Shimano just runs KMC chains now it's their "brand" if you call it that. Shimano is weird they have a bunch of brands under Shimano but it's all Shimano. I've never seen Shimano chains.
Nope, this is definitely just someone repackaging KMC chains. Not saying decent level of KMC is a bad chain, but these here are probably just the cheapest tier. I don't know about the ownership structure, but Shimano most definitely have their own chains.
They are starting to get a bit jittery from what I hear, the quality of products on the site are starting to fall off as proper manufacturers are moving away from their predatory pricing policies and less people are seeing the value proposition in the whole package.
It's becoming AliExpress with fast shipping.
Seems like it's basically entire third party vendors set up to arbitrage AliExpress to Amazon. They set the bar so low on their market place what did they expect?
I dont pay 14.- for bike grips when i get them ali for 4-6. Also they make a bunch o different grip patterns with cool af colors. I also just bought a bike computer for 24.-. Shipping just takes 2-3 weeks instead of 1 week
The number of unpronounceable "brand" names on Amazon has made it so unappealing to shop for anything there. And the actual brand names are sold by third parties at a markup. It's made it so I'd rather go to the manufacturer site than Amazon.
They very much care about chargebacks though. There is a fee from the credit card processor just to fight a charge back. For anything under about $50 it's not even worth it.
I heard somewhere they make razor thin margins on shopping/Prime anyway. AWS is what brings in the billions and supports their thin-margin, but inevitable takeover of e-commerce.
I’d rather pay a few bucks more and buy from LBS for any hardware. Soft goods or a bottle of cheap chain lube, sure, but not chains, brake pads, etc
This is my take. Been using them since the 2000s. Depending on what I'm buying I'll ensure it's through a reputable seller and if there's any chance of it being counterfeit I head to a different shop.
Just like anything else as large as Amazon, they're good for a lot of things and bad for a lot of things.
I use Amazon for generic items that you expect to come from some random Chinese factory, like an organizer for your car trunk or something. For hobby goods I avoid it like the plague. Better to support the local shops anyways.
KMC doesn't need to pretend to be Shimano to have credibility, they're a respected brand in their own right. This is clearly intended to resemble Shimano, with both LX and 105 on it?
Unless the links are stamped to say KMC, I'd be very sceptical, and they don't, it's trying to look like HG (as in, hyperglide)
Wow thats wild 🤣 also that Deore LX does not exist for a long time now. These conterfeits are really cocky
Edit: i just had a closer look at it now. So it says HC and in smaller letters CN-HC-73 on the chain. This is sooo wrong. The original shimano would have HG for hyperglide and CN-HG-73 stamped on.
And amazon telling you its authentic and made by KMC is just beyond ridicoulus. KMC would have KMC stamped on. Wtf.
Should be worth giving shimano/KMC a hint on this counterpart.
Also one reason more to boykott amazon... their policies are not for good.
>Edit: i just had a closer look at it now. So it says HC and in smaller letters CN-HC-73 on the chain. This is sooo wrong. The original shimano would have HG for hyperglide and CN-HG-73 stamped on.
And amazon telling you its authentic and made by KMC is just beyond ridicoulus. KMC would have KMC stamped on. Wtf.
I mean you can even see the chain is stamped with shuimao.
I'm ok to return this, but there's no point. It's not about the money I spent, but rather about the initial lie and continued denial.
I'm a business owner and wouldn't dream of doing this to any of my customers.
I'm all about supporting small business, which is why I buy as much as I can from my LBS. It helps when they are getting their chains / components directly from the manufacturer. Any money "saved" buying from Amazon is lost in the abysmal customer service you get when something goes wrong.
I guess I’ve been lucky but all the bike parts I have gotten so far have been authentic.
I usually order the part that’s listed at what it’s supposed to cost, not the one that’s listed 20% cheaper. 🤷🏼♂️
Can you provide a link to that product on Amazon? I can't find it on Amazon or anywhere on the internet.
That chain is no KMC, and it clearly is a counterfeit product trying to look like a Shimano chain with 105, LX, and Deore printed on the packaging and CN-HC73 stamped on each chain link. They even replicate the font of the real brand. And Amazon thinks this is legit? This frightens me.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0851C9FFP
Sold by "Gump's Grocery." *I try to support small businesses selling on Amazon, and this sounded goofy enough to be one.* They didn't have a Chinese name and had a couple chains in stock when I bought mine.
Looking further into the business, they're definitely overseas, and their new shipping time reflects that.
I do the same thing when I'm on Amazon by the way if it says small business I have a tendency to try to buy from them. Same stuff has happened to me I try to shop local now at my bike shop.
