Posted By:
HankronMy personal recommendation to beginners or not so beginners collecting Pre-WWII cards is to get a handheld microscope of good power, and study the multi-color dot pattern of modern cards, modern postcards, etc. Once you know what these modern items look like under the microscope, you will know what most early baseball cards do NOT look like under the microscope.
This is rule of thumb, rather than an absolute rule as there will always be exceptions to any rule, but almost NO early baseball cards-- from Allen & Ginters to T206 Honus Wagners to 1933 Goudey Babe Ruths-- have the multi-color dot pattern of a modern baseball card or postcard. And almost all reprints of those items will.
So any collector, even those who are just starting out, who has a nice little microscope and knows what a modern color half-tone printing looks like (by examining items around the house) is going to be able to identify or at least be wary of nearly all reprints and counterfeits of early cards.
Beleive me, it's as simple as that.