[scottglevy]

First,

I happen to believe your story entirely. And in the long-run $125 is not a lot of money to lose on a scam --- I've certainly gotten burnt worse than that.

There's no need to destroy reprints....in fact, if you're looking to build a set, they can be neat placeholders until you get the 'real thing'. You could either stamp them as reprints or if not, just mention them as reprints in any sale you make...if disclosed, there's nothing wrong with selling a reprinted card.

When I first got really into the hobby, I started with a bunch of lower grade, raw (unslabbed) T206 cards. These don't have to cost a lot of money ... you can probably find 10 sorta beat up cards for around $80-$100. Buy them, look at them closely, study their color and typography, feel their texture, sniff them, look at the way that the edges and borders are cut, measure them..... just really understand what they are.

After you have thoroughly studied them ... compare them against your reprints. Notice the difference in paper stock, gloss, etc. The reprints will probably have black names on the bottom ... the real cards will be a dark brown and the typeface will likely differ.....subtleties like that enable you to learn for the next time.

Best,
Scott