How to Spot and Avoid the Fake Volcano Vaporizer

Storz & Bickel have ceased production of the Digital Volcano Vaporizer with their release of the new Volcano Hybrid. While there are no new & sealed authentic Digital Volcano Vaporizers currently on the market , there are still plenty of fakes floating around on the second hand market. So if you are looking at buying a used Digital Volcano make sure to do your homework.

Buy A Verified Second Hand Digital Volcano

Since we wrote this blog post Storz & Bickel updated the packaging on their product line. The New and Updated Digital Volcano was easy to spot with the new white packaging and now comes with the Easy valve kit included which you can read more about it here . But as you guessed it the counterfeiters quickly copied suit and changed their boxes to white as well. However the fake units are still easy to spot regardless of the box color.

Storz & Bickel has long remained the industry standard for those who are seeking the best vaporizers in the world. Being German made and manufacturing their products in house has by in large kept their vaporizers free from Chinese copyright. However given the large dollar amount Storz & Bickel vaporizers fetch and their insatiable global demand, it was only a matter of time before the Volcano Vaporizer got ripped off.

Yes it is true – first the Mighty Vaporizer, now the Digital Volcano has fallen victim to unregulated Chinese manufacturers, seeking to cash in on the Volcano’s global demand.

Here at To The Cloud Vapor Store, we recently got our hands on a fake Volcano Vaporizer from Shenzhen Newton Technology Co., Ltd when they emailed us wishing to supply our needs. At $100 for the fake Volcano, we figured it was a small price to pay to warn customers what they should look out for.

Ebay, Amazon & Craigslist

Everyone likes a ~~smokin’~~ vapin’ deal and Ebay, Amazon & Craiglist are a few places to get great deals, from vehicles to silverware, while saving a bunch over retail prices.

However, with fake vaporizers the stakes are higher …. You’re inhaling harmful materials and the units will often break down in a matter of months. Even worse, you are getting ripped off! There is no need to buy counterfeit units from a US seller on Ebay, Amazon or locally on Craigslist when (we don’t recommend this) China will sell them to you direct. That is if you really want a lower quality counterfeit unit that will break down in a few months at least don’t middle man yourself.

These counterfeit vaporizers end up on Ebay, Amazon and Craigslist with the unsuspecting consumer thinking they are coming up large.

While fly by night sites like Thenerdstar.com & v4therapy.com pop up all the time, insisting on selling fake vaporizers on their own, the predominate amount of fakes you will find are on Amazon, Ebay and Craigslist where anyone can sell effortlessly. And they do so well below MSRP! It allows the weekend bargain hunter to think they scored huge – until an issue occurs a few months later and that great deal is an expensive paperweight.

The good thing is that if you know what to look for you can avoid the headache and hassle altogether of buying a poorly made Chinese knockoff Digital Volcano.

At the time of this post the fake Digital Volcano only comes with an easy valve option. That is not to say this won’t change or sellers of fakes won’t begin using authentic Storz & Bickel accessories to outfit the fake volcano unit. If the seller cannot offer you the solid valve, you are dealing with counterfeit items.

*** Disclaimer, the fakes are always changing to deceive unsuspecting consumers. Since this blog was written the counterfeiters have adjusted their fakes to appear more real ***

Packaging

Fake – ~~The quality seal located in the center over the box’s tab.~~

UPDATE: NEW FAKES HAVE SEAL IN CORRECT PLACE

Authentic – Quality seal is located off to the side.

Fake – Volcano unit does not fit 100% perfectly in the box, there is some minor protrusion.

Authentic – Unit fits firm and snug without issue in its own packaging.

Fake – ~~Fake volcano does not come inside the typical plastic bag.~~

UPDATE: NEW FAKES COME WITH PLASTIC BAG

Authentic – Comes with a quality control bag covering unit.

Every new, authentic unit will come with this zip tie.

