What constitutes "Made in the USA"?
- Thread starter Chris
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Rubirob
TJ Enthusiast
I’m gonna need a better job before I can spend that much on a guitar, on day lol. When I spent 1200$ on my Taylor I felt like it was buying more than I needed, but I really enjoy that guitar.
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OP
I didn't pay that much for it. Rule of thumb is NEVER pay for price for a guitar.
A good example is my Gibson ES-345 Freddie King (126 of 200). The MSRP is $5500, but I called up my sales guy at Sweetwater and he gave it to me for $3400!
Another example would be an Ibanez EKM100 that I own. List price is $2800, but I called up Sweetwater and got it for $2400.
They are allowed to sell it to you for whatever they want, they just can't advertise below MSRP.
There is A LOT of profit margin built into those high end guitars. For instance, that PRS I'm talking about that runs $5600, my guy told me they get those for closer to $3000, so anything on top of that is profit. So if they for instance sold it to you for $4000, they'd still be making $1000.
The margins get smaller on the cheaper guitars (i.e. a $600 guitar), but the expensive ones have very large margins.
NEVER pay full price for an expensive guitar.
Rubirob
TJ Enthusiast
And now I have learned something new today, I got my Taylor for 10-15% off a year ago at guitar center.. I have never ordered from sweetwater. Maybe next time I get something I will give them a shot. I have never bought something that pricy before, so I am glad that before I did you told me that lol. Did you just call them up and haggle with them?
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OP
No haggling at all. I just called them up and said I really like this guitar, but unless I could get it for about 15% off, I think I'll pass. He didn't hesitate at all, he just said, "Sure, we can do that!". Selling guitars is a competitive business. Sweetwater is great though. Great customer service, really good prices on overnight shipping, huge selection, and a no questions asked return policy (within 30 days).
I buy all my guitars through them. You can always ask to speak with Ashton, he's the sales guy I always use. Once they assign you a sales guy, that's alway the sales guy they send you to for future orders. So I think it sort of builds up a personal relationship, which is nice.
Either way, any place that tells you that there isn't much wiggle room is lying (when it comes to the high end guitars).
How is it that PaulReed Smith and Gibson get capitalized but God doesn’t? That just seems wrong
OP
We’re always lurking!! Hahaha!! We’re real demons (which should not be capitalized, though Satan should).:flamethrower2:Oh sheesh... I didn't realize the grammar Nazis were out today
Rubirob
TJ Enthusiast
Pretty cool, I will buy my next one thru them! Also about the American made thing, I was thinking about how 50-60 years ago it was important right. However, I am thinking about how technology has gotten better and maybe that’s a reason we are seeing a lot of products being made abroad, labor is cheaper and the can get pretty close results to quality American made. I still prefer American made, and think it’s better. But I no longer worrie much if something has parts from Taiwan or Indonesia.. I still worry about China made stuff tho
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OP
Good call! You won't be disappointed.
I like to support the American Economy, but in many cases it doesn't make sense for a new business owner to setup shop and buy all the tooling, when they can instead have it made in a factory that already exists elsewhere that already has the tooling, knowledge, and know how.
The Chinese can make really good stuff. People are just used to the crap quality Chinese stuff they buy on eBay and Amazon, but you get what you pay for. If all the Chinese did was build garbage, their skyscrapers would be tumbling to the ground, their cars would be falling apart, etc. They're flooding the market with cheap crap, because that's what the majority of Americans on a budget are looking for, to spend as little as possible.
Rubirob
TJ Enthusiast
That’s a good point, I mean I like apple products. They are made in China, but to a higher standard.. they haven’t let me down yet lol.. I like to support the American economy as well. Hopefully with the political climate we see more business start up and stay here!
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OP
Yep. Both my iPhone and my iMac haven't let me down. They can make good stuff, but you have to be willing to pay for it. Most people here would gawk at a part you could get for your Jeep that was made in the USA but say $1000. They'd find a knock-off product for $500 that was made in China, and say why would I pay $1000 when I could get it for $500? That type of mentality is part of the reason we're in this mess.
