There are always replicas and copies of other folks equipment products appearing out there on the ‘net. I think we’re all so used to it we tend to miss the fact sometimes. Browsing across some lines available in Japan I spotted what I thought were MaxPedition products.. but rereading I spotted something. Those labels say “MagForce” not “MaxPedition”.
MagForce International are a company based in Taiwan, formed in 1988 with around a hundred employees. MaxPedition are based in California over in the US. On the left is the MagForce, on the right MaxPedition. Confused yet? This is just one example, but the entire range can be found in Japan under the MagForce name. What we’re looking at is either an unauthorised copy or sales of the same products just under a different label, most likely meaning that MaxPedition is actually made in Taiwan. Answers on a postcard to this one.
Update: I’ve had an email from AlexC to say that MagForce and MaxPedition are one and the same company. However I’ve also been told that MaxPedition and MagForce are not the same company, but come from the same factory. In the same communication I’ve been given the following quote from MilitaryMorons, but for the life of me I can’t find the original source page. I’ve emailed MaxPedition to get a definitive answer (I’m just curious). Here’s the quote I’ve been given:
MagForce is an asian brand/company, and MaxPedition (a US based
company) has their products made in the magforce factory in Taiwan,
with their own quality control and specifications for the US market.
MagForce products are marketed and made for taiwan, while MaxPedition
is based here in the states, and sells in North America and Europe.
Most of the design and product innovation is done by MaxPedition and
trickles down to MagForce products. There are differences in features
(some more subtle than others). For example, some MaxPedition products
were redesigned to be mostly malice compatible (I’m partially
responsible for that switch) for the US market, whereas MagForce still
uses a different attachment method. MilitaryMorons
