69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Share #1 Posted July 20, 2024 Advertisement (gone after registration) Just a heads up, there are counterfeit Leica UV II filters circulating around, especially the 39mm silver uv ii (product #13031) on eBay.. not surprising at all.. For comparison, I purchased a genuine Leica filter locally at an authorized dealer and compared it to the one on eBay. At first glance, the packaging and internals looked genuine, but it is the subtle details that give it away. Can you tell which one is genuine vs counterfeit? (Answer in following post). Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! 1 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/399294-beware-of-fake-leica-uv-ii-filters/?do=findComment&comment=5438084'>More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted July 20, 2024 Posted July 20, 2024 Hi 69xchange, Take a look here Beware of fake Leica UV II filters. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Author Share #2 Posted July 20, 2024 Firstly, the most obvious give away is the French… Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! secondly, the color of the Leica logo are different shades. The box edges are also not fully grey and feels cheaper. 2 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! secondly, the color of the Leica logo are different shades. The box edges are also not fully grey and feels cheaper. ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/399294-beware-of-fake-leica-uv-ii-filters/?do=findComment&comment=5438089'>More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Author Share #3 Posted July 20, 2024 The last product number digit above the bar code is different. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Lastly, the font size is thicker on the genuine filter. 1 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Lastly, the font size is thicker on the genuine filter. ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/399294-beware-of-fake-leica-uv-ii-filters/?do=findComment&comment=5438090'>More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Author Share #4 Posted July 20, 2024 The inner plastic case appears to be a good replica without any noticeable difference. The filter color and handling is the same as the genuine filter, however the tint of the glass on the counterfeit has a strong green hue with a flash light test, where as the genuine filter is more on the clear side with a just a hint of yellowish green. I haven’t compared the weight side by side with a kitchen scale, but I am curious to see if there is a weight difference. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Author Share #5 Posted July 20, 2024 (edited) 46 minutes ago, Al Brown said: My educated guess is - there are no fake Leica filters. What you are seeing is just production and batch variations. Knowing the situation with B+W there can always be a tiny chance that I am wrong, but B+W is a massive market and I just can't see who would try to fake such super niche product that is a Leica brand UV filter. You would definitely need more proof than what you presented with packaging - the filter itself is, after all, the key variable here. If the filters are identical (coatings aside) I think there is no case. Make sure you ask Leica about this and let us know what they tell you. I’ll update this thread with an email to Leica. I’ll also do some testing between the filters to see if there are any noticeable differences in glare, ghosting and etc. With that being said, I understand that there maybe batch/production variation, but the French word “noir” and German word “schwarz” means black in the packaging while English states “silver” is very odd to me. From the eBay seller, here is the exact product that also shows the translation error. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Then from his other product (“Q2” thumb grip in silver??) there appears to be an English and another translation error.. did Leica ever make Q2 (not Q3) thumb grips in silver? “Schwarz / silvery / noir” Aka.. Black / Silvery / black…. “Silvery”… Lastly, from a different seller (but this time in Japan).. from my understanding, Leica never made silver UV ii filters in e43. The product number of the filter doesn’t even match the packaging and presents with the same translation error in German and French. In addition, upon googling the product number, both product number shows a different Leica product. -Product # 13047 = Leica e55 circular polarization filter -product # 13044 = Leica series Vii (black) Edited July 20, 2024 by 69xchange Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Then from his other product (“Q2” thumb grip in silver??) there appears to be an English and another translation error.. did Leica ever make Q2 (not Q3) thumb grips in silver? “Schwarz / silvery / noir” Aka.. Black / Silvery / black…. “Silvery”… Lastly, from a different seller (but this time in Japan).. from my understanding, Leica never made silver UV ii filters in e43. The product number of the filter doesn’t even match the packaging and presents with the same translation error in German and French. In addition, upon googling the product number, both product number shows a different Leica product. -Product # 13047 = Leica e55 circular polarization filter -product # 13044 = Leica series Vii (black) ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/399294-beware-of-fake-leica-uv-ii-filters/?do=findComment&comment=5438203'>More sharing options...
