Are there fake Leathermans?

E-bay pretty good about getting your money back if its not as listed. Use your head,but remember there are "hoops you must jump through.

 

Yes.

 

Yes; there's pretty much a fake everything these days; there are certain ways to tell a fake. Way too much to go into here.
Just type in, how to tell a fake leatherman.

 

As long as the chinese are out there with their lack of respect for others intellectual property and a profit to be made there will be fakes.

Yes that came out a bit racist as I know there are others out making fakes but it seems 99% I've personally inspected have came from china.

 

A few years ago, I visited a longtime friend with whom I had served in the military that retired in Kowloon Tong. Just before we had dinner with he and his wife, she took us to a shopping district.

We found several blocks of shops that offered hundreds of goods that were very recognisable to westerners.

His wife divulged that these goods are mostly copies/clones. They term “fake” is not correct since these items are very much real. It’s just that the designs are very likely stolen. The craftsmanship of many of these things are just simply superb.

I found a perfume shop that offered so many very well made Leatherman clones that Tim himself would be impressed.

There were no price tags attached to these items; however, when my burly fair-skinned, red-haired friend with the thick Brooklyn accent asked, the prices offered by that merchant seemed to be quite high as his half-Chinese wife warned.

 

The whole situation with fakes/clones/stolen IP, etc. is actually more complex than most people realize.

Plus, in many countries, you can add in the concept of 'grey market'...

Some of what goes on has its roots in early treaties between various countries and the US (for example; not to single out the US).

For example: when I lived in Taiwan back in the 80's and 90's, copies of books of all sorts (from tech books to current NY Times best sellers) were openly printed and sold in well established book stores throughout Taipei. How did this come about you may ask? Well at some point, the US signed an agreement/treaty with what was then the recognized government of China, the Republic of China (not to be confused with the current People's Republic of China...). In essence, this agreement specified that for 'educational purposes' they could make copies of books to be sold locally to promote education. Apparently what was permitted was very loosely defined... at any rate, these book stores had the most up to date, highest volume output photocopier machines you could imagine. And it was legal... All of us ex-pats bought books. It was the only source available to us!

Then there is the 'grey market'. This consists of business folks flying in to say Japan or elsewhere, buying cameras, electronics, watches, etc., and importing into their 'home countries'. Problem was, these were not authorized distribution channels and hence warranties were unenforceable...

One of the biggest problems is when copyrights, trademarks, patents, etc., are not registered in a country such as China. Keep in mind that if the marks are not registered, then in effect in that country they simply do not exist. They're just scribble on a package label.

And before anyone jumps up and says that is just the Chinese lacking ethics, this is something that often cuts in many directions. A foreign company trying to register their trademarks etc in the US has no guarantee that said trademarks will be allowed to be registered. Some of this is pure politics and protectionism for sure. The US has had a record of some trademarks being denied in recent years because someone in that office decided the trademark was obscene or whatever; even though in its home country it was acceptable. And no, this is not all Asian situations. There have been European trademarks denied on these grounds as well.

As I said, it's complicated. Plus, yes, there is also simple greed and choosing to be unethical and ignore IP rights as well.

The consulting group I was part of back in my Asian years had a whole group dedicated to dealing with all this you see. I fortunately was not part of that group. . I just got to hear tales during after hours drinks....

Am Yisrael Chai!

Moshe ben David

 

Thanks for the lucid, illuminating response, MbD. It’s is indeed a complex circumstance and one that indeed should be considered before lobbing huge dispersions at the player that is so easy to condemn. Not that I’m condoning what has already transpired.

Moderators, please lock this thread to avoid the politics.

 

i bought a fake juice cs4 some years ago as a stash tool for the trunk of my truck