Fake Enve stems or bars? (Verdict: Stem definitely fake, probably bars too…)

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MayhemSWE
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by MayhemSWE

Has anyone ran into counterfeit Enve bars or stems?

I recently acquired an Enve stem on eBay from a seller who also sold me Enve compact bars about a month earlier. Both were advertised as brand new but without packaging or documentation. As far as I can tell everything about the bars is spot on, including moulded cable routing and built-in bar end plugs (which I have never seen on any other bars, neither genuine brands nor no-name Chinese parts).

Stem on the other hand looks spot on as far as shape goes but the graphics make me concerned. The distance between the lines making up NV is greater than on any of my other parts (or logos on the Enve website) and many of the angles on the logotype look off. Text on the stem says "max torque 5 Nm" while all photos I've found say "Bolt torque: 5.5Nm" and font used for 110mm seems slightly different too. Stem had the same sticker about installation instructions on Enve's website as the bars but unfortunately I already removed it before getting suspicious.

Is there a natural explanation for this variance (such as Enve switching to a different Asian factory for their components) or have I been sold a counterfeit stem? What about the bars, any telltale signs of a fake on those that I have missed? The bars have a QR code with what I can only assume is a serial number, is that legit and should one have been somewhere on the stem as well?
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Last edited by MayhemSWE on Tue Mar 27, 2018 7:56 pm, edited 5 times in total.

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MayhemSWE
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by MayhemSWE

Is this stem on eBay genuine or counterfeit? Like my stem the logotype on the side doesn't seem quite right, but it also has a black circle of Enve logos near the steerer clamp which I have only ever seen on older stems with white graphics. And Torx faceplate bolts, did Enve ever ship them that way?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Enve-100mm-Car ... 2677513381

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MayhemSWE
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by MayhemSWE

The closest obvious counterfeit stem I've been able to find so far is this one on Ali Express. Get rid of the tacky graphics (an obvious Ritchey ripoff, while the name seems to be stolen from Trek/Bontrager) and replace 3K weave with UD and it starts looking remarkably similar to an Enve stem. So far though I haven't been able to find any of those stems in UD but wouldn't surprise me if they are out there…

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Carbon- ... 24489.html

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MayhemSWE
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by MayhemSWE

Yes the bars look totally legit to me too, wouldn't worry about them at all if it weren't for this stem coming from the same supplier! Didn't take any photos of the faceplate and bolts but they both look like the real deal at least. Just like on Enve's website the bolt heads are slightly conical, which so far most of the copycats haven't bothered to copy.

After wading through pages of stems on Ali Express (including several variations of the RXL stem with graphics copying the style of Bontrager, Easton or no graphics at all) I am sad to say that I eventually ran into what appears to be a pretty close Enve copy. The outer layer is UD carbon and it has the conical faceplate bolts, and if you look closely enough one of the photos even the older white Enve logotypes…

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Full-PL ... 02723.html

glepore
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by glepore

Hard to say. I've not seen knockoff bars with the end plugs, but some ripoff stuff comes with fake stickers down to qr's and bogus s/n-the fake Evade helmets came with a Specialized box, instruction manual, fake c/e certification stickers, you name it.
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wingguy
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by wingguy

The bars are easy, just email the serial number to Enve and it's either a real one or it's not.

The stem should have a serial number somewhere too but can't remember where off the top of my head. The graphics do look pretty suspicious. The finish in general seems off too. Obviously it should be an exact match for the bars, but in the photo's it looks darker and a bit grainy but that could be a camera trick.

Marin
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by Marin

I've seen knockoff bars with the barend foreskin thingies.

Wookski
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by Wookski

That stem is really sketchy- too many inconsistencies to be real. The bars are a 50/50.

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wheelbuilder
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by wheelbuilder

I concur that the stem looks a bit suspect.
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ms6073
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by ms6073

MayhemSWE wrote:
Sat Mar 24, 2018 4:48 pm
Has anyone ran into counterfeit Enve bars or stems?
I have several sets of Enve bars and stems, most purchase direct from Enve, some from US online stores, all at various times during 2016. The bars look spot on, and while I would say the same for the stem except that all of our stems have stainless bolts, not black.
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danridesbikes
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by danridesbikes

fake, the Torque setting on the stem should be 5.5Nm

the bars look ok though, pic below from fairwheel

https://cdn6.bigcommerce.com/s-tqfdy/pr ... 80.jpg?c=2

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MayhemSWE
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by MayhemSWE

Will put together an email to Enve and see what they have to say on the matter.

If there are convincing fakes out there, how come there is absolutely no information about them anywhere? This thread is already one of the top hits on Google and all other reported fakes have been super obvious (as in looking nothing like the real deal or even products which Enve themselves doesn't make).

The bars were listed on eBay by German seller with shipping only to Germany, but I sent him a message to ask if he'd consider shipping to Sweden to which he replied no problem. It was on auction so even though the final price ended up really good it was not suspicious in itself considering the circumstances. Looking at his feedback he had previously sold several other Enve bars and stems. I asked whether he had any stems available, he didn't at the time but would in a few weeks.

I received the bars, those looked like the real deal, so later on when he had stems listed again I bid and eventually bought one. Only when I received the stem and closely inspected the logotypes did I start questioning the product. His feedback is level is only about 50-ish, but it is 100% and mostly from selling various Enve parts. Either they are the real deal or convincing enough to fool all his other customers too…

FlemishCompact
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by FlemishCompact

Perhaps someone who owns the legit, same sized bar or stem can post weights for comparison?

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ms6073
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by ms6073

turlutu wrote:
Sun Mar 25, 2018 11:49 am
don't see any bolt nor black bolts on the pics ?
Thats what I get for responding to from a smartphone instead of a regular computer. :beerchug:
- Michael
"People should stop expecting normal from me... seriously, we all know it's never going to happen"

by Weenie


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kode54
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by kode54

a few things that i noticed from the listed eBay auction you had a link to....

white type looks a bit too thick. all Enve bolts never had Torx nor washers with them.
serial number should be inside stem...either from the handlebar clamp area or the steerer clamp area.
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