Repackaged vehicle fuses being sold on Amazon

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I recently went through my vehicle fuse collection and weeded-out off-brand and no-brand fuses. To replace the tossed fuses, I ordered from a couple of sellers, one of which was Amazon.  The most common reputable brands in the U.S. are Bussmann and Littelfuse.   Some of the supposedly Bussman fuses from Amazon appeared genuine.  These were packaged in blister packs with characteristic Bussmann designs on the cardboard backing.  And BUSS or BUSSMANN inscriptions were molded into the plastic housing of the fuses themselves.  I might test a couple.

However, there were some FLF-40 cartridge fuses with suspicious packaging.  The packaging was individual poly bags with a simple B&W printed label.  On examination of the fuses themselves, the inscription in the plastic was AURORA.  And there were some ATC-35 twin blade fuses in realistic looking Bussmann sliding cases … the common kind with a little plastic drawer that slides out of a metal housing.  However, the printing on the case did not match the pictures in the ad.  The inscription on the plastic housing of the fuses was PACIFIC.

I talked to a Bussmann rep.  He said Bussmann never out-sources, rebadges or repackages fuses.  Fuses were returned.  I left bad reviews and filed complaints with Amazon.  I’m done with Amazon as a source of fuses.  Finally, it’s really important to look at inscriptions on fuses themselves which sometimes requires a magnifying glass.

Mike

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For sure Amazon and eBay are not the places for serious sourcing, neither is Aliexpress.
You get what you pay for…