BlackHawk selling out & going "hollywood"

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - BlackHawk selling out & going "hollywood"

Posted: 2/25/2001 1:10:50 AM EDT

Got the new BlackHawk catalog today. They are having their gear made in China now and dropped the Camelback lineup and replaced it with Camelbak clones.
The Catalog which used to be full of actual military photos is now filled with staged "Hollywood style" Police SWAT photos.

I guess Eagle & Camelbak will be getting my money from now on.

Posted: 2/25/2001 10:42:22 PM EDT

[#1]

China???!!! And I was just about to order a patrol pack.....Screw'em!!!!!

Posted: 2/26/2001 12:59:31 AM EDT

[#2]

I sent them an e-mail for confirmation and to try to get a list of Chinese made products so we can avoid them. Hopefully, they'll respond.

Posted: 2/26/2001 6:01:07 PM EDT

[#3]

Here's what they said:

Hi, Matt, I'll try and clarify some things for you. BlackHawk has three factories: one here in Virginia, one in North Carolina and one in South Korea. No BlackHawk products are made in China at this writing. However, All BlackHawk gear is made to rigid specifications and quality standards, regardless of plant location. We chose South Korea for several reasons. The quality of goods produced there is, without question, superb. The facility is operated by a former ROK Marine. A few other comments of interest : South Korea is a democracy. Many other nations chosen by US firms to produce goods are not. Far from it, in fact. South Korea has been our staunch ally for over 50 years. South Korea and Australia sent troops to fight and die alongside US troops in Vietnam, the only nations to do so. I hope this will help in your decision to consider BlackHawk
products. Do not let my comments be your benchmark for BlackHawk quality, however. Be your own judge. Looking forward to helping you in the future and thanks for your interest in BlackHawk.

Greg Andersen
Divisional Sales Manager
BlackHawk Industries
[email protected]
Phone: 757-436-3101 X 234
Fax: 757-436-3088

View Quote

So, it appears they are not manufacturing products in China at this time, but they did not rule it out for the future.

Posted: 2/26/2001 6:50:11 PM EDT

[#4]

Looks like I'll be finding some other manufacturer to buy from. And they had such a promising future...

Posted: 2/26/2001 9:14:33 PM EDT

[#5]

i would be happy if they would just get rid of the stock stop on their tac-vests. what a pain.

Posted: 2/27/2001 5:10:48 AM EDT

[#6]

China, hey that was pretty funny! How many new police pics? I counted 2 in my 2001 catalog.

Here is a pic of the new hydrastorm getting run over by a truck and not popping, I'll let that speak for the quality.

[img]http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1092947&a=11487921&p=41167966[/img]

I'm biased. I've been using Blackhawk for a couple of years and have not had a problem. If I get a piece made in Korea, oh well. I pay for quality and reliability. If you are not comfortable with a 33% chance of a piece being made overseas, the other makers put out great products also. As for me, I'm sticking with Blackhawk.

Dan

[url]www.gogetemgear.com[/url]

Posted: 2/27/2001 8:38:13 AM EDT

[#7]

Gotta agree strongly, I have had nothing but luck with Blackhawk gear. The stuff coming out of Korea still surpasses US made Eagle gear. I too would also prefer that it ALL be made in the US but lets be real for a second. US manufacture increases cost and I hear way too many people piss and moan that "Blackhawk is so expensive." Also, in this day and age good help in the US ain't easy. Everyone of us can site the morons they work with who fuck up the company they work for. South Koreans are probably better workers than you average Jenny Jones audience member. On top of that, are we positive that Eagle and the others are not made in Korea, China or whatever?
Remember people buy Blackhawk because it is made the right way by a guy who has been there. It is warrantied for life, and might actually save yours. The guy who runs this company is nothing but a stand up guy. Now if you want to encourage him to manufacture in the US only, that is fine. But for all who are going to bail on him, that is f-ed up.

