UpperDeck Posted August 11, 2013 Share Posted August 11, 2013 I was looking at the possibility of getting some Ping components in PEK---specifically the G25 driver and 4-wood as well as the Garmin S4. I know that the shafts come from Vietnam but the heads are manufactured in China.Has anyone sourced equipment and can relay that info?Thx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 Somebody looking for a gopher? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpperDeck Posted August 12, 2013 Author Share Posted August 12, 2013 Seeker???Hmm...you'd think with that name, you'd understand.Okay...double entendre.....1) gopher---gofer...nope, don't need one. I just need a source not acquisition or delivery.2) Bill Murray--Caddy Shack--etc etc.Actually, Seeker--I think the question is best answered by someone on the 77 who appreciates new equipment and striving for improvement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mo32a Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 I was looking at the possibility of getting some Ping components in PEK---specifically the G25 driver and 4-wood as well as the Garmin S4. I know that the shafts come from Vietnam but the heads are manufactured in China.Has anyone sourced equipment and can relay that info?ThxWhen I sourced real (not knock offs) clubs in China there wasn't much difference in cost.Now I just wait for newest and greatest club to come out, then I go buy the one that was newest and greatest last month for half the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 I was going to suggest the same thing. Golf Town has some excellent deals on right now for perfectly good equipment that was last year's model. The last time someone I knew bought knock-offs clubs in China, they were obviously not the real thing and of poor quality. The head broke off his "Taylor Made" driver on the 20th swing. He ended up buying a genuine set on sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpperDeck Posted August 12, 2013 Author Share Posted August 12, 2013 Understood.Someone "near and dear" keeps coming home with neat stuff acquired at bargain prices so not unreasonably, I asked about acquisitions for my side of the family. She reported that she "heard" of a Captain who was able to locate a source for genuine Ping parts and who assembled a set over a period of time.Conversely, I also heard the story of a local businessman who bought a set "on the street"----obviously knockoffs----which disintegrated in a very short time.Hence my question looking for a source for genuine components but I do understand that oft times, it is "cheaper" (less hassle) to buy local. The report that in any event, the cost savings is minimal is very interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inchman Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 I'm just a weekend golfer, but related to a guy who almost went pro, but became a pilot instead :-( . He says that the quality of the clubs from China, even though they look great, is quite poor, particularly the shafts.My own experience with almost every knockoff (whether it is sold as such or as "original") that I have seen from China is that much of the stuff is crap, golf clubs or Lulu Lemon or USB cords. Even actual name brand clubs lose heads or break shafts every so often... it would be reasonable to assume that it happens even more to knockoffs or "real" clubs from China. The outcome if a head hits someone, depending when the head lets go, could be quite dire.When you buy a knockoff or a "fall off the truck" item, consider the scruples of the person who has stolen either the idea or the item itself. If they would steal or pirate items, do you think that that they care about you or those who you play golf with? Their only goal is to get your money.If you acquire some of this stuff for a family member and they hurt themselves or someone else with it (without even the benefit of the true quality in the majority of cases), how would you feel? IMO, the biggest problem that China faces is that many there have embraced the money part of capitalism while ignoring (or don't understand) most, if not all, of the ethical part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boestar Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 I was speaking with a gentleman that hails from China and returns there to visit frequently. He was telling me that at some of the manufacturing facilities the crews will run "and extra production run" in off hours to sell out the back door so to speak. Much of this ends up on e-Bay. I have picked up some of this stuff and some is of good quality and some is crapola. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpperDeck Posted August 12, 2013 Author Share Posted August 12, 2013 Inchman....Actually, the components for three major "manufacturers" of golf clubs are fabricated in China and Vietnam. Ping club heads are made in China and Ping shafts are made in Vietnam. They are then shipped to the US for assembly.I'll probably follow the recommendation to wait a bit then buy the desired clubs during sale season in Florida.And---as an unnecessary aside----I've bought about 5-6 new sets of irons through the years and too many individual clubs all through my local pro or Edwin Watts or the equivalent. This inquiry was generated by my "discovery" that the Ping G25 was a "must buy" and derives from China. