Shopping on the Internet is a great way to find exclusive shoes that can't be bought in stores anymore. However, there is a good chance that the shoes you buy online will be. I am writing this guide to help you spot fake sneakers.
Rule 1:
Whenever considering buying a shoe make sure no parts of the shoe are irregularly sized proportionally to the rest of the shoe. Most fakes have some type of irregularity that will be a tell-tale of a fake. Often, it is a problem with the swoosh on Nike shoes. Nikes with a large swoosh often have too think or too fat of a swoosh or it will be irregularly shaped at the end. Check for this, as well as other dissimilarities, suck as those found on the tongue tag.
On an AF1, the "E" in NIKE should touch the swoosh as well as the "A" in AIR. Some people get confused and say the "A" should not touch the swoosh, but they are wrong. They are probably thinking about the heel tab, in that case only the "E" in NIKE should touch the swoosh whil the "A" in AIR remains detached.
Sometimes in older models of AF1's, there will be two registered trademark logos on the tongue tag. http://www.sneakerhead.com/309096-101.html That link will take you to a legit site's archive picture of the "Air Force 1 Tuxedo" (A personal favorite of mine, I wish I hadn't scuffed my pair up so bad, if anyone has a pair in size 13 contact me.) The registered trademark logos are not always present, however, I've seen older legit AF1's without the trademark logos.
Look at this link.
That particular shoe doesn't even say "Air Force 1" at the bottom of the tag, but it is legit! The moral is always compare to a legit picture since different pairs of forces have different tongue tags. Nike does this on purpose so that the shoes are not easy to fake.
(Before anyone says anything, I know those particular models are not that old, but I was only trying to describe pre-XXV models.)
Rule 2:
This rule is kind of vague, but I feel the need to remind you of it. Look for any dissimilarity between the shoe you are buying and a picture of a real one. A good place to find pictures of real shoes is
Pick Your Shoes. All of their shoes are authentic, and I recommend you buy from them if they have the shoe you are buying in the size you want.
Rule 3:
This is specific to Bapestas. Examine the gap in the star pictured below. If it is big like the right picture, the shoe is fake. This rule is specific to round tipped stars though, sharp tipped stars are in fact authentic in some cases and are usually found with a larger gap. Also, there was never a clear Bape made. All clear Bapes are fake.
Rule 4:
Be extremely cautious when buying on
eBay. The majority of the shoes sold on eBay are fake, however, if you know how to spot these fake shoes, you can pick out a real shoe and possibly get a great deal. Examine the seller's feedback thoroughly. If there is even one instance of a buyer received a fake shoe, do not buy from that seller. The chances are that others have received fake shoes and did not realize it. Check both the negative and the neutral feedback for instances of a buyer receiving fake shoes. Sometimes a buyer will only give a neutral feedback for the fake shoe if they were refunded.
Rule 5:
Sometimes, unfortunately, an eBay seller will use pictures of a real shoe and then send you a fake one or not send it at all. There is no real way to prevent this, but you can reduce the odds drastically by not buying from people that use stock pictures that can be found at
Nike Air Force 1 or on other websites.
Rule 6:
Never buy any of the following:
Customs:
A real custom will be an authentic shoe that is painted or somehow altered by a custom artist and is then sold for prices comparable to premium shoes. Since these are authentic, I recommend you buy them. However, most custom shoes offered on the internet are fake shoes custom painted. A tell-tale for this is usually an exceptionally low price.
Factory Variants:
These are always fakes, the term is purposefully misleading.
Look-a-likes:
Very prominent in the
Converse All-Star right now, these are the shoes made to look similar to the real thing but do not actually claim to be the real shoe. Don't buy these.
Samples:
Samples are incredibly rare shoes that are only made in size 9 and do not have a box. They are used to road test the shoe and are very valuable if you can come across a real one, but most samples on the internet are fake. Do not buy samples if they being sold at an exceptionally low price, these are all fakes.
Rule 7:
Clear Shoes
As of today, 11/12/07, there are only 5 clear Nikes, no clear Jordans, and no clear Bapes. Here is a list of the clear Nikes:
Air Force 2 “Espo” 308417-901
Air Force 1 “Invisible Woman” 313641-941
Air Force 1 “Light Iris-Ice Blue” (Women's Sizes Only) 314791-951
Air Max 90 “Clot Edition” 313227-161
Vandal “Buzz Lightyear” (Kid's Sizes Only) 314675-131
I hope my guide helped you in some way and that your next pair of shoes is authentic!
