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I hope the quality control is better than their spelling.

DPittman

Ultra Member
Premium Member
I bought a trailer wheel bearing kit that is on sale right now at Princess Auto....
 

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francist

Super User
Amazing. I am fearful that the COVID will be the least of our worries in a not too distant future...

-frank
 

Tom Kitta

Ultra Member
I think I have some of these bearings as spares in case these with alternative China do not work out.

Not spelling standard Made in China .... Maybe they are premium from another country?
 

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
That's what I was wondering - if CHAINA had nothing to do with CHINA. Just like FAGOR has nothing to do with... well... whatever.
I couldn't find that as a brand listing though & guessing Princess is not known for premium bearings unless specifically indicated/priced. So I'm going to go with the random letter 'adder/subtractor/replacer' algorithm got inadvertently switched on with a domestic run. Usually its outside brands they do the winky-winky. Like 'Mitotoyo' or 'Starett'. Probably wont be long before you see Teasla electric cars lol.
 

Tom Kitta

Ultra Member
China is a world leader in electric cars as well as fast rail (they account for most of world growth). Main problem with Chinese electric companies is they are a bit fragmented - there are just too many of them and all are mostly going for no luxury low price. This is why Tesla hopes for a nice spot for itself - ultra luxury electrics. Chinese will buy these just b/c they are expensive & also very nice. Low quality of a Tesla does not seem to be an issue.

All you need is some old hut in one of tier 1 cities that you inherited and poof you are a millionaire (in USD) so affording a Tesla will not be an issue.
 

CalgaryPT

Ultra Member
Vendor
Premium Member
Someone made this point earlier (or in a different thread) that China and other countries produce what we ask them to. I totally agree with this. On the demand side you get what you pay for, and on the supply side you manufacture only what is financed. In other words, countries produce whatever we ask them to for the budget. If we were willing to pay more for highest quality, does anyone think that China would say, "No thanks...we don't do quality." Nonsense...they will produce whatever we are willing to pay for. But we want all three legs of the mythical stool cited in project management classes: time, money, quality.

We want it cheap, fast, and high quality. Even in the used market this prevails to some extent: you can find quality and inexpensive machines, but it takes a long time to look.

As Steve Jobs famously said to Obama, "Jobs aren't coming back to America." There's just no way to compare labour that costs pennies on the dollar to a union salary in North America.

So if we aren't willing to pay for higher quality, and we aren't willing to wait forever for it to be produced in such large quantities that the price goes down (such as those "great" Amazon deals that take forever to ship), we get what we pay for.
 

Tom Kitta

Ultra Member
Well, lets look at this- https://www.amazon.ca/OrangeA-Lathe...9Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

8 inch 3 jaw for 180 plus tax with free shipping. Known low quality.

So free shipping is actually paid - and Amazon needs its CUT. So subtract 35
Seller should also have some income from this - so take 15
Occasional person wants actual accurate chuck and returns this item - account 10 for such strange people
Chucks are not known to fly - it needs to get here and then in bulk to amazon warehouse - at least 30
So it should be no more then at the very most 90 in China - probably less then that.

Well, it is not made of air but low quality steel - but still this costs $ even in China. Also there is some waste. Say 30 just for steel and waste.
It does use some cutting tools and through they are worn out and crap they still cost money - say 10
Chinese contrary to popular opinion do not work for free - they want their low salary - say 10
There is also other costs for the chuck such as energy to melt crap steel and poor it into a "form". Also admin costs and finally profit of the factory, packaging etc.

As you see actual costs of the Chinese worker are low as percentage of the item - I would be shocked to see more then say 10%.

Now for a quality made chuck in China worker costs are still 10% but from a larger # as more hours are worked. Workers for example actually grind the chuck so there is little run-out, they de-burr it etc. Then they use better material and this forces more expensive cutting tools that are not used till they are as dull as butter-knife.

One can easily see doubling in price.

Now add to it evil marketing department and its costs (you have a brand now) and you have 3x the costs. Now move your production from say China to Poland (more expensive work for and everything else) and you have quadrupled your cost. And this is why Bison 8" 3 jaw basic version costs around 800.
 

Alexander

Ultra Member
Administrator
I always go to transmission supply. I recently got Timken bearings for my RV for about $100 with seals. Yes I know that is more but they are probably better.:D
 

DPittman

Ultra Member
Premium Member
I always go to transmission supply. I recently got Timken bearings for my RV for about $100 with seals. Yes I know that is more but they are probably better.:D
Yes i would never expect that my $15 bearing and seal set would be of the same quality as the $100 Timkens but this was bought for a back up to pack along with the trailer for emergency use if ever needed.
 

YotaBota

Mike
Premium Member
Might be prudent to do a test fit, before you need them and find out they don't fit. If you have an old set of bearings to compare with it would save taking a wheel apart.
 

Chicken lights

Forum Pony Express Driver
Yes i would never expect that my $15 bearing and seal set would be of the same quality as the $100 Timkens but this was bought for a back up to pack along with the trailer for emergency use if ever needed.
This is why I prefer having hub oil bearings versus greaseable
Blow a seal? Keep adding oil until you’re home :D

Yes, I realize most small trailers are greaseable. It’s a bane because most people don’t do any maintenance, you see them scattered on shoulders all summer long with bad tires, bad bearings, etc
 

Alexander

Ultra Member
Administrator
Greaseable bearings are fine if you grease them. Here is a picture of my trailer for fun.
 

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Crankit

Well-Known Member
Chaina is a region in eastern China...they spell "China" differently in that region by spelling it how it's pronounced
 

DPittman

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Chaina is a region in eastern China...they spell "China" differently in that region by spelling it how it's pronounced
Oh well I'll be darned, I had a notion to see if that was actually a place but instead immediately assumed that was a mistake. I'm very used to chinglish spelling mistakes.
 
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