Fake – The power chord does not come wrapped and placed up through upper styrofoam portion of box.

Authentic – The power chord will be wrapped around unit and have a zip tie at the base of the chord.

Fake – On this counterfeit model the styrofoam insert, holes were not punched all the way through.

Authentic – Bottom styrofoam insert will have holes cut all the way through.

Unit

The lighting between the fake and authentic Digital Volcano is the biggest giveaway. The LED gives off an almost blinding shine on the fake Volcano Vaporizer. The control button on the fake unit is much brighter as well and will not turn off once the desired temperature is reached.

Fake – Top of heating element screws off with ease. Plastic is a dirtier color and lesser quality.

Authentic – Plastic top will spin off, but not with ease and not a new unit which has not been run. It is a more sturdy black with a higher temperature threshold.

This is much like the lids you will see on the Fake PAX 2 versus the real thing. The heat tolerance for the plastic on the counterfeits in far inferior, causing alarm for your health and mechanical issues with the unit.

Fake – On this particular unit the serial number of the counterfeit didn’t match the box’s serial number.

Authentic – Unit serial number will ALWAYS match box serial number.

Fake – The digital readout has no clear plastic film.

Authentic – The digital readout will always come with the protective thin filmed plastic similar to what you would find on items such as a new iPhone’s screen.

Fake – A combination of washers and screws hold stainless steel hood in place.

Authentic – A singular series of screws hold the stainless steel hood in place.

Fake – The spacing under the stainless steel hood is non-uniformed from point to point.

Authentic – Flipping the unit upside down you can see the uniformity between the stainless steel hood and plastic base, along the entirety.

Fake – Plastic feet fall off rather easy. With our new counterfeit Volcano we had two rubber feet fall off in a matter of minutes.

Authentic – Give those feet a quick tug, they’re sure to stay on.

Fake – ~~The back screw is a Phillip’s head screw.~~

UPDATE: NEW FAKES HAVE FLAT BACK SCREW

Authentic – The back screw is totally flat.

Fake – The thermostat (heating element) shows rough and unpolished features.

Authentic – The heating element is polished and uniformed in color.

Fake – The electric insert underneath unit shows all grey.

Authentic – The color series for this electric insert is grey, green, grey.

Accessories

This is the part to take with a grain of salt. The counterfeit Digital Volcano is in it’s infancy. Once consumers take heed the fakes have arrived, middlemen will start switching out fake Storz & Bickel accessories for real ones and placing them in with the counterfeit unit as they did with the fake Mighty Vaporizers.

Grinder

Easy Valve Bag

Fake – The wrapping within the easy valve bag packaging is clearly not as professional and appears to be done by hand. When out of the packaging you can remove the bag’s clasp with minimal effort.

Authentic – The new easy valve bag has been wrapped with some sort of machine giving it a space you can see through on the side. The authentic easy valve bag has been clamped on in an industrial grade manner.

Easy Valve Starter Kit

Fake – The proper easy valve is hard to tell apart. The plastic is of a lesser grade, but it’s hard to tell unless you are holding an authentic one side by side. The O-ring for the counterfeit easy valve slips down into the plastic portion as if it is too tight. The counterfeit brush, wrong size liquid pad white air filters and lack of easy valve clips and spare O-ring really help identify a counterfeit easy valve set.

Authentic – Every new Storz & Bickel Easy Valve will come with 3 sets of easy valve screens, liquid pad, brush, 3 pc easy valve clips and an extra O-ring. The new easy valve comes with an adapter bag not found in the fakes

UPDATE: THE FAKE EASY VALVE SET NOW COMES WITH QUALITY SEAL

If you want to purchase the authentic Storz & Bickel Digital Volcano Vaporizer with easy OR solid valve we’ve included the best place to do so below.

To the Cloud Vapor Store offers a 90-day trial period on all Storz & Bickel products as well as lifetime exchanges for store credit. Get $60 off your purchase today when you click here.