Knock offs...

[yobskin]

Im starting this thread because there are alot of knock offs
All types of prospecting equipment from highbankers to sniffer bottles..some made poorly and others well over priced.
Like most hobbies there is always an original maker/inventer whom monopolises the market until some one brings out competition some say knock off if it didnt have a patien then it isnt stolen its copied.
Once the market is full of products then we get the far out gimmick stuff that catches all the gold. But does it?
You have seen the adds youtube vids...a true prospector will know what im taking about..
So i would like you to voice your opinion on here about prospecting knock offs ....shovels, picks, pans, sluices, highbankers,pumps ect.....and those gold catching fads/mats.

 

[Heatho]

Better patent that Rockin Yobskin mate. It's a ripper.

 

[cecc]

Business is business whether it's prospecting, clothes or food. If it works for me then I'll use it, Yes I have snuffer bottles and I have made my own, have modified my sucker pump with one way valves and I made my own, I have a super sluice gold pan and love it, I have a BOSS HOG and I love it, who cares, and there will always be the nay sayers trying to put a downer on something, to them I say....."Get A Life".

And competition is always healthy, look at Coles....Woolies and now we have 'Aldi' is that a knock off???

We have gold hog mats and now the dream mat....is that a knock off....who cares if someone had the nousse to make something that looks similar....who in the hell cares....I don't.....if something new comes out, I will like to try it if I have the money of course, and if it takes my interest. Some who knock things might be scared of some competition or don't know how to look objectively at things. Thanks Yobs for starting a wonderful knock off thread....Oh no, you didn't knock it off did ya. Hahah

 

[yobskin]

Better patent that Rockin Yobskin mate. It's a ripper.

Nah Heatho i cant patent a knock off? even though i made it of better quality and more efficient to proccess clay based materials and invented a gold catching configuration for a rocking motion.....at the end of the day its been made before. So its an improved knock off hahahaha
Im happy sharing the ideas...ask Bazz.
Im not the type of fella to slap a brand name on some thing and charge a small fortune for it...

 

[Ridge Runner]

who cares, and there will always be the nay sayers trying to put a downer on something, to them I say....."Get A Life".

And competition is always healthy, look at Coles....Woolies and now we have 'Aldi' is that a knock off???

So how would you feel if you invented something that it took you 2 maybe 5 years to perfect to be your soul source of income and I ripped off the Idea and your income dropped by about 80%, I don't believe for one second that you would be happy with that when you have a Mortgage to pay and Children to feed. because if I use your way of thinking you have just said it is ok for me to destroy your livelihood,

As is quite often the case with the little folk who invent such things and someone Local or in Asia rips off the Idea,

You can't compare folks like Coles and woollies etc because they go direct to the makers or importers and pick items from their inventory,

 

[yobskin]

If your lively hood only soarce of income and mortgage depended on something you invented and you didnt patent it.
And it got copied its your fault...and should start hopeing your children dont inherit your stupidity.
Patent/copyright....cover your behinds smart enough to invent it smart enough to protect it.

 

[madhatter]

Not that this post isn't an interesting read :lol: ....................

any Knock off's to report???

 

[Ridge Runner]

If your lively hood only soarce of income and mortgage depended on something you invented and you didnt patent it.
And it got copied its your fault...and should start hopeing your children dont inherit your stupidity.
Patent/copyright....cover your behinds smart enough to invent it smart enough to protect it.

All of that is irrelevant, Look how many have been stung with the Whites Lesch tool, Which I might Add is made in China, Put Whites on it and charge a fortune for it, And Yet other makers sell them to other people and they market it as a genuine Whites, They are all made In China, It's just a matter of finding out who makes the best one.

