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Vintage Star Wars Collecting
Vintage Reference Library
Comprehensive Guide to Baggies
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<blockquote data-quote="Frunkstar" data-source="post: 383313" data-attributes="member: 314"><p><span style="color: #00FF00"><span style="font-size: 26px">FAKES</span></span> <span style="color: #FF0000">– what to look out for & how best to avoid getting stung on your baggie collecting journey.</span></p><p></p><p>I would like to dedicate this section to Bill Rodgers, otherwise unaffectionately known as Billy Boy scum bucket filth of the earth Rodgers.</p><p></p><p>In this section I aim to try & tackle a few of the hurdles in the baggie collecting field, there are (as with anything of value) many fakes circulating in the market, some very easy to spot, some not so.</p><p></p><p>The most commonly faked baggie in existence has to be the ROTJ-c baggie which is basically the same as a ESB-c but with green/grey text rather than bright blue, the reason for this being the most faked bag bar none is IMO purely due to the fact that not hundreds but thousands of removeable limbed 3PO's have been unearthed over the years, many 200 figure shipping cases turned up & it is IMO these baggies that are more often than not used to "rebag" figures I.E opening the tape seal & inserting a more expensive & desirable figure in its place, 99 times out 100 these are easy to spot due to several factors, the first being – did this figure ever come in that baggies type??, not many figures have been found in the ROTJ-c baggie so be cautious when looking to buy a figure coming in this baggie type!, I will go into tape seals/reseals further down the post & cover what you will need to look for to easily spot a fake no matter how well it has been done.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155958[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>Here is an example of a genuine ROTJ-c baggie R.L 3p0 & below a fake example of a DIY made Hollow tubes tusken raider in resealed baggie, note the baggie & figure can now both be classed as fakes FYI no hollow tubes variant of this figure has ever been found in any type.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155959[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>Close up of faked hollow tubes -</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155960[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>2nd most commonly faked baggie award has to go to the Kenner Super Powers range of figures which were also produced by kenner for vintage figures, but are clearly not the same as their star wars equivalents, the most obvious of which is they are much much wider than the ESB-a baggies (version 2 / later issue) they aim to imitate, ESB-a baggies are always heat sealed, so if you see this style baggie with a tape seal it is undoubtedly a fake, these crop up with great frequency, some are on ebay now as I type this out, they are used the same as the ROTJ-c I spoke of as are available in great numbers & are not expensive, the only baggie style they IMO actually come close to is the POTF A & B baggie which came with last 17 figures in the later (2nd) issue version of the Jabba's Dungeon playset, but those are a crisp baggies & these fake super powers ones are of a soft & quite thick material.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170382[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>A super powers baggie with the correct figure in.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170381[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>Faked blue snag baggie in the same super powers baggie, FYI Blue Snag was only ever issued in a single baggie type, that being the SW-c -</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155963[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>& another prime example of a faked super powers baggie here, this time a Squid Head heat sealed rather than taped example.</p><p></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155965[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>An image with a selection of super powers range figure shown alongside their opened baggies</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170384[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170385[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>A good sellection of star wars fakes in super bowers rebags - AVOID these.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170392[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>& IMO another prime example os a similar but not identical baggie type (note the slightly lighter font & marginally narrow baggie), I am sure the owners of these would argue the point, this one is actually shown on the SWCA as a genuine baggie, but IMO on consideration of all the facts at hand I would say it is a fake & not the genuine article, all trace back to a single find at a toy fair from the same seller with quetionable history.