Elinchrom barndoor set <-- Need experienced eye

I purchased an Elinchrom Barndoor Set 21 off of eBay. The barndoor set was marketed as "sealed in plastic and boxed". The eBay ad used specific Elinchrom part and model numbers to describe what was included. The ad didn't say the barndoor set was "For Elinchrom", rather, it simply stated that it WAS Elinchrom.

I received the set today. First of all, the parts were in plastic bags closed with tape, not "sealed in plastic". Second, they were not in any sort of Elinchrom box. In fact, the only box was the Priority Mail shipping box.

Worse, the accessory holder has obvious spots where the black paint is worn or missing and it's been touched up with a black magic marker. And, frankly, the metal feels very flimsy to me. I am having serious doubt that these parts are genuine Elinchrom.

I've taken a couple of photos of the accessory holder included in the set. I sure would appreciate it if anyone that has personal experience with genuine Elinchrom barndoor parts could look at the photo and tell me whether this accessory holder appears to be genuine Elinchrom or not!

http://www.thephotoboo​th.net/photos/73210371​8_zvAQA-O.jpg

http://www.thephotoboo​th.net/photos/73210371​7_EihEH-O.jpg

No instructions of any kind were included. I am so disappointed with the quality of the accessory holder, I haven't even taken the two sets of doors out of their bags to see how it all goes together.

Thanks!

Mark

Well from the pics, that piece looks very similar to the grid holders i have. The little spring pins are the same and the lip in the middle which mounts to the reflector is similar as well. I can't see how flimsy the metal is, but from looks alone, it looks like an elinchrom piece. Barn doors aren't that compicated and unless the metal is bending, i wouldn't imagine they are made too thick.

Thanks mumbles. Could you please take a look at this photo of an Elinchrom accessory holder from B&H:

http://www.bhphotovide​o.com/images/largeimag​es/16732.jpg

I see two things that are different than the accessory holder I received.

1) The spring rivets on the face of the B&H model (where gels would be mounted) are brass in color. (The rivets on the one I received are painted black).

2) If you look at the little black plastic cups on the edges (where the doors mount), the spring pin in the center is also brass in color. (On the one I received they are silver.)

3) The finish on that B&H model appears to be quite smooth (the finish on the one I received feels somewhat like sand paper texture).

How does yours compare to the B&H photo?

Also, here's a possible tell.... On the one I received, if I lift the little metal strip where the gel would be secured, the face of the accessory under that metal strip is not painted. It's bare metal under there. On yours, could you peek under those metal strips to see it's painted or bare metal?

As for how flimsy the metal is.... Just the process of snapping the reflector into those four lips is enough to cause some fairly significant warpage of the accessory holder metal. If I'm not careful, I can quite easily warp and bend the side edges (where the reflector mounts) and distort the face of the accessory holder. I bends WAY easier than I would expect it to.

I've taken a few more photos that do a better job of detailing the texture of the accessory holder and the various bits. If you don't mind, I'd appreciate you taking another look to compare it to your own genuine Elinchrom product.

http://www.thephotoboo​th.net/photos/73227059​2_s24KD-O.jpg

BTW, in that photo, if you look at the edge of the hole in the center of the accessory holder (in about the 11 o'clock position), you an see the area that has been touched up with a black felt tip pen. Straight out toward the edge from there, you can see a blemish in the paint that hasn't been touched up at all.

Here's a closeup of where the barndoors mount:

http://www.thephotoboo​th.net/photos/73227059​5_b8CKh-O.jpg

Lastly, here's a closeup of that area that's been touched up with a black felt tip pen. If you look closely, you can see that the very edge of the inside of the circle has also been touched up with black felt tip pen from the 11 o'clock position to about the 12:30 position.

http://www.thephotoboo​th.net/photos/73227059​4_qvugH-O.jpg

The vendor that sold these to me is insisting that they are genuine Elinchrom. Assuming that is so, he absolutely refuses to address the issue that he sold these as brand new and boxed, yet, the item arrived with touch up from a black felt tip pen. The fact that he misrepresented his product as far as condition is concerned, and the fact that he won't even discuss the black felt tip pen touchup in his replies, is what is furthering my concern that this might no be a genuine Elinchrom product.

The quality of this product smacks of something made in China. All of my other Elinchrom gear is of better quality than this. But, admittedly, this is my first exposure to a barndoor set.

Again, I appreciate the help.

Mark

Plain and simple, it looks like a knockoff.

I could not see the pics.

Yeah, mine looks like the B&H one. I have the brass points and it's smooth. Not textured.

Mark, how much did you pay for it?

godfather, I don't know why you can't see the pictures. The links work for me and everyone else. Please try again, maybe my site was having bandwidth difficulty at the time you first tried.

