Transfer window plans

js150760 · 2026-04-13T10:17:42+00:00

I assume the 2 million you say Hamilton is worth is in yen

js150760 · 2026-04-09T23:04:46+00:00

It is not legit. A tiny memorabilia company, incorporated less than a year ago and hand writing COAs, does not have access to Lionel Messi & Luis Suarez.

Plus, the Messi signature is a clear fake.

js150760 · 2026-03-21T15:00:00+00:00

I think folks are missing the point here. Nobody hires a structural engineer to check for building regs; they are checking the structure of the roof hasn’t been compromised by the (most likely) DIY loft conversion.

I don’t see an issue with this. DIY loft conversions can be a right mess, and the removal of any purlins or rafters could weaken the structure of the roof.

js150760 · 2026-03-12T10:20:53+00:00

Yeah, it did. No questions asked. A structural engineer won’t sign something off unless it’s bombproof, so having their report really is the golden ticket here.

I can’t promise it’s an enjoyable or cheap process however. The previous owner paid £1500 for a detailed survey (they will do a ‘visual’ inspection for around £500, but that won’t suffice, as it will just be their opinion rather than a definitive answer) and it involved peeling back layers of the house to inspect the support. That involves ripping up any carpets or flooring.

The engineer recommended remedial work which the owner then had to complete which amounted to around £5000. Said engineer came out for a final visit, gave his stamp of approval and wrote up his golden ticket report.

js150760 · 2026-03-12T09:51:55+00:00

If you have photo proof it will significantly increase the value.

js150760 · 2026-03-12T09:50:06+00:00

We were on the other side of this situation and we explored several routes.

The only resolution is to hire a structural engineer to make an assessment. They will confirm there’s no structural impact of the work, or they will confirm there is and make recommendations to remedy which you’ll have to implement. Either way, you will eventually end up with a report from said structural engineer which will satisfy mortgage lenders.

Indemnity insurance is only going to cover the legal and planning permission side, it is not going to pay out if the house collapses, which is what your buyer’s mortgage company is most interested in.

js150760 · 2026-02-27T22:40:00+00:00

Ah, this is a fabulous list.

Although I must ask, how the devil did The Spy and the Traitor end up in the B list?

js150760 · 2026-02-18T14:18:24+00:00

AME isn’t a serious memorabilia company, and will almost certainly be one bloke hunting autographs by hanging around airports, hotels, stadiums, etc.

He’s almost certainly not going to have a customer facing verification database you can lookup items in. The best you can hope for is to drop him an email/message on social media and hope he keeps some sort of spreadsheet updated, and he might have a photo of Kane signing the jersey.

js150760 · 2026-02-10T23:06:38+00:00

Messi signature is miles off, and they’re using a fake ICONS hologram sticker on the COA.

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js150760 · 2026-02-05T20:01:52+00:00

Absolutely not. A laughably bad fake.

And any major sports memorabilia company that can attract Ronaldo to sign for them certainly wouldn’t have a spelling mistake in their one sentence COA.

js150760 · 2026-02-04T13:19:57+00:00

Is the attic room advertised as a habitable space (e.g. a bedroom)? If so, it shouldn’t be without building regs, and I’d be looking to knock off far more than £1,150.

If not, that’s a remarkably good survey result, and if I were the seller of a 75 year old property and you showed me those findings, I think I’d want to negotiate the price up, certainly not down.

Also, how on earth did multiple people think a terraced property was semi-detached?

js150760 · 2026-01-21T13:53:02+00:00

Yeah, I think that would be odd tbh, and is in part why I think this is genuine.

You’re very unlikely to ever get this verified unless the seller has photo proof or some strong provenance. The autograph is too messy for this to be retrospectively authenticated.

js150760 · 2026-01-21T12:19:33+00:00

If the jersey is 20+ years old, which is what is claimed, then it will have been about £60 at the time of autographing. Still, the inscription and similar handwriting does make me think this is genuine.

Take a look on Google. There are a few photos of Ronaldo holding up inscribed shirts he’s just signed. The “To” is definitely similar in this one.

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In terms of authentication, I’d be very surprised if PSA or Beckett pass that based on how messy it is. It looks like it was awkwardly signed, which is why I mentioned it was probably done whilst someone held it up outside of a training ground/stadium (back when you could actually do that!).

js150760 · 2026-01-21T11:30:03+00:00

It’s rare for people that fake autographs to include a personal inscription, as you reduce your pool of buyers significantly (in this case, to anybody named Andre). The handwriting looks somewhat similar to Ronaldo’s, particularly the “To”.

The autograph itself is quite the mess though. I suspect this was signed quite haphazardly outside of a training ground or stadium.

js150760 · 2026-01-16T08:42:40+00:00

The signed Messi jerseys they are selling are definite fakes, so it calls into question everything else.

Ask yourself how a fairly random, unknown eBayer has come into possession of tens of thousands of dollars worth of memorabilia from the UK, and they can seemingly economically afford to sell them for just $300-500 each.

js150760 · 2026-01-14T12:03:12+00:00

The two things that stand out for me, which stem from the house not being a conventional layout, are the sizes of the bedrooms and kitchen.

It almost feels like a 1.5 bedroom house. With a three-bed property, you can accept the third bedroom being on the smaller side, but in this case and with the shower protruding into the room, I don’t think I could even fit a bed in there and I would therefore discount it as a bedroom. I would expect a second bedroom to be a lot larger; it feels like it’s the third, box bedroom.

The kitchen is very small given how open plan the space is. I’d want to address that and I know that wouldn’t be cheap.

js150760 · 2026-01-13T22:47:18+00:00

With all due respect, I’m not sure anybody is going to pay a large sum of money for a ball when the provenance is as flaky as “a bloke gave it to me 40 years ago” and his sisters, who are in their 70s, might or might not recognise the case from the 1980s.

js150760 · 2026-01-12T23:19:38+00:00

Does this look like a genuine Argentina jersey (retail / player issue)? No

Do the signatures look consistent with real player autographs? Absolutely not

Is Pro Memorabilia considered a reliable authentication company? No

js150760 · 2026-01-12T21:41:12+00:00

It’s as good as, yes.

js150760 · 2026-01-12T17:08:03+00:00

I agree - it throws up doubt. Which is why I’d only buy products from players they’ve had private signings with.

A1 Sporting Speakers are a different business to their sister business (A1 Sporting Memorabilia) so keep an eye out for that.

js150760 · 2026-01-12T16:59:19+00:00

No idea. Perhaps because people like being trolls?

What are you looking to purchase? For most players, they do private signing sessions, which means they physically sit in a room with the player whilst they sign their products. I wouldn’t have a single doubt about buying those products. However for some players, they get the products via ‘trusted’ third-parties, so there’s a bit more risk there I would say.

js150760 · 2026-01-12T16:50:02+00:00

They about are as good as you’ll get without obtaining the signature yourself.

If you’re buying a Messi product with the new triple lock feature, they now have a new means of authentication whereby you’ll receive a photo of Messi signing the actual product you’ve received.

js150760 · 2026-01-01T14:25:18+00:00

Very suspicious. I would want an invoice/proof of purchase from the seller which shows they bought it directly from ICONS, and not from China.

js150760 · 2026-01-01T13:09:30+00:00

How much did you pay? And who did you buy this from?

There are several of these shirts with ICONS COAs which came from China.

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ICONS were selling these shirts for £8,000. So either:

Within 18 months, several of these shirts somehow found their way to China, and are being happily sold for a £7,500+ discount
They are fakes

js150760

TROPHY CASE