Just wanted to add to the OP that there is a card show in Redford Michigan this Sunday from 9am to 2pm. https://www.facebook.com/RedfordCardShow/

I'm sure you could get an opinion there or at least actually see and feel an ungraded '52 common to compare with yours. Lots of older gentlemen selling 50's Topps cards set up shop at the show....like every other card show in America.

So like other Mantles on net54....we never get to see the results of a PSA submission... gone with the wind

I highly doubt there was ever a PSA submission.

When someone comes on the board with less than 20 posts and asks about a 52 Mantle, why do I always wonder if it's someone asking "how good does this fake look?" And then we tell them how to make the fake better. Just me being cynical I guess

cynicism-free zone
 

Those have been my suspicions, as well.:rolleyes:

What a cynical group :)

I always figure they are just looking for a sucker to buy their fake Mantle they bought off Etsy.

My thoughts as well.

You guys are probably right and if so think how maddening it must be for a guy to get all this advice about his card and what he should do with it when all he wants is an offer :)

100% Fake
 

Just peeked at the photos and no way is this card real. The scanner did a good job to capture the pattern of ink rosettes used in 4C printing. Among thest I;ve ever seen.

But, the corners are obviously hand-scraped on sandpaper or a file to round them. You can tell because the paper is curling on the rounded corners. Sure sign it's artificial wear created very quickly. Real wear would result in those paper fibers slowly wearing away leaving a diminished thickness of the stock on the worn corners. Luckily there is no counterfeit substitute for card wear that occurs over time.

Total 100% fake.

Sharp observations there about counterfeiting pitfalls, but unfortunately, there are apparently still plenty of the guys that P.T. Barnum referred to being born every minute.

I didn't disappear guys.....i should be hearing back from PSA any day now...It's supposed to take 7 days after they receive it and I'm on day 10.....growing impatient.....i'm really hoping that the extra time may be because it's legit.

I can tell you that the paper was not curling....may appear in the pic even though i just looked at my pics and i don't see what you referring to. Not dismissing your opinion and i agree the corner rounding without much wear is suspicious but it's possible it's legit and it was just trimmed or modified...which would still make it a legit card.

well if the card ends up being 'psa legit' then all of the people posting that its 100% fake etc will be looking pretty bad..

Good luck techkiller. I think PSA is swamped right now. I have sent some cards valued <$500 to them. They received on 11/24, entered in their system on 12/5!!!! and still "in process".

I called PSA and although they have not completed my submission yet (UGH!!!! Day 14 of estimated 7day) I was told the Mantle was found to be a counterfeit....even though it has the honeycomb printing....disappointing for sure but it was a $25 lottery ticket so i'm not that upset.

Actually the grades just posted on their site.....The 52 Mantle was graded "N4 Questionable Authenticity".....my question to all of you....what does that even mean?

Just a guess here but I'd say the info they gathered is inconclusive, meaning they are not 100% sure it is fake but something is there that is telling them not to grade it as real either?

It could be a very good fake or a very poor genuine.

Glad to read it was only $25 bucks for you.

It means fake, but it also means their lawyers won't let them call it "FAKE" for the 0.001% chance that the card is real.

It means you can list it on eBay with a picture of the card and the flip and make hundreds of dollars. Seriously.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mickey-Mant...cAAOSwHNxaQd6S

Not surprised at all for the identifying reason I noted in my post

Still can buy a ton of 6 dollar mantles and sell it at yard sales with old stuff ans ask 25 dollars on it...thats still 4x your money if the guy even paid that much before sold to you....

Thanks for coming back to fill us in with the results, tech.

At least you will save a lot in grading fees versus if the mantle turned out to be real. You saved a lot there at least.

Would have been a nice story if it was real, but 1) '52 Mantle's have been reprinted/faked for 40 years and 2) I'm always suspicious when the ONE card someone "finds in their attic" is a high dollar card. Where are the other '52's in the stash? No wrappers? No other years? Seems ridiculous to me.

Except I've seen something close. (Not 52 Mantle high dollar, but at the time a nice card)
A friend of mine asked if I could check out his collection before he gave it to a family member. Just a quick "oh yeah, can you check out my collection" just before we headed out drinking.
That was a surprise, since I didn't think he even had a collection at all.

I was nearly right - 4 cards, between 71 and 73 including a Schmidt rookie.

I've also come across antique dealers with one card of a star from the 50's. It's less common, but for a while some dealers would buy only a card or two from a collection, or just a single from a random seller.

I got my Baker silk at a coin show that way, it was the only baseball card the dealer had.