Not much use without prices.
There must be hundreds of dealers buying from the same manufacturer as this
guy or at least a trader who buys from the factory. If the owner of this
website wants to know the actual factory, he can contact me. It is in
Wuzhou.
That's typical. The Chinese are really invading cyberspace. Careful. Lots of
junk out there. They are also selling on ebay! CAREFUL! Buy from a bonafide
American company. Pay a little more! Get a warranty!
contains these words:
Bonafide American companies... hmmmm.... wasn't Enron bonafide for quite
a while ?
Damn near everything is now produced in China, if it isn't and it is
indeed coming from an American company then chances are they will be
bust in the near future. Alternatively... they are buying from China and
then putting their own mark up on top !
Reg
I beg your pardon Reg. You seem to have a very grim attitude.
EVERYBODY in this world is not dishonest. However, the more responsibility
and authority a person has, the more enticing it is to be dishonest. That's
the reason for ALL the rules, regulations and laws. They're meant to keep
people honest. Sometimes it doesn't work. If everybody in the world was
dishonest, it would be like a throwback to the caveman days.
The thing I have trouble understanding is, the head of the 'New York Stock
Exchange' does a poor job and gets relieved of duty, but he gets a
Multi-Million Dollar 'BONUS' on his way out. Figure That!!!
________________________________
Earl Scherzinger 'AMA' #40329
Very true Earl. There are us two for a start and I bet, if we really set
our minds to it, we could come up with enough people to require using
the fingers on both hands to count >:-)
That is just an example of the "New Economics" as practised by the
modern day "robber barons". Move into a directors job, or better still
CEO, award self and fellow robbers huge pay settlements, bonuses and share
options. Cock the business up completely and then go retire... after
getting the golden handshake, huge pension award and all the money from
having cashed in your share options the day before the company went
belly up !
Last thing they have to remember as they depart with the swag... blame
the unions and the high cost of labour !!!
Downsizing with it's loss of employees and "creative accounting" were
just incidentals to justify awarding huge bonuses to the top people each
year..... those people who if you don't pay them obscene amounts of
money are going to be fleeing abroad or be snatched up by other
companies.... oh yeah, they are going to be queing up for these dumbos
alright !
Cynical.... Me.... ?
Nah, I got out years ago and watch in amazement... well in between
flying model aeroplanes >:-)
Reg
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 16:35:45 +0000, tux_powered wrote:
If I might add my two penneth. I reside in the UK, and have purchased
modelling stuff from the now Russian federation, the Ukraine, and Hong
Kong, mainly through eBay, and will do again.
All I have ever had is honest dealings and cordial correspondence. Not
everyone is in thrall to the Russian Mafia or Chinese gangs. There are
plenty of scams being worked far closer to home. My partner works in the
modern day equivalent of a pawn shop, so he sees them every day.
Regardless of any monetary savings, which can occasionally be
considerable, I can usually get the latest version of an engine from Hong
Kong, whereas any local stocks tend to be a generation behind.
And here is something else for you to chew on. How come I can import a
medium sized engine from almost anywhere in the world for an airmail
shipping cost of $10.00 US dollars, or less, when to ship the same item
from the US I have to pay at least double that amount? Or am I just being
ripped off? I always thought UK shipping charges where high, but I was
wrong.
I have also noticed a reluctance on the part of some US model suppliers to
export anything at all, which I find a little surprising coming from the
land of free enterprise. So I can't help but think there are some double
standards at work when people criticise anything sold from China, after
all, they are only doing what every enterprising economy has done in the
past, including the US and the UK.
Zoe Quilter
Zoe,
I wish I knew the answer why it costs us so much to send something to the UK
from the US but it does. I don't know how the HK companies do it!
Some of the US suppliers have stopped selling overseas because they have
been ripped off by people buying with a credit card and then canceling the
charge after they receive the item. The credit card company and the customer
just stick it to the honest company that sent it.
Sad but true!
wrote:
Hi Zoe -- Some countries (Japan and China) have government-subsidized
shipping, which allows companies to charge their customers less for
shipping. It's smart business on the part of countries which are interested
in exporting a lot of product. In the US, our government just gives lip
service to the concept of increasing exports.
Regarding manufacturing costs... we are one of the few remaining American
companies trying to compete with the Chinese. The difference in our
economies makes this pretty much impossible without government intervention
to "level" the economic playing field. To do this, our US government would
need to apply import tariffs that would cause imported products to cost the
same as the equivalent products made here. Sadly, our government is
refusing to do this in the interest of "Free Trade" rather than "Fair
Trade". The result is the loss of millions of jobs here in the US. It's
also true that the imported products cost less, but I'm not convinced that's
in the best interest of Americans wanting decent-paying jobs.
Randy
Model Airplane Engineering
www.m-a-e.com
On Wed, 10 Jan 2007 10:05:50 -0500, R.J. Roman wrote:
Hi Randy,
I have no argument with most of your explanation, the same situation
exists here in the UK. But even Napoleon referred to us as a, "nation of
shop keepers." We don't really manufacture anything of consequence any
more. Even military contracts tend to be joint ventures with other EU
countries.
