Cheap Ritchey WCS Stems on E bay

[Ralph]

Cheap Ritchey stems on E bay....Assume they are Illegal knockoffs. From China....Carbon and carbon matrix (they say) Respect Ritchey products too much to buy something that is cheating him. Anyone know story on these? Back door sales, copies, etc?

[AngryScientist]

almost everything cycling related i want to buy on ebay, it seems there is always the basic price of the widget from multiple retailers, and then a string of the same object, shipping from china, for 40% or so less.

i never take a chance on those items, i assume it's some kind of scam or counterfeit, neither of which i want to get involved in.

[Mark McM]

Are the Ritchey WCS stems on ebay counterfeit? Do they meet relevant quality and safety standards? Its hard to say if they are not coming through official distribution channels. And if they are coming through independent sellers, it is even harder to know.

Here's a story about a recent criminal prosecution of an ebay seller in the US who was reselling counterfeit goods bought through Ali Express:

https://www.bicycleretailer.com/industry-news/2018/06/11/kentucky-man-convicted-selling-counterfeit-helmets-ebay#.XP_-b018C9I


The old saying is still true: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

[AngryScientist]

Are the Ritchey WCS stems on ebay counterfeit? Do they meet relevant quality and safety standards? Its hard to say if they are not coming through official distribution channels. And if they are coming through independent sellers, it is even harder to know.

Here's a story about a recent criminal prosecution of an ebay seller in the US who was reselling counterfeit goods bought through Ali Express:

https://www.bicycleretailer.com/industry-news/2018/06/11/kentucky-man-convicted-selling-counterfeit-helmets-ebay#.XP_-b018C9I


The old saying is still true: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.


Good article, thanks Mark. That's a good outcome there, and proves once again - don't mess with Specialized!

Counterfeit stuff really bugs me.

[zzy]

If you're ever not sure, ask the seller if it comes with all original paperwork and box. Anyone selling recent 'new' stuff without that is usually a scammer. People on my local CL try to sell knockoff bikes at near full retail all the time. I love the stories they come up with to explain why they're selling a brand new bike yet never have the receipt, have no proof of purchase, and no original paperwork. I once went to go buy a set of new Shimano wheels at a very swank Manhattan address. Then I noticed they had bitex hubs. The guy then told me he had them custom built. I asked for a receipt, and he gave me a long story instead. Then I noticed the rim's hole drillings were incorrect - he had another story for that. In the end I called him out for selling fake stuff and he just said 'make me an offer' over and over.

[Matthew]

I simply won't buy it if it's coming from overseas. Maybe I'm missing a great deal or two but I just won't risk it. If the price seems too good it likely is!

[windsurfer]

From the tech info page on Richeylogic web site:https://us.ritcheylogic.com/us_en/tech-info

"In these times it has become easier for products to be counterfeited. These fake products do not represent Ritchey’s high standards for design, materials or quality. We are in no way affiliated with these products and cannot guarantee your safety if you choose to purchase and use any counterfeit product not obtained from an authorized Ritchey dealer. Ritchey does aggressively pursue counterfeit product and pursues legal action against unscrupulous manufacturers and sellers to prevent these products from making it to the market, but it is not possible to stop them all.

If you choose to purchase and use a look-alike product on the web with a price far below the Ritchey MSRP it is a clear indication you need to take care regarding safety as it may be a counterfeit product. For this reason we recommend that all customers only purchase genuine Ritchey product from an authorized Ritchey dealer. By doing so (and retaining your proof of purchase) your Ritchey product will be covered by our warranty policy as we do stand behind the products we make.

Kind Regards,

Ritchey
"

They even have pictures of counterfeit WCS stems in the "more info" link https://us.ritcheylogic.com/us_en/blog/beware-of-counterfeit-products/

[ntb1001]

I’ve seen Fizik products that I’m sure are counterfeit because they were ordered from China, but had complete packaging. No actual difference from authentic, no actual differences whatsoever...so good luck telling the difference.
I guess you can only know for sure if you only purchase from official retailers....maybe.




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[Clancy]

Counterfeit stuff really bugs me.

Agree one hundred percent.

Easy to see the temptation though plus those that argue that OEM parts, wheels, frames come from the very same factories but only rebranded with that companies logos. The “I heard factory x makes all the rims for US wheelbuilder John Doe argument.

I don’t believe it. Always seems to be a “I heard”.

Not worth it. I care for cycling too much to disrespect it.

[belopsky]

These ship from California

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F26 4069972085

[Davist]

These ship from California

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F26 4069972085

understood, but Alibaba ships to CA too, right? tough issue..

[belopsky]

understood, but Alibaba ships to CA too, right? tough issue..

Sure but what you're suggesting is that this eBay seller, with over 8000 reviews on eBay, is selling knockoffs?

Possible of course..

https://ebay.com/usr/crimsonstallionsales

[summilux]

If you're ever not sure, ask the seller if it comes with all original paperwork and box.

I"m not sure that this always works. I've spent a lot of time in China of late and in the fake markets (watches and bags mostly), high quality fakes can come with boxes, paperwork and holograms. This may not be true for bike parts though. The only way to know for sure is to inspect two items and see whether the serial numbers are the same.

Another thing to consider is that some China "fakes" could be "real" in the sense that they come from the same factory, made with the same machinery and using the same materials. It's not uncommon for manufacturing subcontractors to run a secret shift on weekends or at night. These off-the-book extras are then sold outside of regular channels. There's no QC though.

[weiwentg]

These ship from California

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F26 4069972085

Those may well be legitimate but discontinued stems. I can't see that design on Ritchey's current stems page (https://us.ritcheylogic.com/us_en/road-bike/stems), but when I googled the model name, I did see that stem offered in both black and white (https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/stems/110-ritchey-wcs-4axis-1-18-inch-ahead-stem-plus6-deg-318mm-clamp-wet-white/?geoc=US) finishes.

Last night, I searched for carbon WCS stems on eBay, and I found a link from a China-based seller that I reported. I no longer have it. However, it appeared to be a full carbon version of the C220 stems in matte and carbon weave finish. Ritchey doesn't currently offer that product; the actual current C220 is aluminum wrapped with matte carbon. I don't see any C220 or similar stems in full carbon. Maybe eBay took the listing down. I referred them to the current list of stems in the report.

The possibility that something could be a discontinued version makes things a bit trickier here.

[R3awak3n]

I dont get it though, why take a chance and get a ritchey fake stem when you can get a sweet kalloy for $25. Debadge it and its a great stem. Faceplate mechanism is one of my favorites. I dont think I am buying any other kind of stems

[Gummee]

Agree one hundred percent.

Easy to see the temptation though plus those that argue that OEM parts, wheels, frames come from the very same factories but only rebranded with that companies logos. The “I heard factory x makes all the rims for US wheelbuilder John Doe argument.

I don’t believe it. Always seems to be a “I heard”.

Not worth it. I care for cycling too much to disrespect it.

They're certainly not going to come out and say 'we build all of [insert brand X] rims! That'd kill their relationship with [brand X]

The carbon wrapped Ritchie stuff was obsolete a while ago. Maybe someone had a ton of back stock? Dunno either. ...but then, I don't run anything but AL stems.

M