Wednesday, January 7, 2009

How to tell if your Beatles records are authentic


Found this interesting and thought to pass it along. while I was visiting the site (vinyl blast records), I noticed what a great selection they have, it is worth checking out!

I have also found these two sites very helpful when trying to figure out what kind of Beatles record I have:


http://www.jpgr.co.uk/i_vinyl.html

how-to-spot-fake-beatles-discs

Additional, we have own own Beatles expert in the Vinyl village forum. He is a Brit and really knows it stuff! Vinyl Village

How to tell if your Beatles records are authentic

Did you know that many, or most of the 1960's Beatles memorablilia are either reproductions or counterfeits? Well, unfortunately, they are. Here are the reasons why. The Beatles had a short span of years when almost everything sold had a Beatles theme on them. Bubble bath, sneakers, clothing, jewelry, posters, just to name a few. Even after the Beatles broke up, their authentic collectables were bought and sold by dealers. But after only a few years of Beatlesfests, all of the authentic items were gone. They had all been either purchased by fans, or were held onto by collectors who knew that they would be worth a lot of money in the future. So to quench the thirst for so many fans still wanting to pay top dollar for Beatles memorabilia, reproductions were made. Even after 40 years since the Beatles had their fame, fans are still paying top dollar for Beatles items. This led to the production of counterfeit items. Rulers, guitar picks, marbles, a 78 rpm record-listed but pulled off eBay, and many more items never even existed in the 60's. Much of what you see advertised as "Authentic Beatles NEMS, or Seltaeb (Beatles spelled backwards) dated 1964 and copy written," were produced in the early 90's in China. Made to closely resemble the originals, they are not exact matches. Authentic plastic guitar pins have a picture inserted into the body of the guitar, and a flat, round piece of clear plastic covering it. The fakes have blurry pictures not placed into the body of the guitar, but rather raised up using a clear plastic lens. On the neck of the fakes will read NEMS, while the original never had that marking. "A beatles brooch attached to original card that reads NEMS 1964", has a round pendant and a picture of Paul smiling. The original is a heart shaped pendant with a picture of Paul not smiling, but his eyes are looking upwards. Type Beatles into search on eBay and you will get over 20,000 items for sale. Many are authentic collectables made in the years that the Beatles were no longer a group, such as McFarlane Yellow Submarine action figures, or Franklin Mint musical domes. Nothing wrong with that, as they are listed truthfully. But when someone buys a blank disk go case for $5.00 and puts a 5 cent decal on it, and lists it as an "Authentic 1960's Beatles disk go case, there is definately something wrong with that!

You may ask what can a buyer do to not get ripped off when buying 1960's Beatles memorabilia. These are my recommendations. First, type the item name into search. If you find numerous items of that same nature, beware. Use common sense. Would any seller really list an authentic 1960's Beatles movie lobby card, jewelry, set of uncut trading cards, used/unused Beatles concert ticket, autographs, poster, pins, buttons, badges, clothing, hairspray, sneakers, lunchboxes, notebooks, bobbleheads, concert memorabilia, T shirts, sweat shirts, programs, flight bags, flicker pins, flicker rings, on and on for a no reserve $9.99 starting price auction? I doubt it.

TIPS

Check the seller's previous transactions. If that seller has sold many pieces of the same supposed 1960s Beatles item, they are probably fake. How could 1 person get so many of these extremely rare items. If the seller buys blank disk go cases and sells real 60's Beatles disk go cases-probably fake. If a seller has an abundance of different "Authentic NEMS or Seltaeb 1960's Beatles items", probably fake. If a seller has an "Authentic autograph with Certificate of Authenticity" and is selling it for less than $1000.00's- probably fake. One seller got caught selling fake original Beatles concert posters. His defense? "They are original, I created them!"

Visit Beatles websites. Search for Beatles items through the internet. Look at the prices that these authentic original 1960's Beatles memorabilia collectables cost. Then ask yourself, "Why would someone list a $10,000 piece of Beatles historical item for $50.00?" By now I think you know the answer.

In conclusion, there are very few original authentic 1960's Beatles collectables available. To obtain one, expect to pay $100.00's to $1,000's and up. Otherwise you are putting your hard earned money into some devious seller's pockets, and obtaining a ten cent piece of junk.

SOURCE: http://vinylblastrecords.goods.officelive.com/

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