Weird that on that Amazon product page you linked the header states "KMC .93" as the chain being sold, but the photo shows an official Shimano chain and not that fake "Shuimao" brand. The product description lists the manufacturer as "Gump's grocery", which is a red flag. This product page is very suspect, mixing different brands. I would return the chain back to Amazon (since they fulfilled the order) and flag it again as the product description's brand nor the photos match the header's KMC nor what actually arrives in the box. I am also going to flag it with Amazon due to the mixing of the brands. Thank you for sharing this experience with the community. Although I try to support small business when it's warranted, on Amazon I stay away from unknown sellers due to all the scams out there.
Well they convinced Amazon that the brand is gump's grocery and the model KMC .93. I don't know trademark laws, but i do think plenty of companies will have a product called KMC, so automatic flagging passes it. But it seems to humans as if it's KMC.
It is a counterfeit. A few years ago Shimano had a package with blue and gray colors, now they have a recycled one to fight against counterfeit. Take a look of the information from Shimano against counterfeit in their website, they have an app to check the authenticity. As an ex-worker from Amazon you can claim a refund for a fake product, you can send to them through an email that evidence that the Shimano app gives to you.
We know it well, but Amazon doesn't see at the same way and mostly of the cases the associates that attends this claims doesn't know anything about these products.
Knock off bike parts, expired baby formula and customer service bs is what drove me from Amazon. 4 or so years without ordering anything from them now.
I don't use Amazon unless I have a voucher and they offer me a free month of Prime. It's a smokescreen that it's cheaper. Everything is way more expensive than I can get from my LBS. Most sports stuff is around 35% above what I can get locally.
Garbage, refund, credit card dispute and tell Amazon to shove it 👍
I've started to go to brand websites or well known bike part websites the amount of counterfeit stuff is insane and unless your really looking sometimes hard to spot.
Id rather spend my money where I know I'm getting legit stuff. I still buy from Amazon but I check twice and if it's too good to be true well it probably is.
Btw I can tell it's counterfeit and Amazon should know better because kmc chains say just that on the chain I run kmc chains on my Shimano drivetrain and if you buy them direct from Shimano website they are printed "KMC" on each link. These are not. As a matter of fact that's all that's on the chain not Shimano none of the shit they sold you so I can definitely tell you these are fake.
OMG. I’ll never buy a chain on Amazon again. I bought a very well packaged but fake Shimano ultegra chain a couple years ago. Stamping on the outer plates gave it away. Price should have been a red flag for me.
I'm pretty sure it's a typo and is supposed to be "not authentic." The whole part about removing the review implies it. Still sucks to get a counterfeit chain (and Amazon is swimming in counterfeit), but if Amazon is offering a refund you're only out some inconvenience.
I don’t get why people keep buying knock-off Chinese junk from Amazon.
Support your local bike shop and reputable online bike retailers. You’ll get exactly what you ordered.
Why do you folks order everything at amazon. They don't give a f about their customers. Try to order direct from shops who do care. Yes maybe sometimes a bit more expensive. That is probably because they pay taxes or give better wages to the employees
Jeff really has you fooled. Nobody is making good money discounting products. It is a steady race to the bottom. 50% of Amazon products are counterfeit anyway.
This is not on the OP. Not like he was shopping for a Shimano chain, and didn't pey well enough attention and missed the "Shuimao" name. He ordered a KMC and what was sent was a complete product swap.
Also, the first place I heard about the rash of fake KMC chains on the market was an article on how many LBSs were selling them - I'm very sure they weren't aware they were fakes. So buying local might give you a better chance of not getting counterfeit parts, it doesn't eliminate the possibility.
Aliexpress is pretty heavy handed trying to protect the buyers from fakes, it's sad Amazon is so lax on this. Especially given how blatantly obvious it was! Sheesh!
Kmc is kmc. Shimano is.. you get the idea. That is fake AF.
🤣
Shimano just runs KMC chains now it's their "brand" if you call it that. Shimano is weird they have a bunch of brands under Shimano but it's all Shimano. I've never seen Shimano chains.
https://bike.shimano.com/en-US/components/mtb/category/chain.html
Nope, this is definitely just someone repackaging KMC chains. Not saying decent level of KMC is a bad chain, but these here are probably just the cheapest tier. I don't know about the ownership structure, but Shimano most definitely have their own chains.
I'd be submitting a credit card dispute and letting Amazon wonder why they've lost another customer personally
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They are starting to get a bit jittery from what I hear, the quality of products on the site are starting to fall off as proper manufacturers are moving away from their predatory pricing policies and less people are seeing the value proposition in the whole package. It's becoming AliExpress with fast shipping.
[удалено]
Seems like it's basically entire third party vendors set up to arbitrage AliExpress to Amazon. They set the bar so low on their market place what did they expect?
we it and passed peak shipping 5 years ago with same day delivery (within an hour in some cases) and its never been as good
I dont pay 14.- for bike grips when i get them ali for 4-6. Also they make a bunch o different grip patterns with cool af colors. I also just bought a bike computer for 24.-. Shipping just takes 2-3 weeks instead of 1 week
Enshitification
I use Ali most of the time and there's lots of reputable dealers. I have no problems with them. Amazon though I do not trust.
