Burned- Spyderco experts chime in..

[tarosean]

So I bought a Spyderco PM2 from Amazon.. It cost the same as a normal so I didn't even double check the seller. However, there are some things about this knife that make me wonder if I ended up with a counterfeit piece. Even though I have never bought a Spyder before (I generally purchase Benchmades)
Obviously the lack of barcode set things off first. Then there is lateral play in the blade at lock. which made me delve further.
what are your opinions?

 

[hso]

Post a flat side view of the Spyderco name and an overall picture of the knife both sides. I think you're correct. Look at the position of the lettering on your's and on these two images from Spyderco and Blade HQ. Notice the clips are all on the pivot and not the point end.




Who was the seller?

 

[Litlman]

Brother I have a camo one from blade HQ. It looks like mine. Cant pick out any difference except the Spider on your clip looks etched and mine looks pressed? But it may be lighting in pics?

 

[tarosean]

I am 100% certain its a counterfeit..
Typos in the letter, and a couple other things... not to mention it felt like a 0.02 cent knife when I pulled it out.
just pissed off I got it from Amazon where I buy just about everything except guns and liquor...

Who was the seller?

had to check who the seller was.. I just clicked on the first one that showed up as it was pretty much the normal range for the knife. (125 and change)
Ive already initiated a return.. (thats the best part of this..)
The seller was...
Dawn VerwersV

 

[Litlman]

That sucks. I thought that you may have switched the clip position. My knife has a substantial feel to it. Total "quality" feel.

 

[C0untZer0]

I have a theory about the knock-off knifes that their screws are cheaply made, so if you use a quality Torx bit from Wiha or Chapman - they won't fit, they either rattle around in the socket or they don't fit in at all. If you're using a quality bit and it doesn't fit snugly - its a red flag - just my opinion.

 

[JohnKSa]

The logo on the clip is stamped very lightly. The genuine Spyderco items tend to have a very solidly stamped logo.

The laser-etched log on the blade is not quite right. The "nose" of the spider is exaggerated.

I agree with hso that the brandname and steel lettering on the blade is also wrong.

On your knife, with the blade closed, the end of the clip lines up with the logo on the blade. On the genuine article the clip extends well past the logo.

 

[hso]

In addition to showing it to us you should contact Spyderco about it and let them know who the seller was. Do the same at Amazon since they're involved in marketing these counterfeits. Spyderco has filed suit against Ebay for letting counterfeits be sold after they've been told by members that a knife was a counterfeit. I made such a report last night to Spyderco about a Para 2 that was a chinese counterfeit. Bad enough that Ebay has these, but people trust Amazon more than Ebay (although the thousands of counterfeit eclipse glasses has eroded this blind faith).

Any of us that find fraud like this should warn other members (remember the Howard Leight hearing protection counterfeits).

 

[tarosean]

In addition to showing it to us you should contact Spyderco about it and let them know who the seller was. Do the same at Amazon since they're involved in marketing these counterfeits.

Yes sir. I have contacted Amazon and Spyderco.
Not a happy camper.

 

[VoodooMountain]

I'm starting to think this is why I am literally the only person I know that hasn't been happy with a spyderco ( tenacious?). Bought it a couple years ago on amazon, I think, and the quality was subpar.

I have no other spyderco experience to draw from. It was my one and only.

My knife has a lot of the same discrepancies as yours.

 

[tarosean]

I'm starting to think this is why I am literally the only person I know that hasn't been happy with a spyderco ( tenacious?). Bought it a couple years ago on amazon, I think, and the quality was subpar.

I have no other spyderco experience to draw from. It was my one and only.

That was my initial reaction and same experience. I was literally scratching my head, wondering how the hell could so many people like this piece of junk..
I knew that something couldn't be right, but did not have enough experience with them.. It was pointed out to me to read the letter.

They may know how to copy stuff, buttt English writing still remains somewhat a mystery to these counterfeiters.

 

[hso]

WOW! That's laughable!

 

[bannockburn]

tarosean

Next on their list of things to do: hire an English composition teacher as a proof reader.

