How to Protect Yourself

An informed buyer is an armed one!
General

Familiarize yourself completely with the anime from which you want to buy a cel.
Frequent cel dealers' sites and be aware of what is out there even if you aren't currently buying.
Know where to ask questions if you are unsure about a seller or a particular cel.
Keep up with the various cel forums and mailing lists. Search the archives and form your own conclusions about the information presented there. Feel free to e-mail the people posting for more information. It's very troubling to see different people being scammed by the same person over and over again.

Safety Tips when Purchasing Cels

Send check or money order via certified mail with a return receipt. Save the paper trail!
As tempting as it may be, I urge you never to send cash through the mail, especially to a seller you've never dealt with before

When Trading Cels...

If someone approaches you for a trade and you agree to it, insist (nicely!) that they send their cel first.
Insist upon a scan of the cel-
Ask a lot of questions about condition, cel sequence numbers and size. You can even inquire about where they might have purchased it-
Put a feeler out to the cels forum or your friends. Ask if they have done business with this person (again, be diplomatic about it!)-
If the deal seems too good to be true or if you have any doubts, don't do it.

Protecting yourself from Fan-art and other misleading information

If the seller uses unclear language about fan-art vs. production art or whether or not the background matches, make them clarify! Do not accept vagueness!
Be aware that some sellers crop their images. Ask for a larger image, the scan of the sequence numbers, even ask for a scan of the back of the cel to verify its authenticity.
Know your anime! Find the scene presented and compare the screen to the scan.
Always assume, unless specifically noted or otherwise verified that the background does not match the cel. Toei studios is notorious for packing Sailor Moon cels with non-matching backgrounds and cel dealers cannot check every one. The burden is on you.
Stuck vs. unstuck drawings. Ask if this information is not provided and if it is important to you. Some sellers who deal with a high volume of cels sometimes automatically assume that all drawings are stuck to their respective cels. Work under this assumption unless otherwise noted.

E-mail me with comments at wndrkn@rcn.com

Last Updated: June 16, 2002