Vintage Authentics: 1989 Sosa helmet

[kingjammy24]

http://vintageauthentics.at.truition.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=88986185&prmenbr=57735959&aunbr=89332895

"Chicago White Sox Rawlings batting helmet was used by former NL MVP Sammy Sosa circa 1989 coinciding with his rookie season after his trade from Texas. The well-worn helmet contains Sammy's #21 across the back exterior along with Rawlings red logo, warning sticker, Rawlings MPH size L decal, and original NOCSAE stamp. The right ear flap is missing a small section and the helmet exhibits heavy+ game use inside and out."

where to start with this lampson gem. first, it's the wrong style. it bears a helmet logo that the sox first used in 1991. in 1989, their helmets had a navy blue shell, red brim, with a "C" on the front.

secondly, sosa never wore #21 with the white sox. in 1989 he wore #25. #21 was worn by robin ventura. (i seem to recall he also wore #13 only because i have a ballpark autograph i got in 1990 where sammy signed #13).

has anyone ever seen a rawlings "MPH" helmet used in 1989? the thing looks like what i'd use at my local batting cage.

rudy.

[RobSteinmetz]

Vintage's auction went live today...were they contacted about this helmet and given any time to respond?

Rob

[kilroy20]

They were contacted 10 minutes ago. They will look into it and remove it if found not to be real.

[RobSteinmetz]

Richard,

It's up to Rudy to contact Vintage since he made the initial post, but did you also contact Vintage about this helmet? If so, who did you speak to?

Rob

[whatupyos]

Rob,

With all due respect...in terms of contacting someone and giving them time to respond...why? I know its a rule on this forum, but I thought we were here to help each other out and inform of potential bad items in the hobby. I have a problem with an item in a current auction as well but don't want to post because I don't care to go through the hoops of contacting the people to then wait for a responce. I just don't see the point in contacting the people, they may remove it they may not, who's to say?

Just having trouble seeing the point.

Aaron

[kingjammy24]

rob,

yes and yes.

anyway, as i understand it, the rule stipulating that a seller be notified is meant to clear up any possible misunderstandings prior to an item being questioned. there is no misunderstanding that this helmet is the wrong style or that sosa never wore #21 in 1989. these are as factual as facts can be and no amount of communication with steve jensen or lou lampson will change those issues. that said, i abide by the rules of the forum and have contacted them. if my previous experience with VA is any indication however, i'm not expecting a response any time soon.

while we're on the topic however, here's something i've never understood about the rule. in an instance such as this, let's say someone contacted the seller and didn't post on the forum until they'd received a reply first. the seller immediately replies and says "oh me oh my, lampson made an error, i'll remove that asap". what then should be done in terms of posting the issue on the forum? should the issue not be mentioned at all? swept away in private emails? or should the poster come back say "well here's an item..you can't see it anymore because it was removed..but it was garbage"? a part of me believes that the game-used community should see the egregious and inept nature of lampson's errors. with many of lampson's errors, you wouldn't believe how bad they are unless you saw them with your own eyes.

anyway, here are some images of white sox helmets from 1989. the style changed in 1991. there's sammy in his rookie year, wearing the appropriate style of logo for 1989:

http://img115.imageshack.us/img115/1194/whitesoxpw1.jpg

rudy.

[RobSteinmetz]

Aaron,

You may not have been active on this forum when it first got started on Network 54, but it very much resembled the wild, wild west. Shoot first, ask questions later. Some folks were quick to call out items they felt were bad, and almost never gave sellers the opportunity to respond to questions before bringing the issues to a public forum. In our estimation, that simply wasn't fair. As a result, the "contact the seller first" rule was established.

More often than not, the items that are questioned in this forum are indeed problematic....but other times, questions are answered and the items are proven to be authentic. By contacting the seller and giving them an opportunity to answer questions, it gives them a fair chance to respond to questions prior to having those questions aired in a public forum and negatively impacting that item or the seller's reputation. Some sellers respond, others do not. All we ask is that you make an attempt to contact the seller and give them ample time to respond.

Simply stated, this site exists to help collectors make more informed purchase decisions. If you feel as though emailing a seller with questions is too much trouble to help yourself or your fellow collectors, I'm not sure how to respond to that. Fortunately for the hobby, many others don't feel that way and have contributed to this forum in a very positive way. For those individuals, I thank you for abiding by our rules and asking the questions that need to be asked.

Keep up the good work...

Best,

Rob

[RobSteinmetz]

Rudy,

Thank you for contacting Vintage with your concerns. Steve Jensen has always responded to my emails very promptly, so I sent him a message alerting him to this thread. Once I hear back from him, I'll let you know. Obviously there are some serious issues with this helmet.

Regarding your follow-up question about the rule. If you contact a seller about an item and that item is removed from an auction as a result of your inquiry, I don't see any problem with making a post about that item so long as you present it in a tactful manner.

In other words, don't make a post that says "Look at this piece of garbage that the big idiot Lampson authenticated that I got removed from XYZ Auctions! Can you believe what a moron Lampson is for passing this total piece of junk? Can you believe XYZ Auctions was stupid enough to run with this trash?".

Thanks,

Rob

[ironmanfan]

here are some images of white sox helmets from 1989. the style changed in 1991. there's sammy in his rookie year, wearing the appropriate style of logo for 1989:

http://img115.imageshack.us/img115/1194/whitesoxpw1.jpg

rudy.

Rudy..to be fair the style actually changed late (perhaps even the last week) of the 1990 season...

The Lampson helmet is a joke (has anyone ever seen a Rawlings sticker like this on a MLB used helmet?).

Bill

[RobSteinmetz]

Just heard back from Steve Jensen, and the helmet has been pulled from the auction.

Best,

Rob

[whatupyos]

Rob,

Thank you for your responce. I understand your rule. I just wanted to defend Rudy and others as I know from reading posts for the most part, people do contact the seller first. Not always but usually. Can you please contact me with Steve Jensen's info. I have an item I have issues with. Thanks.

Aaron

SunDevil2126628@aol.com