The world of sports memorabilia used to be a lot like the wild west, but finding real autographed sports items is much easier these days.
Thanks to the shocking revelations in the FBI's Operation Bullpen over a decade ago, consumers have become much more cautious and aware while forgers have a tougher time passing their fakes on to the public.
Authentication companies like PSA/DNA and James Spence Authentication make it their business to study exemplars of tens of thousands of athletes and personalities. For a fee, they offer their letter of opinion or attach a small certificate or note offering their stamp of approval on a specific item. They're not perfect. Non-genuine autographs still exist with certificates of authenticity because it's an inexact science. Yet the percentage of fakes is much lower because of these people and their efforts to offer the collector some piece of mind.
Authentic autographed pieces including sports signed items are perhaps the biggest part of the autograph hobby with collectors willing to pay a little extra for memorabilia that has a COA. After all, it is now standard practice for a buyer to want that stamp of approval so when you try to sell it eventually it'll help you do so much faster.
Autographed sports items can include photos, balls, bats, jerseys, index cards, helmets and caps. If you have these items at home, you can get them authenticated for fees that typically range from $10-200, depending on the player and how rare or difficult authentication may be. Most fall into the lower category. It's probably not worth your time to authenticate the autograph of a non-descript player unless you just want it for your own piece of mind because chances are the item's value doesn't exceed what you're going to pay to have it authenticated. Hall of Fame players are a different story. While many are less than $20 if they're still living, Mickey Mantle autographs and the like can be worth a few hundred dollars and more.
If you're looking for authentic autographed sports items, you can find links to hundreds of them at Diamond Autographs. The sports signed items are even broken down by authenticator so you know what you're purchasing is real. From signed Nolan Ryan items to 8x10 autographs of Hockey Hall of Famers, real autographed sports items are a lot more fun than those for which crossing your fingers and hoping used to be the standard.
[http://www.diamondautographs.com]
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Richard_Mueller
