Counterfeit Alert: Several new counterfeits of old retired Beanie Babies are currently available in Beijing, China, and some have already shown up for sale in the United States. Be aware that Bronty, Trap, Tabasco, and Wingless Quackers are actively making the rounds. Wingless Quackers is easy to detect as a fake as it has the third generation red and white tush tag with the Beanie’s name on it. Be suspicious of a mint Wingless Quackers with mint swing tag, but no tush tag. The fake Tabasco is an excellent reproduction. The material and features are near flawless. The problem with the fake Tabasco occurs with the tags. The swing tag is styled after the 5th generation tag, but is not written in the Comic Sans font. Additionally, the word Snort appears in the body of the poem. Keep in mind that the 5th generation swing tag started appearing the first of this year, and Tabasco was retired a year ago. Also check the tush tag. Tabasco should have a 1995 date on the tush tag. The fake one I’ve seen has a 1993 date. The counterfeit tie-dye Lizzy is well done as far as overall design, but it still has some identifiable flaws. First, it is made out of the same material as Strut - reds, yellows, orange, pink, peach. The real tie-dye Lizzy is darker in color with browns, blues, greens and purples. Second, the tongue is wider and has only a small "fork" to it, rather than being split almost down to Lizzy's mouth. The eyes on the fake are also larger. The foil on the lettering around the ty on the swing tag is too wide (you can compare this against a pillow pal tag), and there are imprints on the inside of the tag from the gold foil. The date on fake Lizzy's tush tag is 1993, and the authentic Lizzy should be 1995. Full Information on Bronty and Trap is not yet available. Neither of them have swing tags. Fake Trap's features are good, but he is considerably "overweight." He is so plump that he does not lay flat. Also his tail is shorter and wider than the authentic Trap. Remember -- if it is too good to be true -- it is!

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