# BEWARE: Counterfeit Cuttwood in SA



## Maxxis

Had a bottle show up in my shop today. Really hard to spot the difference between the real thing and the counterfeit product so please beware when approached with a too good to be true offer of Cuttwood. 

It is with a very sad heart that we are sharing this. There is an influx of counterfeit Cuttwood products in South Africa. It seems to affect the whole range too.

So how do I spot the counterfeit product? Actually quite easy. The guys have done a good job on it but not good enough.

1. The counterfeit bottle does not have the batch number on the bottle.
2. The counterfeit has a much thinner viscosity.
3. The counterfeit product has a very pungent honey smell. 
4. From the photo you can also see the difference in the font used on the side of the bottle. 
5. There have been reports of people getting sick from these.

Please be very careful of what you spend your hard earned money on! Don't put just anything in your lungs.







Counterfeit product is on the left

Reactions: Like 4 | Thanks 3 | Informative 12 | Useful 1


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## GerharddP

Saw these at the china mall the other day looking for calibration weights and asked the vendor about it. He obviously said its the real deal but at 90 bucks a pop it brought up red flags and I declined.


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## zadiac

Wow! Damn fakers. Thanks for sharing this @Maxxis.


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## rogue zombie

Hmmm wasnt somebody selling a buch of Cutwood in the clasifieds?

Also saw somebody selling on FB at a cheaper rate than we're used to with intl. juice.

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## RichJB

I'm surprised they're selling it cheaply, you'd think they'd have a better chance of getting away with it by charging the normal price. I mean, the battery fakers don't give you a heads up that it could well be fake by charging you R80 for a choc or 25R.


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## n0ugh7_zw

printing on the label on the left is technically better

Reactions: Agree 2


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## rogue zombie

RichJB said:


> I'm surprised they're selling it cheaply, you'd think they'd have a better chance of getting away with it by charging the normal price. I mean, the battery fakers don't give you a heads up that it could well be fake by charging you R80 for a choc or 25R.


The ones I saw weren't dramatically cheaper. It basically looked like a middle-man was cut out somewhere along the line.

Enough less to catch my eye, but not cheap enough to be suspucious.

Of coarse this could have been completely unrelated. 

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## Pixstar

The police should be informed about it I think, especially considering the nature of the product and the stated fact that people have fallen ill from it.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Schuller

I bought 2 bottles from a Vape Shop in Midrand Carlswarld Lifestyle Centre, when I questioned the Price the Salesman said his Boss got a good deal so he purchased alot of them,
I have a good mind and reporting them but who do you report them too ?


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## Stosta

Am I the only one who can't see the image?

Reactions: Agree 3


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## NewOobY

@Stosta sadly you are the only one. Flippen fake juice whats next...


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## rogue zombie

Schuller said:


> I bought 2 bottles from a Vape Shop in Midrand Carlswarld Lifestyle Centre, when I questioned the Price the Salesman said his Boss got a good deal so he purchased alot of them,
> I have a good mind and reporting them but who do you report them too ?



Have you had the flavours before? Because if it tastes different I would tell them. They should get that crap off their shelves if they are indeed fake.

The shop could be unaware that they bought fakes, but then again a shop should only be buying from legit suppliers.


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## Schuller

@rogue zombie yes I have tried a few CuttWood Flavors previously, the original has a distinctive sweet full flavor taste, the ones I bought both taste the same Low quality harsh taste and much thinner in consistency

Reactions: Like 1


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## rogue zombie

Schuller said:


> @rogue zombie yes I have tried a few CuttWood Flavors previously, the original has a distinctive sweet full flavor taste, the ones I bought both taste the same Low quality harsh taste and much thinner in consistency



Hmmm, thats sucks, sounds fake.

The few Cutwood I had were anything but harsh.


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## Soutie

I don't get it, if you are going to go to all the effort to clone the bottle and label you could go to a bit of effort to clone the juice, There are hundreds of clones out there for the cutwood stuff and a few of them tasty in their own right. At least you wouldn't be putting people at risk?

I mean a pungent honey smell and making people sick?

