Northface Backpack - Night Bazaar

[JustCurious]

I was looking at Northface Backpacks at the Night Bazaar last night.

Are they durable or do they start to fall apart rather quickly?

Price for a 100 litre was 1500 baht.

[sharktooth]

You mean you were looking at a backpack with North Face written on it. Their real gear is quality, the copy pish is, well... pish

[elektrified]

Never looked here but when I lived in Europe they sold North Face knock-offs that were absolutely impossible to tell the difference. Same exact quality. Some sellers even had a 'real' item on hand to compare the difference. I think the sellers were Vietnamese. I bought some items for camping and they were top quality (for a fraction of the price). Go examine the items and judge for yourself. I did buy a small backpack at the Night Bazaar recently - forget the brand but the same backpack at Sports World in KSK was 790 THB and the one at Night Bazaar was 300 THB. Same exact backpack, same brand.

[orang37]

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun JustCurioius,

Everything in the Night Bazaar is a fake, including the Night Bazaar itself: the nested-depth of the fakery-in-fakery there is something I don't want to think about, because that's what drove Cantor, and Godel, mad, and my psyche has no "reverse gear."

Everything bought there is transient, and will break, or fall apart: and, while I think that's true of everything, and everyone, in general; I think time-to-death, or dis-incorporation, in the Night Bazaar is exponentially faster, on average.

Offer them 70% off the asking price, for starters.

~o:37;

Edited August 22, 2012 by orang37

[daoyai]

....if something is fakery of a fake, does that not make it real?

[chiang mai]

....if something is fakery of a fake, does that not make it real?

Fakery of a real thing and fakery of a fake gives two fakes that are different.

Beware North Face gear in the NB, buy it knowing it's a fake that may or may not last and priced accordingly, never buy it thinking it's the real thing.

[eeeya]

Bought one a few years ago in pattaya.. 2 Weeks later the seams were comming apart.

I dont buy any fake anymore. Just but original and it will last.

Sent from my MB526 using Thaivisa Connect App

[Puwa]

expect the worst

[FolkGuitar]

North Face gear is made to exacting standards that are constantly checked by quality control people. Same with all well known gear.

But... the equipment is made in China, Vietnam, Mexico, Philippines, etc., and so is the stuff sold at the Night Markets in S.E. Asia. It's up to YOU to be the quality control inspector for those, and if you have a careful eye and know what you are looking at, you can actually get some good savings. If you do NOT check every seam, every stitch, every buckle, etc., then your chances of getting a piece of crap is high. It's up to you.

Personally, when I buy a daypack or rucksack in an Asian street market, after checking very carefully and then bargaining down the price significantly, I take the pack back to my room, and with a needle and very strong thread (use upholstery thread found in any sewing shop) re-enforce all the places where I think the stresses will occur. 20 minutes work and I've got a pack I can depend on, paying 1/4 of what it would cost in a US camping store. If I were buying something like a large duffel bag that I knew was going to be taking very heavy loads, I'd go to a hardware store and buy a $2 rivet set to reenforce the straps too. You don't need to buy a high quality riveter... It only needs to last for 5-6 rivets to solve the problem.

[tfc]

I've bought a fake one before and the material around the zip disintegrated in less than a month.

[FolkGuitar]

I've bought a fake one before and the material around the zip disintegrated in less than a month.

It certainly does happen.

I bought a new Buick in New York. I less than one month the cam shaft had to be replaced.

One month! I wanted my money back, but all they would do was replace the cam shaft no matter how much I complained. (The dealer probably was related to one of the Night Market vendors...)

[Thighlander]

I bought a real one, "Slingshot" from www.rockymountaintrail.com 8 years ago for about 50 USD. It is still in mint condition. Look for the YKK zippers. There are a lot of NF knock offs in Thailand. They used to actually make the stuff in Berkeley California.

[theblether]

I bought one at the bazaar two years ago......it probably lasted the equivalent of two weeks usage before expiring.

Edited August 23, 2012 by theblether

[Afrodite79]

I have had my original Northface bag for 4 years now and have packed it heavily without any damage. My bf bought a fake Northface bag (thought it was original) in KSK in front of Top Supermarked on sale THB 1400 (it said original prize THB 3000-4000). It lasted for less than half a year! It looked like an original but the quality is just not same same.

Edited August 23, 2012 by Afrodite79

[canuckamuck]

I have bought lots of fake backpacks, some lasted long enough for me to go through the bother of getting them repaired when they finally did break. It is almost always where the main straps attach to the top of the bag that goes first. I have since moved on to buying authentic bags and none of them have broken.

Fake bags are usually good for a two week trip somewhere. but if you reinforce them first, as mentioned by Folk Guitar, you might get a bag that last years.

[FolkGuitar]

but if you reinforce them first, as mentioned by Folk Guitar, you might get a bag that last years.

It takes MORE than just reinforcing them. It requires inspecting them before you buy them too. You need to LOOK at seams, at stitching, at zippers, at rivets. You need to BE the quality control person BEFORE you make the purchase. THEN you can begin to make the bag even stronger. It's not rocket science. It's just observation and a few minutes of effort. But that effort makes a world of difference. You can't just take one off the shelf for $5 and expect it to be a $100 bag by just wishing.

[hellodolly]

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun JustCurioius,

Everything in the Night Bazaar is a fake, including the Night Bazaar itself: the nested-depth of the fakery-in-fakery there is something I don't want to think about, because that's what drove Cantor, and Godel, mad, and my psyche has no "reverse gear."

