My first posting here. Having been in Scouting for 62 years, I have seen the prices, as well as quality, of Scouting items swing back and forth, but has always seemed rather expensive to me. Back when I paid (Yes - I paid) for a weeks camp, as a Tenderfoot, and found the cost of that was roughly 10 dollars, also roughly the cost of a complete uniform. That uniform consisted of : shirt, pants, socks, belt with metal fastener, neckerchief, field cap, all "beginner" patches, and the old metal knot "slide". Those items all were of excellent quality (even though the pants neckerchief and and shirt had to be ironed every time I wore them (even between washings). Today, that $10.00 might buy a belt (but I do not know- since haven't bought a new one for years). I do know though, that one weeks camp here still costs just about the price of a new uniform, which doesn't include all those parts. As to quality, I believe it has stayed about the same, though we can do without the iron these days (thankfully).
As to the cost of other camping and Scouting items, I resist fully. I never wore out the cheap cook kit, the water canteen, the sleeping bag or the tent that I bought at Sears, or now at Walmart. Yes, the quality of true "Scout" equipment is good, but is it so good it should cost two or three times what a young man can purchase at another store? Sadly, most all of those stores are selling Chinese, or other countries products now also. So, as to "buy locally" Im all for it too, but where do we get that equipment, "made locally"? Uniforms? Yes - let us find and contract for local manufacturing. Knives Same thing. Old Henry or others seem to make stateside knives. They may cost a buck or two more, but Id much rather have them. So, yes lets go ahead and ask BSA to purchase locally, when and where they can, but we are not asking them to tie us down to highly overpriced products, or to do without. Getting local companies to put a Scout emblem on their product would indeed seem to increase the price, but the resulting sales increases should bring that back down to their advantage, and to ours.
BSA merchandise should be "Made in America" not China - Online Petition
in Uniforms
Posted
My first posting here. Having been in Scouting for 62 years, I have seen the prices, as well as quality, of Scouting items swing back and forth, but has always seemed rather expensive to me. Back when I paid (Yes - I paid) for a weeks camp, as a Tenderfoot, and found the cost of that was roughly 10 dollars, also roughly the cost of a complete uniform. That uniform consisted of : shirt, pants, socks, belt with metal fastener, neckerchief, field cap, all "beginner" patches, and the old metal knot "slide". Those items all were of excellent quality (even though the pants neckerchief and and shirt had to be ironed every time I wore them (even between washings). Today, that $10.00 might buy a belt (but I do not know- since haven't bought a new one for years). I do know though, that one weeks camp here still costs just about the price of a new uniform, which doesn't include all those parts. As to quality, I believe it has stayed about the same, though we can do without the iron these days (thankfully).
As to the cost of other camping and Scouting items, I resist fully. I never wore out the cheap cook kit, the water canteen, the sleeping bag or the tent that I bought at Sears, or now at Walmart. Yes, the quality of true "Scout" equipment is good, but is it so good it should cost two or three times what a young man can purchase at another store? Sadly, most all of those stores are selling Chinese, or other countries products now also. So, as to "buy locally" Im all for it too, but where do we get that equipment, "made locally"? Uniforms? Yes - let us find and contract for local manufacturing. Knives Same thing. Old Henry or others seem to make stateside knives. They may cost a buck or two more, but Id much rather have them. So, yes lets go ahead and ask BSA to purchase locally, when and where they can, but we are not asking them to tie us down to highly overpriced products, or to do without. Getting local companies to put a Scout emblem on their product would indeed seem to increase the price, but the resulting sales increases should bring that back down to their advantage, and to ours.