Minelab Whites and Garrett all have patents and that still does not protect them enough,

 

[greencheeks77]

Even If I invented something personally I wouldn't even know where to start yob's, I mean you don't just invent something and away you go you also need capital to start a good reputation also helps as I have seen first hand and if you got a loan to start off with and then if it doesn't take off then you owe money if it doesn't work out , plus cant you just sue them if they rip off your idea?? :lol:

 

[SCROUNGER]

The problem is, taking out patents is hugely expensive and time consuming. A mate of mine went through the process for something quite simple and it cost him north of 15k and took about two years or so. After the product was on the market for only a few months there were copies from China that financially killed him. And the problem is that you can try all you like to sue these rip off people in China etc and they can't be touched, because it's government sanctioned i reckon.
Have a look at what they are doing to USA companies etc and even with the US government thumping their chests they can't get things changed.
What about all the Minelab fakes??? They keep coming and i'd be surprised if Minelab aren't trying to shut them down.

 

[mbasko]

The majority of knock off's are usually made for no reason other than to cash in on someone elses or some other companies success. In many, if not most, cases they are either made using inferior parts or products with some having no back up service or even warranty.
I know that there are some knock offs that can be made to the same or even better specs but it's not usually a norm.
They really bug me to be honest - fake, counterfeit, knock off, rip off call them what you want. Too lazy or stupid to be innovative enough for their own design/s.
Then there's the unsuspecting customers that get bitten & don't get the quality of product they think they're paying for. That's what stinks the most when people are blatantly getting ripped off.

 

[SCROUNGER]

At the end of the day it's just another form of stealing, unfortunately many people are greedy and don't give a shite that it's a ripoff so long as they save money. Many don't see it as wrong until they or someone they know gets stung when what they've bought doesn't last or perform like the original brand product.
After sales service :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[yobskin]

Yes guys all very true....i have patented somthing and found it being copied overseas...what i did was go over there make them awear i had the patent and could make it very difficult for them to continue producing it...unless they started making it to my standed and giving me a royalty from sales in return i would help them market it and use my trusted brand to increase their sales and price of product...

Ok back to the thread....those dodgy sluice pans what a gimmick...you know the round ended sluices.

 

[MikeB05]

Interesting posts so far...

I agree with the argument that producing a knock-off is the same as stealing someone else's idea or intellectual property. I also agree that if people invent good stuff they should seek a patent or some form of protection for their property , idea and investment.

The reality is... even a product that holds a US patent is not protected in Australia unless there is an Australian or geographical region patent that is lodged and granted here.

Same applies to patents held in other nations...if they are not registered here there is no recourse for the patent holder.

In all this, our largest trading partner to our north doesn't give a hoot about copyright, patent, trademark law, etc.

It's an interesting topic.

I bought a pan recently for $19 on sale that seems remarkably like a big name pan...if it lasts 1/2 as long as something twice the price, then I am OK with it. It is not an exact knock-off and does not contain any brand or other marking...it does not seek to deceive...it's a good and cheaper pan.

I am thinking of buying a Minelab swing stick and that is one very expensive purchase where I will be making damn sure it's the genuine article.

Good topic Yobskin...thanks

 

[Ridge Runner]

Yes guys all very true....i have patented somthing and found it being copied overseas...what i did was go over there make them awear i had the patent and could make it very difficult for them to continue producing it...unless they started making it to my standed and giving me a royalty from sales in return i would help them market it and use my trusted brand to increase their sales and price of product...

Ok back to the thread....those dodgy sluice pans what a gimmick...you know the round ended sluices.

I would always buy the Original Product for a few reasons, 1) it was the original product that grabbed my interest in the first place, and 2) To support those who made all the effort in the first place, 3) I have Pride in Aussie made products and Some American products,

I owe that much to my fellow Aussie's, even if it is not an Aussie Brand but it is an Aussie Dealer I would rather buy things from Home,

I imported my Akubra Hats, And my Coats came from Drizabone dealers in OZ, My picks were Made by a Member right here on the Forum,

And I tried to buy an electric/Battery powered Gizmo from one of the Site sponsor's on this form but because of the Battery regulations regarding posting lithium batteries I could not have one, Yes I could of ordered it else where, But if I can not support the people here then I will go without.

crazy?? but that's just me.

John.

 

[Ridge Runner]

With so many Great Views and Answers, I have a simple Answer/ Solution for each and Everyone of you who is or intends to market an Item,

1) Either put the Original Drawing and Photos in an envelope and Mail them to your self by Recorded Delivery where it has to be Signed for By YOU, and NEVER Open the package and store it in a Safe Place,

NOTE:- Australia Post is Owned by the Australian Government and They do not want to get in a Legal Fight with the Australian Government because they will not Win that One.

