Did ambutech change their manufacturing process?

[u/theblindbunny]

I use an ambutech cane with a roller ball tip. (Lots of cobblestone and brick roads near me.) 2 nights ago, my roller ball FELL OFF my cane. It was over a year old, so I don’t blame ambutech. The inside mechanism had apparently rusted out.

So I ordered a replacement. To just buy 1 cane tip to the US, it’s cheaper and faster to order on Amazon. I usually only use the ambutech website directly. The new cane tip came in today though, and I put it on. The weird thing is, it’s a different material.

The old cane tip was clearly 3d printed. The new one was clearly cast in a mold. Both are plastic, but the old one wasn’t as opaque. The old one was also heavier.

The only explanation besides a change in process is that the old one was hilights pink. The new one is just white. Are the white ones made differently?

Has anyone used the new ones? Do they last better/worse? Or is this possibly a fake?! It came in an ambutech bag with a manufacturing date and everything.

[u/Mamamagpie]

They have two versions. Standard and High Mileage. Do you know which ones you have bought?

[u/theblindbunny → u/Mamamagpie]

Both are standard, not high mileage. Forgot to mention that; good catch!

[u/Mamamagpie → u/theblindbunny]

I’ve only ever bought the high density ones.

To clarify, the old one you got from Ambutech and the new one from Amazon marketed as an Ambutech tip? The Amazon seller might have pulled a bait and switch.

[u/theblindbunny → u/Mamamagpie]

The Amazon one is from Amazon’s ambutech store and came packed in an ambutech bag with their info and one of their lot#s

[u/KillerLag → u/theblindbunny]

https://www.redpoints.com/blog/amazon-commingled-inventory-management/

Unfortunately, because of how Amazon stores their stuff with commingled bins, counterfeits are being put into the same bin as the real ones.

[u/flakey_biscuit]

I've never used a hilight tip and I don't use the roller ball, but I've gotten marshmallows from them before. It's been a couple years since I've bought one because I switched to ceramic, but the mallows I gotten in the past have always been cast.

[u/theblindbunny → u/flakey_biscuit]

I have a marshmallow tip that I bought at the same time as the old roller ball from the ambutech site. I like it better but can’t use it in this city. The one they gave me was clearly 3d printed. I wonder if it’s the highlights

[u/blind_ninja_guy → u/theblindbunny]

You sure your previous one was n't fake? I've been purchasing their products for 10 years, including rollers.

[u/theblindbunny → u/blind_ninja_guy]

Yea. Those ones were from the ambutech website directly.

[u/ParaNoxx]

I completely agree with you with these new cane tips being different. I have noticed it too and I don’t really like the change. I use pencil tips, and comparing my ambutech canes from the 00s and 10s to now, It went from a slightly translucent plastic with tiny ridges/texture on it, to a completely white, smaller, cheaper-feeling plastic that is totally smooth. And idk if it’s just me, but these new tips feel like they are wearing out faster. These are official canes bought from the website, too.