Author (Read 53764 times)

phantom1412 · « **Reply #50 on:** January 03, 2014, 10:00:23 AM »

I think we should let people know about how to detect the fake decks. At least without opening the decks, we can easily see at the bottom of the decks. Of course if you open the decks you can tell which one is fake by the feel of paper/stock/finish.

agera94 · « **Reply #51 on:** January 04, 2014, 02:20:37 AM »

When you're selling rare decks like this guy is, most people won't open them up. I may buy one of his more common rarer decks to open it up and compare it.

Don Boyer · « **Reply #52 on:** January 04, 2014, 03:17:05 AM »

Quote from: phantom1412 on January 03, 2014, 10:00:23 AM

I think we should let people know about how to detect the fake decks. At least without opening the decks, we can easily see at the bottom of the decks. Of course if you open the decks you can tell which one is fake by the feel of paper/stock/finish.

...or the spelling of "Magic Heyond Reliep"...

It's not always so easy to spot the fakes, particularly if the fakes are good and you've never owned the originals. Alex mentioned he's seen some Jerry's fakes that actually perform rather nicely.

FrenchFryNecromancer · « **Reply #53 on:** January 05, 2014, 01:00:22 AM »

Quote from: Ratledge on January 01, 2014, 05:23:35 PM

I have to agree that he has a good track record except for two "Neutral" feedbacks and two "Negative" feebacks, one of which I think is the original poster's (ref: fake gaffs), the other one is about a deck of JNugs that arrived "damaged". Since it went for $550, I think I would have raised a bit more of a stink!

I'm not 100% sure, because this happened back in August 2012.... but I don't think I was allowed to leave negative feedback for rareangpow.

I used whatever piece of $#@! resolution center process eBay had available at that time (around August 2012). Not sure if the process has changed since then. Anyway, I had to open a case, describe the issue, and wait for the seller to have a chance to respond. Had to given him like X number of days. I think I ended up waiting around 1 month or 2 months. It felt like an eternity waiting for a response from the eBay crew to take action. I believe I ended up opening a case on the PayPal site as well, which then I think trumped and/or closed out the eBay case... ? (I can't quite remember this part of the details.... except that it was really stupid.)

Due to the lack of satisfactory support within a reasonable (in my mind) timeframe from both eBay and PayPal staff... I ended up calling up DiscoverCard. I believe Discover reversed the charge very quickly so the money was now missing from PayPal's pocket. Discover did this first, and THEN began to investigate the story.... which also had to sit open for investigation for like 1 or 2 months. Anyway, this immediate charge reversal probably lit a fire under PayPal's butt. They got the seller to issue a full refund (which only restored PayPal's missing money and restored my PayPal account to "good standing"). Yeah, I almost forgot about that... after I did the DiscoverCard thing charge reversal, PayPal froze up my account so I couldn't use it temporarily. Real nice move PayPal.... stay classy! (Way to support legitimate users.)

The seller, for his part, did email me back and forth several times towards the beginning of this fiasco and wanted to get all the cards back in his possession in order to give me a refund. No way was I going to give him the evidence I had, and no way was I going to pay to ship this thing back to Malaysia. I finally agreed to destroy all the decks to his satisfaction, which involved cutting all the boxes in half, and cutting in half one important card from each deck. Once I sent him photo documentation of this, he issued the full refund to PayPal, and PayPal restored my account.

Anyway, I can't be 100% sure, but I don't think the resolution center allowed me to leave negative feedback. I do know, however, that as a Seller (more recently when I sold my used iPhone), if a buyer never pays, and I use the resolution center then I CAN NOT enter negative feedback. The buyer just gets a non-paying bidder strike or some such nonsense. Pretty dumb.

I guess eBay figures if all the buyers and sellers have "EXCELLENT FEEDBACK" then more transactions will go down and they can keep scraping their % off the top. Cha-Chiiiiing!!! $ $ $ $$$ $$$$

DISCLAIMER: I may be feeling a tad bitter/jaded right now.

Quote from: CBJ on January 03, 2014, 09:53:42 AM

Ellusionist Magic Heyond Reliep"

Wow. (Smacks forehead) I just went to check the UltraGaff counterfeits I still have in my closet, and surprise surprise.... they have the same misspelling on the bottom of the box! Can't believe I somehow missed this in my original "investigative work". Be glad I'm not a detective.... the killer would still be at large.

