Clip leads made with fake wire - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Helio_Centra
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 06, 2024, 10:43:34 pm
content: In the video he finds most of the crocodile/alligator clip leads/jumpers that come from China are iron or steel.Might be worth checking yours because we all probably have some of these.

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 06, 2024, 10:52:01 pm
content: You might want to check out the next thread downhttps://www.eevblog.com/forum/dodgy-technology/who-needs-solder-between-alligator-clips-and-the-wire/

author: Haenk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 07, 2024, 11:58:09 am
content: I mean, what did you expect?Price check on Aliexpress: Using the "buy 3 items for free shipping", that's 3,60 EUR for 30 pieces - aka 60 clips and 30 cables and free shipping. Even if they are using crap wire, that is still an amazing price.

author: mtwieg
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: November 07, 2024, 02:45:52 pm
content: 15+ years ago I could understand someone getting flustered when this happens.Now? No excuse, unless something in the product description was demonstrably false (which is rarely the case).This isn't something that "china" forced on us. We (collectively) demand cheap garbage, and somebody will deliver.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 07, 2024, 10:05:11 pm
content: Quote from: mtwieg on November 07, 2024, 02:45:52 pmYep, and plenty of quality high strand copper silicone cable also available, if you want to pay what its worth.Here are some premade leads, though I'd prefer to just make my own:https://www.aliexpress.us/item/32804763281.html

author: wilfred
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 08, 2024, 11:52:42 am
content: The trouble with "you get what you pay for" is if they raised the price on one listing it might attract those who are seduced by a higher price into thinking these ones are better. It might be a good scam for a while.Are they ALL just the same? No matter what I search for on Ebay or AliX I get dozens of listings that apart from price I can't tell the difference. It just muddies the whole search experience. I need AI to help me choose not quite the cheapest but might take more care with packing and ship faster because they aren't squeezed quite so tight but still have a decent feedback rating etc.Groan.

author: Haenk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 08, 2024, 01:11:36 pm
content: https://www.superbuy.com/en/page/buy/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fitem.taobao.com%2Fitem.htm%3Fid%3D562707071383For your viewing pleasure. Alligator clip for one cent, surely someone makes a huge profit there(I ordered some other items from this vendor before, so the offer is legit...)

author: janoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 08, 2024, 02:22:19 pm
content: Quote from: Helio_Centra on November 06, 2024, 10:43:34 pmOld news. Cheap and crappy wire has been around for years - and you get exactly what you pay for. Real copper wire costs quite a bit more than the price of those jumper wires, even in China.That's not "fake wire", he didn't get a piece of string but an actual wire there. I am pretty sure those AliExpress ads are not advertising "pure copper wire" on those jumper cables or any guarantee of quality/resistance.Copper coated steel (CCS) is a common material with plenty of legit uses:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper-clad_steelIf you want some, you can get a roll of welding wire from the nearest hardware store. Equally common is copper coated aluminium (CCA) but on that one your magnet trick won't work. Yes, it is crap for electronics. Calling it fake? Clickbait title and sensationalism, nothing more. You got what you paid for.

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 08, 2024, 02:54:37 pm
content: Oh you poor sods, what a terrible and tragic life altering products you all exposed to. Truly heartbreaking. If required a funds to collect money for those being misled by Santa can be organized. But in any case, don't touch the wires and don't put them in your mouth unless you want to solve the problem for good. They probably contain cadmium or maybe large doses of whichever phthalate which make your balls shrink and maybe also lead and the leftover asbestos from previous week.

author: mtwieg
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: November 08, 2024, 03:16:05 pm
content: Quote from: wilfred on November 08, 2024, 11:52:42 amYou shouldn't judge a product on it's price alone either. Buy by description. Check for specifications on current capacity, or resistance, or AWG and composition. If no such specifications are given, you can assume it's crap, at any price.QuoteRelying on "AI" is just asking to get stuck with SEO garbage.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 08, 2024, 09:38:31 pm
content: Quote from: wilfred on November 08, 2024, 11:52:42 amWhen people say that it usually comes with the implication of buying at a reasonable markup. Though no one actually wrote that quote in this thread.Anyway, you still have the options:- Read through reviews of the top selling alix items and decide based on those, if you are cheap and have lots of time- Buy from a trusted brand/supplier like digikey, maybe sparkfun, adafruit, etc.- Buy an alternate product (cleqee has decent stuff AFAIK):https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006632193051.html

author: wilfred
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 09, 2024, 12:42:56 am
content: Quote from: mtwieg on November 08, 2024, 03:16:05 pmRelying on AI was definitely tongue-in-cheek. But I hear all the time in posts here and elsewhere when people seem to judge quality by price. Obviously that usually isn't about the bottom of the barrel stuff from the usual suspects. And this is drifting off-topic but an example is Snap-on tools. Sure mostly they are up there with the best but the price of them includes intangible post-manufacture things like a lifetime replacement warranty and support that is valuable to a working mechanic to save valuable time trying to claim a replacement.But the online shopping experience is deteriorating from what was once (a while ago now) a clear benefit and morphing into a minefield of sharks to mix metaphors.

