# Buying Surefire on Ebay: Authentic or Counterfeit?



## mrwhite1 (May 21, 2010)

I need some advice: I have recently become a 'Surefire-aholic' and was wanting peoples opinions about purchasing lights on ebay. I am fortunate enough to be able to purchase at an LE price through Surefire directly; however, I was recently looking on ebay and saw some people selling some lights and knives (Listed as Factory NIB) waaay cheaper than what I could get them at. Granted I don't know dealer pricing, but it just makes me suspicious on how some of models could be priced that low? (Low is relatively speaking but suffice it to say cheaper than any website I can find or my LE price)
I've been reading their reviews but it still makes me hesitant?
Granted I guess for out of date items, I have to look on classifieds, but for currently offered items, I'm leaning toward buying them direct so I know what I'm getting.
Any advice or opinions would be greatly appreciated!


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## kramer5150 (May 21, 2010)

Some things you should keep an eye out for on ebay in general:
-Original pictures from the seller of the actual item, not generic www pics.
-Original packaging materials and pictures of it.
-Seller feedback history, any history of selling counterfeits should be avoided.
-Payapl / credit card accepted.
-Seller located in USA
-Good feedback history, no negatives in the past 1-6 months.
-Know what you are buying, know the design and what you are looking at.

SF-fakes do exist, I have seen fake M951s more than any other. I follow the above rules and have not had any problems.


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## emac (May 21, 2010)

I am really glad this topic came up. I just recently purchased a SF M6 and the seller met all of your criteria and everything seems to be in perfect order or this is a really really really good fake. I had purchased a SF M2 from a reputable dealer and the packaging and the the like was consistent.


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## kramer5150 (May 21, 2010)

emac said:


> I am really glad this topic came up. I just recently purchased a SF M6 and the seller met all of your criteria and everything seems to be in perfect order or this is a really really really good fake. I had purchased a SF M2 from a reputable dealer and the packaging and the the like was consistent.



Take some pics of it, and post them up. I am sure other CPFers could easily spot a fake.:twothumbs


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## DM51 (May 21, 2010)

Some points:

1. You run a risk buying on eBay

2. There are some great deals to be had on CPFMP, with lights indistinguishable from new - CPFers are very careful to look after their lights. 

3. If you want to buy new with no risk, CPF Authorised SF Dealers will look after you extremely well.

The above ^^ just my opinion, from experience; however now as a Moderator:

4. There are to be no eBay links posted here.


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## HIDblue (May 21, 2010)

Not for nothing, but if it looks too good to be true...it usually is. 

How can an individual ebay seller beat the LE discount on NIB Surefire products without it being either fake and/or stolen. I'm sure there are exceptions to this rule, but better to pay a little extra and _know_ that you're getting the real thing, rather than save a few bucks and wonder about it forever...

Just my $0.02...


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## Illum (May 21, 2010)

kramer5150 said:


> SF-fakes do exist, I have seen fake M951s more than any other. I follow the above rules and have not had any problems.



More than that really, theres a website called "Land Arms" in Japan that lists Firekylin clones of surefires...but thankfully they don't typically have surefire's logo on them, although some do.

E2DL, LX1, LX2, L6, L6P, 6P, C2, M3, etc are some of the lights known to have been cloned in terms of dimensions and style, not so much the logo

If the picture is exceptionally poor quality or of sales photos rather than original or for something new in box the price seems ridiculously cheap then be careful.



> Good feedback history, no negatives in the past 1-6 months.


with the old ebay yes, new one? fugetaboutit...feedback history doesn't tell much these days, especially if the seller pulls it once or twice every couple of sales


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## mrwhite1 (May 21, 2010)

HIDblue said:


> Not for nothing, but if it looks too good to be true...it usually is.
> 
> How can an individual ebay seller beat the LE discount on NIB Surefire products without it being either fake and/or stolen. I'm sure there are exceptions to this rule, but better to pay a little extra and _know_ that you're getting the real thing, rather than save a few bucks and wonder about it forever...
> 
> Just my $0.02...


