Made in the USA, made me sad

[lilscorpion]

Ordered a 20 piece set of Made in the USA Williams shallow sockets. First set came with doubles of half the set. No biggie, just ordered a replacement. Accidents happen right? Replacement comes and...think it's maybe 6mm.



Accidents happen except this was in the 6mm - 22MM set...I mean not supposed to be in the set but was included in the box.



are they"engraved" by hand or what?



I was able to combine crappy order one and crappy order 2 for a complete set (and I gained the 5.5mm too). Guess it's a win? Or am I bummed at made in the USA attention to detail?

 

[ForrestT]

That is not very impressive for Williams in my opinion. At least you were able to salvage a set.

 

[qqzj]

Not bad at all. According to my past experience, when sh*t like this happens, I typically come out ahead.

 

[Fedwrench]

That's not the Williams' quality I've seen in the past. Where did you order them from?

 

[tdkkart]

"Made in USA" does NOT mean that it can't be garbage. I mean look at our automakers.......

 

[lilscorpion]

That is not very impressive for Williams in my opinion. At least you were able to salvage a set.

Yeah I’m surprised. I have multiple sets if theirs from 5 or so years ago. All are much better. Hopefully this is not a sign.

Not bad at all. According to my past experience, when sh*t like this happens, I typically come out ahead.

True, very true.

That's not the Williams' quality I've seen in the past. Where did you order them from?

Amazon luckily. I could have continued to get replacement sets with no friction until I had a complete one so that’s a good thing.

"Made in USA" does NOT mean that it can't be garbage. I mean look at our automakers.......

Hadn’t thought about that but your right. Should have expected more than half of the set to be plastic…

 

[Bubba Fett]

"Made in USA" does NOT mean that it can't be garbage. I mean look at our automakers.......

You mean like Toyota and BMW? Because most of the cars they sell here are actually made here.

 

[Fatboy148]

I have received USA Williams sockets that were either hard to read or no imprints at all!

 

[bscman]

I don't have any experience with current Williams sockets, but I can say with 100% certainty that Amazon has been flooded with counterfeit items.
I've had a couple bad experiences with fakes that I've become just as skeptical of Amazon as I am eBay
And in my experience, eBay is far more receptive to counterfeit claims where Amazon just brushes them off.

 

[JeepYJ]

I don't have any experience with current Williams sockets, but I can say with 100% certainty that Amazon has been flooded with counterfeit items.
I've had a couple bad experiences with fakes that I've become just as skeptical of Amazon as I am eBay
And in my experience, eBay is far more receptive to counterfeit claims where Amazon just brushes them off.

Is there enough demand for Williams sockets to have counterfeit ones sold on amazon?

 

[bwringer]

Is there enough demand for Williams sockets to have counterfeit ones sold on amazon?

The threshold for counterfeiting is unbelievably low. I've received remarkably obscure counterfeit parts more than once, and pretty much given up on Amazon as a supplier. Amazon refunded me easily enough, but they seem to encourage counterfeiters, rather than doing a damn thing about the problem.

The one exception is if the supplier is a legit dealer using Amazon as a store front. There are, for example, quite a few auto dealers doing this for parts, filters, etc.

Whether these are counterfeit or not, I don't know, but it really does look like a strong possibility. The OP may be able to contact Williams and ask how to tell, or perhaps someone can post a photo of genuine examples. The packaging could be a giveaway as well.

From the POV of the counterfeiter, it's guaranteed extra profit. Maybe steal a few photos, put a few high-value key words like "Williams", "Genuine", or "OEM" in your description, and charge several times what you could otherwise. Amazon won't do a damn thing about it.

 

[Zewnten]

About 4 years ago I ordered a set of Williams impact sockets in 3/8's. Instead of a 13mm I received a 7/16 on the rack. Contacted Zoro and they sent me teo of the 13mm, no idea why. But the size and model stamping is all over the place on the bottom. Some have the retention hole right in the middle of the stamping or just barely on the edge, so QC has been lacking for some time. But they still turn bolts so...

 

[zendriver]

Maybe They can’t get good help for what they pay and have to cheapen processes and materials, in order to be profitable, when many people won’t buy their stuff unless it’s on sale.

looking at the quality most everything else these days not really surprising

 

[tdkkart]

You mean like Toyota and BMW? Because most of the cars they sell here are actually made here.

And have more US manufactured parts than most of the "American" vehicles.....

 

[bsaint]

You mean like Toyota and BMW? Because most of the cars they sell here are actually made here.

As someone who has worked in American factories stamping Japanese auto parts - the quality control is usually govern by a Japanese factory rep engineer on site, part time (Vehtek systems Ohio) or full time (Eagle Bend, Tenn)

 

[autobon7]

The threshold for counterfeiting is unbelievably low. I've received remarkably obscure counterfeit parts more than once, and pretty much given up on Amazon as a supplier. Amazon refunded me easily enough, but they seem to encourage counterfeiters, rather than doing a damn thing about the problem.