Reactions: Agree 1


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## rogue zombie

Soutie said:


> I don't get it, if you are going to go to all the effort to clone the bottle and label you could go to a bit of effort to clone the juice, There are hundreds of clones out there for the cutwood stuff and a few of them tasty in their own right. At least you wouldn't be putting people at risk?
> 
> I mean a pungent honey smell and making people sick?



Yip, exactly. You could make a damn tasty clone with proper concentrates and still make huge profit. And if anyone picked up a slight variation in taste, you could easily say you needed to change a supplier on one ingredient, therefore the recipe is slightly different.


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## Raks92

It's a sad truth, Couple of my friends studying in china have been purchasing Milkman E-juices for around 20 - 25 Yuan, equating to around R40 - R50. The bottles and packaging are almost identical to the naked eye. We need more whistle blowing reviews like these because I promise a storm of these fake products will be coming!


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## Kaizer

Looks like either DIY or buying local juice is the safer way to go.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 4


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## Feliks Karp

rogue zombie said:


> Yip, exactly. You could make a damn tasty clone with proper concentrates and still make huge profit. And if anyone picked up a slight variation in taste, you could easily say you needed to change a supplier on one ingredient, therefore the recipe is slightly different.



You can however make an even BIGGER profit making it out of motor oil and road kill.

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 2


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## HPBotha

Feliks Karp said:


> You can however make an even BIGGER profit making it out of motor oil and road kill.


tasted some local juice with that flavour profile.....

Reactions: Like 2 | Funny 3


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## Raithlin

Schuller said:


> I bought 2 bottles from a Vape Shop in Midrand Carlswarld Lifestyle Centre, when I questioned the Price the Salesman said his Boss got a good deal so he purchased alot of them,
> I have a good mind and reporting them but who do you report them too ?


I know the owner, being in my area. I'll pop in and chat to them - they need to know this stuff makes customers sick.

*Update:* Actually, I know the guy well enough to know he is going to want to get his money's worth out of those bottles. Sad, really. Keep to the reputable vape stores, I think..

Reactions: Agree 3


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## rogue zombie

AlleyCat Vapes said:


> I know the owner, being in my area. I'll pop in and chat to them - they need to know this stuff makes customers sick.
> 
> *Update:* Actually, I know the guy well enough to know he is going to want to get his money's worth out of those bottles. Sad, really. Keep to the reputable vape stores, I think..


"Going to want to get their money's worth."

If you bought bull...shit... expect bull... shit in return!

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Reactions: Funny 1


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## Robyn D'Oliveira

Bought some Cuttwood on bid or buy...thought I had won an auction...hence the low price...was very wrong...the stuff was NASTY...have reported the guys to the Bid and Buy guys...waiting to see what happens next, can't seem to trust anyone. Agree...is very sad. 


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Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 1


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## Rafique

Saw on olx, nobody should buy Vape stuff other than from a reputable vendor or on this forum

Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 1


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## CMMACKEM

Robyn D'Oliveira said:


> Bought some Cuttwood on bid or buy...thought I had won an auction...hence the low price...was very wrong...the stuff was NASTY...have reported the guys to the Bid and Buy guys...waiting to see what happens next, can't seem to trust anyone. Agree...is very sad.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk



It probably was Cuttwood

Reactions: Funny 1


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## Nightwalker



Reactions: Informative 1


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## Robyn D'Oliveira

CMMACKEM said:


> It probably was Cuttwood


Nope...have indulged in the real stuff before...this stuff was seriously off.I am new to this site but have been vaping from back when it was either Twisp or bad Chinese vape oil....


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## rogue zombie

I saw a new vaper with a Donuts juice. He paid R100 for it at some shitty tobacco store in Edenvale.





I pointed him to Vaperite and Vapeking in Edenvale and told him there was no way a US juice will get here and be sold for R100.

Reactions: Like 3


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## Rob Fisher

Just for the record... Jeff Evans from Cuttwood USA has logged on and will not doubt give us some clarity!

I still have Monster Melons from Cuttwood in my arsenal!