I completely agree, usually this is always my approach when buying things. I like to know what I'm getting.

I would definitely feel much more comfortable dealing with people on these forums because I know they share the same affinity for their lights as I do!

I do have a little more experience buying and selling on gunbroker as opposed to ebay. In my experience anyone that you can email and ask questions and actually communicate with tend to be legit people. It's very rare I would ever sell or buy anything that I had not sent several emails to the respective buyer / bidder asking for specific details, additional pictures, etc..

I more look at the auctions whenever an item is discontinued or not accessable through manufacturers / businesses anymore.





Illum said:


> If the picture is exceptionally poor quality or of sales photos rather than original or for something new in box the price seems ridiculously cheap then be careful.


Your definitely right about that, a lot of the items I looked at were blurry and fuzzy. There is no reason to not have good clean pictures of what you are selling if the item is truly 'as advertised'!


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## Tempest UK (May 21, 2010)

Buy from a reputable seller/retailer. This applies anywhere, not just on eBay. 

eBay isn't bad and eBay isn't good. It's made up of individual sellers...some are very good, some are useless and should be avoided.


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## mcnair55 (May 21, 2010)

Tempest UK said:


> Buy from a reputable seller/retailer. This applies anywhere, not just on eBay.
> 
> eBay isn't bad and eBay isn't good. It's made up of individual sellers...some are very good, some are useless and should be avoided.



I would second this advice and remember even many major retailers sometimes just repack a returned faulty item as the staff cannot be bothered to follow company rules.

I am very proud of my ebay selling,offering exactly what I say it is,well packed and posted on time for a few pence more than what it costs me just to go towards the packing stuff I buy.5 years on and 100%.


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## Entrekman (May 21, 2010)

I have bought many Surefires from Ebay and some from local Gunshows and few from Batteryjunction. I have had very good luck buying from Ebay (over 1/3 of my stock), and they're very very good... no different than buying from a regular store. Besides the obvious (no bad reviews within past 6 mo.), you should always buy the ones that have a photograph of the actual item. It's even better when they have an enlarged photograph so you can be sure of the item description and whether or not it's the older model.


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## BeeEm (May 21, 2010)

Surefires are generally packaged with a card with online registration details. If these are accepted online during registration, we can assume the article is genuine, yes?


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## 021411 (May 21, 2010)

I only buy from power sellers. I also read feedback for people that purchased other Surefire items from that seller. I haven't ran into a problem yet. All my purchases have been legit.


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## skyfire (May 21, 2010)

We have many great dealers here on CPF, that offer discounts, with great customer service.

spyder tactical supply, my LX2 from them was defective, and customer service and communications was excellent! they also offer 20% off! i highly recommend them.

ive had a defective fenix a few months back, from an ebay/web dealer. service was horrible. i still have not seen my fenix, or heard from them. after that i learned my lesson about only dealing with reputable dealers. (if you would like to know the dealer and experience, you can PM me)

of course surefire lights have the manufacturer's warranty, and customer service. so you would be in good hands, even if the dealer wasnt taking care of you.


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## 021411 (May 21, 2010)

^^ I got my LX2 from Spyder as well. CHEAPEST place.


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## sol-leks (May 21, 2010)

It's funny, I usually don't think buying on ebay is worth the risk despite the fact that I have never had an issue. I think the advice above is very good, especially treating ebay as a last resort. You can probably get just as good a deal in the cpf marketplace from someone who loves flashlights as much as you do without all the stress of ebay.


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## mcnair55 (May 21, 2010)

skyfire said:


> We have many great dealers here on CPF, that offer discounts, with great customer service.
> 
> spyder tactical supply, my LX2 from them was defective, and customer service and communications was excellent! they also offer 20% off! i highly recommend them.
> 
> ...



And many of the dealers in question sell on ebay,my ITP came from ebay by shiningbeam.


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## houstonnightlight (May 21, 2010)

I've bought three on ebay, and had good luck. As the saying goes "ya pays your money and ya takes your chances".