The one exception is if the supplier is a legit dealer using Amazon as a store front. There are, for example, quite a few auto dealers doing this for parts, filters, etc.

Whether these are counterfeit or not, I don't know, but it really does look like a strong possibility. The OP may be able to contact Williams and ask how to tell, or perhaps someone can post a photo of genuine examples. The packaging could be a giveaway as well.

From the POV of the counterfeiter, it's guaranteed extra profit. Maybe steal a few photos, put a few high-value key words like "Williams", "Genuine", or "OEM" in your description, and charge several times what you could otherwise. Amazon won't do a damn thing about it.

Ive pretty much given up on Amazon too. What convinced me was a few occasions where I would get a message at check out telling me "to ensure you receive a genuine________please order from ________" which would be the manufacturer link. Thats all I need to know. No good bastards.

 

[JeepYJ]

The threshold for counterfeiting is unbelievably low. I've received remarkably obscure counterfeit parts more than once, and pretty much given up on Amazon as a supplier. Amazon refunded me easily enough, but they seem to encourage counterfeiters, rather than doing a damn thing about the problem.

The one exception is if the supplier is a legit dealer using Amazon as a store front. There are, for example, quite a few auto dealers doing this for parts, filters, etc.

Whether these are counterfeit or not, I don't know, but it really does look like a strong possibility. The OP may be able to contact Williams and ask how to tell, or perhaps someone can post a photo of genuine examples. The packaging could be a giveaway as well.

From the POV of the counterfeiter, it's guaranteed extra profit. Maybe steal a few photos, put a few high-value key words like "Williams", "Genuine", or "OEM" in your description, and charge several times what you could otherwise. Amazon won't do a damn thing about it.

Ive pretty much given up on Amazon too. What convinced me was a few occasions where I would get a message at check out telling me "to ensure you receive a genuine________please order from ________" which would be the manufacturer link. Thats all I need to know. No good bastards.

Was Amazon the seller or was a reseller using the Amazon storefront?
What kind of items have you purchased that are fakes?
Just curious, I buy a lot of things from Amazon and haven’t received anything different than was advertised.

 

[reader2580]

There seem to be fewer and fewer items sold on Amazon that are actually sold by Amazon. That is probably why a lot of manufacturers have specific policies regarding Amazon purchases because you never know if the item is real and where it came from.

 

[engineer2]

Can you post a pic of the Williams logo on the sockets?

 

[liliysdad]

There seem to be fewer and fewer items sold on Amazon that are actually sold by Amazon. That is probably why a lot of manufacturers have specific policies regarding Amazon purchases because you never know if the item is real and where it came from.

Thats the beauty of Prime....if its not what you want, or how you want it, send it back.

 

[corn chip]

for ratchets ,sockets and torq wrenches ive gone completely away from usa stuff in favor of german and japan pieces. why pay top dollar for slop when you can get perfection at the same price

 

[autobon7]

Was Amazon the seller or was a reseller using the Amazon storefront?
What kind of items have you purchased that are fakes?
Just curious, I buy a lot of things from Amazon and haven’t received anything different than was advertised.

Mountain bike pedals (Crank Bros), a carbon fiber seat post from Easton, a Xmas card for my Mom (dont remember the company), no tools. Dont remember if any of them was Amazon or reseller. Been 2-3 years since I bought from Amazon.....trying to avoid dealing with them at all costs.

 

[bob15]

Is there enough demand for Williams sockets to have counterfeit ones sold on amazon?

They are counterfeiting AC spark plugs (just bought some by mistake), so why not sockets as well?

 

[zendriver]

Contact the company?

 

[JeepYJ]

They are counterfeiting AC spark plugs (just bought some by mistake), so why not sockets as well?

How did you know the spark plugs were counterfeit? Once again, just curious.

 

[slowtwitch73]

I suspect many of the 'fakes' aren't. Without proof it's hearsay.

 

[tarbellb]

I suspect many of the 'fakes' aren't. Without proof it's hearsay.

This ^^^


Online purchasing requires a certain level of street smarts, if you arent buying

"Fulfilled by Amazon" or from a Ebay seller with 99%+and 2k+ sales

then you might as well flag down those guys selling sh1t out of the van.


And fakes do exist, buy they are typically high dollar or high volume products. The threshold to clone something is still high*



* my opinion.... the companies who have been producing quality products for decades are declining in quality (for numerous reasons) and starting to overlap the generic manufacturers who have been boosting quality recently. The spectrum is blurring.

 

[HamAndEggs]

I have a Made In USA Williams Screwdriver which is a bit meh, and my Made in USA ChannelLock Needle Nose Pliers are terrible

I'm starting to prefer German. All my Knipex and Wiha are PERFECT.

 

[reader2580]

This ^^^


Online purchasing requires a certain level of street smarts, if you arent buying

"Fulfilled by Amazon" or from a Ebay seller with 99%+and 2k+ sales

why do you think that “Fulfilled by Amazon” means a product is more likely to be legitimate?