FrenchFryNecromancer · « **Reply #54 on:** January 12, 2014, 02:13:21 AM »

Here are some of the UltraGaff photos I took comparing the counterfeit deck with the real thing.

Both of these photos demonstrate differences, but perhaps in a surprising way, since the fake versions almost look more polished. In both of these fakes you can see (if you click the photo to see the big version) that the lines are more sharp and clearly defined. However, in the real version these lines are made up more of little tiny dots.

This is especially apparent on the edges of the body of the angel riding the bicycle in 2nd set of photos. There is some type of shading created in the original art with the little dots that is not present on the fake. (Not to mention that the red card changing to blue pattern is clearly different as well.)

NOTE: See the file names I have given below each of the photos to clearly identify which are 'fake' or 'real'.

FrenchFryNecromancer · « **Reply #55 on:** January 12, 2014, 02:15:07 AM »

And a few more...

The differences on these are a little more obvious. The fakes look much worse than the original art.

Justin O. · Quote from: touya on September 15, 2019, 03:53:04 AM

Received a full refund from seller.

Will report to eBay.

Yashi · « **Reply #57 on:** January 14, 2014, 08:03:08 PM »

Photoshop fail. But I would have been a sucker if I bought the fake ones since I don't own any originals.

jwats01 · « **Reply #58 on:** January 28, 2014, 09:31:59 PM »

Wow. I'm so glad I found this post. I wanted some Ace Fulton's Game of Death and this guy has them:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-DECKS-BUNDLE-Fultons-Game-of-Death-Chinatown-Clip-Joint-Private-Reserve-/111179409729?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19e2cf2941

But thanks to you guys, I'm staying far away, and will keep looking. Crazy!
Thanks all!

Don Boyer · « **Reply #59 on:** January 29, 2014, 03:07:49 AM »

Quote from: jwats01 on January 28, 2014, 09:31:59 PM

Wow. I'm so glad I found this post. I wanted some Ace Fulton's Game of Death and this guy has them:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-DECKS-BUNDLE-Fultons-Game-of-Death-Chinatown-Clip-Joint-Private-Reserve-/111179409729?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19e2cf2941

But thanks to you guys, I'm staying far away, and will keep looking. Crazy!
Thanks all!

If the first two photos are his, then something's wrong - the decks don't appear to have cellophane on them!

Nurul · « **Reply #60 on:** January 29, 2014, 08:33:45 AM »

They do have cellophane, u can see the glare from the flash on the game of death death deck.

Also, although his items are very controversial, not all of them are. I bought this bundle ( for cheaper price) and as far as I could tell, nothing was wrong with them. I've since sold them on, n the person who bought them has never got back to me with anything. Hope that helps.

Mike Ratledge · « **Reply #61 on:** March 08, 2014, 08:39:17 PM »

Dunno. I've come to the conclusion that this guy is an opportunist and likely dumb-arse, but not a deliberate ripoff. I have communicated with him directly by email, run a little bit of behind the scene sketch-work from the 'office' and everything checks out. I have gotten a few really good deals from him, and the ones that I have picked are definitely NOT fakes. He does have some stuff there that I have to believe isn't genuine, but I'm in the boat that he's not honest to a fault but he's not deliberately being a crook, either. Just to be safe, after reading all this and digesting it I purposely ordered a couple of black back SS/Lion decks from him and inspected one, it's absolutely 100% genuine. There's still those two Centurion decks that definitely are NOT genuine that are sitting in my walk-in vault from a purportedly different Malaysian user, but I'm thinking he got them from someone that is producing the fakes and not the source. Now, is he aware that some of it isn't genuine, you'd have to assume so because talking to him personally on a 1-to-1 level he doesn't come off as an idiot, either.

As always, buyer beware, your mileage WILL vary, etc, etc.

Ben Taylor · « **Reply #62 on:** March 20, 2014, 01:21:09 AM »

This is a different seller, but these decks are also fake.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/151251566902

I've been looking for the Ultragaff deck for a while, so I jumped on this, since it was a relatively low price. I noticed "MAGIC HEYOND RELIEP" on the bottom, a Google search brought me to this post. I opened an eBay dispute, I'll see where that goes.

Don Boyer · « **Reply #63 on:** March 20, 2014, 09:57:11 AM »

Guys, due to light activity, I'm shutting down this board and combining the topics into a single sticky topic on the STISO board. Look for it there. READ THE FIRST POST, PLEASE for the updated rules.