</p><p></p><p>Next would have to be the ESB-h no text large baggies, not so often seen faked, but they are out there, it does not help that the genuine ESB-h baggies have multiple incarnations (see linked thread) - <a href="http://www.starwarsforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=13371" target="_blank">http://www.starwarsforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=13371</a> & the fact there can be quite some variation in the seals on these as IMO these were haistly made as a substitute stand in baggie for shortfalls on order (speculation), though as with other fakes, if you follow a few ground rules a fake should be something easy enough to spot to the trained eye, I have even seen sandwich bags heat sealed up being peddled as ESB-h baggies, so caution is again always advised when buying ESB-h style baggies.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155966[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>The above is what is considered to be a faked ESB-h, but with so many showing up they could also easily be kenner dead/overstock baggies (debateable considering the souce), either done directly by Kenner or at a later date by whomever bought up the remaining dead stock, either way it's not a correct ESB-h baggie, & below a jenuine ESB-h baggie, the other incarnations used to be shown here, but have all singe been alloted their own classifications to save further confusion, these can all be seen on this sister guide -</p><p></p><p>[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.starwarsforum.co.uk/threads/the-revised-kenner-baggie-guide.32744/[/URL]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155967[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170388[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170389[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>A few examples of authentic Standard ESB-h above <img class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" alt="☝️" title="Index pointing up :point_up:" src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/261d.png" data-shortname=":point_up:" />including a weapons error example, the ESB-h was the most common kenner baggie type to be found with weapons errors included.</p><p></p><p>Next contender is the ESB-c baggie, again as it's one that is very commonly available, purely due to the fact it's the most commonly used Kenner baggie in the toy line with a great many figures coming in the baggie type, I have seen them with figure swaps many a time, with re taped or heat sealed in an attempt to pass them off as the next issue ESB-d baggie which is identical to the ESB-c (large font type), only difference obviously is that one came taped the other heat sealed.</p><p></p><p>I don't actually have any faked ESB-c baggies or photos on file sadly, but do have the next best thing, this is a Palitoy-a baggie ( the palitoy equivalent of the ESB-c), which is clearly a fake, this one traces directly back to Bill Rodgers (Mr King of faked baggies) & is obviously a fake/rebagged figure, as on close inspection you can clearly see some residual blue tack on the weapon inside the baggie where at some point it must have been displayed lose & the bluetack used to keep the weapon secure in hand.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155972[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]155973[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>Below a genuine ESB-c -</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]170390[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p><u><span style="color: #FF0000">FAKE SEALS & WHAT TO LOOK FOR</span></u> -</p><p></p><p>On close inspection in good natural lighting (daylight) most fakes can be spotted with a little bit of deductive reasoning & a sharp eye for detail, ask yourself the following questions if you think you have a baggie that could be a possible fake -</p><p></p><p><u><span style="color: #FF0000">HEAT SEALED BAGGIES FIRST</span></u> -</p><p></p><p>1. Does the heat seal look right?</p><p></p><p>2. Is the heat seal messy & disjointed</p><p></p><p>3. is the bag the same length as other confirmed legitimate examples of this baggie style/type?</p><p></p><p>4. Do both the heat seals conform to other legit examples of this baggie type – 95% of the time they should do, it is very seldom I have seen an exception to the rule</p><p></p><p>5. is the font the correct size/colour & print style as a know legit example?