However the cost of shipping does not just apply to the former soviet
block countries or Hong Kong, (isn't our former colony doing well), I
literally mean the rest of the world. The cost would be as near as dammit
the same from Japan, Austalia, or New Zealand, which as far as I know have
no subsidised postal service? The $10 US rate seems almost universal,
apart from the US.
Even our own now privatised Royal Mail would send the TWO engines I have
just received from Hong Kong, to the US by airmail for $15 US and our
postal service is far from cheap.
Zoe
Zoe - for some reason, we can ship for much less (via USPS Global Priority
Mail) if we DON'T insure the package. We have, in fact, done this on
occasion... but the customer then has to assume liability for lost or
damaged parcels. We can ship up to 4-lb to the UK for about $10, as long as
it fits in a USPS Global Priority flat-rate envelope.
As a nation we are losing (have already lost) our manufacturing base. Our
powers-that-be appear to have totally forgotten that one of the major
reasons the South lost the Civil War was its lack of a manufacturing base.
Now we're making the same mistake on a national basis.
Randy
Model Airplane Engineering
www.m-a-e.com
On Wed, 10 Jan 2007 17:28:14 -0500, R.J. Roman wrote:
And therein lies the difference. All the purchases I have made from other
parts of the world are indeed uninsured. But I will only purchase if the
sender guarantees responsibility for lost items. Most do, with no
argument, and state as much on their web sites. I have not had an
undelivered parcel, yet, the only one that did go AWOL was posted in the
UK to me in the UK, and arrived a week after the replacement.
I suppose as a business you have to decide if you are willing to stand the
loss of a small percentage of goods to get the custom. I was told once it
amounts to around 1 1/2 percent of anything shipped. This approach
certainly engenders trust, I feel a lot more willing to purchase if this
is the case, than stump up a lot of money for insurance.
I fly Control Line not RC, been there done that got the tee shirt, and
find it very annoying when the only place I can sometimes obtain the items
I need, is the US. Asking UK dealers to obtain stuff from the US is like
asking for fairy dust, in fact asking for anything to do with Control Lne
is like asking for the fairy dust and a line of coke laced with hens
teeth; but the fly in the ointment if I try to do it myself is always the
shipping costs, making the the whole exercise prohibitively expensive.
Even any duty payable is within the realms of reason. So I am forced to
shop around the rest of the world.
Doesn't bode well does it?
Zoe
Uh, Randy, not so sure about China subsidizing shipping. I order thousands
of dollars worth of stuff from there every month. I've never gotten a break
yet.
Uh, last time I checked we live in a capitalistic free enterprise system
which is driven by profit. What's wrong
with someone risking their money, spending a ton to develop a product,
having it made in China, spending a fortune
on the product to buy in huge quantity to get a good price, spending a
boatload on shipping, spending a TON of money on advertising (model airplane
magazine ads are outrageously expensive), sticking their neck out to provide
a warranty, providing customer service (one hour phone calls from newbies).
Are they not entitled to some "Markup"? Are you so jaded you would deny them
a profit? If so, I encourage you to buy everything directly from China. No
more Walmart, Sears, Home Depot, etc. etc. Did you know Black and Decker
and Dewalt are made in China? Hmmm?
Remember, everything that comes from China goes into our economy, the
importer makes a small profit and it goes into our economy, the distributor
makes a small profit, ditto...into the economy, the dealer makes a small
profit...you guessed it...economy.
We don't produce diddly squat in this country anymore! If it wasn't for
China, you couldn't buy anything. The greed of the unions insured years ago
that American companies had to either go offshore to produce or close down.
Wake up, it's now a world economy. Accept it or go live in a cave.
contains these words:
(model airplane
magazine ads are outrageously expensive),
So why are model airplane magazines outrageously expensive? They're 2/3
ads! The rags oughta be free! Remember when companies gave away
products with their logos on them? Now they've snookered the public
into BUYING stuff with brand names plastered all over them. STUPID!!!
As for Chinese products, if you don't like 'em, don't buy 'em! Quit
buying and start building again.
Oh so very true. When Americans, and to a lesser extent us Brits,
(lesser extent because we didn't have much manufacturing base left)
complain about all the manufacturing jobs going to China, India or
wherever why is it that some blame the government, unions driving up the
cost of labour, etc ?
Isn't it a fact that the multi national companies simply seek the
biggest profit return ? This way the shareholders get a small amount of
joy and the Direcors get humongous bonuses and share options. They just
take production to wherever the labour costs are lowest.... and they
also ship the machinery out there so the necessary quality can be
attained. If the Americans and also us Brits were prepared to work for a
$1 or two for a days pay then I am sure the jobs would return... but
hey, what sort of a lifestyle are you going to enjoy on a $1 or two a
day ?
Of more relevance.... US postal charges to the UK. Well I don't know if
it's typical but I wanted to buy a diesel conversion head for a glow
motor. The price initially looked O.K but then.... the postal charge was
damned near the same as the item I wanted to buy. I guess I will do
without rather than pay around $30 postage.
Reg
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