It matters because when the subject is discussed I want to be be 100% sure my info is correct. The internet is so full of disinformation these days and I'd just like to know is all. Just curious.
Example. Zeiss web page says they use Schott then on another Zeiss official web page it says " there is Schott factory and assembly plants in Japan". Could be mis speak as the talk optics and camera stuff.
I shop, based upon best bang for the buck noting that everyone's eyes are different and we all see things differently. What I have been having a hard time the past few weeks believing with my own two eyes is how close my NL Pures are compared to the girlfriends Maven B1.2
Makes me wonder a little if the Alpha glass is really as top notch as we think it is.
The thing most companies of all kinds don’t say out loud is components are less expensive coming from China. They may do final grinding or coatings, but nothing in consumer optics is a trade secret. Specialty optical glass is a commodity today.
The cost of all components and materials, of all levels of quality in China are less expensive. The American guys actually living and working in China who are familiar with the supply chains describe it as more closely integrated than what we have. If they need a mine, the government opens a mine and problem solved. They don’t have to wait for a profit maximizing private corporation to price gouge in order to open it. If they need electricity the government makes it happen. It’s really amazing that they have to import so many raw materials, but then process it and sell it at a price that is so much less than a profit maximizing economy like ours.
Many Japanese brands of all kinds, in all industries have been using Chinese parts for quite some time to save money.
Not related to this, but I just finished watching a video talking about misinformation Americans have been fed by media and pundits trying to sensationalize how poorly China is doing, especially how the workforce is aging out and there will be labor shortages. There are at least four times the population in every age range compared to the US, and the country as a whole is growing the middle class education and standard of living quickly, so there aren’t going to be labor shortages.
When China saw the writing on the wall about tariffs Trumps last term, they ramped up suppling farm equipment to developing areas around the world at 1/3 the cost of American brands for mutually beneficial long term commodity contracts. Hell, Americans don’t even like John Deere any more. China isn’t going to keep buying our commodities when their costs through partnerships in Brazil or Russia are much cheaper. There seems to be a lag in reporting about this, but when the wheat coming off the farm is already owned by the Chinese and not sold on the commodity markets, I bet it flies under the radar of commodity reporting.
I’m just rambling. . .
Back to optics, I have three Leupold Gold Ring binoculars out of the 1980s that are more clear than current production BX-4 models. They have cheaper components and manufacturing, supposedly better coatings, and still produce an inferior product to maximize family profits. A great example of a good family run company that goes down the tubes when heirs who don’t care other than getting a check from the hired out management team. Sad really. Really sad.