Reactions: Like 2


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## daniel craig

Rob Fisher said:


> Just for the record... Jeff Evans from Cuttwood USA has logged on and will not doubt give us some clarity!
> 
> I still have Monster Melons from Cuttwood in my arsenal!


Jeff has a lot of info regarding this issue. He'll be posting soon.

Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 1


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## gertvanjoe

rogue zombie said:


> Hmmm wasnt somebody selling a buch of Cutwood in the clasifieds?
> 
> Also saw somebody selling on FB at a cheaper rate than we're used to with intl. juice.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk


Saw that too the other day


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## Nightwalker

Look. Either buy the real stuff or clone your own DIY. Don't support these blatant knockoffs


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## Sethvs1

Raithlin said:


> I know the owner, being in my area. I'll pop in and chat to them - they need to know this stuff makes customers sick.
> 
> *Update:* Actually, I know the guy well enough to know he is going to want to get his money's worth out of those bottles. Sad, really. Keep to the reputable vape stores, I think..



The owner seems to still be selling fakes. My first eliquid was authentic jam monster and I loved it. So when I saw it being sold for R180 per bottle at the tobacco house in Carlswald center I bought 3 bottles.When I got home I compared the tobacco house carlswald liquid with the authentic and could see immediately it was fake.. took it back and got my money back. Never going near that place again.. and the owner is trying to look legitimate with a website and heartfelt blog posts about vaping but is distributing god knows what to his customers.. this is why vaping needs to become more regulated I guess.. 


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Reactions: Like 3


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## Robyn D'Oliveira

Sethvs1 said:


> The owner seems to still be selling fakes. My first eliquid was authentic jam monster and I loved it. So when I saw it being sold for R180 per bottle at the tobacco house in Carlswald center I bought 3 bottles.When I got home I compared the tobacco house carlswald liquid with the authentic and could see immediately it was fake.. took it back and got my money back. Never going near that place again.. and the owner is trying to look legitimate with a website and heartfelt blog posts about vaping but is distributing god knows what to his customers.. this is why vaping needs to become more regulated I guess..
> You may be right there. I made Bid or Buy aware of two of their sellers who are selling fake juice. I am going to return the fake bottles and get my money back but I don't see them getting the seller to be accountable. As someone said, it's best to go to the reputable dealers to be sure, which is a pity but the bad guys are always going to be out there making a quick buck off others peoples passions and well being.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Raithlin

Yeah, my advice would then be to avoid that place and spread the word.



Sethvs1 said:


> The owner seems to still be selling fakes. My first eliquid was authentic jam monster and I loved it. So when I saw it being sold for R180 per bottle at the tobacco house in Carlswald center I bought 3 bottles.When I got home I compared the tobacco house carlswald liquid with the authentic and could see immediately it was fake.. took it back and got my money back. Never going near that place again.. and the owner is trying to look legitimate with a website and heartfelt blog posts about vaping but is distributing god knows what to his customers.. this is why vaping needs to become more regulated I guess..
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk






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## CMMACKEM

Very simple, stick to reputable vaping stores. There are one or two that stock Cuttwood.


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## Raithlin

CMMACKEM said:


> Very simple, stick to reputable vaping stores. There are one or two that stock Cuttwood.



That's one way to do it, but I have 2 questions for you:

1. What determines a reputable store? Word of mouth, to be sure, or is it? What else?

2. What about the thousands of vapers that don't know any better? How do we work to protect them, and indirectly vaping in general?


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## aktorsyl

Raithlin said:


> 2. What about the thousands of vapers that don't know any better? How do we work to protect them, and indirectly vaping in general?
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Without regulation? Almost impossible.

The vapers who don't know any better also aren't checking this forum


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## Raithlin

aktorsyl said:


> Without regulation? Almost impossible.
> 
> The vapers who don't know any better also aren't checking this forum



I know. Sadly. That's why word of mouth is so important. Unfortunately for the store in question name and shame is the only way in this case. Hopefully the word gets out and the owner gets the message.


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## Graeme

If it is on 'Bid or Buy' or any other similar website at a bargain price then it is either a fake if a juice, or a clone in the case of a device.


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