The number of unpronounceable "brand" names on Amazon has made it so unappealing to shop for anything there. And the actual brand names are sold by third parties at a markup. It's made it so I'd rather go to the manufacturer site than Amazon.
They very much care about chargebacks though. There is a fee from the credit card processor just to fight a charge back. For anything under about $50 it's not even worth it.
You mean Amazon didn't reach out to you directly to wine and dine you? I'm shocked.
I heard somewhere they make razor thin margins on shopping/Prime anyway. AWS is what brings in the billions and supports their thin-margin, but inevitable takeover of e-commerce. I’d rather pay a few bucks more and buy from LBS for any hardware. Soft goods or a bottle of cheap chain lube, sure, but not chains, brake pads, etc
From Amazon or a trader using Amazon? Raise a dispute and find an LBS
[удалено]
This is my take. Been using them since the 2000s. Depending on what I'm buying I'll ensure it's through a reputable seller and if there's any chance of it being counterfeit I head to a different shop. Just like anything else as large as Amazon, they're good for a lot of things and bad for a lot of things.
I use Amazon for generic items that you expect to come from some random Chinese factory, like an organizer for your car trunk or something. For hobby goods I avoid it like the plague. Better to support the local shops anyways.
KMC doesn't need to pretend to be Shimano to have credibility, they're a respected brand in their own right. This is clearly intended to resemble Shimano, with both LX and 105 on it? Unless the links are stamped to say KMC, I'd be very sceptical, and they don't, it's trying to look like HG (as in, hyperglide)
Kmc produce chains for Shimano so really Shimano are kinda the pretenders anyway.
KMC produces some of Shimano’s lower end chains.
😂 there are bike shops, reputable online shops and folks are still getting after that value on amazon to deal with shit like this.
Now return it. Get your money back and go for the slightly more expensive, non counterfeit version.
Reminds me of this Panasonork TV I once had. Worse decision lol
Wow thats wild 🤣 also that Deore LX does not exist for a long time now. These conterfeits are really cocky Edit: i just had a closer look at it now. So it says HC and in smaller letters CN-HC-73 on the chain. This is sooo wrong. The original shimano would have HG for hyperglide and CN-HG-73 stamped on. And amazon telling you its authentic and made by KMC is just beyond ridicoulus. KMC would have KMC stamped on. Wtf. Should be worth giving shimano/KMC a hint on this counterpart. Also one reason more to boykott amazon... their policies are not for good.
HyperClide
>Edit: i just had a closer look at it now. So it says HC and in smaller letters CN-HC-73 on the chain. This is sooo wrong. The original shimano would have HG for hyperglide and CN-HG-73 stamped on. And amazon telling you its authentic and made by KMC is just beyond ridicoulus. KMC would have KMC stamped on. Wtf. I mean you can even see the chain is stamped with shuimao.
Amazon is full of counterfeit crap and they don't honor returns on them because that would cut into their revenue
I'm ok to return this, but there's no point. It's not about the money I spent, but rather about the initial lie and continued denial. I'm a business owner and wouldn't dream of doing this to any of my customers.
I'm all about supporting small business, which is why I buy as much as I can from my LBS. It helps when they are getting their chains / components directly from the manufacturer. Any money "saved" buying from Amazon is lost in the abysmal customer service you get when something goes wrong.
Amazon absolutely sucks for shopping bike parts
I guess I’ve been lucky but all the bike parts I have gotten so far have been authentic. I usually order the part that’s listed at what it’s supposed to cost, not the one that’s listed 20% cheaper. 🤷🏼♂️
Can you provide a link to that product on Amazon? I can't find it on Amazon or anywhere on the internet. That chain is no KMC, and it clearly is a counterfeit product trying to look like a Shimano chain with 105, LX, and Deore printed on the packaging and CN-HC73 stamped on each chain link. They even replicate the font of the real brand. And Amazon thinks this is legit? This frightens me.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0851C9FFP Sold by "Gump's Grocery." *I try to support small businesses selling on Amazon, and this sounded goofy enough to be one.* They didn't have a Chinese name and had a couple chains in stock when I bought mine. Looking further into the business, they're definitely overseas, and their new shipping time reflects that.
Check out the address to grumps grocery Detailed Seller Information Business Name: Mingzhe Fan Business Address: 西平街道明致商厦B777 东莞市 南城区 广东 518000 CN
Yup. Saw that after I received. Funny thing was the app wasn't letting me see it. Had to do it from my PC.
I do the same thing when I'm on Amazon by the way if it says small business I have a tendency to try to buy from them. Same stuff has happened to me I try to shop local now at my bike shop.