</p><p></p><p>6. Also look at the side seals of the baggie, does it look like it may have been reduced in width & resealed (super powers baggies)</p><p></p><p><u><span style="color: #FF0000">TAPE SEALED BAGGIES</span></u> -</p><p></p><p>1. is the tape clean clear? Obviously some yellow, but it is too clear if there is such a thing?</p><p></p><p>2. The tape ends – do they conform to know ones, ie the cut pattern of how the tape was broken – there are many many variations so always look</p><p></p><p>3. tape width – may seem obvious, but have you checked the tape width is correct?</p><p></p><p>4. Tape slip – this is where the tape seal has actually moved over time due to environmental (heat & cold) & storage issues & the passing of time, though tape slip is a known factor, is there too much tape slip or is the tape slip going in a different direction to the actual seal??</p><p></p><p>5. particulates <u>under</u> the main portion of the tape seal – if there is anything in between the tape on either top or bottom portion of the seal (fluff/hair/dirt/dust etc) then it's almost a given fact the baggie has at some point been opened & resealed, it is normal to often find all sorts of residue round the edges of tape as well as in the gap between top (main bit of bag) & bottom (folded over portion) of the baggie if there is a gap as there is sometime.</p><p></p><p>6. Creases & folds in the baggie where the seal is or directly under it, which would indicate the baggie has been tampered with in terms of it's width or length reduced to be resealed.</p><p></p><p>7. creases & pick marks in the baggie at the edges of the seal or close to it – has it got any? If so this is a sure sign someone has been carefully trying to lift a previous seal</p><p></p><p>8. secondary tape seal residue, look closely as sometime you can see where a previous tape seal was & has been removed.</p><p></p><p>Heat seal VS tape seal - the baggie you are looking to buy - did it ever come with the seal type is is being offered up for sale with?? if not walk away.</p><p></p><p>Is the weapon & or accessory genuine? & of the correct style colour for the period in which the baggie type was produced?</p><p></p><p>Contrary to what the SWCA baggie guide states ( I am not kocking their guide here, just pointing out what I have confirmed to be true), most heat sealed baggies do NOT have the same kind of heat seal at the top & the bottom of the baggies, just check one's you have & know are genuine & you will see what I mean - (I have lots of respect for that guide just do not think this point they state about top & bottom heat seals is correct)</p><p></p><p>Is the coo of the figure correct for the baggie?? I.E a Made in hong Kong figure in a China baggie, if this is the case 99% of the time it's a sure sign it's a fake, but not always, there have been some exceptions to this rule, I have seen blank bar (china or for some Ewoks no coo) figures in genuine palitoy issue baggies which have Hong Kong on them, but it is not a common thing & very few genuine examples like this have surfaced & were likely never general issue baggie but staff shop clearance items)</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Frunkstar, post: 383313, member: 314"] [COLOR=#00FF00][SIZE=7]FAKES[/SIZE][/COLOR] [COLOR=#FF0000]– what to look out for & how best to avoid getting stung on your baggie collecting journey.[/COLOR] I would like to dedicate this section to Bill Rodgers, otherwise unaffectionately known as Billy Boy scum bucket filth of the earth Rodgers. In this section I aim to try & tackle a few of the hurdles in the baggie collecting field, there are (as with anything of value) many fakes circulating in the market, some very easy to spot, some not so. The most commonly faked baggie in existence has to be the ROTJ-c baggie which is basically the same as a ESB-c but with green/grey text rather than bright blue, the reason for this being the most faked bag bar none is IMO purely due to the fact that not hundreds but thousands of removeable limbed 3PO's have been unearthed over the years, many 200 figure shipping cases turned up & it is IMO these baggies that are more often than not used to “rebag” figures I.E opening the tape seal & inserting a more expensive & desirable figure in its place, 99 times out 100 these are easy to spot due to several factors, the first being – did this figure ever come in that baggies type??, not many figures have been found in the ROTJ-c baggie so be cautious when looking to buy a figure coming in this baggie type!, I will go into tape seals/reseals further down the post & cover what you will need to look for to easily spot a fake no matter how well it has been done. [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP6199.jpg"]155958[/ATTACH] Here is an example of a genuine ROTJ-c baggie R.L 3p0 & below a fake example of a DIY made