Made in China - Monarch A-2 repros

[regius]

Edward, I highly recommend Kelso as a matter of fact! Aero disappointed me with the pocket flap stitch fiasco, and with their stiffer/thicker horsehide, the breaking in process can well BREAK the stitches, I know mine was probably an exception, as many of us here never had that problem, while a guy I met on the street was wearing an Eastman with a torn pocket flap too, but Kelso uses supple Italian horsehide that conforms better to your body curve and natural movement, and the stitching on kelso is more to the edge I think.

 

[rocketeer]

I have had 20 years experience with Chinese products in Auto Parts and have a friend that imports accessories for cell phones for the last 3 years.

Many Chinese factories are quite capable of producing very good stuff, they follow specs and have great quality control. Usually these are run by companies the are outside of China and the parent company has staff on hand to insure that the raw materials are what they are supposed to be, that the machines are set up correctly and the tooling is in good shape. They monitor the quality control daily and have invested what ti takes to test and produce top quality goods. There are many companies in China that do not manufacture to spec or allow it to slip.
i have seen both.

I do despair whenever I see the 'Made in China' label on most items I buy. A microwave I have bought broke down within 6 months from new and tools are often far from serviceable after a little over exertion.
Chinese manufacturing is no different to anyone else's. With training a machinist from China could produce just the same quality leather jacket as one of the top UK or American manufacturers. As they could also produce quality toys, tools electrical goods etc it is just most things these days are built to a price.
The BIG problem with Chinese products lies with the bosses, and they want PROFIT. A throwaway society dictates also the retail selling price and quality sometimes suffers, not everybody wants or can afford a high end item be it a car or leather jacket, stereo system or whatever, so sometimes inferior materials are used, in clothing less stitches per inch/centimetre. This all adds up to something that looks great for a time but soon shows its poorer quality.

 

[Jeff M]

The previously pictured jacket, after about twenty minutes of work cleaning up the scuffs caused by putting it in the dryer and wearing it some.
...

WHAT previously pictured jacket?

 

[ButteMT61]

OTOH, I get gear for reenacting made in Russia and Ukraine. Those folks do an awesome job! They're also fair with pricing and very nice. I'm not so sure about China at this point, but if I get one of these A-1s, I'll find out.

 

[Don Tomaso]

...
The BIG problem with Chinese products lies with the bosses, and they want PROFIT. A throwaway society dictates also the retail selling price and quality sometimes suffers, not everybody wants or can afford a high end item be it a car or leather jacket, stereo system or whatever, so sometimes inferior materials are used, in clothing less stitches per inch/centimetre. This all adds up to something that looks great for a time but soon shows its poorer quality.

I work for an American company, and luckily American bosses don't care for profit at all. Also the shareholders leave you alone and let you do your work as good as possible, regardless of costs. I'm so lucky I found this garden of eden to dwell in... I also heard that in America, nothing is thrown away at all, all products can be repaired and maintained so easily, it is a culture thing!
Now I go to the forrest, there in the woods lives the fairy with the big boobs, she'll grant me three wishes...

 

[Spitfire]

I work for an American company, and luckily American bosses don't care for profit at all. Also the shareholders leave you alone and let you do your work as good as possible, regardless of costs. I'm so lucky I found this garden of eden to dwell in... I also heard that in America, nothing is thrown away at all, all products can be repaired and maintained so easily, it is a culture thing!
Now I go to the forrest, there in the woods lives the fairy with the big boobs, she'll grant me three wishes...

lol lol lol Bravo!

 

[ButteMT61]

Ugh.

 

[bburtner@moran]

I have 3- wonderful ginger cats in my home,they eat cats in China!

 

[Phantomfixer]

Now I go to the forrest, there in the woods lives the fairy with the big boobs, she'll grant me three wishes...
Dude too funny
the good news is there are still a few Americans left that know how to fix things when they break, although most of those are not willing too.....:eusa_doh:
Now for my three wishes
An early L-2B with the O2 tabs and winged star
An original Perry A-2 in 46 russet (were they all russet?)
and a new fairy with 3 more wishes...

 

[Smithy]

I work for an American company, and luckily American bosses don't care for profit at all. Also the shareholders leave you alone and let you do your work as good as possible, regardless of costs. I'm so lucky I found this garden of eden to dwell in... I also heard that in America, nothing is thrown away at all, all products can be repaired and maintained so easily, it is a culture thing!
Now I go to the forrest, there in the woods lives the fairy with the big boobs, she'll grant me three wishes...

Bloody classic

 

[Edward]

I have 3- wonderful ginger cats in my home,they eat cats in China!

I spend several weeks a year in China. Cat was at one time widely eaten (in the same way the Koreans ate dog, the French ate horse and the Americans - unthinkable to the Hindus of the world - eat cow). I imagine you can still find it now if you know where to look (I did read in one of the papers that Olympic athletes were offered cat soup in 2008, though I can't vouch for the accuracy given the general slant of that particular newspaper). The influence of Western popular culture has been such that cats are increasingly being viewed and kept as pets. It is very common for small shops to have cats - they seem to be a draw (they certainly pull me in), and they are good for keeping vermin away.

 

[Dr H]

An original Perry A-2 in 46 russet (were they all russet?)

Generally yes - the goatskin contract 23377 is a darker russet (I've had several of these).
The horsehide 16175-P varied from a lighter caramel coloured horsehide through to a darker russet (I've owned the former, but have seen images of the latter).
The seal jackets are generally the results of a depot refurbishment/respray (I've owned one of these sprayed seal on russet goatskin).