57hardtop, The price was $50. And, yes, I knew that was a great deal. But the seller clearly advertised the product as genuine Elinchrom, using Elinchrom part and model numbers. Yeah... yeah.. buyer beware! It was too good to be true and I should have figured it out before I placed the order.

I've written back to the seller to insist on a full refund, including shipping both ways. I will wait for his response before I make any other moves. But my gut feeling is that, to protect myself, I should contact eBay and tell them of my suspicions.

Do you guys think I should bring this to the attention of Elinchrom?

Mark

I don't think that bringing to the attention of Elinchrom will do anything or make a difference. I'm sure they are aware of all the knockoff's and probably don't care. In the scheme of things it's not eating into their sales or profits and most pro's are not going to be looking on ebay for Elinchrom accessories. They buy from reputable retails or directly from BogenImaging (in the US, that is).

Mark, the only thing I was wondering (outloud) was if, for the price you paid, is if the product satisfactory, and if not, how much would it cost to get a satisfactory version. If real Elinchrom barndoors cost $150, and you got these for $50 (you should know that you can't get a $150 set of barndoors for $50 ), and they work, does it make difference? IMO, and if it were me, I may or may not contact ebay, I don't know...but they probably won't do anything anyway, so...but if I felt that I got a good or even decent deal for $50, I, personally, would let it rest and be grateful I didn't have to pay $150 for something that does the same thing as a $50 product... that's all

One thing to note...if a seller on ebay states a product brand name, and even gives that product's part number from that brand name, it doesn't mean that it is a genuine part manufactured by that name brand company...if anywhere in the fine print it says "for" a (insert brand name here), they are off the hook from claiming that they are saying it IS from (insert brand name here)...you see it all over ebay (the Canon OC-E3 off-camera cords are prime examples)...I know, its shady, but that's life

I'm not sure it's a knockoff. Elinchrom use outside contractors to manufacture their reflectors and accessories, and their manufacturing practices change from time to time. As long as they satisfy whatever QC that Elinchrom impose on them, they are then sold as genuine Elinchrom accessories.

One example I can think of, off the top of my head: The early Elinchrom 17" square reflectors were all made out of one piece of aluminium. Later models were made out of two pieces, having the speedring attachment riveted to the rest of the reflector (since it was probably much easier to align the reflector to sit "square" when mounted to the Elinchrom mount).

Rudi wrote in post #9142214
I'm not sure it's a knockoff. Elinchrom use outside contractors to manufacture their reflectors and accessories, and their manufacturing practices change from time to time. As long as they satisfy whatever QC that Elinchrom impose on them, they are then sold as genuine Elinchrom accessories.

One example I can think of, off the top of my head: The early Elinchrom 17" square reflectors were all made out of one piece of aluminium. Later models were made out of two pieces, having the speedring attachment riveted to the rest of the reflector (since it was probably much easier to align the reflector to sit "square" when mounted to the Elinchrom mount).

I would tend to agree with you Rudi, BUT, soooo much of the supposed Elinchrom gear sold on ebay are knockoffs and I wouldn't be so sure it's not a knockoff. On the other hand you could be right and perhaps it is authentic Elinchrom.

For my purposes, if I wanted to be sure I was getting the real deal I'd buy from an authorized retailer.

TMR Design wrote in post #9142242
For my purposes, if I wanted to be sure I was getting the real deal I'd buy from an authorized retailer.

my point exactly Rob, and the authorized dealers aren't selling things for 1/2 or 2/3 off

No, I do not feel I got my $50 worth. The metal on this thing is so soft, it almost bends just looking at it. I would worry that it would simply fall off my reflector when it gets hot.

Here's the seller's eBay ad. You can judge for yourself whether he is presenting them as genuine Elinchrom parts or not:

http://cgi.ebay.com …iewItem&item=38​0176400394

Further, in his first E-mail response to my concerns, there is NO mistake that he is representing these as genuine Elinchrom. He wrote:

In two replies from him, he has completely ignored my concerns about the touchup with a black felt pen. He CLEARLY advertises these as NEW and BOXED an made by Elinchrom. So, when was the last time you guys purchased genuine Elinchrom products that were touched up with a black felt pen?

Mark

BTW, this is the type of box I expected to receive:

http://img6.imageshack​.us/img6/2650/img1339z​.jpg

To me, whether they are counterfeit or not is really irrelevant at this point. The seller advertised the item as new and boxed. To me, touched up with a felt pen is NOT new. I didn't want a good deal on used barndoors. I wanted a good deal on brand new Elinchrom barndoors. THAT is what the seller advertised. The eBay ad completely represents the item as being brand new and in the box.

Mark