I'm with you on this. Past recourse for people with this problem was limited to getting new tires, and in very few cases, repairs of damages. You're on your own in so many cases like this. This is what happens when people shop based solely on price. And this is also what happens when companies and CEOs, etc strive to maximize profits by using every possible means. You might have read where I have been upgrading and expanding my workshop and garage lately, buyinig some machinery in the process. I've been having a tough time finding suitable machinery made in the U.S., even if the company itself is U.S. based. Almost all the machinery meant for home or small shops is no longer made here, shifted instead to Taiwan/China. Now, not all of these imported machines are of bad quality, but I prefer to do my part and buy locally, so to speak. I did manage to buy a nice Baldor two-speed buffer last month, made in the U.S.. I could have gotten an import for about one-fifth of the price. No import I have found, however, offers the 3600/1800 dual speed, and even if there was a model, I gave my bucks to the sole (at least as far as I know) maker of buffers and grinders making them here. Now, I wanted a big 12 inch 2HP grinder, and could have bought one from Baldor. The problem there was I would have to have shelled out over 2800 dollars for one of theirs. I simply don't have that kind of coin. The imported one was less than 600. It's well made, and will probably outlast me, given the usage cycle I would put it through. Now, if I had a professional shop where things get beat on every day, I'd spring for the top of the line. Baldor could do a lot of us a favor and lower their prices on some of their grinders. They are simply riding high on the fact that many government and industrial contracts often require US made machinery. They price the stuff accordingly now. I also have read where Baldor, a maker of electric motors of all types and sizes as well, has slipped on their quality in the last few years. Motors that would ordinarily last under decades of hard use without any fuss are burning out, mainly because of cheapening the enameling process used to insulate the windings. What used to be a long, two-step repeating process of enameling and baking the windings twice has been taken down to a single treatment. Apparently, this is not enough, and it's starting to show. I used to dread the imported motors on imported machinery, they often ran hot and lacked power. Now, that is no longer the case. The stuff is looking better and better, and it's going to become the norm soon if the US companies don't step things up in quality and keep prices in check. No huge salaries for the CEOs and the rest of the board. There are way too many companies ready to eat our lunch.
Delta just came out with their new Unisaw. I've been waiting for this machine, and it looks good. Thing is, it's about 2800 dollars, or not quite double what the current model goes for on average. I was willing to pop for the difference on the machine, especially if it's as good as they say it is. But then I hear that Black and Decker, now the Delta parent company, might have given money to help pass Prop. 8. If that's the case, I am really thinking of reconsidering the deal. And given the sheer amount of Delta, B&D, DeWalt and Porter-Cable tools and machinery I have already and the fact that B&D owns all these brands (and has been offshoring more and more production), I am really in a quandary. I am not about to toss out what I already have, but do I give them any more of my business? The last power tools I bought recently were from Bosch.
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Date: 2009-06-01 02:23 pm (UTC)Delta just came out with their new Unisaw. I've been waiting for this machine, and it looks good. Thing is, it's about 2800 dollars, or not quite double what the current model goes for on average. I was willing to pop for the difference on the machine, especially if it's as good as they say it is. But then I hear that Black and Decker, now the Delta parent company, might have given money to help pass Prop. 8. If that's the case, I am really thinking of reconsidering the deal. And given the sheer amount of Delta, B&D, DeWalt and Porter-Cable tools and machinery I have already and the fact that B&D owns all these brands (and has been offshoring more and more production), I am really in a quandary. I am not about to toss out what I already have, but do I give them any more of my business? The last power tools I bought recently were from Bosch.