Super Joints and copy cats.
Well its been nearly 11 years since I filed for the Patent on the Super Joint. (sold as the Yukon Super Joint) In that Time I've seen a few competitors come & go. (OX) I've seen some copy cats, and some very similar designs and some completely different. I've had competitors (CTM) send me letters to cease and desist manufacturing the Super Joint, saying theirs was patented, and mine was infringing on their patent. So I sent proof showing them that my joint was patented before their joint and they backed off.
Now yet another u-joint is in/after the market, the Nitro Excalibur 300M. So it claims to have some similar features to my Super Joint thus I had to get my hands on some and get them tested to see if they infringe on my patent.
Their website* makes the following claims:
Made from 300M,
Strongest Joint available, &
Surface hardened trunnion.
http://www.nitro-gear.com/news/2009/...-u-joints.html
http://www.justdifferentials.com/ind...oducts_id=2134
Note: these links work in post 14, sorry I cant seem to edit them here.
I will address these issues in reverse order.
Surface hardened trunnion. My Patent covers any u-joint using Ionic coatings for surface hardening. Examples are Nitriding, Titanium Aluminum oxide, & chromium nitride to name just a few. This is what gives my trunnion its hardness such that it does not need a bushing. It turns out that their coating is just a standard black oxide coating to prevent surface rust in storage.
Strongest Joint on the Market. I saw no actual comparative data on this.
Made from 300M
Test results show this to be made from 4340, same as mine. Here is where I go livid............It is completely misleading and unethical for Nitro to advertise their product as 300M material, when it is not!!
I don't mind competition in the market place, that's what small business in America is all about, but making false claims to sell your product is not allowed. After selling over 10,000 units and to my knowledge I have never seen one that broke, it drives me nuts when every body else in marketing a bling bling 300m product that is not necessary. I ask you to take a look at the following independent test results, comment and if you have any complaints about the Super Joint please let me know so that I can take steps to improve it. I know there were some quality issues when they were first manufactured but now they are being built entirely in the good old USA!
Well its been nearly 11 years since I filed for the Patent on the Super Joint. (sold as the Yukon Super Joint) In that Time I've seen a few competitors come & go. (OX) I've seen some copy cats, and some very similar designs and some completely different. I've had competitors (CTM) send me letters to cease and desist manufacturing the Super Joint, saying theirs was patented, and mine was infringing on their patent. So I sent proof showing them that my joint was patented before their joint and they backed off.
Now yet another u-joint is in/after the market, the Nitro Excalibur 300M. So it claims to have some similar features to my Super Joint thus I had to get my hands on some and get them tested to see if they infringe on my patent.
Their website* makes the following claims:
Made from 300M,
Strongest Joint available, &
Surface hardened trunnion.
http://www.nitro-gear.com/news/2009/...-u-joints.html
http://www.justdifferentials.com/ind...oducts_id=2134
Note: these links work in post 14, sorry I cant seem to edit them here.
I will address these issues in reverse order.
Surface hardened trunnion. My Patent covers any u-joint using Ionic coatings for surface hardening. Examples are Nitriding, Titanium Aluminum oxide, & chromium nitride to name just a few. This is what gives my trunnion its hardness such that it does not need a bushing. It turns out that their coating is just a standard black oxide coating to prevent surface rust in storage.
Strongest Joint on the Market. I saw no actual comparative data on this.
Made from 300M
Test results show this to be made from 4340, same as mine. Here is where I go livid............It is completely misleading and unethical for Nitro to advertise their product as 300M material, when it is not!!
I don't mind competition in the market place, that's what small business in America is all about, but making false claims to sell your product is not allowed. After selling over 10,000 units and to my knowledge I have never seen one that broke, it drives me nuts when every body else in marketing a bling bling 300m product that is not necessary. I ask you to take a look at the following independent test results, comment and if you have any complaints about the Super Joint please let me know so that I can take steps to improve it. I know there were some quality issues when they were first manufactured but now they are being built entirely in the good old USA!