Bladeforums Supporting Clone Dealer

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Eli Chaps said:
Unfortunately, I don't agree. I'll take Spark at his word. He said that as long as they don't advertise clones here then they are good to go. I won't look into it any further.

That's not being harsh as several of us let this ride for weeks. Understanding that Spark was going through some tough stuff in life we waited. But when he did get around to looking into it, twice, that is what we got as an answer. And he hasn't engaged since.

So, we, the members and the volunteer mods are supposed to police his site that he appears to not be checking in on.

I gave all the benefits of the doubt over the past weeks.

Now? Nah. I'll take him at his word.
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Maybe I just don't want to believe that. *shrug*
SAY IT AIN'T SO!!! :eek::(
 
Sharp & Fiery said:
Im not trying to get into an argument here, and I havent checked the TM site (cause I dont care about them) but, does anyone know if they sell any original knives, cause if they cant advertise clones and dont sell anything but clones...should they have a Dealer membership?
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For me, when I go to DLT, KC etc, I'm looking through their lists of Spyderco, ZT, Benchmade, maybe a few other well known brands. There for me to peruse on the 'sites.

My brief look throgh Topofart shows there are no such listings, at all. Just cheap chinese knives including copies and clones.
 
Cursum Perficio said:
For me, when I go to DLT, KC etc, I'm looking through their lists of Spyderco, ZT, Benchmade, maybe a few other well known brands. There for me to peruse on the 'sites.

My brief look throgh Topofart shows there are no such listings, at all. Just cheap chinese knives including copies and clones.
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Thanks. For me, and my opinion only, that would mean a regular membership. Can’t sell anything here as per rules, so again, why a dealer membership @Spark
 
SpyderPhreak said:
This all reminds me of when CandlePowerForums sold out to advertising revenue. It was never the same after that, and I stopped posting there. Man, I really hope not. :(
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Oh man...I scored an old HDS the other day and breifly thought about checking CPF out again...couldn't even bring myself to sign in:(
 
I did find this in the rules for the exchange; seems applicable. I posted this in the other thread for visibility.

These forums operate on honesty and integrity. As such, we have a dim view of people who act dishonestly. Your actions in the community have consequences, even if they happen elsewhere, something to keep in mind.
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Sharp & Fiery said:
Im not trying to get into an argument here, and I havent checked the TM site (cause I dont care about them) but, does anyone know if they sell any original knives, cause if they cant advertise clones and dont sell anything but clones...should they have a Dealer membership?
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They do sell knives that are not clones. The problem is, that as far as I can tell, all the brands they sell are involved in clone making, if not outright making clones with their brand names on them.
 
I'm quite new here and I don't even have a paid membership so my opinion might not be worth much compared to most of you, but I'll still give it. I think the final decision of allowing this dealer or not on the forum obviously goes to the forum owner, but I feel like this should have come with changes to the forum rules, as they're now inconsistent. Now a supporting dealer who sells exclusively brands known to produce clones is allowed to promote their website here, but other forum users who might buy from that supporting dealer (if it is a supporting dealer, it's been approved, right?) can't sell those same products on the forum, which doesn't make sense. Moreover, I can't see how having this dealer put at the same level as reputable ones could benefit the community.

To me it looks like clone sellers are allowed here as long as they pay for a membership and indirectly advertise their clones by not posting about their products. But now comes another inconsistency, it looks like it happened multiple times that this dealer directly advertised their clones and had their post removed, so they clearly even violated these (already bent to their advantage) rules, so why are they still allowed here? There's something I don't understant here.
 
mdeous said:
so they clearly even violated these (already bent to their advantage) rules, so why are they still allowed here? There's something I don't understant here.
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So the forum is fairly lenient when it comes to infractions. This is clearly a new situation, and Sparks/mods are sorting it out. Folks who have trouble with mods and get banned “easily” are usually a special breed.

Now with that said, I don’t think the paid dealer will keep being allowed to do that indefinitely... at least I hope not.

Even after giving them the benefit of the doubt I see that there’s no possible way retaining a dealer level membership will be possible for these guys. Their conduct makes me want to puke in my boots.

unfortunately they’re advertising during the holiday season, which will be more impactful, I would guess, but still I don’t think their sales are peaking due to forum members running out and buying these things.
 
jill jackson said:
It is offensive for a clone dealer to be on the exchange to me, because reading here for years I watched how sternly clones were dealt with. I never once read any bladeforum tolerance of design infringement. In fact quite the opposite.
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I think one of the sticking points is that they aren’t allowed to post clone knives to the forum. The issue is that we all are now aware that this company makes and sells clones, and they invoke brands and product names to mislead buyers. The question is now not necessarily anissue of the exchange, though there might have been infractions initially that I’m unaware of.
 
Okay, after spending a little more time on topomart's website (I'll need a bleach shower now), I've come across a bit of illegal activity.

They are advertising that some knives have an "Axis Lock". That is a Benchmade Trade Mark. Further, you don't need to click any deeper on the website than than going to the home page to see this illegal activity. On a computer, simply go there, hover your mouse over the "lock type" tab, and you will see "Axis Lock". They have no rights to use that term. There is a reason why all the legit manufacturers have come up with their own name for the axis lock.

That means that every single link that takes you to their homepage represent a supporting dealer here stealing the trade marked name from a pillar manufacturer in the knife industry, Benchmade. No clicking or scrolling required. Right there on the front page.

@Spark @Boru13 @knarfeng @KingMC

Pics:

GW08yX5h.png

rScEZ0yh.png

pH4tBWnh.png
 
Hey it’s a new trend. Maybe we can do dealer memberships with cellphone “jail breakers”, crack dealers, and escort services. At least they would offer unique products and services that would not compete with our respected knife dealers; and they might even be able to speak to us in a coherent language.

N2s
 
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craytab said:
Okay, after spending a little more time on topomart's website (I'll need a bleach shower now), I've come across a bit of illegal activity.

They are advertising that some knives have an "Axis Lock". That is a Benchmade Trade Mark. Further, you don't need to click any deeper on the website than than going to the home page to see this illegal activity. On a computer, simply go there, hover your mouse over the "lock type" tab, and you will see "Axis Lock". They have no rights to use that term. There is a reason why all the legit manufacturers have come up with their own name for the axis lock.

That means that every single link that takes you to their homepage represent a supporting dealer here stealing the trade marked name from a pillar manufacturer in the knife industry, Benchmade. No clicking or scrolling required. Right there on the front page.

@Spark @Boru13 @knarfeng @KingMC

Pics:

GW08yX5h.png

rScEZ0yh.png

pH4tBWnh.png
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looks like the patent ran out on the axis lock in 2017:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/i-got-a-reply-from-benchmade-on-axis-lock-patent.1545720/
I’m not sure if the name “Axis Lock” is protected by copyright or trademark, however. Either way it’s suspicious at the very least, and beyond the letter of the law, the intent is obvious.
 
EngrSorenson said:
looks like the patent ran out on the axis lock in 2017:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/i-got-a-reply-from-benchmade-on-axis-lock-patent.1545720/
I’m not sure if the name “Axis Lock” is protected by copyright or trademark, however. Either way it’s suspicious at the very least, and beyond the letter of the law, the intent is obvious.
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Yes, we are all aware the axis lock patent is expired. Axis lock is still a trademark held by benchmade. This is theft under US law, pure and simple.
 
I have no doubt that they are now reading this thread and will change this shortly.
 
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