"Fake" string, but no evidence ?

[yan.v]

So today, I had to string a racket with a customer's strings, BG65 SP, Black, most likely coming from China or SP directly.

The string package looked authentic and after a couple minutes of thorough inspection of the package, I had to conclude that the strings were most likely real.

However, while stringing, I found that the string felt "softer" than usual and kinda looked thinner. The feeling was different than usual (and I string BG65 VERY often). I started doubting and looked for other clues on the string itself (the writing and presence of micro filaments), still inconclusive.

So, my question is, have you ever found fake strings that had really well made packaging, so much that it is 99-100% like the real thing ?

Here's a couple pictures of the package and comparison with mines and fake ones.

Real (Left) VS Customer (Right)


Real (Left) Back VS Customer (Right) Back


Real (Left) VS Customer (Right) Cardboard inside


Real (Left) VS Fake(Right)


Real (Left) Back VS Fake (Right) Back


Real (Left) Thickness VS Customer Thickness (Right)

[demolidor]

Can't it have to do with the dye? Even on RKEP the packages look the same, with rounded corners on the barcode box at the back for coloured strings and straight corners for the white ... although I now spot a difference in that on the ones at RKEP and a few others the string name is repeated inside the white square at the bottom.
EDIT: never mind that, on this high res one I see what looks like a sticker covering the original straight cornered box. On your "fake" it doesn't look like a sticker?

[yan.v]

It's a sticker on the fake pack, on the customer's pack and on all the non white string authentic packs.

[demolidor]

It's a sticker on the fake pack, on the customer's pack and on all the non white string authentic packs.

Figured it was probably from the flash you couldn't see through it . But that sticker doesn't repeat BG65 on it at the bottom like "BG80" on the other sticker and likewise I saw on other strings or do you have more genuine ones of those as well (that don't repeat it)?

[yan.v]

It does repeat on the ones that have stickers on them (so non white BG65). On the last picture, it does not repeat "BG65" at the bottom, but the one on the left doesn't have the sticker and the one on the right is a fake string package.

[maxout]

Yes, these Yonex "fakes" or HIGH COPY (sounds better than fakes ) as they are also called in the market here are very difficult to tell apart when they are in the packaging.

You can only tell (more like "feel") them apart when you open the packages.

One of my regular stringer told me to look at the Sunrise stickers, ORIGINAL stickers will give a kind of a "dull" glow when looked at an angle but the fakes will glow like the Sun at all angles !!

Because of the glut of these Yonex "fakes" in the local market, it is one of the key reason why I switched back to GOSEN strings and I have no regrets whatsoever esp after I used the Gosen R4x100 strings, damn good strings !!!

[yan.v]

So you guys are saying these strings were definitely fake, and that it may not me be hallucinating or just the coating/color making it different/seem different ?

[kwun]

So you guys are saying these strings were definitely fake, and that it may not me be hallucinating or just the coating/color making it different/seem different ?

did you ask your customer where he got the strings from and for how much?

[yan.v]

did you ask your customer where he got the strings from and for how much?

Unfortunately, I've had no contact with this customer. I happen to string for my college's sports center, so people just bring their rackets, I take it, string it, and give it back.