www.1tonne.co.nz have all ya need at the write price and quality
Good on the OP for trying to make some un aware people safer
Firstly. Alpinestars tend to run small - you are a M, order a L in A-stars. A simple bit of internet research will provide numerous USA shops who provide video reviews of gear they sell and all comment on the sizing.
I usually wear a L in most brands - need a XL in Alpine stars.
Go to a NZ bike shop and check out the padding/stitching etc - you may well find they are identical to what you have.
Are they knock-offs? Your sizing argument is not valid. Look closer then decide. Logo is a good call - image search the net.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYeVj1O5KJ8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM9XycG_E7M
OP did a decent thing in posting a warning and you all slam him? Jeeze - well done OP... Yes - good gear will cost extra but you don't need the flash brands to be 'safe' which is the first concern.
In agreement with the others praising OP - good on him, this is what KB is supposed to be for. Useful information.
After a few deals buying various goodies off TradeMe I'd say:
Check your seller's feedback and READ WHAT PEOPLE SAY. Smilies aren't enough, there are heaps of people out there who are terrified of tit-for-tat bad feedback so they put a smiley face with something like "Won auction, didn't email, didn't pay, fucked me around for three weeks for nothing... but it's all good"
Photos always come out better on Trademe than things look in real life.
If it's unbranded then you're probably buying AliExpress made-in-China stuff. That doesn't necessarily mean it's bad but don't expect top line quality.
I've been lucky enough to avoid knockoffs so far and am heading away from Trademe anyway... there are some pretty good online shops out there these days.
I saw a report a while back - a couple of big fashion houses in the UK commissioned undercover reporters to go into China and find the bootleg handbag production lines. They wanted to be able to show poor workmanship, anthrax in the lining, child labour, staff flogged, etc.
Unfortunately, they found most of the bags were coming out of the same factory as theirs - same material, same pay for staff, etc. The factory said "on Mondays and Wednesdays, we put the label in - on the other days we don't. They hardly covered themselves in praise for the conditions of their own workers but oh well....
So yeah, quality wise bootleg not necessarily inferior (it could be the same product) but then again, it couldn't be as well. Would I like to trust that my leather jacket really has covex in it or have and accident and find chopped up inner tubes in the elbows instead? With clothing - not fussed. Safety gear, yeah - I'd prefer the cast iron guarantee.
But - the triple mark up. Yes - cost of materials and manufacture is zilch, hence the bootleg price. There were thousands of hours of design and testing of these products though. Is it fair to buy an exact copy? All that will happen is the genuine article will get more and more expensive as they accumulate less sales over the lifetime of the product to pay the R&D cost.
I was wondering if it was an age thing. Some grumpy bugger gave OddDuck a red for his post #22. He and the OP would seem to have been intending to be helpful so that seems a bit harsh.
Alpine Stars gloves (the proper ones, not the mesh "commuting" ones) run from about $160 to over $360, if you're buying something for way less than that from an unknown Trademe seller you probably need to sharpen up. Failing that, I can offer you a very special price on this big bridge in Auckland.
Bargains can be had. I bought a top-of-the-line pair of Spidi gloves for half price, but from a recognised dealer who is a Spidi agent. The original price was such that not many KBers, or anyone else including me, would have considered them.
There is a grey blur, and a green blur. I try to stay on the grey one. - Joey Dunlop
[QUOTE=pritch;1130870377]I was wondering if it was an age thing. Some grumpy bugger gave OddDuck a red for his post #22. He and the OP would seem to have been intending to be helpful so that seems a bit harsh.
Again fukin CHILDISH shit with reps on here
Bugger, but at the end of the day you get what you pay for, I personally dont buy gloves or Helmets from tm.
I bought a great Alpinestar t-shirt at Sepang once. Only when I got home did I realise that my boots and jacket were actually Alpinestars with an S. Rip off bastards. The thing shrunk even before it went in the wash.
Personally I wouldn't buy any motorbike clothing off the internet but currently have a problem. My never ever ever let me down waterproof textile jacket of well over ten years of age finally let some water in during the heavy rain last week. Not going to be able to buy the same thing in NZ so am going to have shop on t'internet. Will give Trade Me a miss though. If a local or even national dealer does not have it then anyone on TM who does is a bit suss to me.
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