The Real Experts


One of the most common questions asked by new autograph collectors is, "who are the reputable dealers." Everyone has their own opinions. OURS are featured below.

The people listed below are genuinely  helpful folks but most do not provide free authentication services. Nor should they! As a non-dealer collector, we fully support their right to be paid for their expertise. You don't go to a lawyer and expect free counsel, do you? These people are specialists in their fields. As noted throughout this web site, your best defense against forgery is to buy from genuine experts, such as these, to begin with.

We're only going to include those who are on the web at this point, although there are several good dealers who are simply not on-line yet, including Richard Albersheim and Bill Diebold (Everything Baseball). Our apologies to the other experts out there who we have not had the pleasure to do business with or whom we have unwittingly overlooked.

Sports

Doug Averitt: Doug runs the vintage signed "flats" business for MVP Autographs . He is one of the true pillars of the hobby. Doug has a vast stock of vintage signed 3x5 cards. If you are putting together team sets or looking for an oddball signature Doug probably has it what you are looking for.

Bill Corcoran: Nobody in the hobby has a better selection of signed baseball cards than Bill. If that's your niche, he's the man to talk to. He also has a great selection of HOF autographs. Check out his web site .

Ron Gordon: Ron is one of the stalwarts of the hobby. He's a great guy to deal with and is an expert on HOF signed plaques, among other things. Read Ron's Ramblings on his web site . (505) 522-4527.

Mike Gutierrez: Mike runs the signed baseballs and auction business for MVP Autographs . Mike has been the autograph authenticator for some of the largest sports auction houses in the United States and was chosen by Sotheby's to authenticate the venerable Barry Halper collection. Hard to beat that credential. Here's a great interview with Mike about autograph authenticity. It was originally published in the Sports Collector's Digest.

Kevin Keating: Kevin writes the vintage autographs column for TUFF STUFF magazine and co-authored the Negro Leagues Autograph Guide. He is the autograph agent for Whitey Ford. He owns Quality Autographs of Virginia and the Hall of Fame Gallery . Kevin's always on the go and tough to reach. It's best to contact him via fax (703) 519-9850.

Richard Moody: Richard specializes in signed 8x10 photos, mostly of modern players and HOFers. Moody's Autographs has a genuine commitment to service.

Richard Simon: Richard knows his stuff. He's the autograph columnist for Beckett's magazine and he has authenticated for a number of major auction houses.

James Spence III Autographs : Jimmy is the autograph authenticator for Mastro Fine Sports Auctions and the lead authenticator for PSA/DNA. He also has one of the hobby's largest selections of signed 3x5s. If you're looking for an oddball signature, he's the man. Jimmy is the hobby's expert on signed personal checks and has a new web site.

Jim Stinson: When the Vintage & Classic Baseball Collector magazine ran a customer satisfaction survey, Stinson Sports topped the list of autograph dealers. That says a lot. He's a five-star businessman.

Other Fields

We'll be breaking this in areas of specialization, but in the interest of time, here are some general suggestions.

For vintage non-sport material, you can't go wrong dealing with members of the Professional Autograph Dealers Association. It's probably the best self-policed organization of its type. Some of our personal favorites within the group include Alexander Autographs (which hosts the hobby's best non-sports auctions), Steven Raab Autographs and David Schulson Autographs. You can access their sites through the PADA mother site. There are also a number of high-quality dealers in the Universal Autograph Collectors Club.

At the very least, members of both of these groups are required to offer lifetime authenticity on the items they sell. Both police their membership fairly well and both are committed to high ideals. That doesn't mean all of the dealers are angelic and that the organizations are not without their controversies (check out the UACC Hall of Shame) but at least you always have recourse ... and that's a lot more than most on-line auctions can offer.

More detail will be added during the coming months.

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