 

[GrantCee]

They are counterfeiting AC spark plugs (just bought some by mistake), so why not sockets as well?

Maybe we could get them to counterfeit Champion plugs. The quality would probably go up...

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Amazon has just become a storefront for Chinese merchandise whether quality or ****. You decide!

 

[boom_bap]

If those are authentic I would be disappointed myself. If you work hard and save up for a nice set of tools to enjoy and they are not quality that would be a disappointment no matter the brand or country. This is just like the Klein post someone made the other day with the poor quality etching. Yes the product is probably still good meterials but the fit and finish was lacking. It is disappointing seeing USA companies continue to cut cornners and sell out to boost profits for shareholders, only to continue into decline and disappear. Look at SK, used to be great, maybe not anymore due to selling)... Sounds like their customers are dealing with a mess for ordering as well.

 

[2Busy]

Last summer I upgraded nearly all of my sockets with Williams USA. That was 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2, both metric and SAE, both shallow and deep, plus same for 3/8 impact. In total that was 16 sets, more than 200 sockets. Of that there were three sockets that were not acceptable (one had bad chrome, one a wrong size and one was the base of a hex socket that somehow got mistaken for a socket). I bought everything through legit Williams distributors, so nothing counterfeit, and they immediately sent me replacements, didn’t even ask me to return the duds. With those three replacements, my sets as far as I’m concerned are perfect.

So that‘s a 1.5% out-of-spec rate from the factory. Is that good or bad?

Also got me thinking…Williams USA sockets come off the same machines at the same factory as SO. I would assume SO customers don’t see that much new merchandise that needs replacement (do they)? Makes me wonder, does SO get more QC inspection at the factory? Or does the guy in the truck do that job, making sure everything is nice before he delivers?

 

[lilscorpion]

Can you post a pic of the Williams logo on the sockets?

 

[lilscorpion]

There seem to be fewer and fewer items sold on Amazon that are actually sold by Amazon. That is probably why a lot of manufacturers have specific policies regarding Amazon purchases because you never know if the item is real and where it came from.

Guess I don’t really know…”sold by” doesn’t mean it was acquired from Williams directly.

 

[lilscorpion]

why do you think that “Fulfilled by Amazon” means a product is more likely to be legitimate?

As noted a second ago, I guess we don’t know. Never occurred to me they may get their inventory from someone other than Williams direct.

 

[lilscorpion]

I have received USA Williams sockets that were either hard to read or no imprints at all!

Yeah, same stamping inconsistency here as well. Some are barely imprinted and others have extremely deep imprints. Unless
The machine is very manual, it seems kinda unusual given my belief that they have higher tech at their disposal. Maybe it’s super manual…

 

[boom_bap]

Last summer I upgraded nearly all of my sockets with Williams USA. That was 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2, both metric and SAE, both shallow and deep, plus same for 3/8 impact. In total that was 16 sets, more than 200 sockets. Of that there were three sockets that were not acceptable (one had bad chrome, one a wrong size and one was the base of a hex socket that somehow got mistaken for a socket). I bought everything through legit Williams distributors, so nothing counterfeit, and they immediately sent me replacements, didn’t even ask me to return the duds. With those three replacements, my sets as far as I’m concerned are perfect.

So that‘s a 1.5% out-of-spec rate from the factory. Is that good or bad?

Also got me thinking…Williams USA sockets come off the same machines at the same factory as SO. I would assume SO customers don’t see that much new merchandise that needs replacement (do they)? Makes me wonder, does SO get more QC inspection at the factory? Or does the guy in the truck do that job, making sure everything is nice before he delivers?

I think it depends on how long a company has been going and their past repuation. If a new company has 1.5% and improves then we might clap. If a company had .20% and now are at 1.5% we'd call it a regression.

I've seen snap on sockets where the stamping is inconsistent, aka starts shallow and gets deeper. Is that a problem, not really, but it shows they haven't bothered to fix their machines.

 

[JradM]

I bet some stamping inconsistency occurs as the stamp wears. They could fix it by swapping in new stamps sooner, but that costs money.

Anyway, I have this exact set, purchased this year - along with the comparable 12pt set. Mine don't have any of these problems. I got 40 sockets in the right sizes with excellent chrome and consistent stamping.

I'm putting that out there just because the internet tends to skew things - i.e. it only makes sense that people are more likely to post about problems than successes. How interesting would it be if I made a thread about my socket set showing up and looking normal?

Glad you ended up with a nice set in the end OP.

 

[tarbellb]

why do you think that “Fulfilled by Amazon” means a product is more likely to be legitimate?

More hoops to jump through and vetting.

Literally anyone can sell as a 3rd party on Amazon. Same with Ebay.


Its a game of chances, but there is due diligence when shopping online. I hate the moto "well if its scam my credit card will cover it", we all cover those cost.