Attack of the Clones...

[REMJ666]

There are SOME things still made in the USA !!!! Not many...You have to have the low end stuff or this hobby would go under...There are ALOT more bashers out there than racers...And those guys and gals are not going to spend A thousand dollars to go out and tear up stuff...Just like in real motorsports the little guys keep it alive...There are so many options out there now because of Flysky and the lower end brands...The stuff sells and that makes companies like Futaba have to make products that are priced to match...It all boils down to what YOU want...The only ones that don't complain about cost are the sponsored racers and that is because they get all there stuff for free...And for 100 - 150 dollars you can try it out and see if you like it or not...

[RC104ever]

I bought a Flysky setup on a whim for my son's car and was shocked when it actually had better range than any of my Spektrum equipped cars.

The thing is that the Japanese and Koreans started the same way with their cars and other products. Cheap, and quality was either good or questionable depending on the product but they worked to continuously improve and look where they are today. The Chinese will follow I'm sure and this is just the beginning.

[RC10th]

I'm a firm believer of you get what you pay for, you buy cheap you get cheap. Do I think you need to go out and buy the best of everything, no. I believe in buying good quality middle of the road products. We see more cheap and nasty products fail and come through the doors then anything else. Time and time again you try to convince customers to buy better quality and sure enough they choose the cheap option, more than likely they are back with problems or are unhappy.

It's quite refreshing to see a customer who has bought a quality product and when you ask how it's working out for them they respond "night and day difference" We've seen quite a few of those fly sky radios with the on/off button in the wheel fail. Sure reputable brands have issues too.

You have to carefully pick and choose which cheap products you buy, some are good and others are a complete waste of time.

[REMJ666]

I'm a firm believer of you get what you pay for, you buy cheap you get cheap. Do I think you need to go out and buy the best of everything, no. I believe in buying good quality middle of the road products. We see more cheap and nasty products fail and come through the doors then anything else. Time and time again you try to convince customers to buy better quality and sure enough they choose the cheap option, more than likely they are back with problems or are unhappy.

It's quite refreshing to see a customer who has bought a quality product and when you ask how it's working out for them they respond "night and day difference" We've seen quite a few of those fly sky radios with the on/off button in the wheel fail. Sure reputable brands have issues too.

You have to carefully pick and choose which cheap products you buy, some are good and others are a complete waste of time.

Lemons come in all brands...Do some research and read reviews...That is the best thing you can do...

[Incredible_Serious]

Had my own experience of clones yesterday.... although "fake" might be a better term. Had a couple of these servos in a pile, and tested them when I got them..... they seemed to respond okay. Yesterday, when trying a Tamiya M03 that I was selling (with this servo installed), the steering seemed a bit, what's the word, AWFUL. Pulled the servo out and compared it to a 'normal' Futaba S3003:

It's a copy!!!! The case is a shinier plastic, the label is a slightly different font, and shinier, and the top servo detail is completely different. That, and the performance...... not happy!

Luckily I had a spare real S3003, which went into the M03... I prefer my customers to be happy with their purchases!!!

Now, as for the two clone S3003s...... where's my hammer?????

Alex

[CAT3K]

Ebay is full of those fake S3003 servos. And the sellers have the cheek to use the Futaba stock photo

[kaiser]

i got a 4 pack of those crappy fake servo's. terrible. barely work at all.
i tossed all 4 into the trash.

[Coelacanth]

The sticker isn't even straight on that fake. Cloning is one thing, but a deliberate attempt to fool a buyer, using the original manufacturer's name and a fake matching sticker and all, is sufficient grounds for a lawsuit. Chinese companies violating copyright laws is nothing new, but at least they usually do something to change the design or name to avoid getting in hot water...I'm very surprised this one company is making almost exact reproductions. I wonder what Futaba is doing about it? You'd think they would be aware of this...

[CAT3K]

I'm sure they're fully aware, but getting a court in China to stop them is next to impossible it would seem.

Did anyone see the Topgear episode where they were looking at the Chinese clones of European cars? The manufacturers are powerless to stop it, even BMW lost their court case against them : http://www.bmwblog.com/2008/12/19/bmw-loses-court-battle-to-chinese-x5-clone/

Paul.

[Coelacanth]

True, but I believe Fender successfully won a lawsuit against a Chinese company that was manufacturing imitations of their guitars. So, sometimes they get the spanking they deserve.

[knixdad]

I'm sure they're fully aware, but getting a court in China to stop them is next to impossible it would seem.

Did anyone see the Topgear episode where they were looking at the Chinese clones of European cars? The manufacturers are powerless to stop it, even BMW lost their court case against them : http://www.bmwblog.com/2008/12/19/bmw-loses-court-battle-to-chinese-x5-clone/

Paul.

I really don't know what it is about communist countries and the straight up copying of various things. The USSR used to do it all the time, like when they copied the B-29 bolt for bolt to make the Tu-4 bomber. And China even did it to the Soviets, when they copied the MIG-21 piece by piece.

[slotcarrod]

Israel cloned the French Mirage V.

[PlastiZapCA+]

Israel cloned the French Mirage V.

Actually the Nesher was provided to Israel by France. Israel didn't have the technical capacity for such a sophisticated aircraft at that time. Politics as usual.

All of the aerial kills during the six day war were came from Mirage IIICJ's purchased from France. The first victim was a Mig-21 which succumbed to the canon fire of Captain Yoram Agmon. The first kill for a Mirage. I'm an aviation nut so sorry if I went into too much detail. Anyway the Mirage is one of the sexiest fighters of all time.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_5

"The Israelis finally gave up trying to get the aircraft and accepted a refund. Later however, cooperation with France resumed outside the public's eye and Israel received 50 Mirage 5s in crates from AdA, while Ada took over the 50 aircraft originally intended for Israel, as Mirage 5Fs.[citation needed] The aircraft were delivered between May 1971 and February 1974 and assembled by Israeli technicians.[citation needed] Officially, Israel claimed to have built the aircraft after obtaining complete blueprints, naming them IAI Nesher."

[PerKr]

well, I'm still sitting here with a semi-finished once-more-tore-to-pieces-for-measuring-and-copying vintage car. I'm not contributing to the survival of the hobby as it is. I'm actually contemplating getting a chinese RTR kit (Team C TR02 Jekyll), give it some ballbearings and get a cheap battery and charger just so I can get to actually drive. Doing so will drain my entire RC budget, but then again, an associated B4.1 kit is even more and then I still would be left without radio, servo, batteries, charger etc.

yeah, they might be copying the known brands, but they provide a low-cost entry for beginners.

[RCMA]

Very interesting topic

Companies have had there products produced in China for a long time to increase profits. It seems a result of "free market" capitalism right or wrong. It is not good for the American work force and a tough situation to reverse.

Are we willing to pay more for products to be produced here? It would sure create jobs especially for the middle class.

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