Import items

Dennis i,ve been trying to write about asian products for a while as living here i,ve seen a bit of the manufacturing up close and personel and maybe i have some stories that others may find interesting, but it,s a big subject and i,m not a “chris schwartz” journo type so i,m struggling to put it all down so it makes sense. Anyway can you tell me if you guys in the states have any kind of standards authority that regulates this kind of thing, like Germanys TUV? Really seems like you guys are getting the cream of the crap there.

-- if the hand is not working it is not a pure hand

Hi Denis;

I’m glad to hear your eating again.

I stopped using Baltic Birch a number of years ago, in favor of Maple apple Ply. It’s much smoother, doesn’t turn Amber when Sprayed, and comes in 4’ x 8’ sheets.

It is more money though.

Keep on eating.

Lee

-- by Lee A. Jesberger http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com http://www.ezee-feed.com

can you ask your supplier to have better grade products so you can choose? or do they refuse to carry the more expensive materials???

-- Matt, Napa, CA...fun is beautiful...just trying to have some fun...

More than likely, that note was a response to all the complaints about shoddy material. Rather than selling plywood that is any good, they tell you up front that they are selling you shit! That way you cannot return it even if it falls apart on the way home.

And then everyone wonders why American businesses are failing. If they spent half as much on quality product that they paid the stupid lawyer that suggested that note or, better yet, fired the CEO being paid $millions and spent his salary on quality product…

I weep for America!

-- "Find out what you cannot do and then go do it!"

Matt, They carry a full range of products. If they had a choice they would probably not carry the cheap stuff. I find myself in a bind because I am in direct competition with cabinet factories that use these shoddy materials. 99% of the time low bid gets the job.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

It is unfortunate that our economy places more value on lower prices than on quality material and quality of the work that goes into making a product. I think that vendor you use for your plywood is in a bind, they make their profit by selling product volume and their consumers drive their product offerings by buying lower priced, lower quality plywood.

Glad to see your have some work. It is a good feeling to be working and working on something that someone appreciates and is willing to buy.

Dalec

It seems to have been a long slow learning process for me but I have finally stopped looking for the cheapest prices and try to buy domestic tools and products now. I like my Makita and sevral other import brands of tools and still buy them but am very cautious. I actively promote buying local goods whenever possible. Without question this benefits our hometown neighbors and helps to keep our local economy strong. Everyone is looking for the best price nowadays but it can be like shooting yourself in the foot.

-- Ron, Twain Harte, Ca. Portable on site Sawmill Service http://westcoastlands.net/Sawmill.html http://westcoastlands.net/SawBucks2/phpBB3 http://www.portablesawmill.biz/concrete/

You might care to try CHBriggs.com You’ll find the quality is there and they deliver anywhere…..1st rate company to deal with for all plywood concerns/needs. They carry everything you can think of…from veneers to 3/4 plywood of all spieces and everything in-between. I’ve never had any bad material from this company. Also, you might to take a gander at Oakwood veneer company, a quality company to deal with as well.

-- scmichael

Good to see you’re working. This topic comes up frequently and I usually just roll my eyes when everyone is astonished that cheap plywood is usually poor quality. It’s true no matter where it’s produced. Better quality plywood will cost more. Find a supplier that knows about plywood and use their expertise to get you what you need.

The bind of course is you’re competing on price. Is there value to the customer in using the better material for their particular application? If so then provide the customer with two bids clearly outlining the quality aspects of both bids. That way you can compete on price and compare apples to apples. Then you can also offer higher quality as an option. You might even offer a 3rd high end version as well.

In a sales environment it’s called Good, Better, Best. What they’re asking you for is Good, you’re recommending something Better, and if they’d like the Best you can provide it. Try it sometime. You’ll rightfully come off as more prepared and knowledgeable than your competitors and with practice will get more higher paying gigs.

-- Allen, Milwaukee, WI

This discussion does come up quite a bit, here at LJ’s and most of the other forums I visit. And, yeah, the cheapest plywood is usually the lowest quality. But I have seen a real nasty trend in the last few years. You used to be able to buy better grades of plywood (for more money, of course) at places like Lowes and HD. Try it now – they only carry the cheapest shit. And the cheapest shit is worse than the worst I remember ever seeing 10 years ago. In the worst cases it just isn’t even usuable.

I wasn’t kidding about plywood falling apart on the ride home – it happened to me. Then it took a 1/2 hour of arguing and finally taking it all the way up to the store manager to get my money back. What use is plywood that won’t even stay glued together? And what is with this attitude that if I buy a product that obviously does not do what it was sold for is not returnable?

No, many companies are taking away any choice. They have consciously decided that they will only offer the poorest quality and that they are not going to take it back even if it is unusable! How else would you interpret “Import items are not guaranteed against defects”?

I vote with my feet. The places that make this their business practice don’t get any more of my money.

-- "Find out what you cannot do and then go do it!"