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Innuendo Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 "I was speaking with a gentleman that hails from China and returns there to visit frequently. He was telling me that at some of the manufacturing facilities the crews will run "and extra production run" in off hours to sell out the back door so to speak. Much of this ends up on e-Bay. I have picked up some of this stuff and some is of good quality and some is crapola."I'm sure the vendors of clones would like us to believe that they are the real item, just made on extra illegal shifts.I am equally sure that Ping, Taylor Made, et al, are equally interested in protecting their market from fakes and i imagine they must have some accounting and security at their production facilities.I have seen some Callaway clones and they look very good but I would not use fakes even if they were free. Not that my game is that super skilled but I just could not trust the quality control and consistency, especialy the shafts.FWIW, I buy from my local Pro, if I am paying extra it is worth it for my dealings and advice before and after the sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inchman Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 Inchman....Actually, the components for three major "manufacturers" of golf clubs are fabricated in China and Vietnam. Ping club heads are made in China and Ping shafts are made in Vietnam. They are then shipped to the US for assembly.I wasn't suggesting that the components of the genuine product weren't produced in China. In fact, it is this that makes the knockoffs so much easier to produce. Genuine LuLu Lemon and Gucci products are made in China as well, but there is a lot of fake LuLu Lemon and Gucci made in, and sold in, China as well.It is the "shipped to the US for assembly" that allows the manufacturer to say "Made in the USA"... sometimes they say "Assembled in the USA". It also allows them some quality control (although my last set of genuine clubs ordered directly from the manufacturer had very little of the latter :-( ).My comments were intended to protect you, the people you are buying for and the people playing golf with them. In my opinion, if you buy something in China, do so with the expectation that it is not genuine. That's ok if you do so with eyes wide open. Buying clothing or purses is one thing. Buying something that moves at tangential speeds of over 100 mph in an arc that, at some point, points at other people is a completely different thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpperDeck Posted August 13, 2013 Author Share Posted August 13, 2013 Inchman..Understood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mo32a Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 I was speaking with a gentleman that hails from China and returns there to visit frequently. He was telling me that at some of the manufacturing facilities the crews will run "and extra production run" in off hours to sell out the back door so to speak. Much of this ends up on e-Bay. I have picked up some of this stuff and some is of good quality and some is crapola.The same claim was made about "extra production runs" when everyone was bringing Northface storm jackets home. The Goretex didn't breathe unfortunately.At least when you are on Nathan Street in Hong Kong the vendors ask if you want to buy a "real fake Rolex". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moeman Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Just like computer components, I buy most of my high end stuff on kijiji locally. I don't need the newest TaylorMade irons, I'll be fine with a set of R11's.I love how some people feel they have to have the newest and greatest clubs, graphics cards, TV's, etc. and so they sell off barely used "obsolete" equipment there. I'm happy to help them finance their new purchases, and I've never been disappointed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Indeed. The newest club technology might help Tiger or Rory save a stroke or two on the weekend, but for us average Joes, it doesn't make that much of a difference. My 7 year old set of clubs works just fine, thanks.I was recently at a neighbourhood BBQ and a guy showed up with his new "Gibson" acoustic guitar that his brother had picked up for him in China. He was raving about how accurate this knock-off was and that even the Gibson experts at the local guitar shop couldn't tell the difference. I didn't say anything but in my mind I was calling BS. I asked to give it a go and he handed it to me. It took all of 5 seconds to tell it wasn't a real Gibson, even before I played it. It was so obvious, Jeff Healy would have known it was a knock-off without playing it. But this guy was happy and I wasn't going to burst his bubble. He's willing to dance with the girl he brung, and beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Besides, he was able to make it sing pretty darned well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boestar Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 It is the "shipped to the US for assembly" that allows the manufacturer to say "Made in the USA"... sometimes they say "Assembled in the USA". It also allows them some quality control (although my last set of genuine clubs ordered directly from the manufacturer had very little of the latter :-( ).My favourite was indicated on a box I saw when shopping with the wife in the states. On the side of the box with a BIG american flag it said "Engineered in the U.S.A." Then in tiny little letters underneath it said. "Made in China" I burst out laughing in the store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Seeker???Hmm...you'd think with that name, you'd understand.Okay...double entendre.....1) gopher---gofer...nope, don't need one. I just need a source not acquisition or delivery.2) Bill Murray--Caddy Shack--etc etc.UD, you got it - #2. Glad to see someone's paying attention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rozar s'macco Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Apple is the best, "Designed in California"Having said that, producing things somewhere else isn't bad per se provided proper quality control. Knock-off anything, produced anywhere, is always crap because the only focus is on making it look right not work right, or last, or prevent returns and warranty costs. All my Apple stuff works perfectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boestar Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 While I admire the fact that Apple stuff "Just Works" I cannot stand the company itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Apple recently announced that iPhone production was being repatriated to the USA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boestar Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 You may find this interestinghttp://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2422763,00.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deicer Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 Back to the thread....http://www.safeshare.tv/w/lNQxKkFRoZ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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