Buy American or foreign?

[Ben86]

I Do my best to buy American as much as possible but when push comes to shove I'm goingto look at quality and price(to a certain extent) over origin.

And that doesn't make you less of a patriot. Don't buy a crappier deal or something that you don't want just because it is American. Don't miss out on something just because it is foreign (although most companies have factories that employ many people here).

That said I prefer to buy American as long as they have what I am after. S&W, Kahr, Ruger and Remington have me covered for the most part.

 

[arcticap]

I buy what I like and sometimes its American made and sometimes it isn't.
I look it at this way.
I drive an older American car and pay a lot for repairs to keep it on the road. So if I can get a good deal on an imported gun or ammo that I like then I'm going to buy it to help me offset my car repairs.
It's just like buying gasoline. You buy it where it you buy it and when you need it at the price that you're willing to pay for the brand that's being offered.
Which is just like most goods on the marketplace being sold, if everyone only bought "American gasoline" then there wouldn't be enough of it to go around.

 

[DNS]

Yep, American.

Just bought my first AR, an Smith and Wesson Sport. Qaulity all the way.
Beats the snot out of any russkie or chicom stuff.

 

[TennJed]

I currently only buy American guns. If my collection ever gets so big that I need to go foreign then that's a good problem to have. I just feel more comfortable in the quality and service of an American firm ... that's me though. There would be a few foreign guns I wouldn't mine having but I'm satisfied (at the moment) with USA.

I really don't consider it too much. The main reason is I can't keep up with who is American now and who is not.

I assume you own a Kahr based on your tag line. Kahr is an American company owned by a South Korean company Tongil. While it is great that Kahr employs American workers, I assume a lot of the bottom line profit makes its way back to South Korea.

I buy what suits my needs. If I save $100 buying a gun from another country, I can then spend that $100 taking my family out to eat and help an American waiter or cook earn a living.

Or maybe take them to a professional sports game and help an American athlete earn a million $

 

[justice06rr]

I'm all for buying American and helping our domestic economy. Why not?

Many companies like Smith&Wesson, Ruger, Spikes Tactical, even Keltec make great firearms so if I can patronize American-made and assembled products I will do so. Not to say I won't buy foreign, as I have in the past with Springfield armory, or Taurus.

It just makes one feel good and proud to support your own country's products

 

[guyfromohio]

Hi-point is American. I'll keep my Sigs.

 

[Mp7]

Capitalism is about moving goods around the planet.

Prosperity would be about staying so good that people from other countries buy your countries products. A nationalistic consumer approach is narrow minded imho.

 

[Wanderling]

A quality product, regardless of whether it's a firearm or a kitchen table, takes skill and time to make, and costs accordingly.

I do not think that competition based on quality of workmanship and design hurts America or anyone for that matter; just the opposite. If the Italians or Germans or whomever can build a better pistol, by all means buy it and force our own manufacturers to improve their standards.

It's the poverty-based price-over-quality competition that hurts everyone.

 

[jblackfish]

So many US companies have foreign "assembly" plants and, unless you do a study it's often difficult to tell who's behind a label whether it's guns, clothes, cars, or any other products. I'm reminded of the fact that many foreign cars are "built" (assembled) right here in the USA - the states bid heavily to land a foreign car assembly plant on their soil.

I guess we need to continue to pursue quality and let the companies work it out - I know most individuals don't have anything other than the dollars they spend to "control" how companies are run and we're not organized enough to make an impact. Many of us are too busy trying to stay afloat.