Rubycon Capacitors

[Voodoo 6]

Just emailed Rubycon to ask if they have a way to submit sample capacitors to ensure they are original. With the proliferation of fake caps, I am not sure what is real or fake. The caps I have test ok on the Fluke, but who knows. I understand the intricacies of selling directly to the public, but perhaps one day. 

[mariush]

Buy them from reputable online distributors like Digikey.com , Farnell.com (Newark.com in US) , Mouser.com , arrow , avnet etc

That's kind of the best way to make sure they're original components.

[Voodoo 6]

Not a big fan of digikey or Mouser due to the inflated cost of shipping. I will have to look into the other authorized dealers. I wouldn't mind letting Rubycon test the stock I have now to ensure they are originals. I guess you really cant put a price on peace of mind.

[TerraHertz]

Funny that some companies would bother faking a good brand name, when others are quite upfront about their caps being suspect. Like these ones I replaced a bunch of in a friend's monitor recently.
Do you like their name? I think it's great they are so honest.

[Voodoo 6]

Oh wow, they didn't even try to conceal it lol.

We here at suxcon feel that every capacitor we make, should be made with stuff in them, not exactly the right stuff.. but stuff nonetheless....if it blows up it means they are working. POW!!! SUXCON best!!! HIGH POWER!!!!!

[Voodoo 6]

Can you imagine these components in a critical system like say...a fighter jet or an airliner?

[tszaboo]

Can you imagine these components in a critical system like say...a fighter jet or an airliner?

Have you ever hear the term "supply chain"?

[Voodoo 6]

Have you ever heard the term "retards manning the customs check point", or "outsourcing". Guess the only true stopgap would be competent folks at the end of the supply chain.

[Kjelt]

If you need larger amounts of components or have extreme (security) requirements, you deal with and buy directly from the manufacturer.
No western company is going to risk a lawsuit or claims not to mention its good name and reputation on some component broker.
Better even when there is a problem with a product and you can determine the root cause to be a component which is not within spec, you can sue the component manufacturer or move the claim to their insurance company.

[Voodoo 6]

I agree, it would be cool to go back to the days when we didn't have to deal with issues like this. The forgery of a 10 cent component basically ruined the trust of the component industry, and continues to do so worldwide. If you look at the the super specialized systems, ie encryption chips, they are crafted in house for the most part. For the average Joe, lawyers are not really an option.  I guess in the end, its simply a matter of paying the authorized dealers a premium. You can have it cheap, or you can have it good, but there is no such thing as cheap and good. 

[rdl]

Not a big fan of digikey or Mouser due to the inflated cost of shipping. I will have to look into the other authorized dealers. I wouldn't mind letting Rubycon test the stock I have now to ensure they are originals. I guess you really cant put a price on peace of mind.

I can't comment on Digi-key, but I've been buying from Mouser for over 12 years and have never been charged anything but actual shipping cost, and there is never a handling or packing surcharge. On the other hand, I do wish they'd offer First Class for qualifying (small) orders. Currently the cheapest service they offer is something like $4.

[fubar.gr]

Can you imagine these components in a critical system like say...a fighter jet or an airliner?

With proper thermal management and ripple current derating even a bad quality capacitor will live for a very long time.

Part of the problem is designers who push components to their limits, to shave a few cents off the BOM.