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## BIGLOU (May 21, 2010)

Just my 2 cents but I have bought NIB SF products from seller Bigfishbuddy. He has great prices. Check it out. Seen he has the G2, 6PL E1B, LX2, ED2L, M3, M4, M6 and St. Minimus. He has "Buy it Now Items" and Free Shipping. I'm sure if they where fake he would be burned by now.


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## Chauncey Gardner (May 22, 2010)

DM51 said:


> Some points:
> 
> 1. You run a risk buying on eBay
> 
> ...


 
Have to second this, particularly on lights. You the crowd here is fussy & passionate about the hobby & will almost always disclose any flaws in a light to a fellow cpf'er. You have none of that on Ebay & the fraud on ebay has gotten to the point I've started to avoid it most of the time.

I've only had a single issue go lesss than satisfactory dealing with sellers & merchants here. The people here are knowledgeable & enthused enough about the hobby to talk you out of a light if they think you might be disapointed vs your expectations. 

You don't get that on ebay either.


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## reptiles (May 22, 2010)

*Re: Buying Ebay: Not so bad...*

eBay is not a sole source; it is many independent sellers, including some of the members here. There are always good and bad in any venue. 

While I do like this forum very much for the help, advice, trades, and the 106 lights I purchased, I do have to remember the few bad eggs that failed to deliver. 

On eBay I purchased over 2,000 items (inc. lights) over the years (and sold about 300) and my only major disappointment was a Chinese antiquity I purchased that was not as old as it was purported to be. 

Meanwhile on CPF, I lost money on three lights (in 9 years) that were not delivered. 

So while I cheerfully recommend this forum to my fellow flashlight fanatics; I should be suggesting eBay based on statistics for purchases. 

YMMV. 

Regards, 

Mark


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## ace0001a (May 22, 2010)

I've bought probably around 10 or so Surefires on ebay in recent years and every one of them were legit. To me it seems to be the best place to get a deal on the common models. To this day, I've probably only bought 2 Surefires from retailers and that was only because they included some extras like batteries and free shipping. I'm cheap and a bargain hunter and so ebay would be the place for me to look for Surefires if I can't get a good deal from a fellow forum member. And besides if you do get a fake, Paypal will refund your money. It can be a bit of a hassle sometimes, but usually things get resolved if you run into that kind of trouble.


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## garden (May 22, 2010)

kramer5150 said:


> -Seller located in USA


Why?

___
Also, many people don't know the difference between a genuine brand-name product and a counterfeit one, so the reviews aren't very useful.

My advice is to buy from official dealers, on specific websited (e.g. Surefire.com) because sellers of high quality lights on Ebay for cheap prices, HAVE NOWHERE TO MAKE PROFIT. In other words, they can only 
1. get their stock from other dealers, (then they wouldn't make much profit) 
2. become a dealer themselves (if they do, they probably wouldn't sell on eBay), 
3. or sell fakes.


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## Roger999 (May 22, 2010)

I try to stick with sellers who have more than 10k posts with 99%+ feedback and sells other sf lights.

EDIT:


garden said:


> Why?
> 
> ___
> Also, many people don't know the difference between a genuine brand-name product and a counterfeit one, so the reviews aren't very useful.
> ...


If I bought from official surefire dealers, I'd be paying $400 for an A2 LED when I know you guys are paying $200 for them since surefire doesn't allow any of their dealers to ship overseas....


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## Walterk (May 22, 2010)

I don't really understand the hassle...

For example the 20/35W Oracle HID, 450USD from US seller or 200USD from Ebay... Because it is has the mark Oracle printed on it...?
It's an OEM-flashlight, branded by Oracle, and thats all folks.

Its just 'grey import' , other channels and less overhead, lower prices.
I never bothered to think twice, spotting the same product for 20% less incl shipping on E-bay.


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## kramer5150 (May 22, 2010)

garden said:


> Why?



Just a personal preference, peace of mind... one less thing to worry about crossing the border through customs.


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