Buyer beware

[mitch]

just a little perspective: a couple hundred years ago Great Britain wanted the colonies to remain just a supplier of raw materials for their mills, primarily in the textile industry. American manufacturing was largely born by what we would now call industrial spying and technology theft. we weren't the first country to do this and China won't be the last. the more things change, the more they stay the same...

 

[Southern Custom]

There was a recent documentary on the subject of why this is so pervasive. The focus was on the clothing industry and the ridiculous wages garment workers were paid.
The director made a convincing argument that much of the problem starts with us and our need to feel better off than we are. Anyone can go out with a few hundred bucks and come home with a closet full of clothes. A poor man can dress like a king in other words.
I surmise that China only takes advantage of our need to acquire more stuff.
I recently looked at the shoes on my feet made by the Vans shoe company. 30 years ago I ordered them through the mail as a custom, made in America item. You could pick the fabric colors and so on. I think they cost around $40 bucks. We wore those shoes till the soles fell off. Buying them was a process. Today those shoes cost around $60 bucks and are made overseas. I can have a pair here through Amazon tomorrow. Instant gratification. I wish they cost a hundred and I still had to call Steve Van Doren to place my order.
While it is almost impossible not to support China, I would much rather save a few more clams and buy an item that I'll never have to replace or will last till I wear the soles off.
Steve Van Doren is still a wonderful guy though!
Layne

 

[LVVP]

Thank you to all for the interesting discussing

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Leaving knock-offs aside.

The Chinese do produce some good stuff like anywhere else.

My father was a garage guy. He loved tinkering in the garage and fixing and making things. More out of necessity in those days as there wasn't the abundance of stuff that there is today.

In those days, when I was growing up, tools were expensive and in our part of the world mainly came from England. They were generally of a high quality and are as good today as they were back then. Just a bit of wear and tear. I still have and use some of them to this day.

On one occasion I decided to see how Dad's favourite hand drill worked, as you do when you are a kid. So I pulled it apart and as I was unscrewing the chuck, several small springs shot out and disappeared into the ether of Dad's workshop.

Thinking that they weren't necessary to the operation of the drill I put it all back together again and thought no more about it.............till Dad went to use the drill the following weekend. Needless to say, all hell broke loose and dad was a very unhappy camper and my backside suffered quite a bit and it was hard to sit down for a few hours!!!!.

Mum explained to me that it cost dad a weeks wages for that drill. It's fair to say that it took him about 20 years to get over it.

I also remember dad sharpening his handsaws because they were expensive items back then.

Today, you can buy a power drill from China for $15 which is only a fraction of our weekly income. And that applies to most tools. If it blows up or breaks, you buy a new one.........and on it goes. You don't sharpen a saw anymore because you buy a new one for $5

Do I want to go back to the days of all that............No, I don't. Times have changed and for the better in a lot of cases. Businesses have always had to adapt and change to the modern economy of the day. We've never had it better as far as wages versus the cost of living.........and buying tools.

Cheers
Andrew

 

[James Ashley]

Andrew Biggs the voice of reason