What Are The Best Tells For Stamped Signature Versus Genuine?

[RichardSimon]

Originally Posted by btcarfagno

I recently purchased a "Chicago Cubs Autograph Book" circa 1937. Really neat piece. 24 pages, each player has his own page. The book originally was said by the auction house (and JSA who never actually handled the piece which I still can't understand but whatever) to have 4 genuine autographs with the rest being stamped.

Here's my dilemma.

It seems to me that there are quite a few other actual signatures as well. There are quite a few that are obvious stamps, and then there are some that I am having trouble distinguishing. This is where I need some help.

What should I look for that will help me to distinguish the ones that may be stamps but aren't quite so obvious?

Thanks for any help.

Tom C

Tom,
I don't know if you have a jewelers loop but they are very helpful in distinguishing what is stamped and what is not.
Under the loop a "signature" that is stamped will have visible breaks and gaps throughout the signature. These are not visible to the naked eye but clearly visible under the loop.

[btcarfagno]

Originally Posted by RichardSimon

Tom,
I don't know if you have a jewelers loop but they are very helpful in distinguishing what is stamped and what is not.
Under the loop a "signature" that is stamped will have visible breaks and gaps throughout the signature. These are not visible to the naked eye but clearly visible under the loop.

Thanks Richard. I will definitely invest in one. The ones that I see that are obvious stamps have a kind of smudged look to them, and also have uniform pressure at the bottom and lighter pressure at the top.

The TPA said there are 4 genuine signatures (after just seeing pictures the auction house sent to them instead of actually holding the thing in hand). Yet when I flip through it, there are at least 10. Funny that.

Thanks again.

Tom C

[JimStinson]

I agree with Richard, also check for stress marks on verso, pen pressure will vary on a real signature usually at the beginning and/or end but won't on a stamped sig. Jewelers loop is helpful there too.
There is another handy gadget with a black light built in that has a loop for magnification , it fits in the palm of your hand and can be bought for around $75.00-$100.00, Maybe less , Sometimes the device can show you in a matter of a few seconds what you need to see and is also good at detecting if any modification has been done on a baseball or non-flat
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