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Starter authentics


cartmill72

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Hello everyone...

I need some assistance. About 10 or 12 years ago, a friend of mine working for the Pittsburgh Penguins at the time gave me two jerseys. They were both packaged in a clear wrapper.

The tags inside indicated they were authentic "Center Ice" gear as might have been worn by NHLers. They were not the Starter replicas sold at the sporting goods store - not even close. But there was a catch. Neither one had a fight strap. And the fight strap had always been my indication of authentic versus replica.

The are three tags on the inside. One says NHL Center Ice. Another is the size tag - one is a 48-R and the other is a size 52-R. Finally, there is a Starter tag. The hem tag also is different than what was on the replicas. The hem on one has the Starter "S" logo with the NHL shield. The other has Starter spelled out with the NHL shield. The replica that I have has a different Starter "S" logo with the conference tag - not the NHL shield.

And the weight of the jerseys is comparable to the authentic CCMs of that period.

So what in the heck do I have? A real, on-ice jersey? Or a weird replica?

Here's the worst part. I tried to sell one of them on eBay. I included very good photos. And I sold it for $50. Not great, but whatever. So the guy who buys it told me I ripped him off because I sold him a replica. I asked him what he based that on. He said that all NHL jerseys have to be made in Berlin, Wisconsin (never heard that before) and he said that all NHL jerseys have to have a fight strap. I played college hockey and our jerseys didn't have tie downs, but I'm not sure about NHL.

At any rate, I have 500+ positive feedbacks and I'm pretty upset that this guy is accusing me of ripping him off. But I sold it based on what I had been told and what I knew. I got them directly from the Penguins locker room - what more could I say????

Let me know if anyone has any insights on this jersey.

Thanks!

Here's a photo of the tags...

http://homepage.mac.com/scartmill/Sites/iS...168541309_1.jpg

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Those are authentic jersey made for players. The Starter authentics that were sold in store would have "Made in El Salvador out of U.S. components" screened on the size tag. The Starter authentics that are "Made in Berlin, Wisconsin" were never sold in store + they have an embroidered size tag

I'm looking for a black U.S. made Penguins Starter authentic jersey with with the "PITTSBURGH" letters in front because it was made of mesh material, while the El Salvador version was made of Ultrafil material.

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Cartmill,

My Starter authentics are made in El Salvador and it reads that on the size (48-R) tag. The font looks slightly different on mine than on yours. The Center Ice tags are also different on them. One has the S logo on the back, the other says STARTER. The Center Ice labels inside the neck are different between the two, also. Replicas do not have the NHL shield on the back, they have the conference logo.

Yours aren't replicas but it is strange that the fighting strap was not there. Starter may have neglected to put one on on the batch of jerseys that you were given and tried to sell, thus they were 'defective' and not fit for game use. Maybe this happened... your friend or whoever opened a box of jerseys, took one out of the wrapper and noticed something missing (strap). Then another one is checked, same thing. Before more are unwrapped, a call to Starter is placed, and it is verified that the jerseys in the lot were missing the straps. Why else would he just give them to you, they were unusable for games. I never heard of that happening, but with inconsistent Starter, I wouldn't be at all surprised. I hope you disclosed the tag pics on the auction listing and mentioned that there was no strap. I didn't see the listing, but if everything the buyer is complaining about is on your listing, he shouldn't complain. I'm surprised he didn't file a complaint thru PayPal, anyway.

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I heard the fight straps were added by the companies that customised the jerseys. starter always seemed to have delivery problems. the Bruins for example only got the shells and the company who customised their jerseys had to add fight straps and all the logos

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I heard the fight straps were added by the companies that customised the jerseys. starter always seemed to have delivery problems. the Bruins for example only got the shells and the company who customised their jerseys had to add fight straps and all the logos

This is true. Either cutting edge or Latin added them for the pens.

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This is true. Either cutting edge or Latin added them for the pens.

So did Custom Crafted for the Bruins but I'm not sure if they had to do that for the Hurricans' jerseys too.

I#d really like to get that Penguins jerseys I mentioned in my previous post. any ideas where I can get it?

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You know, I found an old Pittsburgh jersey like you're describing with the diagonal lettering on the front at a store by my house. It's not a Starter authentic but I'm almost positive it's a CCM replica.

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I appreciate all the information!

I thought I had my facts straight, but it is good to get reassurance from several others.

As for Penguins jerseys, I'll bet they account for about 1/4 of my collection of 50+ jerseys.

I've been a Pens/Lemieux fan since I got into hockey in the mid-80s. I moved to Columbus in the late 90s and now I'm slowly converting to a CBJ fan. But I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for the black and gold.

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  • 1 month later...

I'm assuming the jerseys you are referring to are the first alternates...The black and grey ones with the multicoloured stripe around the centre.

What you have is the first edition of Starter's 1995 retail authentics. For some strange reason, Starter chose not to put the fight strap in its first batch of retail authentics for alternate jerseys. (ie, the ones not made in Berlin.) The Berlin-made authentics of that era did have the fight strap, but the retail authentics of the teams Starter equipped back then that had alternates (Pens, Rangers and Bruins off the top of my head) didn't have fight straps. However, the fight straps were added later to all later retail authentics for those teams, for example the 1996-1999 pens black and grey jersey had the strap attached.

Let me know if you need more info...

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I'm assuming the jerseys you are referring to are the first alternates...The black and grey ones with the multicoloured stripe around the centre.

