd_W Posted October 22 Posted October 22 Why they build Dacia and not only Bentley? High quality fakes like Blass are so-called manufacture when its comes to the making. While you can pump out a few hundred FEKs per hour with a die stamp and a press.
VtwinVince Posted October 25 Posted October 25 Stumbled across this gratuitous crap on both German and US fleabay, apparently the same seller. Not even the EK` is real, and the Ludendorff attribution is about the stupidest thing I've seen.
Giannis S. Posted October 26 Posted October 26 12 hours ago, VtwinVince said: Stumbled across this gratuitous crap on both German and US fleabay, apparently the same seller. Not even the EK` is real, and the Ludendorff attribution is about the stupidest thing I've seen. You are absolutely right. I saw this Ludendorff "set", and said what the heck....
Stogieman Posted October 30 Author Posted October 30 To me, this is a copy badge and case, document not withstanding. Vince or Bern’s, can you please weigh in on the document? Final bid was $577
VtwinVince Posted October 30 Posted October 30 It's all fake Rick, the document in its syntax is not conducive with that period, and there are grammatical errors.
Stogieman Posted November 2 Author Posted November 2 On 25/10/2024 at 12:16, VtwinVince said: Stumbled across this gratuitous crap on both German and US fleabay, apparently the same seller. Not even the EK` is real, and the Ludendorff attribution is about the stupidest thing I've seen. Final bid on this set was $1425!
Giannis S. Posted November 5 Posted November 5 The "Ludendorff set", is back and asking 38000 Euros for it!!!
VtwinVince Posted November 5 Posted November 5 Yup, saw that. Astonishing gall to try and shill this junk as having anything to do with Ludendorff, looks more like something out of the film The Blue Max.
Stogieman Posted November 8 Author Posted November 8 It’s rather amazing to me what a little fake engraving can do! $414!
VtwinVince Posted November 9 Posted November 9 Seems like wrecking perfectly good EK's with spurious engraving is all the rage these days. Here's another with a laughable attempt at looking period correct.
Stogieman Posted November 12 Author Posted November 12 Everything about this badge is wrong! Obverse details, maker’s mark, reverse details, pin, catch and fake engraving. It sold for $715!
Stogieman Posted November 12 Author Posted November 12 Yet another fake 1870 “Grand Cross”, in the ever common fake case for $1350! I don’t know who’s buying this junk but I feel very sorry for them!
VtwinVince Posted November 12 Posted November 12 Oh dear, it never ends. I'm starting to wonder if any real people are actually wasting this much money.
Stogieman Posted November 13 Author Posted November 13 Another absolute piece of junk! “Prinzen Air Gunner Badge”, the usual suspect, $121
Stogieman Posted November 15 Author Posted November 15 This one is making the rounds again. It’s been listed twice since it first sold. Asking $499
Stogieman Posted November 15 Author Posted November 15 Gee whiz! This guy from Belgium will sell fakes of just about anything! Fake badge, fake card!
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