Sher143 · « **Reply #64 on:** April 30, 2014, 09:53:53 AM »

WARNING: Another fake deck on ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bicycle-ULTRAGAFF-deck-by-Ellusionist-Signed-by-Wayne-Houchin-EXTREMELY-RARE-/111337446770?&_trksid=p2056016.m2518.l4276

Picture below shows that box has "Magic Heyond Reliep" on it.

Don Boyer · « **Reply #65 on:** April 30, 2014, 03:37:33 PM »

Quote from: Sher143 on April 30, 2014, 09:53:53 AM

WARNING: Another fake deck on ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bicycle-ULTRAGAFF-deck-by-Ellusionist-Signed-by-Wayne-Houchin-EXTREMELY-RARE-/111337446770?&_trksid=p2056016.m2518.l4276

Picture below shows that box has "Magic Heyond Reliep" on it.

Well, there's that, and the fact that Wayne doesn't spell his first name "Wyn" - and I consider it very unlikely that he'd initial his signature!

ruicorreia · « **Reply #66 on:** July 11, 2014, 01:37:48 PM »

Hi guys. Just letting you know of a problem that I'm having for some time now with a supplier that is not being honest. I'm not saying not to buy anything from him, I'm just saying be careful.
The supplier is Kingmagic.
I've placed an order that I knew that would take quite a while to arrive. I arrived to the point of forgetting that order. Because it was taking so long, I've e-mailed them asking if they knew something. They answered that I never paid for shipping so they never shipped anything. I was surprised because I've placed a regular order, paid for what they asked and they never said anything.
To make this short: they asked me more money to ship. I said that in that case I wasn't interested and I've asked for a refund. Iv'e sent e-mail's, I've opened cases on their website, I've reached them on Gmail chat... all the ways I could.
The only answer is: silence. They don't give a damn.

So, be advised. With these guys, don't you ever, ever let the Paypal protection expire. They are not serious.

halcyondaze · « **Reply #67 on:** July 25, 2014, 09:24:31 AM »

Reena Joy designs, the "wonderful" creators of the Relic collection (HTTP://www.kickstarter.com/projects/reenajoydesigns/relic-playing-cards-collection. They had asked folks that were still interested to help pay for it, and since this was one of the first decks I had backed I was a bit naive on things at that time.
So i contacted them yesterday to get an update on the progress of the cards. Below is the reply they gave me.

Hi Backers

We had submitted the order but due to a misprinted run and a manufacturer disagreement, we will no longer be able to have the cards printed. According to the manufacturer we will not be getting a full refund therefore we have to fork out some of the funds out of our own pocket, we appreciate all your support and we apologize for this inconvenience. We will be sending out refunds to you as soon as we can. We will keep you informed about the progress.

Thank you

Keith

Also
Their Morse card campaign failed, justifiably
HTTP://www.kickstarter.com/projects/reenajoydesigns/morse-code-playing-cards-printed-by-uspcc

Don Boyer · « **Reply #68 on:** July 25, 2014, 08:25:02 PM »

Quote from: ruicorreia on July 11, 2014, 01:37:48 PM

Hi guys. Just letting you know of a problem that I'm having for some time now with a supplier that is not being honest. I'm not saying not to buy anything from him, I'm just saying be careful.
The supplier is Kingmagic.
I've placed an order that I knew that would take quite a while to arrive. I arrived to the point of forgetting that order. Because it was taking so long, I've e-mailed them asking if they knew something. They answered that I never paid for shipping so they never shipped anything. I was surprised because I've placed a regular order, paid for what they asked and they never said anything.
To make this short: they asked me more money to ship. I said that in that case I wasn't interested and I've asked for a refund. Iv'e sent e-mail's, I've opened cases on their website, I've reached them on Gmail chat... all the ways I could.
The only answer is: silence. They don't give a damn.

So, be advised. With these guys, don't you ever, ever let the Paypal protection expire. They are not serious.

Where would one find Kingmagic? eBay, Amazon, their own web page?

Quote from: halcyondaze on July 25, 2014, 09:24:31 AM

Reena Joy designs, the "wonderful" creators of the Relic collection (HTTP://www.kickstarter.com/projects/reenajoydesigns/relic-playing-cards-collection. They had asked folks that were still interested to help pay for it, and since this was one of the first decks I had backed I was a bit naive on things at that time.
So i contacted them yesterday to get an update on the progress of the cards. Below is the reply they gave me.