Hollow tubes tusken raider in resealed baggie, note the baggie & figure can now both be classed as fakes FYI no hollow tubes variant of this figure has ever been found in any type. [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP0995.jpg"]155959[/ATTACH] Close up of faked hollow tubes - [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP0996.jpg"]155960[/ATTACH] 2nd most commonly faked baggie award has to go to the Kenner Super Powers range of figures which were also produced by kenner for vintage figures, but are clearly not the same as their star wars equivalents, the most obvious of which is they are much much wider than the ESB-a baggies (version 2 / later issue) they aim to imitate, ESB-a baggies are always heat sealed, so if you see this style baggie with a tape seal it is undoubtedly a fake, these crop up with great frequency, some are on ebay now as I type this out, they are used the same as the ROTJ-c I spoke of as are available in great numbers & are not expensive, the only baggie style they IMO actually come close to is the POTF A & B baggie which came with last 17 figures in the later (2nd) issue version of the Jabba's Dungeon playset, but those are a crisp baggies & these fake super powers ones are of a soft & quite thick material. [ATTACH type="full" alt="KGrHqVqsFF7uqpYDZBRjYVojjo60_35_zps61410f94.jpg"]170382[/ATTACH] A super powers baggie with the correct figure in. [ATTACH type="full" alt="images_zpsceea23bc.jpg"]170381[/ATTACH] Faked blue snag baggie in the same super powers baggie, FYI Blue Snag was only ever issued in a single baggie type, that being the SW-c - [ATTACH type="full" alt="unnamed6_zpse184404d.jpg"]155963[/ATTACH] & another prime example of a faked super powers baggie here, this time a Squid Head heat sealed rather than taped example. [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMG_5069_zps349c75ca.jpg"]155965[/ATTACH] An image with a selection of super powers range figure shown alongside their opened baggies [ATTACH type="full" alt="fake super powers baggies 2.jpg"]170384[/ATTACH] [ATTACH type="full" alt="fake super powers baggies 3.jpg"]170385[/ATTACH] A good sellection of star wars fakes in super bowers rebags - AVOID these. [ATTACH type="full"]170392[/ATTACH] & IMO another prime example os a similar but not identical baggie type (note the slightly lighter font & marginally narrow baggie), I am sure the owners of these would argue the point, this one is actually shown on the SWCA as a genuine baggie, but IMO on consideration of all the facts at hand I would say it is a fake & not the genuine article, all trace back to a single find at a toy fair from the same seller with quetionable history. Next would have to be the ESB-h no text large baggies, not so often seen faked, but they are out there, it does not help that the genuine ESB-h baggies have multiple incarnations (see linked thread) - [URL]http://www.starwarsforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=13371[/URL] & the fact there can be quite some variation in the seals on these as IMO these were haistly made as a substitute stand in baggie for shortfalls on order (speculation), though as with other fakes, if you follow a few ground rules a fake should be something easy enough to spot to the trained eye, I have even seen sandwich bags heat sealed up being peddled as ESB-h baggies, so caution is again always advised when buying ESB-h style baggies. [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP8477_zps4807bc66.jpg"]155966[/ATTACH] The above is what is considered to be a faked ESB-h, but with so many showing up they could also easily be kenner dead/overstock baggies (debateable considering the souce), either done directly by Kenner or at a later date by whomever bought up the remaining dead stock, either way it's not a correct ESB-h baggie, & below a jenuine ESB-h baggie, the other incarnations used to be shown here, but have all singe been alloted their own classifications to save further confusion, these can all be seen on this sister guide - [URL unfurl="true"]https://www.starwarsforum.co.uk/threads/the-revised-kenner-baggie-guide.32744/[/URL] [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP1457.jpg"]155967[/ATTACH] [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP9225.jpg"]170388[/ATTACH] [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP7198.jpg"]170389[/ATTACH] A few examples of authentic Standard ESB-h above ☝️including a weapons error example, the ESB-h was the most common kenner baggie type to be found with weapons errors included. Next contender is the ESB-c baggie, again as it's one that is very commonly available, purely due to the fact it's the most commonly used Kenner baggie in the toy line with a great many figures coming in the baggie type, I have seen