Fake bicycle frame, especially carbon

[Openroad2000]

I have seen several fake carbon frames on eBay, like top of the line from Time. Anyone seen more of those? Better have a list and have some alert when you are purchasing these brands and parts. I also see some Ritchey Carbon stems and seatposts, also FSA carbon seatpost and 3T seatpost. Oh, also integrated stem/handlebar with Pinarello, Colnago logo on them.

Ritchey website has a page on counterfeit Ritchey products with pictures, very interesting. Kind of scary consider riding with a fake handlebar, stem, even carbon rims. They kill people.

[christian]

They kill people.Really?

[aramis]

If you buy good but not huge brand stuff you don't have to worry as much. I'm positive the used carbon van dessel rivet frame I bought is legit. :p

[tlittlefield]

That is why it is best buy from reputable dealers, Competitive Cyclist, Nashbar etc when purchasing high end items like these.

[likebikes]

bike parts don't kill people, people kill people.

[jet sanchez]

There are tons of fake Colnagos and Pinarellos on ebay, probably many other brands too.

I'd personally only buy from an authorized dealer if I were in the market for one.

[Steve in SLO]

Why would anybody fake FSA?

[FlashUNC]

Why would anybody fake FSA?

The real stuff is bad enough...

[El Chaba]

Why would anybody fake FSA?

Faking FSA is sort of like faking having herpes....

[BumbleBeeDave]

There are tons of fake Colnagos and Pinarellos on ebay, probably many other brands too.

I'd personally only buy from an authorized dealer if I were in the market for one.

. . . I would be VERY careful about buying anything carbon on eBay. A fake frame coming apart on the road is bad enough, but imagine bars doing it at 40mph down a mountain road. Ouch.

BBD

[eBAUMANN]

I bought a counterfeit enve seatpost off ebay once...didnt even realize such a thing existed until i had it in my hand and it was CLEARLY not right, in many ways.

Seller had no idea either. He refunded my money and I sent it back.

Aliexpress has made the world of 2nd hand carbon very sketchy...

[blilrat]

I recently purchased a Ritchey bar and stem. They both have holographic decals on them like you see on boxed software license keys. I'm guessing it is a way to tell real from fake.

[Black Dog]

I recently purchased a Ritchey bar and stem. They both have holographic decals on them like you see on boxed software license keys. I'm guessing it is a way to tell real from fake.

The holographic stickers are easier to fake than the parts they are on.

[IJWS]

The best way to avoid buying something counterfeit would be to use common sense. No Pinarello, Specialized, Trek, ENVE, whatever it is you're pining after is really being sold for $435 + Shipping from China. If it's too good to be true, it's too good to be true. Caveat emptor...on a mountain road going 40 mph

[oldfatslow]

My Serotta, Moots, and Co-Motion(s), and others all make me feel like a fake cyclist who doesn't deserve to be riding such nice gear.

[blilrat]

The holographic stickers are easier to fake than the parts they are on.

No disagreement here. Must be some reason for using that specific type of decal though as it adds some expense without any apparent value to the customer.


I've also been shopping for some carbon wheels. I was blown away at how wheels are offered by some of the Chinese manufacturers. One company went as far as offering your choice of fake decals - ZIPP, Dura-Ace, Campagnolo, etc.

[paredown]

Funny, I was thinking about this last night when I was (yet again) ogling Time Carbon frames.

There was an ad for a VRX Ulteam clearly identified as a "Chinese Time" (how that gets by eBay's brand police, I don't know) and some others I'm assuming were authentic.

The only difference I could spot was a (?warning) red sticker on the front fork of one of the authentic bikes, and the Time serial number sticker on the inside of the rear stay. (The fake also has a generic headset instead of the Time-specific model).

The joke to me is that the Time serial number sticker looks to be a simple white, non-holographic sticker that costs maybe $ .02--and it would be easier to fake than the complicated graphics on the rest of the bike.

How a consumer can tell, I don't know--except as has been said, buy from a reputable source. The quality of the graphics on the fake is really quite good...

Chinese Time (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Time-RTM-ULTeam-Carbon-Frame-Stem-Headset-Bottom-bracket-Cages-Chinese-Version-/221708905423?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item339ee16bcf)

"Real" Ulteam (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Time-RXRS-Ulteam-RTM-Carbon-Road-Frameset-w-Bars-Stem-Saddle-Medium-/351339324042?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51cd74a28a)

[eBAUMANN]

^ it really is remarkable how close the fake is to the real thing...close enough that it actually kept me from buying one of those exact frames on more than one occasion...

[majorpat]

Costelo headset...paired with an Abbott BB?

Use common sense, people.

[rgr111]

What's the rule? Buy the seller, not the deal.

[Vinci]

Not to say it applies in all cases, but what if the frame is still decent, despite not being the actual item that it's painted/marketed to be?

As an example, I picked up what looks to be a full-carbon Toupe knock-off on eBay last year for a song. I thought it would be funny to show up with it at the group ride. It turned out to be extremely comfortable, on top of weighing nothing. I've been riding it since.

[tuscanyswe]

The best way to avoid buying something counterfeit would be to use common sense. No Pinarello, Specialized, Trek, ENVE, whatever it is you're pining after is really being sold for $435 + Shipping from China. If it's too good to be true, it's too good to be true. Caveat emptor...on a mountain road going 40 mph

No but they may well be sold used for double the amount from down the road..

[fiataccompli]

I would imagine there is plenty of "safe" (as safe as the real thing) stuff coming out of China - some pretending to be other stuff, some just being unbranded. I guess I keep thinking that a lot of the "real" stuff being copied is made by the same people and so it puts the thought in my head about whether the price differential is because there are so many failsafe QC measures or if it's just the cost of massive markering/branding. Most of the things that people seem fascinated with faking are not ones I want, so I feel rather safe. I can imagine enjoying a no-name Chinese carbon fiber bike, but I can't imagine trying to make it look like something it's not any more than going out kitted out like a pro (which I'm not).

[josephr]

I've also been shopping for some carbon wheels. I was blown away at how wheels are offered by some of the Chinese manufacturers. One company went as far as offering your choice of fake decals - ZIPP, Dura-Ace, Campagnolo, etc.

I'm not into carbon wheels and if I were, I'd want some sort of warranty/traceability. But, what really gets me going is the outright fakeness of it all. Advertise/sell them as Chinese generics....everyone knows what the deal is -- ride them at your own risk. Anyway, that's my .02.

[bobswire]

There are reputable Chinese frame/wheel makers out there if you do a little research. Weight Weenies is a good source for reviews.
To name a few.

http://pedalforce.com/online/

http://www.dengfubikes.com/

http://www.hongfu-bikes.com/html_info/about-us.html

[tiretrax]

Aliexpress has made the world of 2nd hand carbon very sketchy...

2nd hand carbon is sketchy no matter from whom you buy it. That was very good advice I received years ago and swear by.

[downshiftdynamo]

There are reputable Chinese frame/wheel makers out there if you do a little research. Weight Weenies is a good source for reviews.
To name a few.

http://pedalforce.com/online/

http://www.dengfubikes.com/

http://www.hongfu-bikes.com/html_info/about-us.html

I have a HongFu mountain frame and had a PedalForce road frame (sold it, though –·too big) and they're both fantastic! Pretty top notch. No problems, no complaints.
I appreciate the fact they're not selling their parts as "fake".

[katematt]

I 'm a fan of their aluminum shallow drop road bars......but that was funny.

Faking FSA is sort of like faking having herpes....