# Does "MADE IN AMERICA" ever indicate a desirable product outside of the U.S.A.? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 11, 2020, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772 "2020-02-11T14:38:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Brayne\_Ded](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Brayne\_Ded](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brayne_Ded)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2020, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/81 "2020-02-13T21:11:24Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I have a cousin who imports stuff made in China and he claimed that the factories rate goods and based on that, they get sent to different destinations. According to him, the first-rate goods go to the US, second-rate goods go to Europe and third-rate goods stay in China (and may perhaps be sold in places like Africa or India; I can’t remember what he said). No idea if this is true, but it might explain why someone would buy something in the US that was produced in China. Europe has at least two distinct markets: the best, and the bargain. German has both, eastern Europe tends to go for the cheap, but things are changing slowly. ---
**Author:** ![Brayne\_Ded](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Brayne\_Ded](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brayne_Ded)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2020, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/82 "2020-02-13T21:18:14Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > You guys eat them for breakfast, I understand. I couldn’t stand the smell in the morning. I usually add onion, bacon and brown sugar. Do y’all eat them straight out of the can, without adding anything? Not all of us eat baked beans. I loathe them. I think of them as cheap fill 'em up canteen food. Never had the US version, which might make me change my mind, but I prefer to home-cook my beans. ---
**Author:** ![Brayne\_Ded](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Brayne\_Ded](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brayne_Ded)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/83 "2020-02-13T21:22:34Z")
One odd contender for good quality: Kitchenaid. Mrs Ded thinks its wonderful. Another surprise item: a lot of outdoor clothing and equipment. Of course, it may not actually be manufactured in the USA, but in the past I stocked up at REI. Some people list spirits as an example of quality. But that is true of any country that has aspirations to make something better than firewater that makes you blind. I suppose US software could be listed, but its popularity is more due to marketing and a monopoly situation. Hello Micro$oft. ---
**Author:** ![Brayne\_Ded](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Brayne\_Ded](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brayne_Ded)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2020, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/84 "2020-02-13T21:32:21Z")
Cars: too big, too thirsty, too ordinary. If I want cheap and nasty I’ll buy a Lada (Russian). There is a very small cult following for Jeeps and muscle cars. Trucks: you don’t see them much outside the USA, Never in Europe. Pickups: a few farmers buy them, but not huge land barges such as the Dodge Ram. Except for the occasional fanboy who thinks he is in Texas. White goods: there are US brands here, but where are they actually made? US beer: c’mon, are you joking? The big ones like Anheuser-Busch own several European breweries anyway. Not sure about agricultural equipment. Some US stuff, certainly, but probably made locally and to suit smaller farms. Food: lots of US fast food and snack food here, but usually reformuilated in each country to suit local tastes. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/85 "2020-02-14T00:04:52Z")
> [@KarlGauss](#): > > Cigarettes! Marlboro especially. That’s what I came to say. In the early 1990’s while I was in the US Army in Germany, lots of guys would get non-smokers ration cards and sell Marlboros to Germans. They had cigarette machines on street corners in those days, but they were German Marlboros (19 to a pack, not 20, for some reason). “Hergestellt en Deustchland” meant “Avoid” apparently. They did taste like shit though. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/86 "2020-02-14T00:11:26Z")
> [@Brayne\_Ded](#): > > Cars: too big, too thirsty, too ordinary. If I want cheap and nasty I’ll buy a Lada (Russian) Cars can be problematic because even American-made cars involve parts contents that are usually a minimum of 25% foreign parts…and with final assembly points in Mexico, Canada, China, etc…it’s become hard to define “American” for cars. Not to mention that American cars that are sold here are usually not sold in the European market. Cars sold here domestically are orders of magnitude nicer and more reliable in every way than any Russian made car. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/87 "2020-02-14T00:27:17Z")
> [@Brayne\_Ded](#): > > Not all of us eat baked beans. I loathe them. I think of them as cheap fill 'em up canteen food. Never had the US version, which might make me change my mind, but I prefer to home-cook my beans. I doubt the US version would change your mind. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/88 "2020-02-14T00:39:11Z")
