THE END OF LANCER TACTICAL – COUNTERFEIT LAWSUITS
The world of Airsoft has changed from the once underground scene with no rules to everything has to be done by the rules otherwise, the company will get sued and shut down. This is a standard operating procedure for all legitimate companies nowadays except Lancer Tactical and it shows by their business practices.
Several Airsoft companies in the past have learned their lessons or were made as examples but continued their business as legitimate and continued to grow. This is where Lancer Tactical comes in as a cheap option and under the radar until now. Making counterfeit parts here and there is catching up to them and the saying “when it rains, it pours” is coming true with their company and the various lawsuits.
Related Blog: Lancer Tactical Boss Arrested at SHOTShow!
As mentioned earlier other Airsoft companies have been in the legal hot water but fixed things and settled to make things right. Lancer Tactical, on the other hand, was busted and then just opened a can of worms. Case in point, read and connect the dots to see what they are doing.
Related Blog: Lancer Tactical Goggle Lawsuit – Press Release
All the info and linking that was posted above is ‘bad’ but it is getting worse and this list will show it all here. This is bad on 2 counts, first the company is stealing the ‘idea’ and product to make a cheaper version and cash in and second some stores are knowingly buying and reselling these counterfeit products and either mislabeling or up selling the products to make more on the average Airsoft player and this leads to the failure of the Airsoft Community as a whole. Nobody will really talk about it since they do not want to lose their ‘sponsorship’ or make waves but I will and I will point out public facts and link the info so you can see the clear and cut case.
Barrett M82
The M82 and use of any and all Barrett rifles and products are licensed to MadBull Airsoft for the last several years with ISGK and they have released the AEG version of the M82 and the soon to be released GBBR M107 which is just like the M82 but more modern. Between MadBull and Socom Gear which is their brother company they faithfully produced the highest quality of products to best represent the Barrett name. Now we have Lancer Tactical make a cheap springer rifle of this rifle and market it as a sniper rifle for the kids since it is ‘lightweight’. The part that caught my attention is in the press release from Lancer Tactical about the Revision Goggle Arrest was this quote:
“the goggles we sell are not counterfeit. She said they do not use any of the branding associated with the Vermont-based company, calling their allegations false”
The owner was the prime suspect for the arrest and of course, she would deny any claims but using the already created product knowledge and marketing is what they do and undercut with the price. Case in point this Lancer Tactical M82 (spring rifle)
WOW! well maybe there is a typo and Airsoft Megastore didn’t know or mean to type that. Just following the product description from Lancer Tactical but they don’t use any “branding associated”.
Looking at the Lancer Tactical Instagram they are CLEARLY using the key terms to market their counterfeit product.
Doing a keyword search on their website for “m82” these pop up but no mention of Barrett or “official” because it is not.
So while MadBull/Socom Gear is paying the licensing fees for the name and products sold each year which is a thing and the firearm companies always want their money people like Lancer Tactical are getting away selling this cheap product and cashing in on the younger market that wants the expensive all metal legit M82 Barrett but they get the Lancer version and they have used some highly followed IG people to help push the rifle as well.
So looking at the SocomGear.com website you will find the Barrett M107 on the front page and if you search “m82” you will see the 3 different models that are offered and don’t forget the Barrett REC models. Socom Gear offers the complete and ready to use Airsoft rifles and MadbullAirsoft.com offers the Barrett metal body and barrel kits and their “About MadBull” explains and shows who they work with.
Primary Weapons FLash Hider (MadBull Airsoft)
Looking at the Lancer Tactical website there are so many off products and right after the M82 is the knock off of the PWS flash hider or as they call it CA-665 FSC FLASH HIDER and if you search the same product name you will go to the Primary Weapon’s MOD 2 FSC Series page which is the creator of this style of flash hider! And to make things even more of a pain MadBull Airsoft is the license holder of Primary Weapons as you see here.
You can find the DNTC FSC 556 listed on the MadBull website with all the other Primary Weapon parts. So using the same names or switching the order of the names and still making or offering counterfeit parts to the Airsoft Community. Looking at their business style of just copying the popular stuff and pushing it out under the radar it is just making the other Airsoft companies look bad.