Sooner or later none of us are going to have jobs anyway to buy all that cheap shit and then what are the businesses going to do? You can only outsource so much and cost AMERICAN jobs and then your profits go the way of the unemployment line.

dennis , glad to hear you have some work ! now you just need to get yourself in direct competition with a better class of people ! lol well at least it sounds easy ! good luck

I will wade into this one by saying that there are too many unproductive mouths to feed in the North American food chain. Millions of bureaucrats, hundreds of thousands of CEO’s , and the ever burgeoning gaffs of the elected officials that dare to regulate things they don’t understand.
The general public has an unfounded “sense of entitlement” that dictates large salaries, large cars, large homes , socialized health care, and a free company paid pension.
I don’t know how to fix this but I can sure sense that it wrong.
I guess we all can this morning.

Bob

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

Bob #2 – I agree. Pitch Forks and torches are what will be needed to fix this and no one has the stomach anymore for it. I know I probably don’t but something needs to be done. It seems like the sheep keep voting the same a$$holes into office. Republicans and democrats (both thieves) are robbing us blind. Political executions are what may be needed. If your caught cheating or lying as a public official (or traded company) you are shot or hung or both :)

-- "so much to learn and so little time"..

i got rope ! lol

Call it the sawdust rebellion. Every time a politician opens his mouth we fill it with sawdust. I’ll save the MDF dust for bureaucrats and lawyers.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

Public executions.

-- Only the Shadow knows....................

double post…sorry

-- Only the Shadow knows....................

Buy American I wish I could I have to do also with imports.Alistair

-- excuse my typing as I have a form of parkinsons disease

it’s sad to hear this.because i’m the one who work in the chinese plywood industry.I want to change this,but i cannot do much. all i can do is make sure that all the prodcut that i can control is worth what you pay.If you feel a product is not good,like EEngineer said “vote with your feet”.it’s the biggest punishment to the manufacutures and sellers who provide crap.

-- china

Politically incorrectness.

A few weeks, months ago most of what I read was anti-Bush.

The tenor I get from this post is that no one is satisfied with the new administration.

I could be wrong.

Lee

-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.

I don’t think Obama will be the problem, the problem seems to be the Senate, they passed a stimulus bill without reading it. I could give a rats behind if they want to get a loan for a car or a house for their own personal use and sign off on the contract without reading it, I believe I would call it reckless and irresponsible, but when what they sign off on affects the whole country, there is absolutely no excuse for not understanding fully what your signing. These people make how much a year doing what ? It now makes me wonder how much other stuff gets signed off this way. I’m really tired and upset about the direction this country has gone for many years, I still have faith in Obama, he was left with a huge mess and it is going to take time to get it cleaned up. As for the shotty plywood discussion, this has been going on for a long time, wood doors in most new homes the veneer is so thin the glue from the other side of the venner is bleeding through and won’t take a stain in some spots. The other issue is, if you have to compete with cheap mass produced furniture your killing yourself, been there, done that, don’t ever care to do it again.

I’d sure like to see a change. The whole too “big to change” thing scare the living day lights out of me. Talk about your corporate state. Sorry but both parties have failed us. Bigger banks and mergers are the norm. What happens when one day we wake up in wallyworld. Eat our mcwallybreakfast watch the mcwallyfox news, to hear about what Paris Hilton did in the senate. Think you are saving money by shopping at Walmart? You buy pants that last half as long. What are we thinking….

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

I agree Dennis, but it’s pretty tough to point a finger at the consumer. It’s our goverment that abandoned the American blue collar worker and allowed alot of this to happen. It’s all been kind of interesting, with the huge loss of home sales I figured the price of new construction related tools would start to show some pretty steep discounts in order to move some inventory, I haven’t seen that happen yet. Could it be that the Chineese consumer is takeing up that slack ?

Dennis, since you mentioned Walmart and buying “pants that last half as long” look at what I found here.

http://www.gussetclothing.com/

100% American made jeans with American grown cotton.

I recently ordered a pair and love them. Comfortable with deep pockets. Yes, they cost more but I won’t buy anymore import jeans.

-- Father of two sons. Both Eagle Scouts.

Just got an Email from a buddy asking me to check into the new american tea party….of course I don’t want to post anything political.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

Canadians make good plywood and if Americans buy it…..................it’s imported !!!,

Germans make awesome tools and in my opinion, the best cabinet hardware (Euro style) out there….....it’s imported.

Italians make nice tools as do the Swiss and its imported!

I think its only a matter of time before the so called “off shore” plywood products are equall to ours, heck I’ve seen home grown plys that really suck!

I’ve never been a real fan of Baltic Birch even when it came solely from Nordic countries and the USSR (Russia now) as the consistancy of the thickness was always inconsistant. Now ”Baltic Birch” can be made anywhere and wholesalers and retailers dont tell you where it was made but the “Real McKoy” is still out there.

-- http://www.furnituremann.ca/

My original post should read buy quality. What I really disliked was that American wholesalers and retailers are not backing up what they sell.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com