Yquem01 Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Hi there, I hope you are all doing well. It's my first post on this forum and am very grateful to have access to such knowledgeable cigar lovers and hope to contribute to the FOH as much as possible. I had a question regarding Barcodes. Is it possible that a fake box of cigars could have an authentic Barcode that comes up as the right cigar on the Habanos Website? I have a box of 1966 LEs bought from a very reliable merchant, with a Barcode that checks out perfectly on the Habanos Website as the 2011 1966 LEs from Cohiba. I have also heard however that no white squares are cut on top and bottom of Cohibas bands yet in this box there is a slight cutting of the line of squares supposed to be underneath the Cohiba band (see attached photo) I wonder if this is due to their notoriously erratic production or if I should be worried... All the rest seems in order: embossed El 2011, box code etc Best regards to you all, Yquem01 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKostyan Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Hi!You first need to introduce yourself, this is the forum tradition https://www.friendsofhabanos.com/forum/forum/6-newbie-introductions/ 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 Hi there! Thank you for the heads-up!!! I have posted one! Hope to converse with all of you and am so happy to be a part of the group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKostyan Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 I have also heard however that no white squares are cut on top and bottom of Cohibas bands yet in this box there is a slight cutting of the line of squares supposed to be underneath the Cohiba band (see attached photo) I wonder if this is due to their notoriously erratic production or if I should be worried... Cohiba bands are one of the most important elements of authenticity. The quality of printing has nothing to do with the Cuban sloppiness, because they are made in Europe.This is a serious sign of a fake.To be absolutely sure, show a high-resolution photo of the box on all sides and the warranty seal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 Thank you so much for your answer. Here are a few more pictures. As I stated these were purchased from a very reputable dealer so if you believe there are more signs of concern, I would have to take it up with the dealer. Thank you again for your time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKostyan Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Not duplicated at the bottom of the boxSloppy printing, fontStained with varnish, not allowedSee the original boxes photos here:https://www.bondroberts.com/advancesearch 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 I'd have to agree with the post above. On nearly any box of Cuban cigars, just about any "oddity" can happen. But where there is more than one, then the odds of the box being real decrease dramatically. Your box and bands show a few oddities. Very sloppy printing and font on the serial number and bar code. Box code on the box where it should be on the cardboard outer only. Strange printing on the Edición Limitada image on the box insert. Here are some images from a box I have for comparison. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 3 hours ago, nKostyan said: Not duplicated at the bottom of the box Sloppy printing, font Stained with varnish, not allowed See the original boxes photos here: https://www.bondroberts.com/advancesearch Thank you so much for your feedback. So it could be possible that this box Is fake even though the number checks out well on the website? That's crazy the fakes are too good, and bought from a reputable dealer! ?I'm starting to get scared that everything I bought from him is fake ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 1 hour ago, Ryan said: I'd have to agree with the post above. On nearly any box of Cuban cigars, just about any "oddity" can happen. But where there is more than one, then the odds of the box being real decrease dramatically. Your box and bands show a few oddities. Very sloppy printing and font on the serial number and bar code. Box code on the box where it should be on the cardboard outer only. Strange printing on the Edición Limitada image on the box insert. Here are some images from a box I have for comparison. Thank you for your feedback and time. I can't believe it's possible that a fake box could have a real number that checks out on the internet. There's even a transit seal under the barcode confirmed with a torch and feel. Have you ever heard of fakes before that have the right barcode? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKostyan Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Thank you so much for your feedback. So it could be possible that this box Is fake even though the number checks out well on the website? That's crazy the fakes are too good, and bought from a reputable dealer! I'm starting to get scared that everything I bought from him is fake The correct number?They know how to do it. They need to know someone else's correct code and print it on seal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bijan Posted February 10, 2021 Share Posted February 10, 2021 16 hours ago, Yquem01 said: I can't believe it's possible that a fake box could have a real number that checks out on the internet. As stated by @nKostyan, all that's necessary is a real number from an existing box. These can even be found on the internet. Furthermore in your case all numbers from 000009188683 to 000009188720 would all verify as correct (a span of 38 boxes). If you bought these cigars in person a possible giveaway is that multiple boxes may have the same barcode serial number. As the counterfeiters may copy one real number over and over. If bought online obviously this doesn't help unless you got two boxes. