Amazon sells fake sticks??

J

JUZZI

Member
So I ordered sticks from amazon recently (in the uk) rather than going into shops (due to lockdown)

This is the second pair i've purchased now that I suspect to be fake!!!?

The first were 'vic firth 5a' - they turned out to be really light, nothing like 5a usual weight, even the wood seemed so cheap and different compared to 'genuine' vic firths i usually get from in store. I've played with 5A for years so I could tell the difference straight away and pulled out my old sticks to compare.
The second were Zildjian anti-vibe 5a's, AGAIN a very cheap feeling wood, so light almost feel even lighter than a 7a! the logo completely rubbed off within seconds of playing with them too.

Why are amazon sticks completely different? Has any UK buyers noticed this? last time I order from them. :mad:
 
More than likely, these sticks came from Amazon Marketplace rather than Amazon itself. Amazon Marketplace is essentially a huge collection of independent shops and retailers that sell through Amazon. Unfortunately there's almost no oversight of these shops, so a lot of counterfeit, defective and expired products of all kinds have been sold through there. Therefore, given your descriptions, it wouldn't surprise me if your sticks are counterfeit (assuming you bought them through Amazon Marketplace). But they could also be factory rejects.

Personally, I wouldn't buy anything through Amazon Marketplace unless it was from the manufacturer itself or an authorized distributor.
 
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TK-421 said:
More than likely, these sticks came from Amazon Marketplace rather than Amazon itself. Amazon Marketplace is essentially a huge collection of independent shops and retailers that sell through Amazon. Unfortunately there's almost no oversight of these shops, so a lot of counterfit, defective and expired products of all kinds have been sold through there. Therefore, given your descriptions, it wouldn't surprise me if your sticks are counterfit (assuming you bought them through Amazon Marketplace). But they could also be factory rejects.

Personally, I wouldn't buy anything through Amazon Marketplace unless it was from the manufacturer itself or an authorized distributor.
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I did not know that, but it explains a lot! thanks
 
JUZZI said:
So I ordered sticks from amazon recently (in the uk) rather than going into shops (due to lockdown)

This is the second pair i've purchased now that I suspect to be fake!!!?

The first were 'vic firth 5a' - they turned out to be really light, nothing like 5a usual weight, even the wood seemed so cheap and different compared to 'genuine' vic firths i usually get from in store. I've played with 5A for years so I could tell the difference straight away and pulled out my old
Click to expand...
Are you sure that the Vic Firth sticks were American Classics? I think their Maple sticks are called American custom and they would be very light and in my opinion inferior LOL
 
lefty2 said:
Are you sure that the Vic Firth sticks were American Classics? I think their Maple sticks are called American custom and they would be very light and in my opinion inferior LOL
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Their maple sticks are called American Heritage, and the 5A in that series has AH5A printed on the sticks (not just 5A). So it’s unlikely to get mixed up with their standard hickory 5A sticks. But I was wondering the same thing until I read about the logos coming off almost immediately. I’ve NEVER seen that happen. That, combined with just how many fake items are sold through Amazon, made me think they probably are fake.

www.nytimes.com

Welcome to the Era of Fake Products

Counterfeit goods have proliferated along with e-commerce. Here’s your primer on the growing world of fake products—and the forces working to combat them.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 
cbphoto said:
Got pics?
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thumbnail_20200806_205440.jpg thumbnail_20200806_205006.jpg
that logo writing completly rubbed off after the first use and they're so so light. Definitely fake!

Zildjian Anti-Vibe 5A

Zildjian Anti-Vibe 5A : Amazon.co.uk: Musical Instruments & DJ

Free delivery and returns on eligible orders of £20 or more. Buy Zildjian Anti-Vibe 5A at Amazon UK.
www.amazon.co.uk


lefty2 said:
Are you sure that the Vic Firth sticks were American Classics? I think their Maple sticks are called American custom and they would be very light and in my opinion inferior LOL
Click to expand...

Yes, as you can see the link below - i ordered 'classic' hickory wood NOT 'heritage' maple wood

Vic Firth 5a American Hickory Wood Tip Drumsticks

I have no pic for these as it was last april, and i ended up binning them!


Amazon customer service are useless. I will have to suck it up! what a waste of money
 
Amazon sells a lot of b-stock crap. in all of their lines nit just drum stuff. I have a dw cymbal mount and the letters DW engraved in it are upside down when the 2 pieces come together. Its pinned together from the factory. Still works fine but I know its not something DW would be happy to sell.
 
TK-421 said:
More than likely, these sticks came from Amazon Marketplace rather than Amazon itself. Amazon Marketplace is essentially a huge collection of independent shops and retailers that sell through Amazon. Unfortunately there's almost no oversight of these shops, so a lot of counterfit, defective and expired products of all kinds have been sold through there. Therefore, given your descriptions, it wouldn't surprise me if your sticks are counterfit (assuming you bought them through Amazon Marketplace). But they could also be factory rejects.