them with figure swaps many a time, with re taped or heat sealed in an attempt to pass them off as the next issue ESB-d baggie which is identical to the ESB-c (large font type), only difference obviously is that one came taped the other heat sealed. I don't actually have any faked ESB-c baggies or photos on file sadly, but do have the next best thing, this is a Palitoy-a baggie ( the palitoy equivalent of the ESB-c), which is clearly a fake, this one traces directly back to Bill Rodgers (Mr King of faked baggies) & is obviously a fake/rebagged figure, as on close inspection you can clearly see some residual blue tack on the weapon inside the baggie where at some point it must have been displayed lose & the bluetack used to keep the weapon secure in hand. [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP8481_zps04ac8bc7.jpg"]155972[/ATTACH] [ATTACH type="full" alt="IMGP8482_zpse6ca6be5.jpg"]155973[/ATTACH] Below a genuine ESB-c - [ATTACH type="full" alt="ESB-c.jpg"]170390[/ATTACH] [U][COLOR=#FF0000]FAKE SEALS & WHAT TO LOOK FOR[/COLOR][/U] - On close inspection in good natural lighting (daylight) most fakes can be spotted with a little bit of deductive reasoning & a sharp eye for detail, ask yourself the following questions if you think you have a baggie that could be a possible fake - [U][COLOR=#FF0000]HEAT SEALED BAGGIES FIRST[/COLOR][/U] - 1. Does the heat seal look right? 2. Is the heat seal messy & disjointed 3. is the bag the same length as other confirmed legitimate examples of this baggie style/type? 4. Do both the heat seals conform to other legit examples of this baggie type – 95% of the time they should do, it is very seldom I have seen an exception to the rule 5. is the font the correct size/colour & print style as a know legit example? 6. Also look at the side seals of the baggie, does it look like it may have been reduced in width & resealed (super powers baggies) [U][COLOR=#FF0000]TAPE SEALED BAGGIES[/COLOR][/U] - 1. is the tape clean clear? Obviously some yellow, but it is too clear if there is such a thing? 2. The tape ends – do they conform to know ones, ie the cut pattern of how the tape was broken – there are many many variations so always look 3. tape width – may seem obvious, but have you checked the tape width is correct? 4. Tape slip – this is where the tape seal has actually moved over time due to environmental (heat & cold) & storage issues & the passing of time, though tape slip is a known factor, is there too much tape slip or is the tape slip going in a different direction to the actual seal?? 5. particulates [U]under[/U] the main portion of the tape seal – if there is anything in between the tape on either top or bottom portion of the seal (fluff/hair/dirt/dust etc) then it's almost a given fact the baggie has at some point been opened & resealed, it is normal to often find all sorts of residue round the edges of tape as well as in the gap between top (main bit of bag) & bottom (folded over portion) of the baggie if there is a gap as there is sometime. 6. Creases & folds in the baggie where the seal is or directly under it, which would indicate the baggie has been tampered with in terms of it's width or length reduced to be resealed. 7. creases & pick marks in the baggie at the edges of the seal or close to it – has it got any? If so this is a sure sign someone has been carefully trying to lift a previous seal 8. secondary tape seal residue, look closely as sometime you can see where a previous tape seal was & has been removed. Heat seal VS tape seal - the baggie you are looking to buy - did it ever come with the seal type is is being offered up for sale with?? if not walk away. Is the weapon & or accessory genuine? & of the correct style colour for the period in which the baggie type was produced? Contrary to what the SWCA baggie guide states ( I am not kocking their guide here, just pointing out what I have confirmed to be true), most heat sealed baggies do NOT have the same kind of heat seal at the top & the bottom of the baggies, just check one's you have & know are genuine & you will see what I mean - (I have lots of respect for that guide just do not think this point they state about top & bottom heat seals is correct) Is the coo of the figure correct for the baggie?? I.E a Made in hong Kong figure in a China baggie, if this is the case 99% of the time it's a sure sign it's a fake, but not always, there have been some exceptions to this rule, I have seen blank bar (china or for some Ewoks no coo) figures in genuine palitoy issue baggies which have Hong Kong on them, but it is not a common thing & very few genuine examples like this have surfaced & were likely never general issue baggie but staff shop clearance items) [/QUOTE]
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