spot a counterfeit BPR40?

[nobars]

I just bought 2 BPR40s with chargers, etc. and I just wanted to know how do I know if they are counterfeit?

Thank you for the help.

[HLA]

those are really low tier radios and not worth counterfeiting. But what makes you suspect that?

[nobars]

1 of them looks what I would consider to be "normal" but the other has both the serial # label and fcc warning label askew, the antenna doesn't seem to screw on quite straight, the battery latch is much more loose and it doesn't seem to perform nearly as well. They were made in 2 different years so perhaps that explains why and maybe someone didn't take care of it as well but I was just curious.

[HLA]

I see, I assumed you bought them what you thought was new but if you got them used that's a different story. if the labels are wrong and parts don't fit correctly then it's possible somebody attempted to repair and replace the backing plate but I still can't see it being worth making knock offs of theese, that would be like counterfeiting pennies, it cost more to make it than you'd get out of it. just my opinion tho

[RadioSouth]

Ive spotted counterfit chargers, batteries, housings on EBay, even knockoff Jedi knobs. The possibility is there, they're already scraping the bottom of the barrel. Maybe some pic's would get a opinion from someone familiar with this model.

[n3eg]

You wouldn't believe the counterfeit Waris housings I've seen. Thin gold plating on the flex contacts, press-fit (not molded-in) microphone screw-in parts, speakers shorting to the frame, factory reject LCDs, and so on.

[MTS2000des]

yep, Ebay is full of counterfeit parts, one Ebay seller is "Radio Research" aka Baymeboy, who sells counterfeit Pro series housings.

If it doesn't come from MOL or a verified authorized dealer, pretty good chances it's bogus. Tiffany and Co. claims that 2 out of 3 Tiffany items on Ebay are a fraud. Motorola has to be a close second for numbers of forgeries and knock-offs.
The number of fake antennas, which are of inferior quality, outnumber the real deal OEM Motorola ones 3 to 1. Someone did a great "cut open" side by side to show how craptacular these Chinese road apples are compared to the real Mccoy, including the poor soldering job at the base, which would break easily with just a light flexing of the antenna that would be encountered during normal use versus the robustness of the real item.

This stuff may be fine if you don't mind pissing your money away on cheap plastic crap that doesn't fit for a personal radio used for HAM use, but putting this stuff of any radio used by a first responder is literally playing with fire.

It's why I call ebay brokenstolencounterfeitradios.com

Buy the SELLER not the item, but expect to pay accordingly.

[nobars]

Good news is I already checked the serial #s with Motorola and they do come back to BPR40 series radios and they are NOT reported lost/stolen so I'm clear if they're legitimate radios. Since I obviously don't have the software to program them then I assume if I take them to an authorized dealer/repair facility (not necessarily Motorola themselves) and they are able to scan for the currently loaded settings and program new settings then they are real?

These are the first 2 real radios I've ever owned aside from some FRS ones in the past so I don't really know what to look for to see if they are legitimate but I'd hope that this guy I bought them from (excellent seller ratings) isn't scamming me. He seems legitimate since he has already sent me 2 more batteries since 1 of the ones included doesn't hold enough of a charge any more and all the batteries look identical and look the same as picture I've seen on the Motorola site.

Does anyone here have one or multiple known real ones that they could post pictures of so I can compare those to mine?

[RadioSouth]

How about you posting pics of what you have if you're this concerned ?

[Will]

Also let us know where you are, as someone may be near and have the programming sw and cable and be able to help you get them running...

[nobars]

I'm in Irvine, CA. What pictures would you like? I wasn't aware I was able to post pictures yet since I'm new to the boards.

[AEC]

Nobars: Usually a good front and back shot are all that is required, but clear enough to make out some of the pertinent data so people can assist with identifying the model and band of operation from the data on the tag.

IE: P44QLC20E2AA, AAH34SDF9DU5AN and so on....These identify the radio frequency band of operation and feature set as well.
The other data might include the programmed firmware version such as: R02009, or R05.03.02 Etc...

Other model numbers for newer radios such as the XTS line look like this: H09RDH9PW9BN.

[giguchan]

I've learned my lesson the hard way.... if you want genuwine there is ONE place to get it and that is that!
from batteries to housings i've seen the lot... and no more.