Help identifying fake Elixir strings

xscaramanga

I think I've bought some fake Elixir strings off eBay but before I kick up a fuss I want to be sure. I bought two batches from two different sellers.

The second batch arrived today, and they were fishy before they even got here: £5.99 a set and from Hong Kong. I didn't realise fake strings existed or I would never have ordered them. They've come with "Made in China" stickers on the boxes, which is a bit of a giveaway.

Now I've seen those, it's made me suspicious of the other lot, which look almost identical. They don't have the Made in China stickers, and I got them from a UK seller. The price was £9.49 a set, cheap but not ridiculous like the others. I'm trying to compare the packaging with some genuine ones to see if there are any giveaways. I'm also looking for the coating, but being Nanowebs it's hard to spot (and I don't have a good enough camera to photograph it).

The only genuine packet I have I bought quite a while ago so it's possible they've updated their boxes. The genuine set I have is a gloss finish box, while the fakes are matt. Do new Elixirs still come in glossy boxes?

I also note that the individual string envelopes are made differently. It's hard to describe but easy to spot:

https://i.imgur.com/eW9VcVP.jpg

Suspected fake left, genuine right. The edges run over the top on the genuine, and are tucked underneath in the possible fakes. The quality of print is lower on the left (fake) too.

Here are the boxes:

https://i.imgur.com/KD367BB.jpg

Any ideas?

hobbio

If it seems too good to be true, it usually is.

Made in USA on the packaging, made in China sticker on the box? I think you know already,

thermionic

If you're going to produce and sell a counterfeit item, why the hey would you stick a "Made in China" sticker on the box?

adamm82

I had some fakes on ebay. I spotted it a couple of ways. the strings envelopes inside the box were wrapped in plastic. and too many winds at the ball end. Which made them unusable on a wraptail bridge they would stick out at a sharp angle. I questioned the seller said they were real but strangely refunded me no questions asked.

Fed up with fake stuff low price stuff on ebay. I bought some filters for my vape and they were fake too. 

Guitar_Slinger

I had the same with Oral B toothbrush heads, which came apart after a couple of weeks. Although there are online pages comparing real with fake, manufacturers change their product design and packaging often, so it's hard to keep track.

xscaramanga

hobbio said:

If it seems too good to be true, it usually is.

Made in USA on the packaging, made in China sticker on the box? I think you know already,

Yeah, those are definitely fake. I'm asking about the others, which don't have the sticker and weren't implausibly cheap...


But actually the seller has accepted my return, so I guess they'll just sell them to some other sucker. eBay is not tough enough on fakes.

hobbio

Is there anything genuine on ebay any more? At least you're getting your money back, it's more than some get.

Niallseroreilly

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/127375/string-scam-ebay-advice#latest

Funkfingers

jonnyscaramanga said:

UK seller ... £9.49 a set

An authorised Elixir stockist would have to buy in considerable bulk to pay that figure per packet as the trade price. 




Possibly in reaction to the counterfeiting, Elixir has changed the appearance of their packaging. The new look may not be the most impressive piece of graphic design but it is a pig to scan and replicate.

Of course, the changes will not prevent the sale of counterfeited string sets imitating the old packaging design. It will, however, remove any excuse that the purchaser can offer about not knowing that the goods MUST be bogus.

mellowsun

How to identify fake Elixirs? Maybe if they sound good ?

CarpeDiem

The Hotrox website has pictures of the genuine boxes. As has already been said, eBay is full of fakes, and I wouldn't trust the reviews for the same reason. I'm pleased you're getting a refund, and hopefully not paying any postage costs.

bulti

Right lads ,don`t worry about China ,i bought a set from a UK seller based in south Wales with a very professional E Bay seller page ,£11.99 for a set ,they arrived well packaged ,as soon as i opened the wrapping alarm bells rang ! it`s a glossy pack these are not real ,i have a friend who is an endorse for Elixir we compared packs ,certainly  fake ,i complained to the seller and his answer was i buy from the Elixir in the US check out my feedback ,yes over 200 buyers had given good feedback on his fake strings ,this guy has made over two grand from buyers on E Bay ,we did contact Elixir and they know it goes on ,i gave the seller bad feed back and returned the strings ,i think trading standards might be interested

Nikc

If only there was some weird type of place local to you that sold guitars, strings, amps and all sorts of music type stuff - that you could go into chat about shit and then pay for THE REAL FECKING THING - wouldn't that be good. 

BGG

CarpeDiem said:

The Hotrox website has pictures of the genuine boxes. As has already been said, eBay is full of fakes, and I wouldn't trust the reviews for the same reason. I'm pleased you're getting a refund, and hopefully not paying any postage costs.

My mates just bought some from Hotrox and they were really odd. Sort of twisted and unwound when he put them on. Hotrox sent him replacement sets free of charge. 

May have been a dodgy batch. 

I wait until the 3 for 2 offers are on and buy then. 

Jota

I had a friend who offered me some fake ones and he swear they were like the real ones.

I noticed right away they were curled/wrapped around different than the usual.

They lasted one show. Broke two at soundcheck next day.

Phil_C

If you have a QR scanner on your phone (or download one) 

Scan the barcode, it'll take you to genuine Elixirs, or it won't 

Switch625

I would've thought Amazon would be a better bet if buying online. If you buy direct from them and not third party sellers it's likely to be genuine.

crunchman

switch625 said:

I would've thought Amazon would be a better bet if buying online. If you buy direct from them and not third party sellers it's likely to be genuine.

I normally buy strings direct from Amazon, although not Elixirs.  I wish there was somewhere else I could buy from that wasn't significantly more expensive as I don't like Amazon's business practices.

JAYJO

bulti said:

Right lads ,don`t worry about China ,i bought a set from a UK seller based in south Wales with a very professional E Bay seller page ,£11.99 for a set ,they arrived well packaged ,as soon as i opened the wrapping alarm bells rang ! it`s a glossy pack these are not real ,i have a friend who is an endorse for Elixir we compared packs ,certainly  fake ,i complained to the seller and his answer was i buy from the Elixir in the US check out my feedback ,yes over 200 buyers had given good feedback on his fake strings ,this guy has made over two grand from buyers on E Bay ,we did contact Elixir and they know it goes on ,i gave the seller bad feed back and returned the strings ,i think trading standards might be interested

I got a pair of fake levis off ebay. seller had lots of good feedback but they are fake . The thing is theyre a great pair of jeans the denim washes ace and they are thick just how i like them. I paid £48 for fake but still worth it imo. ps The brand on back label has completely vanished lol. I paid £74 at debenhams for a good thick pair.