Everything bought there is transient, and will break, or fall apart: and, while I think that's true of everything, and everyone, in general; I think time-to-death, or dis-incorporation, in the Night Bazaar is exponentially faster, on average.

Offer them 70% off the asking price, for starters.

~o:37;

O please say it is not so. I was sure that it was a real whopper I had there at the Burger King. For breakfast I went to McDonald's and had a sausage McMuffin with a egg.

Please please don't tell me they were knock offs.

[hellodolly]

I bought a real one, "Slingshot" from www.rockymountaintrail.com 8 years ago for about 50 USD. It is still in mint condition. Look for the YKK zippers. There are a lot of NF knock offs in Thailand. They used to actually make the stuff in Berkeley California.

The wife does a lot of sewing and is yet to find zippers that will last. Does any one know where they can be purchased in Chiang Mai?

[Thighlander]

http://www.rockymountaintrail.com/The_North_Face/Jester/A93C/detail

This is the real deal for 1350. Might be a good guideline. Free shipping in the States.

[binjalin]

same same fake fake

[realthaideal]

Everything in the Night Bazaar is a fake, including the Night Bazaar itself: the nested-depth of the fakery-in-fakery there is something I don't want to think about, because that's what drove Cantor, and Godel, mad, and my psyche has no "reverse gear."

Everything bought there is transient, and will break, or fall apart: and, while I think that's true of everything, and everyone, in general; I think time-to-death, or dis-incorporation, in the Night Bazaar is exponentially faster, on average.

~o:37;

Some of your briefest and most lyrical comments in awhile, K. Orang. Many things to meditate on in there. Am especially pleased with dis-incorporation. Reminds me of how a chemistry professor once referred to death as one's body going to equilibrium.

On a different note, I will second everything K. FolkGuitar says. You need to inspect the heck out of what you want to buy. I've had some clunkers in the backpack n travel bag department, but then also a couple really great scores. The more you play, the better you get at spotting the quality knock-offs.

Edited August 24, 2012 by realthaideal

[Thighlander]

I've gotten 8 years out of a Nike swimsuit that I bought in HH for 120 THB. But back to NF....the most important thing is the YKK zippers. I have a NF VE-23 dome tent that is 27 years old and still very good condition. They gave me a new set of poles in 1992 and they were much better than original. I lived near the service center so it cost me zero. NF sleeping bag is 28 and still going strong, too.

http://www.beachcalifornia.com/shca/sporting-goods/berkeley/1-north-face-outlet-the-factory-outlets-510-526-3530.html

Edited August 24, 2012 by Thighlander

[T_Dog]

I've bought a lot of Northface equipment in the USA in the past and I think most of it is in service 15 years out. I have also bought Northface stuff in Thailand and you will get about a year out of it, depending on use. It is not the same at all. First thing that happens is the inside waterproofing will flake off. At least that part is guaranteed. To flake off that is......

[bangkokrick]

You can be lucky. Most Thai companies receive overseas orders and they have a clause that the delivery must be 100% of the order quantity. Therefore if the order is for 100000 pieces the Thai company will make 10% extra, so as not to incur penalties for a short delivery, due to sewing faults and reject fabric. When the order is despatched the over make goes onto the markets. This is not legal, but what is in Thailand!

Reference. I have worked in the sewing industry for many years here in Thailand.

[Genericnic]

While I didn't get it at Night Bazaar, I can say that not all knockoffs are cr*p. About 12 years ago, I picked up a "North Face" jacket in the market in Kathmandu, Nepal. I think I paid the equivalent of $10.00 US. It has been a jacket, pillow, car window shade, and many other things over those 12 years and it just keeps on going. I'll probably be buried in it. The point is, that not all knockoffs are junk. Just look closely at what you buy.

David

[vagabond48]

While I didn't get it at Night Bazaar, I can say that not all knockoffs are cr*p. About 12 years ago, I picked up a "North Face" jacket in the market in Kathmandu, Nepal. I think I paid the equivalent of $10.00 US. It has been a jacket, pillow, car window shade, and many other things over those 12 years and it just keeps on going. I'll probably be buried in it. The point is, that not all knockoffs are junk. Just look closely at what you buy.

David

I suspect even knockoffs were better quality 12 years ago as were many legit products.

[DaamNaam]

....if something is fakery of a fake, does that not make it real?

It makes it a real fake.

You can get the genuine bags at Sports World Kad Suan Kaew.

[JustCurious]

....if something is fakery of a fake, does that not make it real?

It makes it a real fake.

You can get the genuine bags at Sports World Kad Suan Kaew.

Thanks, I stopped by Sports World and like their Osprey backpacks.

[Odysseus221]

I am thinking of living for a while in a camp in China for health reasons. They advise bringng a cold weather sleeping back and "fat" for hands and feet--whatever that is...does anyone know where to buy this and long underwear in Thailand, preferably bangkok? +-

-

-

-

[nikster]

^ yes these Osprey backpacks are great, I was surprised that Sports World in Central KSK seems to have all their models - huge selection!

I can believe that fake Backpacks were once really "factory seconds" in Kathmandu or wherever but I am also convinced that all the packs, without exception, on the night bazaar are utter crap. The cheaper you get it, the less money you have wasted - but you're still wasting money.

Bought a large duffle bag there once, one flight and it was broken.