Paul Robichaud has seen a lot of counterfeit tools over the last few years. As president of Somerville, Mass.-based Robi Tool Sales , he says his first encounter happened about 10 years ago, when a salesperson from Canada pulled up to the one of his distribution locations, opened the back of his van and offered Robichaud counterfeit carbide drill tips made to look like name-brand products.

The pricing was attractive, but the drill tips were inferior, he says.

“They weren't heat-treated, so they didn't work at all,” recalls Robichaud, a staunch believer in the theory that, “If the deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.”

In this case, he was dead on: When the rep put one of the carbide tips into a rotary hammer and began drilling holes with it, the bit didn't spin.

“At first I thought the rotary handle was defective, and that it had a bad clutch,” he recalls. “Then we noticed that its end was stripped out because the steel never hardened.”

And with that, the rep went running for the exit.

“That's the last time we ever saw him,” says Robichaud, who calls the experience an “eye opener” because counterfeit products had yet to become mainstream within the tool and fastener industry.

“We read about women's purses being copied, but I had never heard of it happening within the tool business,” says Robichaud.

A lot has changed over the years, according to Robichaud, who says counterfeit Makita and Bosch products have become commonplace. To detect them, he checks out their styling, which is “usually all wrong” on the fakes, even though they are often labeled correctly.

“It's like putting a Mercedes Benz logo on a Chevrolet,” he says. “Many times they're not even the right color, and even if they are the right color, the styling is all wrong.”

Take Bosch tools, for example, which have a unique style Robichaud is very familiar with. Unfortunately, his customers can't always tell the difference when a vanload of inexpensive tools pulls up to their job sites.

“They'll buy the tools for a fraction of the regular price, only to have them break down,” says Robichaud. “Then they bring them to us to see what we can do about them. The tools usually look virtually new, but they're useless, and we have to break the news to them.”

Copycats are everywhere in the business world, but can be particularly troublesome in the tool and fastener arena, where one poorly designed product can lead to job delays, botched projects, or worse yet, safety hazards for their operators.

It's something that Brian Monks, vice president of anti-counterfeiting operations at Chicago-based Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. , deals with on a daily basis.

“Counterfeiting is growing on a global scale,” says Monks, who has noted an increasing number of crooks entering the tool industry over the last two years.

“It's an economic crime, because there's a lot of money in it, and the lure of financial rewards attracts a lot of people who want to maximize their profits in this illegal manner.”

The widespread counterfeiting of everything from designer handbags to entertainment DVDs is driving the trend, Monks says. But with fake tools, the difference is that counterfeit products can create safety hazards that a fake Coach bag can't.

“People get hurt, and jobs are lost because the legitimate companies can't make a profit,” he says, pointing out that many counter-feiters get away with their crimes.

“This is white collar crime, so it doesn't incur the same penalties as if someone were dealing drugs. There's a lure of easy money.”

To distributors who may unknowingly be drawn into purchasing from counterfeiters, Monks advises familiarity with your source.

“If you're buying cheap tools off the back of a truck, there's a good chance you're dealing with counterfeiters,” he warns. “Distributors should always know and have a relationship with the people they're buying from.”

The Internet is another playground for counterfeiters, who don't even have to show their faces to make a deal. If a deal looks like it's too good to be true online, for example, ask questions such as, “Why are you selling me this circular saw for $30 when I can buy what looks to be the same one from another supplier for $100?”

Monks says distributors should also ask for certification verification (from a group like UL, for example), to ensure you're not buying a cheaply made fake tool that could become a safety hazard for your customer.

“Be alert and aware, know who you're buying from and always question a deal that looks like it's too good to be true,” says Monks. “There's no free lunch in this world.”

At Construction Tools and Supply in Nashville, president Michael Rogers says he's had sales reps offer him Makita look-alikes for $10, when the regular price would be as much as $50.

Telling the difference between the real goods and the fakes can be a challenge, Rogers says.

“They actually look pretty good, and when you crank them up they sound pretty good,” he says. “I've never bought any, but I've certainly seen some Chinese-made products being sold by the pallet for 10 bucks apiece.”

Rogers avoids such deals for obvious reasons, not least of which is customer safety.

“I have to look at exactly where the fasteners, grinding wheels and tools are coming from, and whether the vendor has the proper insurance to back me up if the product blows up during use,” Rogers says. “I want someone like Makita, DeWalt or Milwaukee behind me if something like that happens.”

Robichaud agrees, saying he always has an eye out for possible fakes when dealing with unfamiliar or new vendors. His top concern at all times is customer safety, he says.

“In their quest to save a few bucks, customers don't always weigh out what they're doing, so our role as distributor is to police the problem and help out with public safety, he says.”