Is a $280 New Bach Stradivarius Trumpet too good to be true?
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Yes, my question was not that a lower than U.S. labor cost is not more financially advantageous to choose, but that "slave labor" is an "emotion" word and putting such a wage into the context of the average workers cost of living may in, their own country, be perfectly acceptable in that economy.
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Slave labor is not am emotion word. It is what it describes. I don't want to go into the politics of China, I linked an article for that and the reader can draw their own conclusion. No US company can pay those wages in the US. No one will work for that. The cost of living in China hard to determine since the gov't there does not readily share reliable information. Heck, the article I linked could be wrong and they make less. When it is cheaper to make something in another country and it can be shipped to the US and still be cheaper, it puts American workers out of a job. The OP's Strad is obviously reverse engineered. This would have been a joke 10 years ago but the Chinese have progressed and can now make "quality" Strads. Could they put Conn-Selmer out of business? Sure they could because the playing field isn't level.
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I think that I might not have expressed it well or read it correctly.
I would rather see laws and policies that protect local vs. international workers. These circumstances have more universal consequences. But that doesn't change the reality that higher wages will result in higher U.S. prices.
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@Kehaulani said in Is a $280 New Bach Stradivarius Trumpet too good to be true?:
I think that I might not have expressed it well or read it correctly.
I would rather see laws and policies that protect local vs. international workers. These circumstances have more universal consequences. But that doesn't change the reality that higher wages will result in higher U.S. prices.
IMO, despite what we Americans say, "we" (generalized to mean our population) do not want to pay more for higher quality American goods. There are small groups of people that do for reasons of quality, principle, or patriotism, but the average Joe wants his stuff as cheap as possible and doesn't care if it has to be replaced in a few years. Tariffs and trade laws will just lead to fewer things being purchased.
--Matt--
No representation is made that the quality of this post is greater than the quality of that of any other poster. Oh, and get a teacher!
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@Tobylou8 said in Is a $280 New Bach Stradivarius Trumpet too good to be true?:
Heck, the article I linked could be wrong and they make less.
I was surprised to see it at that much. I would think that they make less.
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@Tobylou8 From what I have heard, what pushed Kanstul over the edge was a family dispute after Zig died. I don’t think the business was doing badly.
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Let's get this "higher quality made in the US" notion out of our heads. Quality has NOTHING to o with location. Quality is a function of responsible decisions in the manufacturing process. America has NOTHING that would be decisive in higher quaity instruments. Every company decides how much "quality" goes into their products. In the case of chinese manufacturers, the importers placing the order decide how much "quality should be built and they get what they pay for.
As far as Americans out of work, that is how capitalism works. Money does not care if a specific group of people are employed. It only cares if anyone is left to buy the products.
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@ROWUK said in Is a $280 New Bach Stradivarius Trumpet too good to be true?:
As far as Americans out of work, that is how capitalism works. Money does not care if a specific group of people are employed. It only cares if anyone is left to buy the products.
Yes, let's hear it for capitalism at it's best.
Benge 3X
Martin Committee
Getzen Capri Cornet
Adams F-1 Flugelhorn"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn."
Charlie Parker"Even if I could play like Wynton Marsalis, I wouldn't play like Wynton Marsalis."
Chet Baker -
For even while we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either.
NOTICE:
This is not speaking of those that are not able to work. It speaks of those who are too lazy to work, which is where communism leads to because there is no incentive to work other than the minimum in order to stay out of trouble. -
We will see how trade negotiations go and if the $280 Strad stays at $280. My guess is that brass instruments aren't high on the list.
From Dun & Bradstreet: "Imports account for 55% of the US market. The largest supplier to the US is China, which accounted for more than 40% of imports in 2017. .."
This is for all musical instruments, not just trumpets.Lets not lose sight of the ACB video that was talking about counterfeit Strads. I'm sure Conn-Selmer should have a right to protect their brand from criminals.
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@Brian-Moon said in Is a $280 New Bach Stradivarius Trumpet too good to be true?:
For even while we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either.
NOTICE:
This is not speaking of those that are not able to work. It speaks of those who are too lazy to work, which is where communism leads to because there is no incentive to work other than the minimum in order to stay out of trouble.Actually, there is a problem with this. Many are willing to work but companies are punished (on the stock market) for investing in employees. Is the large group of automobile workers that got laid off at fault for bad mangement decisions resulting in bad sales? Is "new technology" killing traditional jobs?
What killed the instrument building companies in the states? What killed Kodak? What killed PanAm? Is it REALLY offshore manufacturing? Are the employees at fault when so many jobs are lost and nothing fills the gap? I think that we need to look more closely in the mirror and resist being manipulated by those seeking to divide.
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@djeffers78 I agree with you 100%. I just bought a fake Bach Strad. I knew what I was buying. What
I didnt expect was the quality of the horn. Valve action is very nice: crisp and fast. No air leakage. In fact, it plays as well as my Olds Ambassador, if not better. Beautiful tone. is it Bach Strad quality? Probably not. But the difference is negligeable. and when I can save hundreds of dollars I'm all in. -
@kehaulani Still not comparable.