INFORCE Weapon Lights
“If it looks cool and costs a lot, let’s copy it but not say it is a counterfeit.” Let’s shed some light onto this matter of how Lancer Tactical is literally copying everything that is pricey and cool for the Airsoft and Firearm world and making it a cheaper version without the quality and guarantee that it will work. These weapon lights can be easily sold off to Police and or other LE agencies at regular INFORCE retail prices but actually be the Lancer Fakes.
Looking for the best deal to supply the department? Somebody might stumble across this and think it’s a great deal but little do they know it is counterfeit and will not be service ready. This can really happen and case in point the KWA quad rails that were illegal versions of the Knight’s Armament had the phone number to the Knight’s office and people would call in about fitment issues when they bought a used rail. Now for the INFORCE weapon lights there are several to choose from and the latest and brightest models will be listed on their website but you still can find the exact model in question that Lancer Tactical copied on Amazon for $159.99 and on LAPoliceGear.com for $124.99 NOW instead of the MSRP: $150.00 price tag so finding the $60.00 Lancer Tactical fake INFORCE light would be amazing for a budget officer in the department.
Going to the main INFORCE website you will see the legit and original version of the lights for pistols and rifles. And I find it very funny that in this picture from the INFORCE website is the light and PWS flash hider that Lancer Tactical has made a counterfeit copy off…. really?
Don’t worry if this is too big of a deal to handle, Lancer Tactical also is stealing the INFORCE Pistol light and you can find it on AirsofMegastore.com for a great price to really make a killing.
Looking at the Lancer Tactical website there is no mention of the INFORCE looking lights or products but you can find them at Airsoft MegaStore and a few other Airsoft stores in the USA. I noticed on the INFORCE website there is no mention of export or distribution to China or any other Asian country and this is why. ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) and the EAR (Export Administration Regulations) are export control regulations run by different departments of the US Government. Both of them are designed to help ensure that defense-related technology does not get into the wrong hands.
So who sent the lights overseas to be copied? There are several guesses but nothing in the form of a solid answer but a team of lawyers working this case will find out in no time. If you know comment below to further help the Airsoft Community along with these companies.
Revision and Arena Goggles
This is what started the media investigation. We have covered the event in two publishing already but we have to list again since there are still Airsofters that think nothing wrong happened.
The goggles are a 99% counterfeit copy of the Revision googles and the only thing they changed was the removal of the Revision logo and they copied the head strap attachment and lens inserts exactly.
Related Blog: Lancer Tactical Goggle Lawsuit – Press Release
As it was posted online the fanboys defended Lancer Tactical and their actions since they were holding a contest to distract the Airsofters from the bad news. In the same blog linked just above you will see how their “new contest” to promote their ANSI rated goggles is all a lie and there is no rating and it is another stolen goggle design from Arena. We got a flood of messages about how the googles break in testing before gameday for most players and then we get some that claim no issues ever. Well cheap plastic with no standards can be tough or weak and since their only rating is stating “3mm thick” will you trust that against what Revision and Arena test and use to verify their goggles are the best on the market.
Fortis Rail Keymod/MLok (PTS)
Do you want to build a Fort out of stolen products and lies? That is what Lancer Tactical is doing as the list gets longer and longer.
Why buy the $125 PTS FORTIS rail when you can buy an entire rifle for cheaper? How does that help out PTSsyndicate.com and SPARTAN117GW for all their hard work getting the licensing and partnering with FORTIS and several other Firearm companies. If you are going to say it looks different and not a keymod when you compare the legal PTS version to the illegal Lancer Tactical version that is using maybe a MLok, stop it. FORTIS offers the regular Keymod and MLok options for their hand guard kits under their REV II Series
So while Greg Wong is out on the field talking about the FORTIS kit and all the other sweet parts of his kit you have Lancer in an alley selling the Chinese knockoff of it. There is no mention of the M4 SPR “Interceptor” LT-25 on the main site so that they do not accept or claim responsibility for the counterfeit product. I will give them credit for using their own finger grooved body for the magwell grip but those gold stars are stripped away when you see the Tango Down Pistol Grip.
