Cheap Bumpers on eBay!!

A little debate never hurt anyone it's fun in moderation haha. Too true though, and that meme is A+

 

I think consensus is these are good quality bumpers. The issues identified were fitment related for the 2012 and up.
There was a stolen design with no evidence that the original had a patent.
My beef with the OP is that he came on here and blatently lied to sell bumpers. He showed multiple layers of deceit. Posters here quickly exposed him and I was very impressed. Internet sleuthing at its best.

 

Yeah, that first day was quite a thrill ride. The first few days actually.

Having said that, it worked. He got much more exposure than he should have gotten and they sold out on the first batch in less than a week, and they are still selling them to people here. Say what you want, most businesses would call that a marketing success.

 

Someone sell me one of these! Or any steel bumper at that!

 

Switzerland and Hong Kong have no minimum wage and low unemployment.

 

Correct. That's why I laughed when a candidate said to raise the MW like "Switzerland."

But, bumpers. I hope the people still buying them are enjoying them.

 

Hey guys its late and really cant read 236 pages what was the turn out. did it show up did it fit.. Any pics?

Really want to swap out my front as well.

 

See post 2.

 

For some reason I could never get it to work on my first gen.... ​

 

Specifically this part about it being stolen:

 

Tacoma Bumper Patent

How many off road bumper companies do you think actually do this? There are processes in place, and have been in place for a very long time, to protect manufacturing from fraud, should they choose to protect their ideas. But they must choose to do so. If they choose not to, that is not the fault of any outside person, agency, or even a competitor.

 

And working in an industry that despite filing proper US Patents is constantly ripped off and stolen by the Chinese, and the Chinese government refuses any enforcement of US patent law protection whatsoever, I see it as a complete joke. But don't worry, instead of building basic off road bumpers, we only help design aerospace fuselages and wings that all your families fly on.

It is beyond infuriating that anyone would stand up for stealing a design and producing it over seas so you can save a few dollars, knowing it is STOLEN FROM A SUPPORTING VENDOR OF THE FORUM.

I have zero apologies in criticizing people buying known stolen property.

 

If a patent is in place, as it should be anyway, then all pro has the legal protection it needs to block US sales from a Chinese ripoff. If they chose not to seek such protection that is all pro's decision to make.

 

Do you not like China? Or the Chinese? People take other people's ideas all the time, it's not just one country or culture.

 

If you are asking me that question, you did quote me, then the answer is I have no problem with ordering Chinese made products. I even order some items directly from China. The point I was making was that with a patent in place AllPro could have used U.S. Law, which is what covers U.S. Patents, to prevent the seller from selling a single item inside the U.S.. The fact that the seller is also in the U.S. makes this far easier to do. They may have even be able to seize the forged items, if they had a patent, or even a trademarked look.

However, AllPro does not appear to have a patent, of any kind, on file. Not even an application for one. All of their products seem to be open to reproduction without legal consequence. AllPro chose not to protect their intellectual property (the design) and for that I have no sympathy. They are not some mom and pop shop running a welder in a garage. They are a well established business and should have known better. To say things like "the owner is great guy", and other such statements are an attempt to play the emotion card to win sympathy. I was able to find patents for bumpers "styles" from every major automotive manufacturer. Not a single one for any "Off Road" bumper makers. They may exists, but my searches didn't turn up any.

Granted, in the OffRoad community there is an expectation of "fair play". However, there is no such expectation in business. Businesses only play fair when they are forced to. Not because it is the right thing to do. There are even threads here on TW where AllPro may or may not have done a customer wrong (that argument was never settled) and only made it right after being put on blast here on TW.

So yes. The Chinese Government allows companies in China to steal products and designs. However, once the seller and the product are in the U.S. they fall under U.S. law and can be held accountable. The idea that an American, in America, can order knock-off products to be made in China and shipped to America that have a American patent in place and sell them in America without legal repercussions is just not true. That is, if you have a patent.

[EDIT]

Just for clarification, I have not purchased one of these bumpers and I do not plan to. I am actually saving my pennies to purchases an SOS Concepts plate bumper as I feel it is a superior product to AllPro. But that is personal choice that I made in how I spend my money.

[/EDIT]

 

The holier than thou armchair quarterbacking cracks me up.

The quoted post from AP was posted after nearly all the bumpers had sold.

AP was tagged frequently within the thread before that point. AP was frequently on the thread reading posts and chose not to speak.

When AP finally did say something, it was

"Nope, not us. Looks like us though"

and subsequently disappeared.

Had AP come out when they first appeared in the thread and denied that this was one of their manufacturers or were looking into legal options on these rip-offs and couldn't comment further due to legal concerns etc... I'm sure all of the bumpers would have sold, but doubtfully to the same people. AP was specifically asked whether this was a bad batch, disgruntled manufacturer of theirs or a blatant rip-off. They failed to answer even when seen viewing the thread they had been tagged in. I'm sure every tag they were notified on was read by them.

As far as save $400 and buy the reall deal. Can someone link me to the fully powder coated AP front bumper of this design that is $898 shipped?

I purchased my bumper on June 27, AP finally made their statement on June 30. Other than speculation, where was it undeniably concluded that these were indeed knock offs and not a disgruntled manufacturer with a shady sales tactic?

 

And almost ALL workers are part of a collective bargaining agreement (union). Issues such as this have to be taken into the given context.

 

The link only exists in the world where businesses play fair and respect other's work.

 

I'd just love a tour of some of their homes.

I couldn't imagine walking through and seeing every appliance, tv, radio, pots and pans, dishware, furniture and even all the clothing being made in America and totally unique in its design and function.

Would be something to behold for certain