The Fake Milwaukee M18 Battery Thread...

[bulletpruf]

So, I bought a fake Milwaukee M18 battery off eBay a few days ago. I didn't realize it was fake until after the fact. Since I know we've got a BUNCH of M18 users, and the legit batteries are very expensive, I suspect this would be a topic that would be helpful for lots of folks here.

I'm going to go first, but I would appreciate input from the rest of y'all.

Here's my input: Buy from Ace Hardware, Northern Tool, or Home Depot. Yes, the batteries will be more expensive there; that's because they're legit. If you buy from Amazon, I think you may still get legit batteries, but I think you still run a decent chance of getting a fake battery from Amazon.

If you buy from eBay, you're likely to get scammed, just like I did. I bought a 9.0 battery (yes it was listed as a legit battery), which should have been the first red flag since these haven't been produced in several years. The seller had 100% feedback (I fixed that today with negative feedback), but had only been on eBay since July 2023 (another red flag). The battery shipped from California, but the seller is listed as living in China (huge red flag). Another red flag - the seller only sells new batteries - M18 and DeWalt - how would some private individual legitimately get their hands on hundreds of authentic and expensive Milwaukee and DeWalt batteries?

There are several other telltale signs, but I'll let someone else chime in.

Here are a few screenshots from eBay.

 

[tak1313]

I'm not questioning if it IS legit or counterfeit, but how do you know it's fake, and have you contacted the seller (through Ebay)?

 

[bulletpruf]

I'm not questioning if it IS legit or counterfeit, but how do you know it's fake, and have you contacted the seller (through Ebay)?

Yes, I contacted the seller. Said it's fake, I want a refund. No response yet.

I knew it was fake by the screws on the bottom; didn't even have to take it out of the packaging. Milwaukee uses only Torx head screws, and the two on each end are security head Torx. This one uses regular Torx (not security) on the ends and two Phillips head screws in the middle. Dead giveaway.

 

[tak1313]

Yes, I contacted the seller. Said it's fake, I want a refund. No response yet.

I knew it was fake by the screws on the bottom; didn't even have to take it out of the packaging. Milwaukee uses only Torx head screws, and the two on each end are security head Torx. This one uses regular Torx (not security) on the ends and two Phillips head screws in the middle. Dead giveaway.

Ah, good catch - thanks for the tip. When I've REALLY needed genuine, I've been buying from known authorized retailers, but I have bought aftermarket batteries as well (that have worked well), but they were branded with aftermarket names and not trying to pass as genuine so I knew what I was getting.

 

[tak1313]

Looked at the listing, and at least it's Ebay guaranteed. I had to make a claim once under the guarantee (what was described in the listing was not what I got), and Ebay made good on it - at least in my case.

Good luck - let us know how it goes with the seller. I hope he gets banned.

 

[tarbellb]

Oof that is a pretty good looking fake.

Try running it through the Milwaukee Online Warranty database?

 

[pizza]

ok, how's the performance? what kind of cells are inside?

 

[bulletpruf]

Looked at the listing, and at least it's Ebay guaranteed. I had to make a claim once under the guarantee (what was described in the listing was not what I got), and Ebay made good on it - at least in my case.

Good luck - let us know how it goes with the seller. I hope he gets banned.

I really do not think he will be banned. But with my negative feedback on this purchase, he may have to start selling under another account. I'm sure that's what he does; this account has only been in existence since July 2023 and he's sold 380 batteries. I'd be willing to bet that he's been doing this for years and creates new accounts every time he ends up with some negative feedback.

He did accept my return, so now I can send it back to him. I wish I knew how to destroy it and still get my refund, but not quite sure how to go about that. I'd smash it and send it in pieces back to him but then I wouldn't get my $100 refund, and I don't think you can mail damaged lithium batteries.

 

[bulletpruf]

Oof that is a pretty good looking fake.

Try running it through the Milwaukee Online Warranty database?

Yes, it is a good looking fake, and it's much better than an "open box" purchase without the original packaging.

However, check out the packaging compared to the legit battery that I purchased. The legit battery on the right has packaging that's flanged, ribbed, and perforated. I suspect Milwaukee does this to differentiate their packaging from fakes.

