Archived from the Tools In Action forum (Hand Tools). This thread is read-only.
So they make their clamps in Germany, but then how come they sell them cheaper in the US??
Example
Home depot – 14$
German Amazon – 26 Euro ~ 30$
https://www.amazon.de/Bessey-BPC-H34-Rohr-Schraubzwinge/dp/B0012YNJRO/
I’m not sure you can make too much of that. You are talking about two different retailers. Did you check the Amazon price in the US? Amazon has gotten real cute lately and the cost of the “free” shipping is built into the price, just like ebay. They are often not a bargain at all. Gillette razor co. is in Boston, USA but their blades are far cheaper in places like India, where they would sell nothing at US prices. I suspect the cost of doing business in the EU is rather high, which may be part of the reason.
Same price on Amazon US – 14$
https://www.amazon.com/Bessey-BPC-H34-4-Inch-Style-Clamp/dp/B0012YNJRO
Amazon DE has the lowest prices in Europe.
In UK it’s even higher – almost 50$!!
There’s def something fishy going on here
I don’t think the ones we get here are the same as the German ones. The pipe clamps we get here are made in China, I think the other ones are still German made…and there is a big difference, at least in their other clamps.
If the pictures are accurate the German clamps look like a completely different casting, note the finish and the logo:
[External image (images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com), not copied]
[External image (images.homedepot-static.com), not copied]
The thickness on the steel on the A-frame suggests the second one is Chinese. Now, since they are the same model number, that may mean they’re the same thing but Amazon .de has an old picture. If that is the case, the pricing makes just as much sense because the cost to bring goods from China into Europe is more expensive than bringing it into the US.
I honestly wouldn’t worry about it. Bessey’s pipe clamps are pretty good, I see other similar brands having just as many failures with less units sold. With their bar clamps, buy the German ones if you can, they’re MUCH nicer(heavier, stronger, wider pads). I’ve heard the old German parallel clamps are also much nicer…but I couldn’t tell you why(and every time someone says that they seem to just say it as a matter of fact, no explicit reason) as those are still on my wish list, working on smaller items I haven’t needed them.
I personally would NOT take a chance on those from .de unless you don’t mind a rather low probability at getting something German made.
I think you have a point.
But notice that on Aliexpress you can find the 1st style too:
In the picture you posted they kind of look more grainy tho.
Anyway, I don’t really care about their pipe clamps because I have a few from Otoro, which are also made in China (Taiwan) and they are awesome!
I just thought that the huge price difference was odd because Bessey says that they manufacture in Germany…
BMack37 wrote:
9 hours ago, BMack37 said:I don’t think the ones we get here are the same as the German ones. The pipe clamps we get here are made in China, I think the other ones are still German made…and there is a big difference, at least in their other clamps.
If the pictures are accurate the German clamps look like a completely different casting, note the finish and the logo:
[External image (images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com), not copied]
[External image (images.homedepot-static.com), not copied]
The thickness on the steel on the A-frame suggests the second one is Chinese. Now, since they are the same model number, that may mean they’re the same thing but Amazon .de has an old picture. If that is the case, the pricing makes just as much sense because the cost to bring goods from China into Europe is more expensive than bringing it into the US.
I honestly wouldn’t worry about it. Bessey’s pipe clamps are pretty good, I see other similar brands having just as many failures with less units sold. With their bar clamps, buy the German ones if you can, they’re MUCH nicer(heavier, stronger, wider pads). I’ve heard the old German parallel clamps are also much nicer…but I couldn’t tell you why(and every time someone says that they seem to just say it as a matter of fact, no explicit reason) as those are still on my wish list, working on smaller items I haven’t needed them.
I personally would NOT take a chance on those from .de unless you don’t mind a rather low probability at getting something German made.
You are right about Amazon sometimes not having the current picture. I got into this with them with another product. They explained the manufacturer or 3rd party seller supplies the pictures and they publish what they get. They are rather indifferent to specs and details. In my case, the manufacturer had made major changes but did not change the model number. They offered free exchange if I got the older, less desirable model. They would not even look at the outside of the box where the new product was shown in blue and the old one was red. I bought elsewhere, where the seller immediately looked at the product for me for a simple one and done transaction.
Mycrossover wrote:
48 minutes ago, Mycrossover said:You are right about Amazon sometimes not having the current picture. I got into this with them with another product. They explained the manufacturer or 3rd party seller supplies the pictures and they publish what they get. They are rather indifferent to specs and details. In my case, the manufacturer had made major changes but did not change the model number. They offered free exchange if I got the older, less desirable model. They would not even look at the outside of the box where the new product was shown in blue and the old one was red. I bought elsewhere, where the seller immediately looked at the product for me for a simple one and done transaction.
Yeah, I buy a lot on Amazon and I get the wrong item a lot. Sometimes the listing will be correct but the pics won’t be, sometimes the pic will be accurate but the listing is wrong. Sometimes nothing is right. I don’t know how they’d handle a return to Germany.
I think you reach a point where you get so big that you no longer have a handle on what you are selling. The people you deal with are totally removed from the product and in some cases, on technical items, are unable to even understand the complaint. They used to think Sears was here forever.BMack37 wrote:
Yeah, I buy a lot on Amazon and I get the wrong item a lot. Sometimes the listing will be correct but the pics won’t be, sometimes the pic will be accurate but the listing is wrong. Sometimes nothing is right. I don’t know how they’d handle a return to Germany.
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Mycrossover wrote:
10 hours ago, Mycrossover said:I think you reach a point where you get so big that you no longer have a handle on what you are selling. The people you deal with are totally removed from the product and in some cases, on technical items, are unable to even understand the complaint. They used to think Sears was here forever.
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At least Amazon’s customer service is good. Sears has nothing to buy, a terrible website, awful customer service, etc.
I have these Pipe Clamps from Bessey and they are the same as shown in the first picture. I bought them from their Indian importer who imports them from Germany among other tools like Knipex and Wera.
Price for me, even after Indian customs duty, was slightly less than Amazon.de prices but nowhere close to American prices.
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kat wrote:
On 7/24/2018 at 11:39 AM, kat said:Same price on Amazon US – 14$
https://www.amazon.com/Bessey-BPC-H34-4-Inch-Style-Clamp/dp/B0012YNJRO
Amazon DE has the lowest prices in Europe.
In UK it’s even higher – almost 50$!!
There’s def something fishy going on here
The US amazon link country of Origin is China, big difference between those hunks of junk and the good german made ones