Noveske and MadBull with a hint of Zshot(KAA)
As we all know MadBull Airsoft has been the largest maker of rails and kits for the Airsoft market and working with Zshot to make the Knight’s Armament Airsoft(KAA) division they have made the scene more legitimate and realistic. Some may say it costs more but you get what you pay for when it comes down to the details and build quality. Then we have this..
This looks just like the Noveske NSR keymod hand guard on an M4 that MadBull Airsoft has been known for ages to legally hold the Noveske license long before Lancer Tactical was even thought of. Whoa wait a minute maybe I was wrong, this rifle is listed as “Lancer Tactical M4 MSR” so it cannot be in any way related or inspired by the Noveske “NSR”…That word “modular” just did it’s thing and moved in place and made it ok to sell a counterfeit rail kit if you think about the Lancer Tactical Press Release, “not using any branding”. To stir the pot, even more, the product image that is circled in red shows a Knight’s URX2 system and on top of the main display rifle are a set of Knight’s Micro Sights. Looking at the listing on Airsoft Megastore there is no mention of the MSR/Noveske Rail and if it is metal, plastic or anything about it. So why is there no mention of the Modular Rail System and why it is great and you should buy it but they cover the ever so important “Metal external dust cover to protect hop-up chamber.” You got to be kidding right? Looking on the Lancer Tactical website there is again no mention of this rifle.
What does this mean for Airsoft?
Well the hard work of brand reps like SPARTAN117GW for PTS and any others have to work harder to sell their products and show the quality and reason it is licensed and how it is legit but those wants do not always translate into wallets and sales due to price sometimes and when the customer or player is thinking about getting this or that product but finds it cheaper, way cheaper they will settle and you see it all the time online. “I wanted this_______ but I got the knock off version, hope it does not break on me” Remember the legit versions have a warranty and customer service with real people that are most likely Airsofters themselves and will help you while looking at the practices of Lancer Tactical and the little public attention they do they are more like a swap meet selling in China town and if you have a problem “oh well” they got your money and moved to a new street.
The Bigger Picture
Airsoft is not taken seriously by the politicians and media most of the times due to kids getting shot since they have cheap $10 springers or other products. Promoting and Releasing counterfeit products only hurts the Airsoft Industry only weakens the pillars for an easy collapse. Why would a new firearm company want to work with a legit company if they know that Lancer Tactical will just make a fake version and flood the market which takes away from their licensing fees and sales?
Are there more Counterfeit items from Lancer Tactical? – YES, many more..
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Between looking at their website and Airsoft Megastore which has the most Lancer Tactical items in stock and appears on the top of the Google search most of the times there is a ton more.
The tactical gear from the plate carriers like the Lancer Tactical 600D Polyester Jumpable Plate Carrier to the helmets and all the attachments for them. For the Airsoft guns and rifles they use the term “FAL” on their website for the FN Herstal type rifles but they are just copying the Echo1 licensed Entreprise Arms rifles that was a CA based firearms company.
As Echo1USA released the three models under this licensing several years ago just now recently Lancer Tactical has released their version. Yes, there is the OEM factor but using the key word “FAL” to get search hits is just doing bad business. So under their “FAL Series” you can find them listed but no real info.
And again here is the FN Herstal M240 labeled for sale and matching names on Airsoft MegaStore and the Lancer Tactical websites. The only legal M240 that was available for Airsoft was the Echo1USA version that was licensed by Ohio Ordinance Works and was on the market for several years. I wonder why no other Airsoft Journalists have touched on this giant topic? In the past several were very passionate about ensuring the integrity of Airsoft but silence as of late, maybe they don’t want to get cut off from free stuff which is what drives the inner workings of the Airsoft Industry.
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What do you think about Lancer Tactical doing this? Should the Airsoft players boycott their counterfeit products?
Written by Brian Holt
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