How to Spot a Fake Sony VTC5 battery.

This resource is too valuable to not-share.

Sun Vapers <-- link to article

First paragraph copy/pasted here/below:

"How to Spot a Fake Sony VTC5 battery.
Sun Vapers learned that fakes were being sold on ebay from a concerned user on Reddit. We have purchased the same batteries and tested them ourselves just to see what a fake looks like and how it would perform if someone chose to ignore it. The first half of this will show pictures comparing a fake to a real Sony, and the last half will show its performance."

Totally made me pull my vtc5s off the charger and outta my panzer to check em. Thanks for the information. Got mine off ebay a few months ago and they look real, and they perform REAL good!

Yeah im going to feature this on my blog later on today. Should be shared by a lot of people.

Thanks Joe, real good information here! And nice find avibp!

*not2coolguy - Thanks! - nice find indeed.

Credit of (freakin-frackin ;-)) course goes back the the man himself - VaperJoe. He told me where it its was hiding.

More thanks to Sun-Vapers for studying, researching, purchasing the fakes and publishing the findings as well as hosting the results.

Wish there was more information available for authentic VS fakes out there like Sun-Vapers. ie Short. Concise and too the point.

Thanks folks.

thought you might want to read what I read today.

Dear customer, thank you for your inquiry.

The 18650 type batteries are no longer manufactured by Sony.

This product was never intended for individual, public sale and are not eligible for warranty or engineering support.

It was only available to OEM makers of specific devices.

The specifications and markings on the battery may vary depending upon the OEM’s requirements. Therefore, it is difficult to determine the true manufacturer or authenticity of the batteries without physical inspection and manufacturing code research.

This type of battery is widely available on the internet market through non-authorized resellers.

Therefore, Sony is not liable for the performance or use of this type battery for non-intended purposes.

Such applications should be done at the user’s own risk.

Furthermore, any battery of this type claimed to be Sony brand may be older stock.

We apologize that we cannot offer further assistance with this matter.

Sincerely,

Media Services by Sony

Ok, so according to the letter from Sony, the battery that sun vapors is showing as fake, could be real, just a different oem application? I mean you can see the nasty seam, but the rest...... How do you really know?

brad527 said:

... according to the letter from Sony, the battery that sun vapors is showing as fake, could be real...

Click to expand...

Maybe true, it is an assumption that I don't agree with. The letter is saying that there can be differences which I understand. Even in one manufacturing run differences can appear from one end of the batch to the other end.

Sun-Vapers has identified the types mentioned as fakes 'after their research/study' and I'll tend to stick with the folks that do that kind of thing when they aren't doing it for money but rather just from the goodness of their own heart for their customers and fellow vapors. And 'that' is 'my' assuming position.

Thanks brad527,

(Dag-nab it! Just had to go through all my VTC's - AGAIN - .)

On the fake, the gap :
1) Seems -almost- as large as the first metal ring immediately above the gap
2) Is -about- as large as the black ring around the prongs/legs of the positive post

On the Authentic, the gap :
1) Is much smaller than the first metal ring immediately above the gap
2) Is much smaller than the black ring around the prongs/legs of the positive post

My eyes had a hard time seeing the difference and locking it to memory with-out the reference to the top metal ring and black ring.

Dear Vaping Underground users

I am sorry to bring this topic back in action but I'm worried about whether I've bought counterfeit/faked batteries. I have attached pictures which I hope you have time to look at. I have searched the last two days and have to admit I find it very hard to figure out if these are fake or not. QR code looks detailed out and my phone can also read a code when I scan the QR, but I do not know if this is proof enough? The bottom of the batteries also looks to resemble the original. I have a doubt because the respond above stated that on the fake the gap seems almost as large as the first metal ring immediately above the gap - when I look at it it doesnt seem it is but I am still worried. Just to know I am building my first mech mod so I take the safety serious and the battery would be the most obviously thing to look at in first place.

Sorry for my newbie questions, I still hope you can answer my question

Thanks in advance

Regards,