How to Spot Fake Oakleys | The Definitive Guide

[hearno]

I don't have a matte pair but both my polished have the "a" stamped into the arm near the hinge as your legit pair does.

 

[geedawg]

Looks fake... Canada, hinges look cheap, SS letters are too skinny, matte black is easily knocked off, and PITBOSS is inner-beveled instead of embossed. This is by memory from my authentic pair.

My legit pair has the "PITBOSS" raised too, as Splice noted on his authentic pair as well a page or 2 back. I've mailed my legit pair off to the good Dr. Chop for customization, so don't have it to look at to compare the SS. But from recall they looked basically identical. I'm more concerned about the hinges and the lens. . .didn't think fakes would be polarized, but these are.

I also sent the above pics to Oakley to see what they think. If they give a no go, I'm sending them back.

Thanks everyone

 

[qtrain23]

Those rivets scream no to me. They just look completely wrong

 

[marks77]

Hey guys! I bought one of those "100% authentic Pit Boss" glasses from eBay recently. It was an impulse buy and though the description looked sketchy (many other similar listings with only a few words changed, same pictures with different seller names), I thought I'd try my luck. I hadn't been on this forum before and wasn't aware that there were very "good" replica Pit Boss shades out there. I received the item recently and I can tell it was 100% fake. Here's what I noticed:

1. The "POLARIZED" etching looked smaller and the print was blurry. In the real Pit Boss, the "D" of "POLARIZED" came up to the corner angle of the frame. In the replica, the "D" ends close to the T6 screw. The letters were too close together, looked narrower.

2. The lenses were not polarized, nor were they hydrophobic. I did the computer screen test and while the lenses did darken slightly at some angles, it never got truly dark as other polarized lenses would. As for the hydrophobic coat, the water beading was more similar to a pair of $5.00 plastic shades that I had lying around, rather than the really obvious hydrophobic beading I saw in my original X metal XX lens.

3. Suspicious rivets - I read that the replicas would have screws instead of rivets, but this one had actual rivets but the rivet surfaces were flat instead of rounded. Some of the rivets (the ones on the arm) were protruding past the frame, about 1mm out, which I thought was unusual.

4. The cheap "O" emblem - This was the clincher for me. I immediately noticed the bottom of both "O" emblems had some rough spots right at the middle bottom edge. It looked like it was where the emblem was cut from its mold frame. (If any one of you have assembled Gundam model kits, you'll be very familiar with this - it's where the plastic piece was attached to the plastic skeleton frame. If you break off the piece carelessly without a cutter, you'll notice a rough "scar" from where it was attached.) Both "O" emblems had this. The emblems looked metallic enough but I've never seen "O" emblems with marks such as these, even in the most affordable pairs. I looked at the Basames pictures and there it was - the same markings on the bottom of their emblems. It's easy to overlook but that's not something you find on $500 shades.

5. Various mold imperfections on the "O matter" - It's easy to miss as well but I noticed a few asymmetrical mold errors. The marks/errors are very minute but they're there. It seems like the seller here posts the item as "pre-owned" to justify any scuffs on the plastic frame. The imperfections I noticed did not look like wear marks but were obvious mold problems.

6. Lens clarity sub-par - This again is easy to miss, but is very obvious. The Pit Boss is supposed to be a premium item, with the most advanced technology for lens clarity. This pair blurred my vision slightly. I literally got a headache after just trying it on. True story.

7. A few other trivial concerns - The "PITBOSS" print was raised, but looked a bit shallow. The lens coating wasn't very reflective; it was somewhat see-through. The hinges did not feel right - one was tighter than the other. Lastly, it came with the most counterfeit bag and case you could ever find.

It was one of those posts where the seller sends you a copy of the receipt to prove authenticity. This isn't a guarantee at all, this guy could have just copied that receipt a hundred times and gave it with Basames Pit Bosses. This proves nothing.

I asked for a refund and he did give it right away. I honestly feel bad for the seller, but there seems to be a lot of people falling for this scam. The guy's probably hoping that the buyers won't be able to tell if it's real from not. If I know anything about fakes, it's that they do not last at all. It sure looks real but it'll last a few months at best if you use it a lot. People work hard for their money and it's unfair for them to be given substandard stuff just because they're looking for bargains. Anyway, I hope this helps out people who want to buy Pit Bosses from eBay. Remember, if it's too good to be true, it probably is!

 

[scohnson]

thanks for the detailed description on fake/vs real in your experience, the edges of the fake titanium plates are also a bit harsher towards the real titanium plates have a slight beveled edge where the hinge break is.

unfortunately i came upon a pair of those on this forum. the seller refused refund and this being a private forum, i didnt know how to go about trying to link paypal to the thread here...but now im stuck with a pair of fakes, (thanks beaver! you asshat)

 

[SubHero182]

thanks for the detailed description on fake/vs real in your experience, the edges of the fake titanium plates are also a bit harsher towards the real titanium plates have a slight beveled edge where the hinge break is.

unfortunately i came upon a pair of those on this forum. the seller refused refund and this being a private forum, i didnt know how to go about trying to link paypal to the thread here...but now im stuck with a pair of fakes, (thanks beaver! you asshat)

If you start a dispute with Paypal, I'm sure admin would be willing to cooperate and provide an email address or an IP or something to help you.

Price is usually the best first clue that a pair is fake.

 

[salj838]

Hi All,
I didn't realise there is a thread for this! Well, now I am scared that what I bought is a fake PB/
Price was $200 and end of the stems were bitten by probably a dog so I thought this is the reason why he is selling it cheap. Anyhow this is the ebay link, I did not do my initial research, got to excited now that I finished reading this thread I found out the the SKU model on the ebay item is 03-302, checked on oakley website there is no SKU as that! Grrr... Item is now on route to me but scared I will end up with a fake PB.Damn*t Foakleys

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oakley-PITB...D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

 

[Batwolf]

No case is usually a tell-tale sign of a fake.

 

[gene]

Most of the good fakes PB I saw have the 03-302 SKU. I hope you'll get your money back.

 

[salj838]

Oh dear. I knew it. I just tried my luck. Well I will lose around $18 for the return shipping but that's better than keeping it. Oh ebay sometimes you win some you or you lose some.

Most of the good fakes PB I saw have the 03-302 SKU. I hope you'll get your money back.