 

[bulletpruf]

ok, how's the performance? what kind of cells are inside?

I haven't tested it or disassembled it yet. Probably this weekend.

 

[BrandonV]

Yup. First sign was that the item ships from the United States but if you look at the actual seller location it shows them as being from China. Almost every item like that is a scam.

Same with buyers. If there is a sketchy looking address (NOT a freight forwarder) and their profile shows them in a foreign country, it's a scam.

 

[man-a-fre]

Wow! Thanks for posting this,and saving us from having this headache.

 

[BrandonV]

I suspect Milwaukee does this to differentiate their packaging from fakes.

The real Milwaukee battery packaging is probably like that to prevent retail theft.

I would bet there is no security tag in the fake packaging too.

 

[ATC]

So you saw all the red flags, saw the packaging looked off, but you still bought it anyways? Why?


I bought a 12.0 off Amazon. I did my research first, and everything checked out.

 

[bulletpruf]

So you saw all the red flags, saw the packaging looked off, but you still bought it anyways? Why?


I bought a 12.0 off Amazon. I did my research first, and everything checked out.

I didn’t do any real research until after I made the purchase and realized the seller was in China. At that point it was too late; it had already shipped.

 

[bulletpruf]

The real Milwaukee battery packaging is probably like that to prevent retail theft.

Gotcha

I would bet there is no security tag in the fake packaging too.

I'll have to check for that. Thanks

 

[bulletpruf]

Yup. First sign was that the item ships from the United States but if you look at the actual seller location it shows them as being from China. Almost every item like that is a scam.

Yeah, when I saw that, I knew there was about a 99% chance that it was a scam. By then it was too late.

 

[Steve_P]

While I realize this is educational, we should all know by now that you're only supposed to buy this stuff from authorized dealers. Ebay is full of counterfeits- bearings, batteries..... even Superfeet insoles... Regardless of where it's shipped from, if it's not an authorized dealer, and especially if the price is too good to be true, don't be surprised when you get a fake.

 

[bulletpruf]

While I realize this is educational, we should all know by now that you're only supposed to buy this stuff from authorized dealers. Ebay is full of counterfeits- bearings, batteries..... even Superfeet insoles... Regardless of where it's shipped from, if it's not an authorized dealer, and especially if the price is too good to be true, don't be surprised when you get a fake.

I paid $100 for the battery. If it was legit, that would be a great price, but not a too good to be true price. At least not in my opinion.

Thanks

 

[dnschmidt]

Yes, it is a good looking fake, and it's much better than an "open box" purchase without the original packaging.

However, check out the packaging compared to the legit battery that I purchased. The legit battery on the right has packaging that's flanged, ribbed, and perforated. I suspect Milwaukee does this to differentiate their packaging from fakes.

If you can take a Milwaukee battery out of it's packaging without aviation snips and bleeding it's fake. Fort Knox isn't wrapped up that tight. Their packaging simply laughs at utility knives. They must use Lexan for their plastic.

 

[dnschmidt]

I'VE FOUND IT. To take authentic Milwaukee batteries out of their protective packaging I use to used aviation shears. That works but not super well. My DeWalt scroll saw (not a saber saw) is the killer app for this situation. Relatively fine tooth blade and within a couple of minutes the prize will be free of it's captivity and no blood will be shed.

 

[5ubtle]

... I knew it was fake by the screws on the bottom; didn't even have to take it out of the packaging. Milwaukee uses only Torx head screws, and the two on each end are security head Torx. This one uses regular Torx (not security) on the ends and two Phillips head screws in the middle. Dead giveaway.

Where do you learn such detailed information about the kind of screws Milwaukee uses?

 

[bulletpruf]

Where do you learn such detailed information about the kind of screws Milwaukee uses?

Google is your friend.

 

[5ubtle]

Google is your friend.

As Abraham Lincoln once said, “Not every quote you read on the Internet is true.” Similarly, not every Milwaukee battery "fact" on the internet is true. Do you have any verifiable proof that these batteries are fake?

As @tarbellb asked. Did you run them by Milwaukee? It would be a shame if you ruined the eBay seller's reputation on a hunch.