Anbaric Posted July 20, 2024 Share #6 Posted July 20, 2024 (edited) You'd think it would be easier to get these details right than wrong. Why not just copy the text letter for letter? Interesting that the genuine article is made in Japan, so rebadged Marumi or Hoya/Kenko? A B+W MRC filter, made in Germany with Schott glass and a brass ring, would be substantially cheaper and surely at least as good. Edited July 20, 2024 by Anbaric 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Author Share #7 Posted July 20, 2024 Advertisement (gone after registration) 2 minutes ago, Al Brown said: @69xchange you do raise some valid points and these errors are not typical. But who would go and counterfeit a freaking Q2 GRIP IN SILVER??? (PS. 19546 is a code for Leica D-Lux Flash Case (Brown), not a Q grip)... I totally missed that one! Regardless, I have already emailed Leica, inquiring about these potentially counterfeit products sold online and I would like to see their response. To the comment above, I 100% agree that any high ticket items should be purchase from reputable sellers. I usually trust Hong Kong resellers such as rangefinderHK and never had any issues with authenticity issues with Alex. However, the UV filter wasn’t from HK, but rather shipped and sold in China (which I am very skeptical about, but decided to take the risk as there was never a report about counterfeit Leica Uv filters). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 20, 2024 Author Share #8 Posted July 20, 2024 4 minutes ago, Anbaric said: You'd think it would be easier to get these details right than wrong. Why not just copy the text letter for letter? Interesting that the genuine article is made in Japan, so rebadged Marumi or Hoya/Kenko? A B+W MRC filter, made in Germany with a brass ring, would be substantially cheaper and surely at least as good. Haha, exactly. Going through all that hard work to possibly clone a Leica UV filter but miss some simple details that matter the most. I only buy Leica UV filters for my silver lenses, otherwise it’s B+W. B+W are cheaper and far more superior in build quality. I love the MRC, slimmer size from the master’s version (previously marketed as xs-pro) and the brass material. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted July 20, 2024 Share #9 Posted July 20, 2024 (edited) If true it's a massive effort to commit a small fraud. Who the heck buys Leica filters anyway, Leica don't even make the filters, they farm them out (and charge twice as much for them) to other suppliers who just stamp 'Leica' on them. Good grief calm down @69xchange Edited July 20, 2024 by 250swb 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdlaing Posted July 20, 2024 Share #10 Posted July 20, 2024 Neither one of those is fake. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGodParticle/Hari Posted July 21, 2024 Share #11 Posted July 21, 2024 https://www.reddit.com/r/Leica/s/e0xBMFdqJl 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
frame-it Posted July 21, 2024 Share #12 Posted July 21, 2024 Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! via https://www.barcodelookup.com/ Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! via https://www.barcodelookup.com/ ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/399294-beware-of-fake-leica-uv-ii-filters/?do=findComment&comment=5439349'>More sharing options...
hjddd Posted July 21, 2024 Share #13 Posted July 21, 2024 18 hours ago, 69xchange said: 内部的塑料外壳看起来像是一个很好的复制品，没有任何明显的区别。 滤镜颜色和操作方式与正品滤镜相同，但假货的玻璃色调在闪光灯下测试时呈现浓重的绿色，而正品滤镜则更清晰，略带淡淡的黄绿色。我还没有用厨房秤并排比较过重量，但我很好奇是否有重量差异。 exactly，We can tell which is the fake according the coating color。 the fake Uva II filter come from China， they are usually sold at 12 USD each 。 and sadly ， in China mainland， the fake ones ocupies 90% of the market， it is a big shame…… 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 22, 2024 Author Share #14 Posted July 22, 2024 12 hours ago, hjddd said: exactly，We can tell which is the fake according the coating color。 the fake Uva II filter come from China， they are usually sold at 12 USD each 。 and sadly ， in China mainland， the fake ones ocupies 90% of the market， it is a big shame…… Wow, 12 USD each and I paid 70 USD. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 22, 2024 Author Share #15 Posted July 22, 2024 So the fake one weighs 7g and the real one weighs 13g. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjddd Posted July 22, 2024 Share #16 Posted July 22, 2024 5 hours ago, mark_s90 said: 这是中国市场的主要组成部分。假货卖得更好。只要没人看到包装，你就可以假装拥有真品。 I have to say you are right……even I'm in China mainland……and most of them can not distinguish the difference between the real and the fake Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 22, 2024 Author Share #17 Posted July 22, 2024 4 hours ago, hjddd said: I have to say you are right……even I'm in China mainland……and most of them can not distinguish the difference between the real and the fake But once they shoot their lenses with the fake filters against the sun, the glare/ghosting will show wouldn’t it? I assume they used cheaper glass for the fake Leica filters and the coating is an obvious give away. Reflects green just like cheap $10 filters like Amazon basic filters. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69xchange Posted July 22, 2024 Author Share #18 Posted July 22, 2024 Following up with Leica, “Thank you very much for your e-mail and your research! Our legal department is investigating this.“ 2 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFo Posted July 23, 2024 Share #19 Posted July 23, 2024 Back in old days, when I had a job, I did a few anti-counterfeiting/ anti-grey market projects. The ones that rose to our attention I found remarkable in the level of effort required to counterfeit a product. The minor mistakes made that were a distinct giveaway for us, the actual makers, were also surprising. Mis-spellings happened more often than you would have thought as well as mis-translations. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMF Posted July 24, 2024 Share #20 Posted July 24, 2024 Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Some more ways to detect counterfeit filters, photos courtesy of Skyllaney Opto-Mechanics ! 3 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Some more ways to detect counterfeit filters, photos courtesy of Skyllaney Opto-Mechanics ! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/399294-beware-of-fake-leica-uv-ii-filters/?do=findComment&comment=5443868'>More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now