author: Haenk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 09, 2024, 02:19:57 pm
content: Also, note that the offers are not fraudulent - the seller didn't lie to you.But don't expect it to be "something else" from what is being advertised. The items are cheap for a reason, and higher quality parts are more expensive - but likely cheaper than from resellers in other countries. So look out for the stuff you really want, it's there and likely cheaper than from your local store. But don't expect it to be "free".

author: 5U4GB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 10, 2024, 11:13:44 am
content: Quote from: thm_w on November 08, 2024, 09:38:31 pmClequeeusuallyhas decent stuff, I've had one miss with them and that was withthesewhich are CCS garbage. Unfortunately the listing never claims it's copper, just "high quality material"***, so there's no recourse for filing a dispute. Everything else I've got from them has been fine, so not sure what happened with this particular one.*** Buy our high quality durum wheat flour spaghetti cables with colored crocodile clips, also high quality!

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 12, 2024, 09:18:40 pm
content: Quote from: 5U4GB on November 10, 2024, 11:13:44 amI just meant the specific link I used, you can tell from the photos the quality will be ok.But agree, that sucks that cleqee stoop to selling them, pretending to be a bit premium. Best you can do is rate 1 star.

author: 5U4GB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2024, 06:23:57 am
content: It looks like they may have been caught out by it, or at least when I messaged them they got back to me fairly quickly to saythey'd look into it.

author: Shock
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 03, 2024, 04:18:17 pm
content: Leave a bad review, trash the seller online, make a video, get a refund or do a payment reversal.Just ignoring it or making excuses like they never explicitly said "pure copper" does nothing. It's not just limited to cheap products either they are using defective materials industry wide.Bundle up your chinese ewaste and send it to the local chinese embassy for disposal. Then go buy from a reputable brand or seller.

author: Haenk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 04, 2024, 08:23:42 am
content: Quote from: Shock on December 03, 2024, 04:18:17 pmYou are a legal daredevil, aren't you? What you suggest is highly illegal, at least in our part of the western world. Might be OK for australian outback, I don't know.They sold cheap stuff, sure. They sold stuff that did not meet your expectations, fine. But if you ("you" as in "someone") are only willing to pay 1 Dollar, while you expect the product specifications of a 20 Dollar product, and start complaining about the specifications only being as godd as a 1 Dollar product - that I would call foolish.And again - they did not promise something they did not deliver. It is just your hope of receiving a brand new 911 for the price of a well used Yugo - and then badmouthing the seller. Get real and maybe reconsider your accusations.Sure, there are complete fraudulent sellers, but those are everywhere. And China is still very godd for bargain purchases, compared to local shop prices.

author: Shock
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 04, 2024, 06:39:59 pm
content: You are good at arguing out your own fantasy scenarios. But it's a bit weird dragging me into them. None of that rubbish you posted ever happened.

author: EC8010
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2025, 10:59:02 am
content: I've just waved a magnet near my clip leads. Good grief, they stuck to the magnet! Will it matter? Probably not. So I slipped the hoods off the crocodile clips. It's hard to see how the electrical connection is made. So I measured resistance. Typically 0.6 ohm, but one was 1.6 ohm and another 2.2 ohm. To be fair, I bought them mainly for the coloured hoods, but it never occurred to me that they're fundamentally crap. They've come off my cable rack.

author: DrijSkij
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: April 23, 2025, 07:12:40 pm
content: Yes. I was given 2 packages of those type wires some years ago. When I used them strange things happened. Bad connectiions. Now, the last thing I would blame are quality wires with alligator clips, right? Those things would have a few strands of (30 ?) guage folded over and pressed against the clips. Soon after that I removed the alligator clips from all the wires and reused them with quality copper wire and went the extra step and soldered the wires to the alligator clips. Now, they are reliable and can handle substantially more current than the original "wires".