While wasting time on Alibaba.com, I saw a lot of bootlegs. Especially the more recent Tony Hawk designs from Birdhouse seem popular to rip off. If you order a minimum of 100 decks, you’ll get them for a few dollars a piece. Yes, I definitely took most of these pics from the sellers, but what will they say? That I stole from them? Also, take a quick tour in their factory here.
The design of this ‘Proskate’ is obviously taken from a Darkstar ‘Shadow knights’ team deck from 2001. Besides the pentagram, the design of the original one is pretty much the same as this one.
An original Jason Jessee ‘Sungod’ from 1988 is expensive in NOS condition, so why not decorate your wall with 100 of these fakes for maybe $300 in total, this is still way cheaper than 1 original Santa Cruz deck.! You can even read ‘Jason Jessee’ in the beard of the fake sungod. Looks like everyone is ripping off Jim Phillips nowadays, not only fashion designers.
A lot of ‘Phony Hawks’ (thanks to Simon Woodstock for the new word!) on Alibaba, like these plastic ‘XLT’ completes. Thanks to Janet from Baiyun Industrial Production Base in Yongkang, Zhejiang, China for the picture. For only $0,3 you can even choose your own heat transfer on this one.
More fake Hawks. There is no brand or name on the left deck, but you can clearly see ‘Tony Hawk’ on the right complete. See more pictures here.
And finally, a few ‘Spitfire’ Basic Skate completes. I have never heard of Spitfire decks and certainly not of such crappy ones, more pictures on their website.
9 comments
kilwag
That Jason Jesse sun god is spot on. Alibaba.com is a centralized web site for buying imported crap from multiple factories in China and elsewhere. I researched Penny board knockoffs and found you could get them fairly cheap, i thin kit was around $15 a piece with a custom top logo. The only problem was you had to order a half a shipping container of them.
Bevilacqua
http://www.sakaroule.net/2012/06/combien-ca-coute.html
zeno01
Iron Bearings!!!
john e
PVC wheels!
talentlessquitter
The beard even says ‘mini’.
Spitfire is essentially a skate wheel company.
docskaterock
$3 for an original “Jason Cheesy” sun god ?!? … where do I have to sign?!? I
mezmer
I also prefer stronge aluminum trucks.
David ODK
and a single kick tall!
Bevilacqua
Do they make Chinese Maple syrup too ?