Counterfeit Bearings

A growing problem to watch out for:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

A very real problem
Along with fake electrical components
It's one thing buying a US or European brand manufactured in China
Another to buy a US or European brand Knocked off in China

Kiwi_Roy wrote:

A very real problem
Along with fake electrical components
It's one thing buying a US or European brand manufactured in China
Another to buy a US or European brand Knocked off in China

 Having worked in high-tech consumer products that were largely built in China, I agree.  Unfortunately you also run into problems with US or European brand manufactured in China.   You do all the quality testing and work up front, put spot checks on the line etc etc.   But without vigorous quality enforcement the Chinese manufactures will keep looking for ways to cost down to increase their profits (they bid low to get the business).  They change materials, sub-contractors etc on a ongoing basis.   It's painful when you have 40,000 units on a ship to the EU from China and you find out that the OEM changed some material and it is no longer compliant with EU regs and you're the one that has to fix it.

The Chinese counterfeiting problem has crept into some very dangerous places. As an end user of items like bearings, use common sense precautions. Avoid e-commerce that ships direct from China. That will cut the risk greatly. The sneakier crooks will already have the goods imported and will ship from the country where you live. Avoid the bargain price offerings and inspect everything carefully for defects. Assume your life depends on it.