I read this thread with interest in the technical results. I don't care if two motors are identical as much as I care whether they provide comparable results. Debating or proving whether they come from the same factory is unimportant to me.

However I do recognize that there is is a difference between price and value.

Price is what I pay.
Value is my measure of what I get for what I spend.

I include service, support, quality control, timely results and other factorsas part of value. So the fact that I can buy a motor from one source for $30 and a comparable motor from another source is $60 is easy to measure. But if I have had problems with the quality control from the first source and consistent results from the second speaks to value, not price.

I value documentation. I have purchased cheap motors from time to time. Many have come with no documentation at all. But when I pay a higher price I expect better documentation because documentation costs money to create.

I value support and support costs money. When I have a problem I want help and I want it on a timely basis.

I have purchased cheap motors and had them show up DOA. When I contacted the supplier I was told to send it back for eval. The cost to send it back was more than the price of the motor, so I threw it away. Value received? Zero.

I purchased a replacement from another source, more than twice the price,and got a motor that has worked flawlessly. Value received? High!

I value innovation. Those "high priced" providers make more profit and can afford to plow that profit into new designs and innovation. The "cloners" feed off that design and spend their efforts copying the work of others. Some of us don't care about that. I do.

So, each of us have different opinions of what is price and what is value. I am more than happy to pay a higher price to receive higher value if it leads to a higher level of satisfaction. That does not show up on the test bench.

Of course, your smileage may vary.