2) OR,,,, Do the Same with The Item/s it's Self whether you use the Australia Post or UPS etc, you will have an Official Receipt from those companies and they will have a Legal Record of that Item. Containing Your signature of when you sent it, and the signature of the driver who delivered it and again YOUR signature Stating that you have received it, And That is All you Need in a Court of Law, because it has been signed for by all who were involved in the process, But most of all it has the Date on it and the fakers have to prove that they made it first and it they have not done all of the Above Before YOU then they Loose. Ok.

One thing that is a PITA in these modern time is Bar Codes, but in this Instance they will work 100% in Your Favour,

Again, NEVER EVER Open the Item, ok.

And if they have logged a Patent after the date on your package then their patents is Null and VOID.

hope this Helps, John.

 

[bluejeansronald]

Im starting this thread because there are alot of knock offs
All types of prospecting equipment from highbankers to sniffer bottles..some made poorly and others well over priced.
Like most hobbies there is always an original maker/inventer whom monopolises the market until some one brings out competition some say knock off if it didnt have a patien then it isnt stolen its copied.
Once the market is full of products then we get the far out gimmick stuff that catches all the gold. But does it?
You have seen the adds youtube vids...a true prospector will know what im taking about..
So i would like you to voice your opinion on here about prospecting knock offs ....shovels, picks, pans, sluices, highbankers,pumps ect.....and those gold catching fads/mats.

Hi Foke Having red your replies on this thread, I have no worries with some one copping some thing for one use. But when you put in over two years in the bush and you make 40/50 items to get it right then some one who most likely dont even own a detector makes a copy of your item puts it on ebay a long side yours, I thing that is stealing, If they will do that what are capable of doing, Ron.

 

[cecc]

Great conversation and many in depth Idea's from what I know which I read some years ago, if you invent something, and put a patent on it, another person can change one little thing about it, call it something different and they are quite within their legal right to do so.....is this ethically and morally right.....probably not. This is the dilemma in the world....greed and the lure of money and to what extent will some go....to line their pockets, yes I was wrong in my previous post, If i invented something and someone knocked it off, I would be rather upset.....actually very p.....d off. The sad thing, this is what's happening all the time, and there doesn't seem to be anyway to stop it.

Great Ridge Runner, me too, bought my Akubra's in Queanbeyan from a country outfitter shop, love supporting Aussie stuff....as like you I also bought my pick from a guy on this forum, and it is real quality that's for sure. I was offered to trial a gold pan from a prospecting shop some weeks ago, and was glad to help out and supply a review, for a while it went well, shared it on some forums including this one, and just the other day, I made a very innocent suggestion to a newbie wanting some help in starting out, one of the questions was, "what is a good pan?" I mentioned this particular pan, which I really like, and boy did I cop an ear bashing from a couple of blokes, about this this same thread that Yobs so graciously posted. I never meant any malice or promoting this particular Item, as it was very similar to another very popular US gold pan.

But hey, this is a democratic country, and they were entitled to their opinion....and as they say, I had to take it on the chin. I do not regret having given my advice to this newbie, because I remember when I first started out and asked questions, I was so grateful for the kind responses from people helping me. The great thing about it was, I had lots of Idea's to choose from.

 

[cecc]

Yeah Ron, see what you mean and it makes a lot of sense, I can tell you one thing mate, I hope no one tries to copy your picks and if they do, I will only buy from you, by the way mine is going as strong as ever, bit of linseed oil on the handle and she's a new all over again. Thanks for a top Aussie pick mate.

 

[bluejeansronald]

Yeah Ron, see what you mean and it makes a lot of sense, I can tell you one thing mate, I hope no one tries to copy your picks and if they do, I will only buy from you, by the way mine is going as strong as ever, bit of linseed oil on the handle and she's a new all over again. Thanks for a top Aussie pick mate.

Year mate the copy was on ebay early june painted black, Ron.