 

[readyeddy]

I think it's a common occurrence on amazon. Ask for a refund and explain why it's a counterfeit. They may issue a refund without asking you to return. That's what they did for me, except my item was just a $10 wine key. Either way I'm sure you'll get your money back.

 

[jmr40]

I don't think it is a fake. Just looking at the photos, if it is fake, it is a good one. I can't tell a bit of difference in those photos and my knife. The letter that comes with it is suspect, but even then I'm not certain you have a fake.

Spyderco has a Chinese and Japanese connection. Some knives are Chinese or Japanese made and clearly marked so. Others are USA marked, but assembled here from Chinese, Japanese made parts. Only a handful are truly 100% USA made. The small symbol on the right of the blade between the thumb hole and handle indicates 100% USA production. That symbol and all other markings are identical to the markings on mine. I have 8 or 10 Spyderco's. Some are marked China, some Japan, most say USA. But only 2, my Manix-II, and Paramilitary II have that symbol.

It may be a fake, or Spyderco may be having the printing and box manufacturing in done in Asia for all knives, even the USA made knives. That sounds more likely to me based on your photos.

 

[hso]

It's a fake. Read the rest of the posts about the pathetic insert "changlish".

 

[boki_zca]

That's fake pm2 100%,buy original or another benchmade!

 

[1stmarine]

+1 on the fake. sorry man.

 

[Cycletroll]

Fake. The jimping on the thumb ramp does not have the slight backward angle of an authentic PM2. Also Typo Chinglish writing is a dead giveaway.

 

[greyling22]

Be so very careful buying spydercos. I spend a fair amount of time shopping and buying in some of the china sites like dhgate and AliExpress. Spydercos and microtechs are probably the 2 most copied knives there, and the pm2 is probably the most copied of all and sells for as little as 15 bucks. And man are the fakes pretty good these days. At least in pictures. The fakes I have bought have been pretty good copies, though I much prefer to get a copy without branding than one with the copied logo and paperwork as well.

As an aside, there is a pm2 with bearings and titanium scales for like 45 bucks. Advertised as a D2 blade. I kinda of want to try it.....

All that to say, assume any Spyderco on eBay and Amazon is a fake. Same with zt, Chris Reeve, Hinderer, some Benchmades, microtech, heck most any knife that cost more than 40 bucks.

Except a delica. For some reason I have never seen a true copy of a delica.

 

[CZ9shooter]

Lettering and lock bar look fake to me.

Lesson learned I guess. I bought from Amazon a time or two in the beginning, but once I heard a couple stories like this, that was over. Now I only trust real knife dealers to feed my knife addiction.

 

[tarosean]

I buy a lot of stuff from Amazon, almost weekly there are shipments coming here.
However, that will be the last knife I buy from there..
Replacement arrived today from BladeHQ. Pleased with the knife now.

 

[hso]

Stick with reputable dealers.

Had to tell a guy at the show he had one of the fakes and then had to tell the dealer he traded it off to that he had a fake then had a Microtech counterfit handed to me by another dealer who had traded for it.

 

[Madcap_Magician]

Lock bar appears thinner than on the one in my pocket, as well, and engages much further in. Also if it was new from factory, all PM2s come in tip-down clip configuration. Which is kind of annoying, but you should never get one in tip-up configuration if it's 'new.' The Para 3 is shipped in tip-up configuration, but no PM2s are.

Never buy knives on Amazon. They're rife with fakes. Some of them are not deliberate, but because of Amazon's liberal return policy and the fact that neither Amazon nor most of the Amazon-based sellers are knife people, a frequent scam is that legitimate knives are purchased, then fake ones are returned for full refunds. The seller, who again, is almost never a knowledgeable knife person, then dumps the return into their inventory to be resold.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I refuse to buy from Ebay cuz it pushes more knock-offs and counterfeits than a dirt-mall-flea-market.

It's a shame that this happened on Amazon as I always "trusted" them as a vendor. That's why I always buy from the "shipped and fulfilled by Amazon" items that are Prime eligible (Plus I only buy cheap knives from Amazon). Anyways, interested to see how Amazon and Sypderco deal with this.