Speaking of American cars, while they may not be big in Europe, supposedly Buick is very highly regarded in China. One of the explanations I’ve heard for this is that the Chinese consider it to be an iconic American car, and one that they believe is very prestigious in America (even though that hasn’t actually been true for decades). I’ve heard the only reason GM keeps the Buick brand around is because they’re very popular in China. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/89 "2020-02-14T01:55:42Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > That’s what I came to say. In the early 1990’s while I was in the US Army in Germany, lots of guys would get non-smokers ration cards and sell Marlboros to Germans. They had cigarette machines on street corners in those days, but they were German Marlboros (19 to a pack, not 20, for some reason). “Hergestellt en Deustchland” meant “Avoid” apparently. They did taste like shit though. Could you elaborate a little–I have no clue about military life in the 90s, so I can’t see the link between a “non-smokers” ration card and having Marlboros to sell. It sounds like such a card wouldn’t allow access to Marlboros to begin with. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/90 "2020-02-14T02:09:23Z")
Here in Saudi Arabia lots of food products are labeled “Made int he USA.” There are not labels for “Made in Italy” and so on. I suppose it is a selling point. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/91 "2020-02-14T02:18:42Z")
> [@minor7flat5](#): > > Could you elaborate a little–I have no clue about military life in the 90s, so I can’t see the link between a “non-smokers” ration card and having Marlboros to sell. It sounds like such a card wouldn’t allow access to Marlboros to begin with. I assume it means that smokers would ask for, and receive, non-smokers ration cards, get the cigarettes and then sell them. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/92 "2020-02-14T02:38:14Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I assume it means that smokers would ask for, and receive, non-smokers ration cards, get the cigarettes and then sell them. Now it makes sense. They would ask for their non-smoking buddy’s ration card, presumably in exchange for something else. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/93 "2020-02-14T16:38:47Z")
One data point - my last job had a ton of visitors from Asia. It was so common for them to ask to go to the Samsonite/American Tourister luggage store at the outlet mall and buy luggage, that it became a standard agenda item to take a trip there for each group of visitors. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/94 "2020-02-14T20:21:44Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > That’s what I came here to post. > > Other acoustic guitar manufacturers would definitely include Taylor. > > Also, National, Scheerhorn, and Beard, who specialize in resophonic (aka resonator) guitars. > > Interestingly (to me anyway), the resonator guitar (often seen played lap-style in bluegrass bands and sometimes referred to as a Dobro) is the only of the five common instruments in bluegrass bands originating in the U.S. (the others being the guitar, fiddle, mandolin (Europe) and banjo (Africa)). Resonator guitar, maybe, but “lap steel guitar” is usually credited as Hawaiian, circa 1890s, so arguably not American… ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2020, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/95 "2020-02-14T20:26:50Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > I find that the USA manufactures some incredible firearms. If someone offered me a “Made in the USA” Remington rifle, I’d gladly take it. One of the most accurate firearms I’ve ever shot. Mossberg rifles, also made in the USA, are excellent too. > > While I’m thinking of firearms, you should know about what Canada has manufactured in that regard. Cooey rifles, from Cobourg, Ontario, are a Canadian treasure. Very reliable and very accurate, even with post-and-notch sights. They were also great for beginners; my first rifle was a Cooey Model 60. If I had the chance to buy another Cooey, I would take it. > > Tobin Arms was another Canadian firearms manufacturer, located in Woodstock, Ontario. They made reliable and dependable shotguns, and while they haven’t built a shotgun since at least 1930, their shotguns are still collectible, and in demand. Prices for a Tobin shotgun today can reach into the thousands, for well-maintained shotguns, though whether that’s due to their relative rarity, or whether they (with regular maintenance) just kept working for years and still work today, I don’t know. > > What I do know is that I last held a Tobin double-barrel, side-by-side about ten years ago; and the stock and the barrel fit together easily, as designed; the break action worked as it undoubtedly had for decades; and the trigger pull was reasonable. No squeaking or rust flakes, in other words. This machine had been cared for and maintained over the years, and I have no doubt that it would work just as well in 2010 as the day it came out of the factory sometime in the 1920s. > > Canadians can make awesome firearms if they want to. If I like Remingtons and Mossbergs because they are accurate and reliable and made in the USA, then I also like Cooeys and Tobins because they are accurate and reliable and made in Canada. A moment of silence for the Ross rifle, manufactured for the Canadian army in WW I, very accurate, but with an unfortunate tendency for the bayonet to fall off, particularly problematic because the rifle also had a tendency to jam. And in WW II, Canada manufactured the British Bren gun. See Ronnie the Bren Gun Girl, Canada’s real life version of Rosie the Riveter. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2020, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/96 "2020-02-19T03:20:38Z")
In the days before tobacco was universally despised and condemned, the American product would have been the example the OP is looking for. In postwar Germany, American smokes were like the gold standard on the black market. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2020, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772/97 "2020-02-19T06:14:39Z")
These are not exactly consumer products, but pharmaceuticals and medical equipment are among the USA’s biggest exports. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-made-in-america-ever-indicate-a-desirable-product-outside-of-the-u-s-a/847772.md?page=4)