FAKE BUSHNELL TRS-25s.... beware!

[CobraGT]

I've always been a big fan of these optics - great value for the money, and I've never had any let me down. However, I just bought two new ones, and either Busnell's QC has gone into the toilet, or they're Chinese sweat-shop knockoffs - the TRS25s I already own, bought anywhere from 10 years ago to a month ago, are completely different from the two new ones.

The fakes:

- red dots are dim, even with new batteries
- numbers on the brightness indicators are different
- adjustment turrets are different, and the covers are threaded differently
- Bushnell lettering is completely different
- field of view is much smaller
- field of view is dimmer
- emitter is completely different, and occludes the FOV in the bottom corner, which the real-deal does not
- most obvious, and probably worst of all (well, aside from the dim dots): the forward lenses are sticking out the front past the housing, fish-eye style (one WAY past the front) and aren't even mounted straight. They're not even the same as each other.

The boxes look like the real deal, but even they show a TRS25 with the old yellow lettering, which Bushnell hasn't used in years. Guess it's easier to clone a box.

The one on the riser, without the yellow stickers, is my original

 

[Ipscshooters]

These are so cheap they are not even worth faking them , crazy

I can see eotec, aimpoint, elcan being worth faking but not these

 

[CobraGT]

These are so cheap they are not even worth faking them , crazy

I can see eotec, aimpoint, elcan being worth faking but not these

I know, right? I think they're fakes, but who knows - maybe a legit Bushnell run of faulty optics? QC was bad that week? The factory staff were all drunk that week?

 

[JeffMan]

I bought a fake off eBay. Same thing - looked legit but not quite right. Dim dot, funky color lens, etc. I reported that it was a fake and they just moved the listing.

Lesson learned.

 

[brybenn]

With all the fakes out there I only buy optics from reputable dealers. Might cost more but at least I get what I pay for

 

[CobraGT]

I bought a fake off eBay. Same thing - looked legit but not quite right. Dim dot, funky color lens, etc. I reported that it was a fake and they just moved the listing.

Lesson learned.

TRS25 fake as well?

 

[4n2t0]

I have one of the original gold lettering versions on my turkey gun, and it has proven very durable. Somewhere around 8+ years on a Mossberg 835 that sees a heavy diet of turkey loads and the zero hasn't even moved a touch on me. Truly incredible performance for the money. Probably my only gripe is that unless it's on full power (11) in the sun it's pretty useless. On my handguns I like to spend the big bucks, lol. No Bushnell's on those....

 

[4n2t0]

Even the absence of the registered trademark logo is a giveaway.

*EDIT* Sorry, you're saying the one without the ® logo is an original?

 

[4n2t0]

Here's my original...

 

[JeffMan]

TRS25 fake as well?

Yup. Everything looked legit except I have half a dozen TS25’s to compare it to.

 

[badboybeeson]

Why worh anyone fake a,$40 optic?
Being that 45% of thr worlds optics are made in 6 factories in China, it make likely that its juat one of the many subcontractors Bushnell uses.
I'm assuming you ordered for an authorized retailer, not of Amazon or ebay

 

[Snider shooter]

Even the cheap stuff isn’t safe. You have to wonder how much it actually costs to make the fakes.

 

[infidel29]

I've always been a big fan of these optics - great value for the money, and I've never had any let me down. However, I just bought two new ones, and either Busnell's QC has gone into the toilet, or they're Chinese sweat-shop knockoffs - the TRS25s I already own, bought anywhere from 10 years ago to a month ago, are completely different from the two new ones.

The fakes:

- red dots are dim, even with new batteries
- numbers on the brightness indicators are different
- adjustment turrets are different, and the covers are threaded differently
- Bushnell lettering is completely different
- field of view is much smaller
- field of view is dimmer
- emitter is completely different, and occludes the FOV in the bottom corner, which the real-deal does not
- most obvious, and probably worst of all (well, aside from the dim dots): the forward lenses are sticking out the front past the housing, fish-eye style (one WAY past the front) and aren't even mounted straight. They're not even the same as each other.

The boxes look like the real deal, but even they show a TRS25 with the old yellow lettering, which Bushnell hasn't used in years. Guess it's easier to clone a box.

The one on the riser, without the yellow stickers, is my original

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Probably just a different factory or subcontractor making them. I've seen various differences in these optics over the years, all bought through Cabelas.

 

[Arcosdad]

Maybe when Trump's 245% tariffs hit them we'll get the overrun stock cheaper here!

 

[CobraGT]

Even the absence of the registered trademark logo is a giveaway.

*EDIT* Sorry, you're saying the one without the ® logo is an original?

Huh, yeah, the one on the riser - one of the ones I've had for a while - doesn't have the "R" on it. Maybe it's a higher-quality fake. Weird.

EDIT - photos of the current ones straight from the Bushnell website. Looks like my real one really IS real.

 

[KitLion]

Not a Fake, that's just how they now are . A Red Dot for $ 89.99 you get what you pay for.

 

[Butcherbill]

TRS25 fake as well?

I remember threads about fake trs25’s years ago, from Amazon iirc. Around the same time as the fake Howard Leight electronic ear on Amazon.

 

[CobraGT]

Not a Fake, that's just how they now are . A Red Dot for $ 89.99 you get what you pay for.

Hah, that's the thing - TRS25 used to be a $200 optic for $89.99; if this is the new norm, then you're getting a $30 optic for $100+

.

 

[4n2t0]

Huh, yeah, the one on the riser - one of the ones I've had for a while - doesn't have the "R" on it. Maybe it's a higher-quality fake. Weird.

EDIT - photos of the current ones straight from the Bushnell website. Looks like my real one really IS real.

I guess because they are so cheap, like someone else already mentioned, they're made at multiple factories, with similar but not exactly the same parts and packaging/housing. It would seem that none of them are fake, but all of them are cheap, lol.

 

[Joel]

Holy cow thats nasty.

REALLY hope that isn't truly how they are now. They were/are such a good optic for the money.

Sorry that happened, Cobra