Buying a clone mod.

[joe clay]

Buying from eBay is an absolute no no as well....

^^^^^ this 100% ^^^^^

 

[tootingyoda]

No need to buy an authentic then. [emoji6]

Of course there is, if the price is right and we're not being ripped off. It's a question that'll never get a universally correct answer.

 

[jsixtysix]

Daughter's boyfriend bought from Knucklehead. VCM clone in black. Missing a magnet, black came off straightaway. Metal thin, fit and finish appalling. One of the worst clones I've seen. Wouldn't send anyone there myself, but hey, your money - you'd be better off buying direct from China at prices closer to what they're worth imo.

Many folks must have had a fine experience to be recommending them though, so - swings & roundabouts etc.

 

[speedfreek67]

Strangely, I got a very good clone SS AV Able off eBay (I had a £10 off voucher from eBay earlier this year and needed to find something to spend it on, so I put it towards a mech from eBay seller dcvaping) the mod is well made, hits hard and the switch is great.

And my experience with Knucklehead Vapes was less than satisfactory. Before Xmas I ordered a hitman clone from them, to be delivered to my workplace like all parcels (the postboxes at my flats are not so secure, and I'm never there to receive parcels as I'm at work ).

The mod arrived quickly, but it was a dangerous POS. There were sharp burrs sticking out in two places up the tube that shredded the battery wrap as you put it in. I filed them down only to find there was massive burred ridge at the top of the tube that not only prevented the battery from going in far enough, but caused the battery to get stuck and ripped apart the wrap at the positive end (venting holes at the top).

Seeing as it was getting close to Xmas I asked them to send out a replacement whilst my defective tube was returning to them, showed them the package at the post office and gave them the tracking, but they would not send out a replacement until my parcel was back with them. Fair enough.

I posted it first class signed for on Monday lunchtime, but they still hadn't received it on Thursday, due to Xmas post delays (not their fault of course). The guy there, Steve, assured me they would send out myself replacement as soon as my parcel got back to them. I was getting worried because I finish work for Xmas the Wednesday after, so their return parcel might turn up after I left for Xmas.

On Friday I checked tracking and my parcel was delivered to them 11.30am. Great, they will have it in the post today and hopefully I'll get it before my firm breaks up for Xmas.

I messaged Steve at lunchtime to check my replacement had been sent out and the message I got back was that my parcel was at their site reception and hadn't been brought to their warehouse, and everyone in the warehouse had gone home for the day, so they would either send it on Monday or I could have a refund.

At this point I blew my top with them. They had sent out a dangerous POS, promised to send my replacement as soon as they got their POS back, Steve knew the time constraints on sending the replacement but I didn't even get a sorry, just "they've gone home, we'll send it on Monday". I demanded Steve should go to the warehouse and send our my replacement himself, and he just told me I was being rude, refused to deal with me and refunded me.

They have no quality control, he admitted, they don't check every mech they send out, so if there are badly made mechs in a batch they'll just send them out to you.

A good company would have gone to reception and said " there's a guy who's parcel has been delayed getting back to us, when it turns up make sure you bring it over so we can send out his replacement the same day as we promised him."

A good company would at least apologize if that didn't happen, rather than just message a metaphorical shrug.

A good company would not send out a dangerous burr ridden wrap tearing unusable tube in the first place.

#NOFUCKWITS indeed

 

[EmbraSewerRat]

So just to qualify overall, if I was to get the trucker mod clone from knucklehead the difference from the authentic trucker in terms of performance will be nothing? so it will just be based on the material it's built?

Theoretically aye, there won't be too much difference in the short term. Most likely the wee bits that make it up will deteriorate quicker, for sure any wee screws and magnets won't be as high spec metal/alloy and the o-rings will doubtless need replacing more often.

Performance wise unless you are able to measure small differences in the whole there won't be too much twixt the original and a clone. Unless it is a really cheap clone!

 

[steviebee]

@speedfreek67

Wow...that's a crappy, shoddy experience, in spades. Disheartening.

 

[Deleted member 54254]

I'd seriously considered KH too, that story kind of put me off. I bit the bullet with a 3F special, I'll follow up when I receive it.

 

[silk186]

One of the biggest differences effecting clones is QC. If you don't have a big brand you don't need to care about your reputation.
This makes it a bit of a gamble. You can always send something back if you are unhappy with it. If it comes from HK or China they will try to get away with a partial refund.

 

[Deleted member 54254]

You're 100% correct. If the purchase turns out to be poor I'll have no hesitation binning it. At the price point it seemed worth a punt, but I'll reserve judgement till I have it in hand and check it over.

 

[Deleted member 54254]

Well, it's been a couple of weeks since I received the Broadside and Admiral clones. Loving the experience so far, with some guidance from my fellow forum members I've been enjoying 24g Nichrome, never thought I'd change from SS, but it's so much easier to get to the build you want. Nothing beats the draw from a freshly charged battery and the quick ramp up of the Ni80 means I'm not beating batteries up either. So thanks for the pointers...