The Chinese product might be cheaper, but chances are they cut corners to get there. Most people don't care about that however, or at least that's how it seems.
We may see more things being made in the USA, but one of the things that a lot of the current politicians don't seem to understand is that like it or not, we now live in a global economy.
If what you say is true, that people won’t pay $1000 for a US product when they can get a Chinese knockoff for $500, and we live in a global economy, how is it they are contributing to the mess we are in? Aren’t they rather contributing to the true global economy and furthering world progress?
OP
"Mess" was the wrong word. Actually, it was entirely wrong, I'm not even sure why I said that.
I don't think we're in a "mess" at all. However, I read around enough to surmise that a lot of people think that manufacturing jobs going away from the U.S. is just so horrible. I however think that things are just shifting. Where we were once manufacturing a lot more than we are now, I think nowadays the U.S. is just evolving. The job industries are different here now than they were 40 years ago. That's just evolution though, and I don't necessarily think it's a bad thing.
So when I said "mess", I was speaking on behalf of other people that I read about, which I should have worded way differently.
I do think it's a global economy though, at least that's my personal belief. As much as some people would like to see all the manufacturing brought back to the U.S., I think that over the course of time, things change, and people either have to adapt or die off.
Now as for the $1000 US made product versus the $500 Chinese product. I'm the type who would more likely buy the more expensive U.S. made product. Not necessarily because it's made in the U.S., but because I don't like "knock off" products for the most part.
I'm not an economist by any means, nor am I an expert on this matter. This is just my opinion, that the economy these days is a global one.
I fall into the category of people you read about. I do feel that the loss of manufacturing jobs to foreign countries is, for the most part, non-beneficial to the U.S. economy. My opinion (and please remember, that's all it is) may well be influenced by my age, the fact that I work in manufacturing, and my conservative leanings. Hell, even my love for a sense of nostalgia likely plays into it. Anyways, I'm definitely the guy who would pay more for the U.S. built product. I would, I have, and I will continue to do so for as long as I can. Now, where'd I put that flag...
OP
I fall into the category of people you read about. I do feel that the loss of manufacturing jobs to foreign countries is, for the most part, non-beneficial to the U.S. economy. My opinion (and please remember, that's all it is) may well be influenced by my age, the fact that I work in manufacturing, and my conservative leanings. Hell, even my love for a sense of nostalgia likely plays into it. Anyways, I'm definitely the guy who would pay more for the U.S. built product. I would, I have, and I will continue to do so for as long as I can. Now, where'd I put that flag...
I totally get that viewpoint, especially if you work in manufacturing. See, it's the opposite for me. I work in tech and computers, so I don't see the stuff firsthand that you probably are. The tech industry is booming and I see all these new jobs being added, they're just tech related jobs, information, or things such as "customer service".
But like you, I too would typically always pay more for a U.S. made product, with maybe a few exceptions.
A good example is my tools. Almost all of my tools are made in the U.S.A!
I agree 100% maybe same thing (age way brought up etc) when I have a choice will buy USA even when item might be comparable in quality I will spend more on USA productsI fall into the category of people you read about. I do feel that the loss of manufacturing jobs to foreign countries is, for the most part, non-beneficial to the U.S. economy. My opinion (and please remember, that's all it is) may well be influenced by my age, the fact that I work in manufacturing, and my conservative leanings. Hell, even my love for a sense of nostalgia likely plays into it. Anyways, I'm definitely the guy who would pay more for the U.S. built product. I would, I have, and I will continue to do so for as long as I can. Now, where'd I put that flag...
OP
Hell, even most vehicles are manufactured in the USA these days. My Subaru Outback is made in Ohio (as are most Subarus, and have been for a while), BMWs are mostly made in North Carolina (the ones we get here at least), Toyota, Honda, etc.
Sure, a lot of the parts come from different places, but they're built here in the USA.
Sure, a lot of the parts come from different places, but they're built here in the USA.
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