Anybody else sick of poorly made tools made in China that are ruining their makers brand names and wasting our money when they cant be returned!
I bought a Hayter mower a couple of years ago for occaisional use at home (not in the business). I chose Hayter because it was a British brand (used by the royal family no less!) and their base is close to where I grew up in Hertfordshire. When it arrived i was dismayed to see that it was made in China but thought, ok, lets see how it lasts.
Now, guess what? Despite having it serviced every year and only ever being used on a smallish lawn it has a bent crankshaft and smokes like an old Ford transit and its just out of the warranty period. I am really getting sick of tools just not being up to the job then noticing that almost without fail they are made in China. Who still makes good quality tools here in Britain that last more than a year or too before becoming useless???
Sorry for the rant! Stephen
Views: 10559
Replies
Don't be sorry
Bulldog make good tools, but as for mowers , wait I hear noise, it's the Etesia fan club rolling in.
Hand tools I get off local gumtree site,(would be considered by some to be antique) mid week auctions if you have the time,markets stalls or specialist shops. Trading post in Wells has a fantastic selection and their older axes really hold an edge. As regards more modern mechanical stuff though - well I suspect knowing this site you are going to get some really good advice and probably some left of field too.
Spear and jackson chainsaws are chinese:) Seen one, ran a mile..... Friend brought it, asked why the chain kept jumping the bar - it was too long by about 10mm.....
Duncan said:
It is annoying, British manufacturing has really fell on it's arse over the last 30 years.
My dad is an engineer and when i was growing up he ran his own engineering and fabrication company, he always says about 'the good old days' when parts and machinery were all produced in britain. He used to be able to source all his materials from british companies.
Those days are, unfortunately, long gone and it's sad!!
Bulldog still make stuff in Britain. As for SPear and Jackson I still use my old dads' five tine fork, coming up for eighty years old and still in good order.
We make all our own stuff, (apart from clocks, chinese), the chinese arches don't do us any harm, rarely a sale lost just postponed.
Well Duncan
Are there any British made mowers?
Duncan said:
We manufacture parts for industrial companies, so see the interconnectivity of global manufacturing, it is not entirely a one way street.
However strategically it would make more sense if British companies sourced more stuff at home, I know of one local plant that was shut down for a few days waiting for wiring looms from Turkey, (they restarted their own wiring department after that). Another one was put in serious jeapardy when a container ship ran aground with one container containing millions of components feared lost, fortunately it was recovered intact, intime.
We recently bought a machine from Korea, (a two month wait) we couldn't buy a british machine that was configured to the job in the same way, however the last british machine we bought has got chinese hydraulic rams we had two fail in a year the macjnes predecessor from the same company operated for over twenty years on the same rams.
Bought a Spear & Jackson lawn edger 2 weeks ago stainless steel 10 YR guarantee replaced it yesterday snapped at the head 3rd time used, so it looks like a new edger every 2 weeks for the next 10 years.
Bought some Bull bog long handle lawn shears (the ones you use for trimming the top of the lawn) worse hand tool I have ever bought just do not do anything except bang your fingers together
Geoffrey King North Yorkshire said:
To be fair I think ECHO tools are still made in the USA having seen a 2008 multi-tool dismantled and all the parts were proudly marked "Made in USA".
As for UK power tools, I honestly dont think there is a single company making them here, beyond maybe putting a sticker on saying "BRITISH".
The thing is, and we all seem to overlook this - If a company did start making say, Lanwmowers and Chainsaws in the UK, to a good quality and specification - they would cost at least 50% more than the competition made in china.... Joe public wants a mower under £150 at B&Q and won't pay £225 for the same, albeit better quality, one from the UK.
To professional users like us, who are willing to pay up to £1000 and more on a lawn mower, there may be a market for them, where the main criteria are reliability and ability, but thats a small market overall.
-
1
-
2
-
3
of 3 Next