Clone golf clubs, buyer be careful!
They say that the most sincere form of flattery must be imitated. Although that may be true in other industries,
wave manufacturers with a brand are hardly affected by the idea that their designs, names and colors should be copied. Golf club production, which is a finite market, barely has the luxury of allowing copy cats to roam freely. Unfortunately, for companies like Callaway and consumers who may not understand the nuances in the design and manufacture of the club, there are hundreds of hits to be found.
offs and fakes on the market today.
Clones
Clones, also known as knock-offs, are very easy to identify because they are usually of a similar design and color made as the real deal, but with differences that make them to fly under the patent infringement radar. The resellers of these golf clubs usually let you know which club they are trying to imitate. They can have a completely different name and can have certain design and cosmetic differences.
Do not be fooled though, these clubs are anything but similar to the clubs they are trying to copy. To lower prices, cloned golf equipment is made from less expensive materials; for example, they will use alloys instead of pure steel or titanium. The construction of the clubs will also be different with a lesser degree of tolerance. Cloned clubs can be heavier (or lighter), axes can be stiffer (or
softer) and swing weights will not be consistent from one club to another.
High quality manufacturers spend millions of dollars on research and development to perfect their golf clubs. These costs are of course passed on to the consumer and therefore justify the prices. On the other hand, cloned clubs, which are up to 75% cheaper than their real counterparts, can not claim to have superior technology that supports them. They produce a cheap and inferior product and the
consumer pays the price on the course.
Knock-off resellers recommend buying these clubs, especially if you are new to the game. Why spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on Callaway, Taylor Made or Titleist when you can have the same or similar club in a clone? As a beginner you are told that you can not know or feel the difference.
Our advice is to leave these clubs because they do not allow you to improve your game over time. You can learn to master the swing, pace and follow-through and hit the ball in the right place every time. However, if you use inferior products, you will certainly be at a disadvantage of the track, since the knock-offs you have bought are not right for every swing.
If you are new to the game, buy a used set of clubs made by one of the brand manufacturers such as Callaway Golf. Because these clubs are infinitely more precise and precise in their production, you can work on your swing without having to worry about the performance of the clubs. They also sound great … ping !!! Moreover, you should be able to get a lot of used sets, some of which may look like new. Do not forget that you get what you pay for. Would not you rather have a set of Callaway & # 39; s or Taylor Made?
Counterfeits
Some clone manufacturers do not even bother to make enough changes to the designs of the real clubs and exceed the patent infringement line. Illegal rejection and / or counterfeiting are products that violate the legal trademarks, patents or copyrights of another company. You can notice some of these names; King Snake, Tommy Mann Bummer, The Big Burser. It is quite clear who they were trying to copy. Sometimes counterfeiters will use the same names as the brand clubs and try to pass them on as the real deal.
Branded club manufacturers spend countless hours and millions of dollars to stop these companies from making and selling their product. As is the case with R + D numbers, these costs are also passed on to the consumer. Most illegal knock-offs are manufactured in Asia and sold to wholesalers in the US, Europe and other important markets.
Sometimes it is very easy to recognize a falsified club, sometimes it is very difficult. Generally stay away from clubs that are not serialized. Most top manufacturers place serial numbers and other identification marks on their clubs. If it is not serialized, chances are that the club is a fake or cheap imitation.
Most older models do not have serial numbers. That is the moment when you have to look for cosmetic imperfections, such as unevenly applied paint, lettering not centered, epoxy (glue) in one or more areas, misspelled names and everything else that does not look normal. Use your best intuition … if it does not look right, it probably is not.
Do I buy from an authorized club shop of a brand? If the answer is "no", your chance of buying counterfeits increases significantly. Your best protection against forgeries is to buy only from an authorized golf club
retailer.
Is the price for the "brand new, top of the line" clubs too good to be true? If the deal seems too good to be true, that is likely and you must be extremely cautious. Finally, the last test you must perform is twofold. Some unscrupulous retailers have both real and clone clubs for sale. If available, take the first one in one hand (hold the handle) and the second in the other hand (also
grip). Which feels better for you? Shake them a little … Does anyone give a rattling sound? Do they both move back and forth evenly? You should be able to tell a difference right away. The brand version should feel much better, more balanced and clearly better.
The second test you should do, if the shopkeeper allows you, is to alternate a few shots between both clubs. Does it sound better than the other? Does someone feel better than the other? Even if you are not an experienced golfer, you should be able to determine the difference between both clubs.
The last word of warning is this: if the club you buy has no guarantee, you leave it aside and buy one that does. The brand companies support the product they make. They value their customers and honor warranty claims. It is always possible that your club is cracking, denting, breaking or cracking. Do the clone manufacturers have a 800 number for customer service? In front of
You spend $ 1000 or even $ 100, see who makes the clubs and what their policy is for guarantees.
Copyright 2007 David Lester