Here in Belgium the price is 160 €. This is a little less than the price that Aramith Pro's are sold. So according to the price, they should be decent balls.Sold on Alibaba, copies the Brunswick design, uses a known pool vendor name but not from them, sold for about $30 a set in orders of 1,000 a bit shady and very suspect quality. At some point people have to learn you will not have the same quality in a $30 product vs a $200 product.
They do look nice though in the picture. I actually would not mind trying them out if they were available at retail just to satisfy my curiosity.
Are they diamond, as in the table mtg?
Here in Belgium the price is 160 €. This is a little less than the price that Aramith Pro's are sold. So according to the price, they should be decent balls.
Like these....
Marketed and distributed under the Olhausen name for this particular run of balls.
I would NOT call these “cheap knock-offs” by any means - by the same token, I can’t speak for production costs, but I can speak from experience playing and wear and polishing over time. Great design
~ K.
Sold on Alibaba, copies the Brunswick design, uses a known pool vendor name but not from them, sold for about $30 a set in orders of 1,000 a bit shady and very suspect quality. At some point people have to learn you will not have the same quality in a $30 product vs a $200 product.
They do look nice though in the picture. I actually would not mind trying them out if they were available at retail just to satisfy my curiosity.
In the picture on the Alibaba page the white parts of the balls are very, very white. That could have been an image processing error, but it looks a little strange when you expect a light cream color as in the Olhausen balls above.They may be marked up to that, but on the Alibaba site, they are $30 if you buy 1,000.
https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...pm=a2700.details.maylikever.10.65e7a5314mhiTg
...
People have not understood this since time began, I think time will be long over before people even come close to understanding that you do not get quality products for pennies on the dollar. The absolute worst way to shop for something is by price alone.
Beautifully put.
Perception is powerful.
$30 in 1,000 set units vs $200 for a single set purchase.Sold on Alibaba, copies the Brunswick design, uses a known pool vendor name but not from them, sold for about $30 a set in orders of 1,000 a bit shady and very suspect quality. At some point people have to learn you will not have the same quality in a $30 product vs a $200 product.
They do look nice though in the picture. I actually would not mind trying them out if they were available at retail just to satisfy my curiosity.
I think it’s worth noting a few things when any of us here on the forum discuss “copies” or that dreaded word “knock-off” that we’ve all come to see in print quite often:
US Patents are only valid and applicable in the US, or any other country where those patents are actually accepted. Do you really think China accepts and recognizes US patents? Why would they? That would simply mean they are restricted on what they can manufacture.
The China culture seems to be one of economic security - something I think every one of us can understand. I’ve heard they believe that patents restrict their ability to bring new products to the marketplace and by having fewer restrictions, the customer has the best options - which sounds exactly what the good folks of the US are really after - price. Why pay $300 for that ball set when you KNOW it was manufactured for $30, tariffed and taxed to $50, imported to an “exclusive” distributor for $75, wholesaled for $125 to your local retailer, marked at MSRP for $300 and eventually sold “on sale” for $225. Let’s not forget the high cost of shipping EVERY time that set of balls is sent somewhere that every handler must account for. So SURE, you can get a 1000 boxes of balls made for $30 each. Go ahead. It’s a free market - like China believes. On a side note, what do you think that authentic set of Aramith Tournaments cost to manufacture and ship and distribute and wholesale and retail in order to pay the 25 people responsible for handling them through their short life from vat to table? Probably not much more than $30 - but that’s a WAG (so no accusations of inside info ;-)
Lastly. I’ll say this: I have a few* sets of billiard balls in my collection made in over 20 countries - and some of the ones hailing from a few provinces of China are extremely well made. Well enough that 99% of pool players would never know the difference unless I told you where they were manufactured. OF COURSE I would like to say the best balls are made right here in the good ole USA - for numerous reasons, that I’m sure would resonate with the folks of China - but they are not. Not one of them.
Price is what most people look at FIRST. Where was it manufactured doesn’t even factor in unless that is your hot button. And we all have those.
By the way - that set of balls with the neat 4 small diamonds boxed with the Olhausen name I showed above, are amazing all around. Colors are flawless. Details are perfect. Weight tolerances exceeding 95% of every set I own (yes even the Belgian spheres). They roll true. And for laughs I’ll share this: I laid the “Olhausen’s” on the table with the “Centennial’s” to get the opinions of non-pool playing folks. They all said the Ollie’s looked better. Don’t shoot the messenger now
$30 in 1,000 set units vs $200 for a single set purchase.
What's the price per set for Super Aramith Pro's when you're buying by the thousand?
About 10 years ago on ebay there was guy drop shipping single sets of Pro's at either $60 or $70... I hope someone remembers this.