Hi Backers

We had submitted the order but due to a misprinted run and a manufacturer disagreement, we will no longer be able to have the cards printed. According to the manufacturer we will not be getting a full refund therefore we have to fork out some of the funds out of our own pocket, we appreciate all your support and we apologize for this inconvenience. We will be sending out refunds to you as soon as we can. We will keep you informed about the progress.

Thank you

Keith

Also
Their Morse card campaign failed, justifiably
HTTP://www.kickstarter.com/projects/reenajoydesigns/morse-code-playing-cards-printed-by-uspcc

As unpleasant as that situation sounds, at least they're answering people and offering (eventual) refunds. I wouldn't completely write them off just yet.

Please keep us informed of any change in the situation.

publius · « **Reply #69 on:** August 25, 2014, 04:53:39 PM »

Thank you to everyone for all of the priceless info here. I am sorry that the way you became educated on all of the fakes was through the loss of your money in purchasing them. However, your experiences have helped new and naive collectors such as myself. A consolation that leaves much to be desired, I know.

I also noticed on the fake tuck bottoms that feature the ubiquitous "HEYOND RELIEP" nonsense, the address for USPCC is Cincinnati, OH - instead of Erlanger, where they were when these supposed decks were printed.

I feel much more informed now - I would have surely fallen in some of these traps!

Don Boyer · « **Reply #70 on:** August 25, 2014, 07:34:20 PM »

A follow-up on the Relic Collection by Reena Joy Designs: looks like they pulled down the circus tent and left town (translation: they shut down their website and the domain is available from GoDaddy). As a word of caution, if a Kickstarter project creator has a failed project and they approach you about funding after the fact, go into the deal with both eyes open and the BS detector fully charged, especially if they have no established history of success.

Publius, I'm glad you are finding this topic useful. It's why it's here!

iDoctor · « **Reply #71 on:** September 16, 2014, 04:23:07 AM »

Quote from: FrenchFryNecromancer on December 28, 2013, 01:10:55 PM

I would advise to avoid buying from this ebay seller (rareangpow) from Malaysia.
I tried reporting him on eBay about a year ago but eBay continues to allow him to sell....... which is a shame. .........................................................
I just wanted to spread the word. I seriously do not recommend buying from this guy.

I just wanted to confirm the FrenchFryNecromancer's word about eBay seller rareangpow. His name is Alvin or Lau Luang Hung, email alvinling2006@yahoo.com, and he trades from Malaysia. In my case, after I purchased some D&D decks from him, he has offered me to sign - in few hours - ANY of D&D decks at Dan and Dave for additional $15 (but if I pay outside eBay only!).
I've spent a time and I've requested Bucks bros. about this guy and his fantastic ability to sign any of decks by D&D original signatures in few hours. Their answer was very polite but absoluthely clear. They have answered that they had sold Alvin cards IN THE PAST.
So I also do not recommend buying anything from this guy...

Mr.parangot · « **Reply #72 on:** August 03, 2015, 11:47:02 AM »

Are you sure that he is the same guy? I also did business with him (Alvin Ling) , but I sold him a deck of green rarebit playing cards 6 weeks ago and he contacted me now, that they never arrived. I started an investigation request now with DHL and I'm waiting for their response. Seems I have to be careful, with whom I'm dealing. But to his defense, He paid on time per paypal. I keep you updated.

Don Boyer · « **Reply #73 on:** August 03, 2015, 12:08:52 PM »

Quote from: Mr.parangot on August 03, 2015, 11:47:02 AM

Are you sure that he is the same guy? I also did business with him (Alvin Ling) , but I sold him a deck of green rarebit playing cards 6 weeks ago and he contacted me now, that they never arrived. I started an investigation request now with DHL and I'm waiting for their response. Seems I have to be careful, with whom I'm dealing. But to his defense, He paid on time per paypal. I keep you updated.

Whenever dealing with a trader overseas, use a trackable method for shipping. Then they can claim all they want that something never arrived, but if you have a deliver confirmation, you can call bullshit. Because eBay tends to protect buyers more than sellers, you always need to insure your ass is covered. Prompt payment doesn't mean crap in such circumstances - they want to look good for eBay when they later make their (allegedly fraudulent) claim.

Mr.parangot · « **Reply #74 on:** August 03, 2015, 05:08:43 PM »

The problem is I shipped it with tracking number, but it can't be found by the system. very strange case. I will see what DHL can do.