This (true) tale involves two fake TaylorMade's I recently purchased on ebay.
No moral to the story, but my disclaimer is at the end.
First the semantics: fake = a club which is intended to look identical to the real thing (as opposed to a "clone" which is something that might look similar, but is not intended to deceive; it is often designed/intended to impart some quality or technical feature of the real thing).
First TM fake was actually a set of ladies R7 XR irons that I bought for my son (ladies length and shaft flex suits him). Note: R7 XR is a range of clubs that TM make for Asian markets (more of which below).
When they arrived it was evident they were horrible fakes. The head castings were sh!te quality and the weight cartridge (polymer insert that goes into the cavity of RAC OS clubs) was just a piece of clear plastic. The seller expressed surprise but accepted my evidence and gave an immediate refund (and then sold them again on ebay a few weeks later to some other mug).
Next fake is a men's R7 XR 5-wood. The real thing boasts a titanium head with 2 weight ports (adjustable). Seller was quite up-front that it was a fake, but it was new and looked good in the pics. The seller dropped the price after a few days with no bids and I (suffering from: 1)a terminal case of buying-and-selling-and-stripping-and-building-clubs, 2) no current project, 3) over-healthy Paypal account) bought it for £30 (which includes the P&P).
When it arrived my first impressions were that it had been subject to an amatuer build (shaft logos back-to-front, ferrule a bit damaged and the club 1" over-long (same length as a 3-wood)).
The head looked good: some sub-standard finish to the paintwork and I can't check if the weights really are removable (don't have the TM tool) but of a good standard. Even the "XR" logo badge is a proper insert (not badly moulded/cast/painted into the head like the irons I bought).
Shaft looks pukka, as does the classy head-cover with all of the right logos stitched-in. Grip is a contoured cord grip with TM logos and is far, far better than those on my genuine R5 driver and OS irons (so it's gotta be a fake!!).
Big head - bigger than Launcher 3 but lighter overall than the Launcher. So I presume that it really is a Ti head (how does one tell?) and a light shaft (logo alleges M.A.S. 52g).
Playing with it is a revelation. The sweetest wood I have ever hit. Longer and more precise than my Launcher or MP001 5-wood. I had assumed that I would at minimum have to swap the shaft to get decent performance, but the original over-length item is still in the there. Two friends who have played it have been blown-away with how nice it is too hit, and then been gob-smacked to hear that it is a fake.
So how does it come to be in existance? How did someone make something so good for peanuts? It must have taken some care bearing in mind that wood heads need to be welded up with the hosel, painted etc.
Or is it perhaps a sub-quality item that was spirited out the rejects bin from the factory in China?
Don't care. I'm now back in contact with the seller and trying to buy more for the friends who have tried it!
Disclaimer: 1) I don't recommend anyone to buy fakes without seeing and trying. Look at the crap irons I bought!
2) TM sell a range of R7 XR clubs from driver to irons in Asia. The spec's are NOT the same as the R7 items sold in Europe. And there are huge amounts of fake R7 XR's all over ebay. Buy even "genuine" R7 XR's with very very great care!