Personally, I wouldn't buy anything through Amazon Marketplace unless it was from the manufacturer itself or an authorized distributor.
Click to expand...

I despise this about Amazon. Every once in a while when I'm not paying enough attention, I'll buy something that arrives looking like a chinese made junior version of what I ordered. You have to be careful. I try to only buy things supplied by Amazon themselves.
 
Since the second pair were Zildjian, let me offer this up: I switched to a light, comfortable Zildian Super 7A Maple. I was occasionally having trouble finding it in stock, and I discovered Zildjian's own store. I have ordered twice from them. The price was good, and the sticks came extremely quickly. You can be sure you won't get fakes that way.
 
Old Dog new Cans said:
I despise this about Amazon. Every once in a while when I'm not paying enough attention, I'll buy something that arrives looking like a chinese made junior version of what I ordered. You have to be careful. I try to only buy things supplied by Amazon themselves.
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I just flat out despise Amazon. For this and many other reasons. Though I still do order through them on rare occasion. Usually when it‘s something that I wouldn’t know where else to buy it. For example, my automatic watch had been running fast, and I suspected the movement may have gotten magnetized (I had set it down on a bass cabinet once, which is not a good idea considering all the speakers with heavy magnets). Anyway, I decided to buy a demagnetizer, but I have no idea where to buy those. So I just went to Amazon. But that’s the exception. If I know where to buy something from a ”legit” retailer, I’ll always do that instead.

Fortunately, my demagnetizer worked, and now my watch is spot on accurate!
 
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TK-421 said:
For example, my automatic watch had been running fast, and I suspected the movement may have gotten magnetized (I had set it down on a bass cabinet once, which is not a good idea considering all the speakers with heavy magnets). ...

Fortunately, my demagnetizer worked, and now my watch is spot on accurate!
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Nice troubleshooting sense there!
 
I bought 2 pair of Zildjian sticks, about as close to a 2b as they get I guess. This was back around 96? I still have them. Things change. ?‍♂️
 
I purchased my first pair of Vic Firth 5As from Amazon. Later I order some in bulk from an actual musical retailer and they’re different for sure. The lacquer is different. Its a subtle difference, but it’s there. I don’t doubt amazon sellers are peddling some inferior sticks. For me, they served their purpose and because I was new, it didn’t make a difference to me. They were straight.
 
I am sooo lucky to have a great drum shop within a bike ride from my house. I could not imagine ordering anything drum related - other than apparel - online. From what I know with my dealings with stick companies and being in the marching "industry", I would definitely not order sticks from a third party supplier...

When I do have to, I use Steve Weiss...or the actual product site itself.

and I am also possibly one of the last people left who have never ordered anything on Amazon. My "Tin Foil Hat" tells me not to trust Amazon....
 
JUZZI said:
View attachment 94874 View attachment 94875
that logo writing completly rubbed off after the first use and they're so so light. Definitely fake!

Zildjian Anti-Vibe 5A

Zildjian Anti-Vibe 5A : Amazon.co.uk: Musical Instruments & DJ

Free delivery and returns on eligible orders of £20 or more. Buy Zildjian Anti-Vibe 5A at Amazon UK.
www.amazon.co.uk




Yes, as you can see the link below - i ordered 'classic' hickory wood NOT 'heritage' maple wood

Vic Firth 5a American Hickory Wood Tip Drumsticks

I have no pic for these as it was last april, and i ended up binning them!


Amazon customer service are useless. I will have to suck it up! what a waste of money
Click to expand...

I doubt the drumsticks are fake. Counterfeiting is still a complex process, even w/ the ability to print at home using decent pro-sumer equipment. The investment vs. margins vs volume needed for profit on drumsticks just wouldn't be worth it.
 
There's so much fake stuff on amazon marketplace and ebay. Got stung when buying a USB stick, it was a defective one from the factory. iPOD nano turned out to be a nano case wrapped around none apple parts, defective batteries etc. Lots of good transactions, but it's definitely got a lot of fraudsters on there.

As you're in the UK, PMT is a great shop, thomann and GAK are good too, and sometimes cheaper. Gear for music is legit, but usually pay a lot more on there. and of course, there's your local drum shop like ADC Drums in Liverpool.
 
bonerpizza said:
I've never had a positive experience with Zildjian sticks. The 3-4 times I've tried them they always feel too light and break within 30 minutes, the one time I got the anti-vibe model the little plug fell out of the bottom within the first 10-15 minutes. So I'd assume that the Zildjian sticks you got were not fake, that's just how they are.
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Maybe I'll just put it down to me being wrong and the sticks being genuine.. but if so I wouldn't recommend them to anyone! They are NOTHING like 5A weight, the wood seems cheap as hell, people say the rubber falls out and like I mentioned before the logo comes off completely straight away, which just shows what poor quality they are.

I'll go back to my trusty Vic Firth 5A's! gotta love em ❤
 
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