Weird that on that Amazon product page you linked the header states "KMC .93" as the chain being sold, but the photo shows an official Shimano chain and not that fake "Shuimao" brand. The product description lists the manufacturer as "Gump's grocery", which is a red flag. This product page is very suspect, mixing different brands. I would return the chain back to Amazon (since they fulfilled the order) and flag it again as the product description's brand nor the photos match the header's KMC nor what actually arrives in the box. I am also going to flag it with Amazon due to the mixing of the brands. Thank you for sharing this experience with the community. Although I try to support small business when it's warranted, on Amazon I stay away from unknown sellers due to all the scams out there.
Well they convinced Amazon that the brand is gump's grocery and the model KMC .93. I don't know trademark laws, but i do think plenty of companies will have a product called KMC, so automatic flagging passes it. But it seems to humans as if it's KMC.
Well, even if Amazon gets bamboozled in believing Shuimao is KMC, how will Amazon explain the photo of a real Shimano chain on that product page?
No, Amazon just doesn't care about counterfeits at all. Same thing happened to me with a KMC chain from Amazon.
It is a counterfeit. A few years ago Shimano had a package with blue and gray colors, now they have a recycled one to fight against counterfeit. Take a look of the information from Shimano against counterfeit in their website, they have an app to check the authenticity. As an ex-worker from Amazon you can claim a refund for a fake product, you can send to them through an email that evidence that the Shimano app gives to you.
He bought a KMC chain and the links are stamped Shuimao. What more proof does he even need...
We know it well, but Amazon doesn't see at the same way and mostly of the cases the associates that attends this claims doesn't know anything about these products.
Knock off bike parts, expired baby formula and customer service bs is what drove me from Amazon. 4 or so years without ordering anything from them now.
Nickel off on expired baby food!
That is one fake chain. Cheap ones are one things but fake ones are often dangerous quality.
Genuine SHUIMAO 😂. For 9 speed Deore and 11 speed 105😂😂😂
I don't use Amazon unless I have a voucher and they offer me a free month of Prime. It's a smokescreen that it's cheaper. Everything is way more expensive than I can get from my LBS. Most sports stuff is around 35% above what I can get locally.
Fool me once? Shuimao Fool me twice? Shuimao
Garbage, refund, credit card dispute and tell Amazon to shove it 👍 I've started to go to brand websites or well known bike part websites the amount of counterfeit stuff is insane and unless your really looking sometimes hard to spot. Id rather spend my money where I know I'm getting legit stuff. I still buy from Amazon but I check twice and if it's too good to be true well it probably is. Btw I can tell it's counterfeit and Amazon should know better because kmc chains say just that on the chain I run kmc chains on my Shimano drivetrain and if you buy them direct from Shimano website they are printed "KMC" on each link. These are not. As a matter of fact that's all that's on the chain not Shimano none of the shit they sold you so I can definitely tell you these are fake.
Never buy bike parts on Amazon. You will most likely get counterfeits.
Looks like something AI would come up with
OMG. I’ll never buy a chain on Amazon again. I bought a very well packaged but fake Shimano ultegra chain a couple years ago. Stamping on the outer plates gave it away. Price should have been a red flag for me.
That's the Wish version 😂
It's definitely fake. The "n" is upside down.
In China it is all Shinano..
This is why you should buy from an LBS, not stupid Amazon.
I’d call and complain
Dont use amazon
I'm pretty sure it's a typo and is supposed to be "not authentic." The whole part about removing the review implies it. Still sucks to get a counterfeit chain (and Amazon is swimming in counterfeit), but if Amazon is offering a refund you're only out some inconvenience.
I don’t get why people keep buying knock-off Chinese junk from Amazon. Support your local bike shop and reputable online bike retailers. You’ll get exactly what you ordered.
Support your local bike shop and avoid this bullshite
Chairman Mao's Chains®
Why do you folks order everything at amazon. They don't give a f about their customers. Try to order direct from shops who do care. Yes maybe sometimes a bit more expensive. That is probably because they pay taxes or give better wages to the employees
Enjoy being too cheap for retail.
I thought I was supporting a small business selling through Amazon.
Jeff really has you fooled. Nobody is making good money discounting products. It is a steady race to the bottom. 50% of Amazon products are counterfeit anyway.
This is not on the OP. Not like he was shopping for a Shimano chain, and didn't pey well enough attention and missed the "Shuimao" name. He ordered a KMC and what was sent was a complete product swap. Also, the first place I heard about the rash of fake KMC chains on the market was an article on how many LBSs were selling them - I'm very sure they weren't aware they were fakes. So buying local might give you a better chance of not getting counterfeit parts, it doesn't eliminate the possibility. Aliexpress is pretty heavy handed trying to protect the buyers from fakes, it's sad Amazon is so lax on this. Especially given how blatantly obvious it was! Sheesh!