Posts: 1745
From: Atlanta-area, GA USA
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 06-22-2011 07:58 AM               

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EBay seller "Antiquesandmore100" just sold an Yvonne Cagle autopen advertized as "Original" and "100% Authentic" for $67.66 on eBay: 190544968846. The seller ignored my request to send him a scan of an identical Cagle autopen, and the auction continued.

If any collectSPACE member was the winning bidder, please contact me and I'll send a scan of an identical Cagle autopen for your use in voiding your bid.

Cagle has always been one of the least cooperative signers of all the astronauts and her authentic autograph is rarely found.

Posts: 1673
From: Birmingham AL
Registered: Aug 2010

posted 06-22-2011 09:54 AM               

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While I did buy several items from him, I did notice what I considered to be autopens on a couple more items including a John Young 200619867697 (pattern 4?) and a Dave Scott 190544989903.

I was curious as to other opinions on these two.

Posts: 1091
From:
Registered: Sep 2003

Posts: 1745
From: Atlanta-area, GA USA
Registered: Aug 2000

Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005

posted 06-22-2011 05:20 PM               

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The sad thing is that the buyer really didn't have to research the Cagle autopen that closely. One look at the signature scan (and the general shakiness of the signature) should have told most collectors that it was an autopen.

Still, it's the responsibility of the seller to accurately (and honestly) describe what they are selling.

Posts: 1673
From: Birmingham AL
Registered: Aug 2010

posted 06-22-2011 06:02 PM               

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You talk about buyers being fooled but if you look at the bidders, most have thousands of feedback and if you look at their bid history, most of what they bid on is space collectibles.

Of course they could be dealers hoping to resell them to people who do not research what they are buying.

Posts: 428
From: San Antonio TX, USA
Registered: Apr 2004

posted 06-22-2011 06:38 PM               

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One concern I have is that there is no Yvonne Cagle autopen example listed on the space shuttle astronaut autopen website.

Is it possible for it to be updated with the autopen examples so collectors have something to compare contemplated purchases against?

Posts: 1745
From: Atlanta-area, GA USA
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 06-23-2011 08:10 AM               

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quote:

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Originally posted by SpaceSteve:
Is it possible for it to be updated with the autopen examples so collectors have something to compare contemplated purchases against?

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Craig Stadler's SpaceDirectory.org website seems to have not been updated in a while. It is an excellent reference site for especially Shuttle astronaut autopens and it would be beneficial to have it updated.

I didn't see an e-mail address for the website owner and if anyone has access to the website or the owner, perhaps we could start updating it for the benefit of all.

I have a large scan of an Yvonne Cagle autopenned 8x10 portrait, but it's too large to properly display here. I'll be glad to send it to anyone who would be able to downsize it to be suitable for display here and possibly to the SpaceDirectory website.

Posts: 196
From: Burnaby, BC, Canada
Registered: Nov 2010

Posts: 114
From: T H, Indiana
Registered: Jun 2005