What you have is the first edition of Starter's 1995 retail authentics. For some strange reason, Starter chose not to put the fight strap in its first batch of retail authentics for alternate jerseys. (ie, the ones not made in Berlin.) The Berlin-made authentics of that era did have the fight strap, but the retail authentics of the teams Starter equipped back then that had alternates (Pens, Rangers and Bruins off the top of my head) didn't have fight straps. However, the fight straps were added later to all later retail authentics for those teams, for example the 1996-1999 pens black and grey jersey had the strap attached.

Let me know if you need more info...

That's not quite right. The Starter authentic 3rd jersey that were "Made in Haiti" didn't have the fight strap and no re-inforced elbows while the "Made in El Salvador" jerseys have that.

The Bruins even only got the shells from Berlin and their customizer had to add all the logo and even the fight strap to the jerseys

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  • 4 weeks later...

I haven't had a whole lot of experience with the old Starter authentics...I have my share of replicas but they're pretty lousy considering how old they are. I may have a bead on a few currently and I'm just curious if they're worth the money. Are there any major differences between them and the current stylings?

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I haven't had a whole lot of experience with the old Starter authentics...I have my share of replicas but they're pretty lousy considering how old they are. I may have a bead on a few currently and I'm just curious if they're worth the money. Are there any major differences between them and the current stylings?

I love those Starter authentics, especially from the Rangers, Avalanche and the Blues' current style. they're made of mesh material, totally different from the replicas. the Penguins used that material too, but only on their game worn jerseys.

btw: we already have a Starter authentic thread

CryWolf Edit: Thanks - Topic has now been merged

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I completely forgot about this thread. Sounds like they are worth the money then. I was probably gonna end up pursuing it anyway but now I'll really shoot for it.

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I love those Starter authentics, especially from the Rangers, Avalanche and the Blues' current style. they're made of mesh material, totally different from the replicas. the Penguins used that material too, but only on their game worn jerseys.

btw: we already have a Starter authentic thread

CryWolf Edit: Thanks - Topic has now been merged

I have an Avalanche Starter authentic from the 95-96 season. Its very comfortable and after all these years is still in great shape. I always thought the material had a nice look to it. I love that jersey so much I had my senior pics taken in it.

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I have an Avalanche Starter authentic from the 95-96 season. Its very comfortable and after all these years is still in great shape. I always thought the material had a nice look to it. I love that jersey so much I had my senior pics taken in it.

Those Avs authentic jerseys had a totally different material than all the others. It was a shinier and softer mesh. I don't think Starter carried that idea over for any other teams. Now that I have been reminded about those, I will need to hunt one down for the collection. <_<

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Those Avs authentic jerseys had a totally different material than all the others. It was a shinier and softer mesh. I don't think Starter carried that idea over for any other teams. Now that I have been reminded about those, I will need to hunt one down for the collection. <_<

Starter used the mesh material on AVS, Blues (current design), Rangers and Penguins (team issued only) jersey

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Hmm, my sister has a Pens jersey like yours. It's probably a Starter, but I've never looked at it. I'll check and see what it's like and compare it to yours.

My first Flyers jersey, which I got last year, was a handmedown from her. It was a black starter replica with the conference logo on the back and no fight strap, plus incorrect stripe colors. However, it actually has the logo sewn in and has that zig-zag seam on the back of the sleeves, which confuses me because those are things you'd only find in authentics these days.

Man, I hope IJ will still have the old jerseys from this season when the new RBK's come in.

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  • 1 month later...

Well, I've finally found my sister's Pens jersey. She actually has two. One of them has the "Pittsburgh" script going down diagonally, the other is the alternate. They're both replicas with the "Made in Korea" tag and the conference logo at the hemline. I'll get you pics of it later.

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Well, I've finally found my sister's Pens jersey. She actually has two. One of them has the "Pittsburgh" script going down diagonally, the other is the alternate. They're both replicas with the "Made in Korea" tag and the conference logo at the hemline. I'll get you pics of it later.

There's no need for pics anymore, since your sister has replicas. I´m looking for one special authentic

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  • 1 year later...

just bumping this thread up, I got a Lemeiux jersey today and it has the size 48-R tags. From the material it is definitely not a replica, but the fight strap and elbow stitching is missing.

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  • 4 months later...

I'm bumping this up because today I got a home(white) Canadiens starter jersey. There isn't a typical Center Ice tag, nor is there any indication of where it was made. The only tagging is a starter tag where the center ice label usually is. It has a circle around the NHL shield which reads the familiar Mise au Jeu inside top part of the circle and Authentique in the bottom half of the circle. I know that's french for center ice and authentic. And NHL shield actually reads LNH. Did they just use french exclusively for the tagging since it is a francophone team? Below that is a small 52 size tag, not a larger 52-R like most starters. Anyone know what the deal is?

I'd upload pics but I can't find my digital cam USB cable

edit-I just looked inside the jersey and there is a tag on a side seam that reads "assembled in Canada from U.S. and Canadian components"

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Do they look like these?

If so, then they're absolutely legit. In 1996-97, when Starter got the contracts of more teams besides Colorado, they used the old Center Ice/Mise au Jeu tag, a Starter brand tag(that was also found in their replicas) and their size tag(with the ##-R or 60-G). After 1997, they changed the top tag...the Starter Center Ice tag you see at the top with size tag underneath it. Some of them also used the same tag that Nike used in their pros with both the English and French version on it. I've never owned a Canadiens Starter jersey though so I can't be sure if it's a Quebec thing.

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It's like the top one but it's in french, and the size tag much much smaller, about the same size as the size tags on the CCMs. And it says it was assembled in Canada, which is fine by me I'll take Canadian workmanship of Salvadoran anyday lol

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