 

[bulletpruf]

As Abraham Lincoln once said, “Not every quote you read on the Internet is true.” Similarly, not every Milwaukee battery "fact" on the internet is true. Do you have any verifiable proof that these batteries are fake?

As @tarbellb asked. Did you run them by Milwaukee? It would be a shame if you ruined the eBay seller's reputation on a hunch.

The packaging is also fake. Have you ever seen a Milwaukee battery packaged like that? See the above picture next to a real Milwaukee battery.

Not to mention that these are sold by some guy in China who ships them from California. He only sells "new" Milwaukee and DeWalt batteries and he's sold hundreds since he opened this account in July 2023. Does this sound legit to you? How would someone in China, or California for that matter, get his hands on hundreds of legit Milwaukee and DeWalt batteries?

Before the battery arrived, I told the seller that if it was fake, I would return it and leave negative feedback. He never denied that it was fake.

I left negative feedback stating that the battery was fake. He never replied to my feedback or contested this.

There's no need to "run them by Milwaukee". The battery is 100% fake.

Once I remove it from the packaging, I'll do more inspecting and testing.

 

[Earp69]

I bought some "genuine Milwaukee batteries" on ebay. Opened them up and they were clones. I drew weiners all over them and sent them back. Also, the ebay sellar has to pay for return shipping. So I loaded them up in a 2'x2' box and filled it with as much heavy junk as I could to up the price. Screw the Chinese ripoff sellars

 

[bulletpruf]

I spoke with Milwaukee today. They were somewhat helpful, and really emphasized the "buy from Ace, Home Depot, or another licensed retailer." They mentioned that licensed retailers weren't supposed to sell on eBay or Amazon, and that they won't accept returns on batteries unless they were purchased at a licensed retailer.

Anyway, it appears that the fakers are getting better; probably easy enough to watch YouTube videos of folks explaining how to spot a fake, so they're making improvements. Example - on older fakes the lettering is obviously off, the color on some of the plastic is different, you can see the battery inside the case if you shine a light, the fake batteries are noticeably lighter, and the circuit board looks much different.

On the 9.0 fake battery, the coloring was good on the plastic, lettering good, you can't see the battery unless you open the case, it only weighs a few ounces less than a legit 9.0 that I've had since 2018, and when I took it apart, the circuit board didn't look that much different than the legit 9.0. The three dead giveaways - the phillips head screws on the bottom, the plastic packaging, and the date code of July 2023. Milwaukee hasn't produced the 9.0 in years so a 2023 date code is pure nonsense.

I haven't tested the fake 9.0 against my 6 year old 9.0 but that really wouldn't be an apples to apples comparison. I'm going to send it back to the seller.

 

[pizza]

teardown comparison pics?

 

[4xdog]

A friend of mine (and infrequent poster here) is a big Milwaukee fan and spent his professional career as a senior scientist for an international company, with academic background in electrical engineering.

So he knows batteries. He regularly measures the A·h ratings of all his batteries and charts their life.

He bought some new Milwaukee M18 Fuel batteries at his local southern California Home Depot last year. They turned out to be counterfeits, as confirmed by his local Milwaukee service center. Home Depot wouldn't do anything about it.

How did they get there? Nobody knows...

So even what "should be" a reputable, trustworthy sales channel has risks. Caveat emptor where batteries are concerned.

 

[pbon]

I once bought a fake Husqvarna snow blower from an authorized Husqvarna dealer. When it failed a few years later, I was screwed. Globalization and the internet have their pros and cons. You get the bad with the good and it seems like it is becoming increasingly hard to differentiate. AI will take the pros and cons to a new level.

 

[pizza]

off topic, but the feature i really want in tool battery packs is a storage mode:

• the battery pack would have a (sliding, low-profile) switch to enable/disable the feature
• while enabled by switch, storage mode activates after a week (or two?) of the pack not being used
• storage mode drains the charge via an internal resistive load until the state of charge is about 50-75% (~3.8V per LiIon cell)

the result would be that packs that aren't constantly being used would often end up having a longer useful total lifespan.

will this ever be implemented by big tool? hell no for obvious reasons. their chargers don't even have a 'storage mode' that lets you drain the packs to storage voltage, and that would be another nice touch.

for those of you that don't know, keeping a LiIon fully charged or discharged is bad for the (permanent) capacity. the battery goes bad much faster. it's not convenient to intentionally do at all, but try to leave your packs half charged if you know you won't use them for a while.