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 10, 2021 Author Share Posted February 10, 2021 All the boxes had different serial numbers. Do you think it could be a sophisticated fraud? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 10, 2021 Author Share Posted February 10, 2021 I wondered if you gentlemen, being so knowledgeable could have a look at other boxes I purchased from them? I have one Sublimes. corona @nKostyan @Bijan@Bijan @Ryan From my limited experience the Sublimes looked all correct and didn't raise any concerns with me. I'd be interested to see if you saw any. As previously stated these are from a very reputable and long established dealer so I would definitely raise the issue with them if you see anything suspect with this box Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yquem01 Posted February 10, 2021 Author Share Posted February 10, 2021 Just now, Yquem01 said: I wondered if you gentlemen, being so knowledgeable could have a look at other boxes I purchased from them? I have one Sublimes. corona @nKostyan @Bijan@Bijan @Ryan From my limited experience the Sublimes looked all correct and didn't raise any concerns with me. I'd be interested to see if you saw any. As previously stated these are from a very reputable and long established dealer so I would definitely raise the issue with them if you see anything suspect with this box Erratum on the corona part haha* 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKostyan Posted February 10, 2021 Share Posted February 10, 2021 Learn more: https://www.cubancigarwebsite.com/packaging/information#Union_and_Warranty_Seals Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bijan Posted February 10, 2021 Share Posted February 10, 2021 6 hours ago, Yquem01 said: All the boxes had different serial numbers. Do you think it could be a sophisticated fraud? Could be a sophisticated fraud. Here are two boxes from Bond Roberts from the same box code BME AGO 11: https://www.bondroberts.com/product/view/2720 https://www.bondroberts.com/product/view/2257 So this code starting with 0000091 is pretty close to these with 0000093. Getting the right box code, and the serials in the right range, and valid, and unique for each box, makes this pretty sophisticated as fakes go. But again still some red flags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaclub Posted February 10, 2021 Share Posted February 10, 2021 I would definitely take this up with your “reputable” dealer. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MC4 Posted February 11, 2021 Share Posted February 11, 2021 Could it also be the case that the "reputable" dealer is using a legit outer cardboard box and putting a fake box of 1966 in it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKostyan Posted February 12, 2021 Share Posted February 12, 2021 Could it also be the case that the "reputable" dealer is using a legit outer cardboard box and putting a fake box of 1966 in it?It happens like this: the seller has retail stores, sells singles cigars. He puts a fakes in the original boxes and sells them online. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puros Y Vino Posted February 13, 2021 Share Posted February 13, 2021 On 2/12/2021 at 2:24 PM, nKostyan said: It happens like this: the seller has retail stores, sells singles cigars. He puts a fakes in the original boxes and sells them online. This. Probably the easiest counterfeit scam. If you are able to keep the original box and bands you can slap them on La Trova, sell the "1966's" and enjoy a tidy profit and the 2 spare La Trova. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PuroDan Posted February 13, 2021 Share Posted February 13, 2021 On 2/10/2021 at 8:37 PM, Yquem01 said: I wondered if you gentlemen, being so knowledgeable could have a look at other boxes I purchased from them? I have one Sublimes. corona @nKostyan @Bijan@Bijan @Ryan From my limited experience the Sublimes looked all correct and didn't raise any concerns with me. I'd be interested to see if you saw any. As previously stated these are from a very reputable and long established dealer so I would definitely raise the issue with them if you see anything suspect with this box LLN Box code is wrong. Font size is wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chas.Alpha Posted February 20, 2021 Share Posted February 20, 2021 IMHO. Other than flying down to Havana and shopping at the LCDH’s, or Alex’s shop at the Comodoro, I have come to trust only two shops on the planet to deliver quality Habanos. One is an LCDH in Germany, while although the shopkeep is a pain in the arse to deal with (and we are friends) you get undisputed quality Habanos. The other, well, here we are... ? Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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