Name brand merchandise

I'm a bit sore about brand names and support.

Several years ago I bought a new faucet for the tub. I paid more and got a "brand name" faucet because I wanted to be able to walk into a store and buy parts for it.

So, I installed an American Standard tub faucet. It has serve us well until this week when the seals began to leak. And off I went with the old cartridge in search of a new one, or some new seals for mine.

Home Depot - Didn't have it.
Menards - Didn't have it.
Ace Hardware (2 different stores) - Didn't have it.
Han's Plumbing Supply (a guy who had been in business since 1954) - Didn't have it, but could order it for me.

So, Amazon had it for $12 plus shipping and it will be here by Tuesday. Meanwhile, it is leaking so I shut the water off at night and when we're gone.

Why did I buy a name brand? I would have been better off to buy the bargain brand and just replace the whole thing every three years.

I'm at the store today and I notice an electric blanket with the Sunbeam logo and some tag line like, "Your trusted brand for 100 years."

Except Sunbeam has been gone for 20 years. It has been bought and sold a few times. There are no Sunbeam engineers or manufacturing plants. It's just a name; a familiar logo.

If you read the fine print on the bottom of the box, it says the company is Jarden Corporation and the blanket is made in China. I pity the poor suckers who buy the hype and believe they are buying an American product.

We bought a TV. It says Westinghouse on it. You think about Westinghouse and you think about those giant generators inside Hoover Dam. Westinghouse and apple pie.

Here's what the website for Westinghouse Digital says about the company:
"About Us
Who We Are
Westinghouse Digital is one of the leading LCD TV Manufacturers in the U.S. We offer a complete line of innovative LED and CCFL backlit LCD displays for the U.S. consumer market. Westinghouse Digital’s award-winning HDTV line includes a complete family of 720p and 1080p eco-friendly LED and LCD TVs. Westinghouse Digital has made a strong commitment to producing eco-friendly, energy-saving displays with their greenvue, greenvue + and LED product lines which meet Energy Star and California Energy Commission (CEC) Tier 1 & 2 standards.

Westinghouse Digital is headquartered in Orange, California."

Wow! Sounds American to me. The box says "Made in China," as does the data plate on the TV itself.

It would be strange if it weren't made in China, since even RCA is made there. Even the Japanese brands aren't made in Japan.

At the hardware store I started looking at power tools. Sure, the off brands are made in China, but so are Skil, Black and Decker, a most of the "name brands." B&D adds a little statement that their tools are made in a Black and Decker supervised plant in China.

Bosch makes some of their high end tools in Switzerland.

What's my point?

1) You can't tell country of origin by the logo

2) Read the fine print on the carton to find out where it is made. They make an effort to conceal it by putting their US address first and at the end of the paragraph finally fess up where they made it.

3) Chances are most of what you buy was made in China or another Asian country.

4) Save your manual if you ever expect to find parts.