Starting in the mid 1990’s, I have had some of my copyrighted Pennsylvania Firebacks molded directly from the originals, and cast in China. These Chinese copies are sold retail in the USA, for less than it cost to manufacture the originals in the USA.
Some of these rip-off firebacks, come packaged in expensive white cardboard boxes, printed with full color photographs. Pennsylvania Firebacks are shipped in brown cardboard boxes, with graphics printed in one color.
The Chinese copies are inferior castings and weigh less, due to their backs being hollowed out. Due to the shrinkage factor in molding and casting, the copies are a little smaller than my originals. This size difference is a clear way to identify an illegal copy. Upon discovery of the illegal castings, Signature plates were added to Pennsylvania Firebacks in the mid 1990’s.
I recently discovered a new batch of copies of my Pennsylvania Firebacks, imported by the Dagan Company of St. Louis, MO. I found these Dagan copies on one of my distributer’s websites. They have positioned them next to the more expensive Pennsylvania Firebacks, made in the USA. However, these latest batch of rip-offs are not directly molded copies. They are poorly re-sculpted interpretations of my Autumn, Winter, and Spring Firebacks.
I’ve not yet produced the Summer Fireback. Many sketches have been made, but I’ve yet to decide on a final design and sculpt it. The company making the firebacks Dagan is selling, didn’t wait for me to make a Summer Fireback. They took the art from the Bass Fireback, reinterpreted it, and placed it on a frame to match the other three seasons, naming it Summer.
Again knock-off firebacks are smaller, thinner, and weigh a fraction of the original Pennsylvania Firebacks. As you may notice, the sculpting on the latest knock-offs is not very good.
As Oscar Wilde said (so many forget the second half of the quote) when he wrote: “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.” Somehow I’m not flattered.
FIREBACKS 