Counterfeit cycling products ARE EVERYWHERE and there is a high probability you could buy one by mistake. The problem is that we are not just talking about obvious fakes – Chinarellos and SHUIMANO. We are talking about imitation or fake versions of genuine cycling equipment and accessories, which to the untrained eye look legitimate
00:00 Intro
01:58 How Big A Problem Are Counterfeit Items?
04:35 Websites That Look Real, But Are Not!
08:35 We Look For Fake Products
09:52 What Are The Dangers Of Buying Fakes?
15:05 Our Fake Chain Arrives!
25:00 How To Spot/Avoid Buying Fake Products
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34 Comments
Have you ever bought a fake product? Let us know 👇
Something terribly wrong testing a fake Chinese chain on a bike with cheap Chinese junk wheels. Elite, Winspace and all the other Chinese brands are just as guilty of duping the less knowledgable buyer. These and other Chinese brands sold from Chinese online sites and Amazon or eBay are frauds and fool the fools.
I heard an very good point on the "it's all the same factories in china" thing in the firearm optics world
If the factories who make good money producing legitimate things for western brands were even suspected of doing that, their reputation would be trashed instantly. they would loose it all.
nobody is going to build a profitable company making high end quality products, then risk that disappearing overnight for a couple extra dollars in their pocket on the side.
The world is fake. Fake bikes are okay 😅
This is the result of price gouging, anything that is bike related is exponentially more expensive. Compare to the fitness industry or other similar sports, it really is the reason why some cyclist are looked at like snobs and elitist.
Some counterfeit brands are of quite good quality some are questionable!!!!!! In the end even brand name products are produced in Asia!!!! Brand name company’s are mad because it cuts into there end product profit!!!!!Use common sence do not buy an integral fake part!!! Ie fork carbon stem !!!! Customer beware do not always have to buy from brand name!!!!!
Some counterfeit brands are of quite good quality some are questionable!!!!!! In the end even brand name products are produced in Asia!!!! Brand name company’s are mad because it cuts into there end product profit!!!!!Use common sence do not buy an integral fake part!!! Ie fork carbon stem !!!! Customer beware do not always have to buy from brand name!!!!
Wow! That fake Pinarello is as ugly as the real one😮
Question who hasn’t bought some type of fake product!!!! It’s almost hard not to cost!!!!!
I bought a 12 speed XT chain o ebay. Like the one shown here, it had an authentic "sticker" printed on it, just as you can see at the 16:03 mark. AFAIK Shimano actually IS introducing as an anti-counterfeit feature, but at least initially only in some products. The idea is that this is a sticker you can peel off revealing a code of authenticity which you can check online. My counterfeit chain had this "sticker" printed on it, including the "Open" mark indicating that you can peel it off (of course you can't do that on the fake, as it is just printed on, like the bar code).
Apparently this fools lots of people, they just see "Authentic", but don't notice that this is supposed to be a sticker!
@gcntech can you comment on that? Was your "Authentic" sticker an actual sticker, or was it printed?
Aside from this red flag, my counterfeit sample had the various logos stamped into the metal of the links on both sides, whereas original Shimano chains AFAIK only have it in one side.
I bought a ICAN set of carbon wheels and not only was the fit and finish poor, even for a bargain brand, but I needed to replace the rear bearings within 3 momth and then had the front wheel totally collapse after hitting a small pothole. I've seen this with other indigenous Chinese brands and strongly suggest you avoid at all cost
I have a question, great content by the way, I like Shimano 105 and would like to know if it can work on an E scooter, how can it be done>? is it better?
Just be honest, it's about protecting profits. And thats fine. Overblown safety risks just make eyes roll
Great episode 👍🏼
On AliExpress I have purchased handlebar tape, seats, cell phone holders, tires, aluminum frames, airtag holders, and water bottle holders. Some of it was junk. Most of it was fine. I would be afraid of purchasing stuff that can hurt you like carbon frames, carbon handlebars, and bike chains.
Regarding supporting 'terrorism' by buying fakes, you're equally doing so when buying 'legitimate' goods. It's a weak argument. Look at nestle, coca-cola, fast fashion (BooHoo using literal slaves in the UK, in Leicester specifically).
Zrace brake rotors and pads are absolute excellent! They have floating rotors I use for years and never had one fail. I can Buy 6 Rotors and pads for the price of one Shimano or Sram set.
Chinese brands make cycling for people accessible with small purses. They are here to stay. The big brands and their fanboys just want to gate keep. F, them.
Does your knockoff chain mechanically fail under load or put the rider at risk?
I'm rather enjoying how the chickens have come home to roost.
Just checked my Dura-Ace CN-HG901-11 speed chain from Certini in Saltash and the chamfers on the links don’t go all around the top, just like Ollie’s fake. However, the chamfers on the original Ultegra chain that I removed from my Roubaix don’t go all the way around either. The quick link was in a separate packet but the picture of the quick link on the main packet looks like Ollie’s fake with a tiny little square cutout on the oblong hole. It was £34.99 from Certini, have I bought a fake?
A good step forward would be more transparency where stuff is really made by the big players.
I'm riding a fake dogma F for 3 years now i crashed too many times but no crank 🤲
Don’t buy Chinese products from China! Buy Chinese products at 6x the price from Specialized!
Well that explains the last few shimano chains I've waxed and links start jamming.
Funny, this guy from Specialized is talking about greed, most American cycling products are very expensive, hasn't there been S-Works frames cracking? I don't trust that Specialized guy. Give me a break man! I would never buy American cycling products also never buy super expensive Pinarellos, Cervelos etc. I've been seriously riding for over 30 years and I know where to buy great quality bikes and cycling products without giving in to these super high prices. Yeah cycling is more expensive than it used to be but you gotta know the market. I think that a lot of these people that fall for these fake products are not savvy in the cycling world. All these high end cycling brands are to blame for the high prices, they are greedy, why do you think people are buying cheaper products. I understand everyone wants money, who doesn't.
It‘s about time to make the money-makers in the middle liable for what they promote. Amazon should be liable for what goes over their platform, social media companies shall be liable for what‘s on there.
“Does the Chinese government do anything…” hahahahahahhahahahaha 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 that’s OK. I know that wasn’t a real question.
Slave labour also exists in legit companies, Apple is one of the worst, sure there was a story about mass suicides. Stuff is made in the far east to boost profits.
I purchased a shimano tourney rear derailleur on amazon, I was constantly trying to adjust the hi – low screws to get it to work properly, the mechanism was loose after just a few weeks making changing gear a matter of luck. Eventually I replaced it with the old derailleur after giving it a good overhaul its worked perfectly.
Needless to say I gave the seller bad feedback.
This video highlights the dangers of counterfeit cycling gear. However, the thumbnail. It's giving the “China virus.”
The child labor is alarming and must be addressed but I simply cannot afford a multi-thousand dollar bike pushing $10K. And from what I've seen in my city, neither can 99% of people.
there might be a flaw about the chain part of the video : how are you certain that it’s a fake ? it’s just different from the real one and unfortunately it also has some rust. what if it’s just from a older produced lot ?
The greatest irony……the bloke from Specialised saying that the counterfeiter’s business model is predicated on greed………sounds like the copied Specialised business approach……what a joke…
Put the fake one on a bike , set it up on the turbo trainer and run it for 6 months and post the results up
My new Cube C62’s Ultegra cranks have the paint worn away within 2 rides from new.. this would never happen with real Shimano. Is this why they are such good value? Are they using fake equipment?