 

[bulletpruf]

teardown comparison pics?

I only have video; had planned to post it to my YT channel, but it wasn't going to be as straightforward as I thought, so I won't be posting it.

I may see if I can bring it and a few others to my local Milwaukee shop to see what they say.

 

[tak1313]

I once bought a fake Husqvarna snow blower from an authorized Husqvarna dealer. When it failed a few years later, I was screwed. Globalization and the internet have their pros and cons. You get the bad with the good and it seems like it is becoming increasingly hard to differentiate. AI will take the pros and cons to a new level.

Geezus. I can see fake batteries, parts, widgets, etc., - even tools like wrenches, impact tools, etc. - but a whole snowblower?

 

[AEAdam]

You guys lost me, Milwaukee didn’t assemble this battery. But isn’t there a chance the counterfeit uses identical cells? Might this perform identically? Why should we care who in China assembles this? It’s not like the counterfeit is putting US workers out of business. If it was 80% as good for 50% of the price, might that be acceptable?

 

[tarbellb]

Geezus. I can see fake batteries, parts, widgets, etc., - even tools like wrenches, impact tools, etc. - but a whole snowblower?

Yeah this sounds way too suspect

 

[KnurledNut]

You guys lost me, Milwaukee didn’t assemble this battery. But isn’t there a chance the counterfeit uses identical cells? Unlikely.

Might this perform identically? Highly unlikely.

Why should we care who in China assembles this? Safety. Is losing your garage worth a cheap battery?

It’s not like the counterfeit is putting US workers out of business. If it was 80% as good for 50% of the price, might that be acceptable? No. Why support counterfeiting?

 

[pbon]

Yeah this sounds way too suspect

The fake Husqvara snowblower was probably 10-15 years ago. May have just been the engine or transfer case. I can’t remember all the details but I took it back to the dealer who sold it and they said it was not Husqvarna and Husqvarna parts did not fit so they could not repair it.

For modern day counterfeit tools, you suspectors should google fake Stihl or fake Husqvarna saw and see the results for yourselves and then reassess your suspectness.

 

[AEAdam]

I’ve seen tests done by people like Ave, that determined the fakes are as good as or better than OEM.

Here you go:

For those who are annoyed by AVE, the fake Milwaukee outperformed the real Milwaukee at room temp, but didn’t fare well at low temps.

I’ve watched a couple of these videos and one takeaway is that the OEM batteries are better made, better assembled, more robust, less likely to break when dropped. So battery cell performance isn’t their only attribute.

Now for something like my tracksaw that doesnt see rough treatment, gets used mostly in climate controlled areas, and needs an expensive high output battery, maybe this would be a good candidate for aftermarket batteries.

 

[tarbellb]

The fake Husqvara snowblower was probably 10-15 years ago. May have just been the engine or transfer case. I can’t remember all the details but I took it back to the dealer who sold it and they said it was not Husqvarna and Husqvarna parts did not fit so they could not repair it.

For modern day counterfeit tools, you suspectors should google fake Stihl or fake Husqvarna saw and see the results for yourselves and then reassess your suspectness.

Not denying that very legit looking fakes exist, just the popularity of them. Lots of hearsay every time these threads pop but very little actual video/pic proof or valid evidence.

I looked up Stihl, again, some legit looking fakes out there, but WAY more assumptions and stories.

Typically its: Models not sold here, terrible "fakes", and owners who have no actual proof but think its a fake

 

[tak1313]

The fake Husqvara snowblower was probably 10-15 years ago. May have just been the engine or transfer case. I can’t remember all the details but I took it back to the dealer who sold it and they said it was not Husqvarna and Husqvarna parts did not fit so they could not repair it.

For modern day counterfeit tools, you suspectors should google fake Stihl or fake Husqvarna saw and see the results for yourselves and then reassess your suspectness.

My "geezus" was not toward you - it's the fact that someone would even try to fake such a large item as a full snowblower at the consumer level.