Good Deal on a Ladder

My experience seeing "great deals" at places like CostCo and HomeDepot is that you get a substandard part.

HomeDepot demands suppliers meet certian price points. So folks like Milwaukee have an "HD" model that's got a 1 year (not lifetime) warrantee and has that because the innards are plastic, not metal. (friend replaced a (10 year old, perfect) stolen Sawsall with an HD one and, 14 months later, with a real one after the cheap one broke down badly).

Dunno if your chinese made, werner branded ladder is made with solid parts, has a 6 month warrantee, etc, but sometimes you get what you pay for.

"Costco for some reason is selling them for $99"... Do you suppose that "Made in China" might be the reason?

And do you *really* imagine that a $99 made-in-Communist-China ladder is truly equivalent to a made-in-USA ladder priced at three to four times that? You can't seriously believe that the quality is the same, can you?

Made in China? Buy all you want..hell, buy 10.... I have Davidsons, and Werners..all made here in the States, and I sure as hell wont trust a made in China ladder when I am 45 feet up.. Cost isnt an object when your noggin is on the line...if your stupid enough to buy something that sounds so obviously cheap, and I dont mean in monetary value cheap, that you will be on, that might just fold up on you...then perhaps you need to buy quite a few and use them often.

You have an extension ladder capable of getting you 45 feet up?

Barry

Yea BS. your affiliated with the ladder What Troll BS

Never seen one? Any of your larger supply stores will have one, or Werner can supply you with one.. D1540 series.. its 40 feet, but figure I am 6'2.....and you DONT want to be on that top rung...

There are products made outside of the USA that are better. Don't assume everything made in USA is good!

I have yet to see anything manufactured in Communist China that's better than the corresponding item manufactured in the United States.

There were NO assumptions made. I have YET, and thats a few years, to see ANYTHING that is a tool that is made in China that is better than made here. Come to think of it..I have yet to see anything made in China that is better than here.

Wow. Maybe Little Giant had some sort of patent that is over, and now there will be copies. That's a great deal. I love my Little Giant.

Sure, it's possible. Like I said, sometimes there are patents that run out, driving the price down. For example, I have a wine cork remover that's really great, but it's exorbitantly priced - over $100 (Leverpull). About a year or 2 ago they started selling knockoffs at around $30. They're just as good as far as I've seen.

I know a fellow who is the litigator for one of the major US ladder manufacturers. He handles their product liability cases. Based on what I have listened to I suspect that half of the price of a US made ladder is for attorneys. Maybe the Chinese haven't had the "pleasure" yet.

RB

jeffc wrote:

Man, where did you come from? Even the Japanese car manufacturers have discovered that products made in the USA are better.

Tools are an even more important issue, and the Pros know tools. Dewalt, Klien, and others are US made and quality that you can stake your life on.

As CB said, do you really want to be 40 feet in the air (or even 15 feet) on some cheapo piece of crap that might shear a rivet or bolt? Your pro is gonna have the good stuff, and if you want to DIY, you better too. Otherwise, you'll end up with a hospital bill (or worse).

Happy Trails,

Jake

Actually, Japanese labor and shipping costs went up, making the American factory more competitive. Check out where the Lexus factories are located. Lexus may be the highest quality mass-produced vehicle in the world, based on quality control issues and reliability. Also, many of the high end Mazda, Nissan, Toyota, and Honda vehicles are still made in Japan.

I agree that tools are important, but many of the best stationary tools now come from Austria, Germany, and Italy. My cabinet saw, which certainly can kill you, was proudly made in Quebec, Canada, by General.

Festool, Makita, and Bosch also sell very high quality tools made outside of the USA. Many, if not most, of the American tool manufacturers are steadily moving production offshore. Very few of the USA branded, flag waving tools in my shop were actually manufactured in the US. I don't think anybody can figure out where Delta tools are made these days, including Delta!

Lets not confuse "Made in Communist China" with "Made Outside of the USA".

Barry

Lexus, IS Toyota. Lets see..high end Toyota...Camry..Made in Kentucky, and imported to Japan. BMW, Porche, Toyota, and Honda....making many of their models here in the States... :)

They exist. I have one that I bought in 1965 (pre-OSHA) that is still quite a serviceable ladder.

RB

B> >

Maybe I'm being a bit naive, but what I do find hard to believe is that Werner would jeopardize their reputation by putting their name on a lower quality copy of one of their own ladders. Are they identical, or is there some obvious difference that might account for the lower price ?

I think you missed the part about made in Communist China versus made in the United States. Do you *really* believe that the quality is the *same*? Or do you suppose that maybe, just maybe, you get what you pay for?

The "Made in China" sticker is certainly an "obvious difference that might account for the lower price." Somewhat less obvious is what's implied by that sticker: alloys that may not be up to manufacturer specifications, castings that may be flawed internally, and absolutely non-existent quality control.