Counterfeit conspicuity tape

 Ebay is a great resource and a great way to find rare and unique products. Sometimes, however, things don't go quite as planned.

These four conspicuity tapes all came from eBay. The amber one on the left is from a vendor called johncatrader2. These are the horizontal lines on the side of the bus. The vertical lines are the middle amber roll. That, came from eBay user powerhigh-us

Well, the tape from johncatrader2 is pretty darned good. The powerhigh-us tape does kinda-sorta reflect but it's pretty pathetic by comparison. Interestingly the powerhigh-us tape was a lot thinner and when I peeled it off, it removed none of my recently applied paint. In fact some sections were barely adhering.

I think you'll agree, there's little if any difference with the powerhigh-us tape removed. Fortunately I have some good tape left so I'll fill in the gaps.

The orange tape also came from eBay. I didn't really know what to do with it so I added it to the back. That, like the bad amber tape was also very thin. That came from eBay user sunnycaishop15.

The sunnycaishop15 reddish tape barely showed up when illuninated by the flash from my phone. When I removed it, most of it just slid off the bus with no problem. It was only where the paint had bubbled that the paint came off too. I just sanded and resprayed.

The 2 inch wide red tape on the back of the bus is phenomenal.

The red tape that is glowing orange in the picture was sold by eBay user johncatrader2. Notice a theme here? This is excellent tape. The dim orange glow of the narrow tape that mostly almost fell off is not very encouraging.

Today I revamped the back of the bus by removing that narrow tape and replaced it with white and red tape from Harbor Freight.

According to the DOT guidance on reflective tape, it is only required on articulated trucks (tractor-trailer). Then, there should be a red/white stripe between 15 and 60 inches from the ground going across the back and down the sides. The top corners on the back require a white reflective inverted L shape. Now, you cannot see it on this image but I have used the white reflective tape that claims to be DOT C2 tape. That is what is printed on it. The glue on that tape is fearsome and it's very hard to remove the backing. That came from eBay user Allstartrucks. 

Looking closely at the picture it's possible to see the inverted L on each side at the top. This is the fake conspicuity tape from allstartrucks. Another view of this very same tape is from when I had it on the front of the vehicle. I've since removed it from the front as I realised I'd see it in my mirrors and it would be a night-time distraction.

With flash, it is barely possible to see that conspicuity tape. It's really not very conspicuous. It is the only tape I have ever seen that is actually labelled DOT C2. That should be quite telling! If the maker has to tell us what it is then it's clearly not what it claims.

So, now I bet you're wondering about the two eBay sellers: powerhigh-us and sunnycaishop15. Well, both appeared to be in the USA but are actually in China. I blew about $10.50 on each of their miserable little enterprises. I wouldn't be too surprised if that didn't result in $21 of bullets fired by terrorists in the Middle East at our peacekeepers. To say I regret being taken for a ride by Chinese scam artists is putting it mildly. I am infuriated and there's nothing that can be done to stop them from taking others for a ride.

The eBay seller allstartrucks is a US operation. Whether they knew the tape was fake, I don't know. I'll give them the benefit of any doubt as I've done business with them successfully in the past. I'll just let that one slide. Meanwhile I have ordered half a dozen foot long white conspicuity strips from another seller. I'll get my two L shapes done and call it a day.

Meanwhile another eBay seller sold me for $15 two red lenses for my back lights. Sadly, when they arrived, they were marked WIW2-71 which is the code for a warning light lens, not a stop/brake light lens. Big difference. The code has to be right or it's the wrong lens and at the worst a ticket from the coppers.

While straight trucks, cars, busses and motorhomes do not legally need conspicuity tape, its use is not forbidden and as the photos show, it does aid in visibility. As an example, a school bus plastered in yellow tape crossed a 4 way junction ahead of me at night. That tape really showed that vehicle up to be a bus and that sold me instantly on its value.

The upshot of buying the wrong tape and the wrong lenses is that the right tape and the right lenses need still to be purchased. The johncatrader2 tape will see me happy as will the Harbor Freight red/white and the new white strips from another ebay seller. I had to buy the new lenses from Unity School Bus parts. They worked out at $15 each plus $10 postage but I did buy lens gaskets while I was at it so it ended up being a bill for around $60. It would have been $15 cheaper had I not already bought those eBay lenses.

You can save a ton just by using eBay. That's why I go there. You can also find things that are fake or over enthusiastically described. Sometimes it pays off, sometimes not - it's a real gamble!

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