Chinese products - experiences

[20 20]

I know that the HF tools are the cheap version and usually weaker then brand X. I have tough equipment that usually is very stuburn especially when it comes to taking off old nutz/bolts etc.... I bought a cheap set of sockets with breaker bar for my truck, from HF. I used a 10lb sledge hammer on the end of the breaker bar to get some lug nutz lose. Those tools held up fine probably just as good as brand X would have. I bought that set for 1/3 less(or more)then I would have payed for brand X. It was a gamble to buy that set but I have to say I won that gamble!

 

[Soundguy]

I picked up a set of their 3/4 tools.. the very heavy BB and sockets... price compaired to napa was about 1:9

I've used them with 6' pipes and a come along or me doing pull ups on the bar.. never split a socket yet.. or bent a bar.

I'm not saying they won't.. but just havn't yet.

last sears tols I saw had made in china on them in script.. i looked again after that a few months later and didn't see it. my guess is they hid COO on the newer ones..

 

[Calvin]

china sells what we buy. if you want high quality.. you can get it. if you want low quality.. you can get it.

And how do they get the items they "copy"? It is usually an American or a European or someone from another country who ships it to them and says "Make this for me cheaper...." Not to say it is "good" or "bad," just don't always blame the Chinese. They are doing what we ask them to do.

 

[nomad]

Definitely so. They make what we ask. I worked with Chinese companies too. Once I needed some tousanda of an item x. A European company priced 9 Euro per pcs. A Turkish company priced 6 Euro per pcs. China priced 2.5 Euro per pcs. I said to Chinese mfg this. Make it better, I'll give 3.5 Euro per pcs. Its quality was better than Turkish's and Europe's. However, you may not get the same result when the business volume is small. Also, they do not do manufacturing custom small volume orders.

 

[KYDan]

I have had mixed results with China made, India made, and other Asian manufactured products. Some have been excellent and others simply junk. As for HF and TSC, etc. they usually warrantee their products so you have some protection of your investment with them. However, that won't replace the skin off your knuckles. Reminds me of when I was a child and we bought things from Japan and look what they produce now! For the most part I have found Chinese goods are a value product for the money although I have had several problems with their hydraulic products such as jacks and presses.

 

[Botabill]

My experience with TSC and the chinese made Champion wood splitter was not good. TSC didn't want to take any part in standing up for me as a customer who bought the bad product from them. They told me to take it up with Champion as they had only sold me the product and were not warranteeing it. In my opinion a good retailer will stand up for their customers and demand suppliers stand behind their products.

 

[hodge]

My experience with TSC and the chinese made Champion wood splitter was not good. TSC didn't want to take any part in standing up for me as a customer who bought the bad product from them. They told me to take it up with Champion as they had only sold me the product and were not warranteeing it. In my opinion a good retailer will stand up for their customers and demand suppliers stand behind their products.

Most everything we buy has Chinese or Japanese parts in it- you can't get away from that. I had Sears replace my old USA-made 1/2" ratchet (they wouldn't give me the guts, just replace it), and the replacement was made in China. It isn't China's fault that TSC won't back up the splitter, it is TSC's. I love the place, and my local store is pretty fair about things. But, they don't know their head from a hole in the ground when you ask anything product specific, and like many companies (Lowe's comes to mind as one), the warranty is on the manufacturer, not them. You run the risk of having to jump hurdles to get warranty work done, and have to pay the shipping. And, they all lose- I would think twice about buying a Champion splitter, from TSC or anywhere else.
My dad bought a Northstar from Northern Tools, and it has been fantastic. I'm sure it has foreign parts- it is Honda powered, for one thing. But, when we had a problem (someone "borrowed" the splitter, and broke some things. That is another story), Northern had the parts to us fast. We had to pay, because it wasn't their fault; but, the turnaround was quick. I just bought a die grinder from them on their Ebay store, and it arrived non-functional. The Ebay policy was that I had to pay to ship it back. I traveled to Lynchburg, VA at the beginning of the week for business, and they have a Northern store. I explained to them what was going on, including the Ebay policy, and they said no problem; they exchanged it, and the replacement is good. By the time I got home, Northern had issued me a reimbursement check for it. They were on the ball, both accounts. The point is, we can't get too far away from Chinese and other foreign stuff- that's the way it is now. But, businesses do need to step it up in how they represent the products. We have to go out on a limb to buy it, they have to go out on a limb to back it better. We have put ourselves in a place that won't change, so we all have to make it work. In the end, they can sell and we can buy better products from foreign manufactures, if we both demand it.

 

[Gordon Gould]

There is no question that there is some very good stuff and some very poor stuff coming from China. The big problem I see is the lack of consistancy in any one product. One time it is good the next time it might be bad. Same brand same product.
Before I retired the company I worked for tried to get some castings made over there. Sent engineers and QA people to work with them. Everything looked good for initial production runs. Then the Chinese co started subbing out the work to other shops w/o telling anybody and things went to the dogs. We could not stop them from doing this which was, of course, our problem. But the point is - It seemed, to us, very hard to get a successful relationship going wear they understood or respected our quality requirements. But that was 10 years ago now. Maybe things have changed.

 

[KennyG]

For a really interesting view of why Chinese quality is uncertain, I suggest reading "Poorly Made in China" by Paul Midler. The book is 4 or 5 years old now but I think it's still valid. You can probably find it in your library.

 

[Calvin]

There is no question that there is some very good stuff and some very poor stuff coming from China. The big problem I see is the lack of consistancy in any one product. One time it is good the next time it might be bad. Same brand same product.
Before I retired the company I worked for tried to get some castings made over there. Sent engineers and QA people to work with them. Everything looked good for initial production runs. Then the Chinese co started subbing out the work to other shops w/o telling anybody and things went to the dogs. We could not stop them from doing this which was, of course, our problem. But the point is - It seemed, to us, very hard to get a successful relationship going wear they understood or respected our quality requirements. But that was 10 years ago now. Maybe things have changed.

I think things have improved, but I have also heard that story many times. That's why I personally go to China and inspect all my orders before they leave the factory. Once the item is shipped, its "my problem", if it is still in the factory it is "their problem" (mine too, but then they can fix things). Often times it is the customer that determines the level of quality. The customer wants to pay less and they assume that the quality will be the same, but the Chinese also have constraints. The metal will be thinner, the galvanizing thinner, painted not powder coated, etc. So far I have never had anyone farm out my products, but then I'm not making millions of items either. Just had a supplier contact me that the samples they are making me are not up to their quality levels and they will make them again. They have their standards too. I can trust them. Something else to keep in mind is that China makes items for everyone in the world. People from some countries are not interested in high quality and just want the lowest prices and will take low quality items. Also, I have found that even the "cheapest" Chinese item in the US is often much better than a comparable item sold locally in China. Over there I have to be really careful and buy the most expensive item. Especially true for consumer electrical items. Pay more and you'll get a better quality item. Some stuff it does not matter. A grinding disk that costs $2.00 in the US costs $0.29 (retail) in China and it still works fine. On the other hand, I also recently bought a package of tie wraps and they break on tightening, but that's my fault - I bought the cheapest ones and did not ask about the quality.....In business, you always have to be careful, regardless of where you are or whom you are dealing with. Reminds me of another story....customer in the US sent me a sample of an item to make in China. China made it and I sent it to customer and they asked me why there were all these jagged lines in it. Turns out they sent me an item from the reject pile.....the Chinese made it exactly as they got it. Garbage in - garbage out? On the whole, I have almost always been able to improve the quality of the items I have made in China when compared to US made ones.