Thieves of the Automotive Industry (How to Avoid Counterfeits)

[@thebegrsshow]

A friend of mine and his son ran a local full service machine shop and spent 5 years designing, prototyping, testing and building a specialty portable on machine keyway broach. They hired a patent attorney and registered their product and spent $25 K to protect their property. After they were granted a US Patent, a BIG expensive Tool Corporation that begins with an S came along and wanted to buy their tool and all the rights to produce it. No financial arrangement was ever agreed to after a year of negotiations between them. So the big S Corp added one screw and a spring that had absolutely NO functionality, and copied Bert's patent 100% otherwise, and went into production and sold them. Three years and over $300 K in legal costs, and now there's no more machine shop, and the big S Corp is still held unaccountable, and free to sell stolen property.

[@Frontpagefab]

Google the wright brothers legal fights. They went broke trying to protect their patents.

[@BroaderPerformance]

Thanks for sharing this story. As much as I hate to hear stories like that it is reality. There has to be a better way.

[@Frontpagefab]

That happened to the Wright Brothers. Their company suffered trying to defend their patents, then the Government pressured the airplane companies to form an orginization to share patents

[@22vampyre]

Just bought my second C-6 valve body from you.

[@TxStang]

People that say just sue them don't realize most of these counterfeiters are outside the US and it's insanely expensive to fight them legally .

[@BroaderPerformance]

Sad but true.

[@ericw.6107]

For what it's worth, I'll do my part!

[@BroaderPerformance]

Its worth a lot.

[@InnocentMiscreant]

You need to go to like the PRI show and network with people in the industry on this problem

[@BroaderPerformance]

For sure. I also think PRI and SEMA should throw out the known counterfeiters as well.

[@dresdensvo]

I recently got a powerglide shift kit . The transgo instructions were so faint bearly readable {too many copys since the 60s}.

[@BroaderPerformance]

That has always been a problem with them. Thank God they are online these days.

[@Daniel-S1]

I guess the counterfeiters take the F out of the shift kit?

[@BroaderPerformance]

Good one. Haha Yes they do

[@DeWayneVanSickle-u1q]

To be clear, TransGo does not sell their products on Amazon at all?

[@BroaderPerformance]

I dont believe so. I didnt see them on their authorized distributors list.

[@dirk013adfa]

...the state of the Country. 🤦‍♂

[@WillKlaver]

.. uh oh .. 🙄🤨

[@spurgear]

Hilarious considering their sister company under Racewinningbrands, TSI, is uh, well, we know...

[@BroaderPerformance]

Interesting

[@normangiven6436]

How much money is there in such a low volume product. Quality costs money. Why bother copy something so very few people use? Money comes from volume, not from tiny volume. Seriously how many C4 or such transmissions are still in service?

[@BroaderPerformance]

Not much. Your right. Anyone wanting to copy things and make a fast buck don't bother with anything we sell.

[@digitald5851]

OMG! 🇨🇳 strikes again