 

[guygardner]

I spend several weeks a year in China. Cat was at one time widely eaten (in the same way the Koreans ate dog, the French ate horse and the Americans - unthinkable to the Hindus of the world - eat cow). I imagine you can still find it now if you know where to look (I did read in one of the papers that Olympic athletes were offered cat soup in 2008, though I can't vouch for the accuracy given the general slant of that particular newspaper). The influence of Western popular culture has been such that cats are increasingly being viewed and kept as pets. It is very common for small shops to have cats - they seem to be a draw (they certainly pull me in), and they are good for keeping vermin away.

Beijingers love their animals, especially cats and dogs. The school I worked in years ago had a large group of cats on the grounds that were incredibly well-fed and looked after by the staff and students. You'll often see an old man or woman carrying a shih tzu like it was their baby.

In the south of the country, things are different. A friend of mine from Fujian once told me he would never let his cat outside, because he was afraid it would end up on someone's plate.

 

[Edward]

Beijingers love their animals, especially cats and dogs. The school I worked in years ago had a large group of cats on the grounds that were incredibly well-fed and looked after by the staff and students. You'll often see an old man or woman carrying a shih tzu like it was their baby.

In the south of the country, things are different. A friend of mine from Fujian once told me he would never let his cat outside, because he was afraid it would end up on someone's plate.

Inevitably, the pace of change is faster in the big cities, and among the better-off. Just kinda sick of the same old, same old sinophobia, you know?

 

[ButteMT61]

Inevitably, the pace of change is faster in the big cities, and among the better-off. Just kinda sick of the same old, same old sinophobia, you know?

OTOH, The Chinese as a whole have no problem copying, stealing and otherwise profiting off of intellectual property, music, films, etc. I know quite a few Chinese and they are fantastic people, but the Reigning powers in China leave a lot to be desired. I'm also sick of barely being able to find anything not made in China when shopping - it's depressing as h*ll. You could easily replace China with any number of places, so I don't think it's people not liking the Chinese, per se. H*ll, I'm sick of all the American bashing. But then I just look at the jackets mocking me waiting for the temps to drop and I'm all good again lol

 

[guygardner]

Inevitably, the pace of change is faster in the big cities, and among the better-off. Just kinda sick of the same old, same old sinophobia, you know?

Completely agree about the old generalizations. China is a big place with many different local cultures.

I would say Beijingers are animal lovers, and not because of Western influence or the market economy. The old guys with their shih-tzus are not rich, but living in the old neighbourhoods much the way people there have been for decades, well, at least as long as the old neighbourhoods remain.

Speaking of western influence in China though, I did notice the last time I was there, that thrift stores selling American brands (old leather jackets and denim) were becoming more common. Of course the prices were crazy compared to what you would pay in Canada or the States. Around 3 times as much.

 

[guygardner]

OTOH, The Chinese as a whole have no problem copying, stealing and otherwise profiting off of intellectual property, music, films, etc. I know quite a few Chinese and they are fantastic people, but the Reigning powers in China leave a lot to be desired. I'm also sick of barely being able to find anything not made in China when shopping - it's depressing as h*ll. You could easily replace China with any number of places, so I don't think it's people not liking the Chinese, per se. H*ll, I'm sick of all the American bashing. But then I just look at the jackets mocking me waiting for the temps to drop and I'm all good again lol

The Chinese government was just smart enough to win at the game set by western governments and western business. No one forced western companies to lay off their workers and relocate to China. Why did our governments allow companies to relocate, laying off local workers (and destroying unions), in search of cheaper labor to exploit? How is this China's fault?

By the way, the race to the bottom continues, as denim factories in China are now relocating just as workers there get a better deal, closing factories and laying off workers.

 

[Phantomfixer]

news reports as overseas worker pay increases, the benefits of off shore production dwindle forcing American companies to relocate back to the good ol USA....mind you there is not a mad rush to come back but they are returning...

 

[ButteMT61]

news reports as overseas worker pay increases, the benefits of off shore production dwindle forcing American companies to relocate back to the good ol USA....mind you there is not a mad rush to come back but they are returning...

It had to happen, or it had to move to move to the next cheaper place, and so on. I do hope it comes back though. That would make many happy, for many reasons.

 

[Don Tomaso]

It had to happen, or it had to move to move to the next cheaper place, and so on. I do hope it comes back though. That would make many happy, for many reasons.

Production of low-priced goods can only come back to the US (or to Germany, for that matter) when labour there is cheap enough to support the low prices. Do you want to live in that country?
Let's face it: It tis the customers, you and me and Uncle Willy, who decide ethis every day. We want to pay no money for food, clothing, shoes, toys? Then we get no-nutricion meat, cheap-looking shirts, boxy glued shoes, and baby-poisioning wooden blocks for the little we want to spend. I'm by no means a "China-lover" and I know the country a bit, living a couple of years not too far from guygardner's avatar, but he's right: The table was set by America and Europe and the Chinese simply knew how to play the game. They want it cheap? They get it cheap. Money is all these westerners care about.
But before we embark on a kind of Dr.-Fu-Man-Chu-theme, these days production already leaves China again, partly because the government want to push the low end out, partly because others are even cheaper (and more ruthless when it comes to poisioning the environment). Anyway, it is the customers who decide. When I tell anybody a pair of shoes sets me back 200 Euros, they declare me mad on the spot. But quality has a price. And cheap goods have a price, too, but the currency is other than money.