Posted: 2/27/2001 9:13:27 AM EDT

[#8]

Blackhawk products are already quite expensive, and I'm sure the move to Korea will help keep their retail prices down. I've purchased several of their products recently at deep discounts. These are items that haven't been marked down in YEARS. I'm sure it's got to do with their expanded and overseas facilities.

I'm inspecting a brand-new Korean made "Special Forces Load-Bearing Vest" right now. There doesn't seem to be any compromise in quality. My "Urban Assault Vest," also new, is made in the USA. . .

I too would like to see more products made in America. If that is your primary concern, buy Eagle or Tactical Tailor products, and send a message to Blackhawk.

I personally like Blackhawk's response to the questions raised here. South Korea is a democracy and our ally. It's too bad more US manufacturers don't go to S. Korea instead of China.

I'll continue to buy the products that suit my needs, be it Blackhawk, Eagle, TT, etc. Enjoy!

Posted: 2/27/2001 9:19:04 AM EDT

[#9]

By the way. . . The new Blackhawk Hydrastorm hydration systems BLOW THE DOORS OFF OF ANY Camelbak product. If you need a good hydration system, buy one. Camelback sells hydration systems made for pink spandex-wearing bicyclists, reworked in camouflage colors.

Take a look at the Hydrastorm. They are unbelievably tough and well made. I'm a firefighter, and bought two so I could replace the disposable Camelbak bladders on my wildland web gear and turnouts. They appear indestructable.

Posted: 2/27/2001 10:04:06 AM EDT

[#10]

I would like to apologize to Blackhawk and the list for mistakingly stateting their gear was made in "China" when its actually made in Korea.

Personally I have noticed a decline in the quality of Blackhawk products recently. back when everything was made in America their product were built better.

To answer Java Heads "how many Police Pics" question. I count 43 Law Enforcement pictures in the 2001 catalog and 1 on the order form.

Posted: 2/27/2001 10:24:36 AM EDT

[#11]

My buddy is Korean, and he was there recently doing a project for my company. He said that the cost of labor is starting to sky-rocket there, and that some Korean companies are starting to sub-contract out to companies in Red China to cut costs. He says that the cost of living in Soul, Korea is real high.

Posted: 2/27/2001 10:25:15 AM EDT

[#12]

G21Guy, where are you getting Blackhawk items at a deep discount?

Please share the wealth!

Posted: 2/27/2001 12:10:11 PM EDT

[#13]

A lot of the stuff that blackhawk AND eagle make are made of cordura. a lot of this cordura fabric is also contracted out by dupont to be made overseas. . . i.e. not in the USA.

thus if you buy eagle OR blackhawk, the stuff you are getting was in some way made overseas.

Posted: 2/27/2001 12:16:03 PM EDT

[#14]

I sell Blackhawk BTW - contact me for price quotes - I have very good pricing. (no exaggeration).

Also see:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?id=5128#lastPost

for cheap prices on vests.

Posted: 2/27/2001 12:49:22 PM EDT

[#15]

SUNDOG:
You said "It bothers me that they are doing this but then again all the reliable pistols are not made here (SIG,GLOCK,some Beretta" Just for the record Glock makes some of there pistols here in the USA. Symerna, Georgia is the location, it is about 30 min from my house.

The Azalin

Posted: 2/27/2001 1:55:33 PM EDT

[#16]

Just for the record, Glocks are NOT made in the USA. They are made in Austria. The Tenifer coating process would give the EPA fits! The Tenifer coat is one thing S&W did not copy off of Glock because it couldn't be done "green" enough for the EPA.

The Georgia plant does one of two things. It is either a distribution point, most likely. Or it is only an assembly point for parts out of Austria. There is some debate over this. However, I find the first explaination most likely because of certain hoops Glock had to jump through to get pistols enough "import points," especially with the compact models.(ie finger grooves, adjustable sights, etc.)
Also why would they ship parts that have to be matched, the bbl, slide, and reciever all have the same serial number on them, seperately just to be assembled here?

Posted: 2/27/2001 2:52:32 PM EDT

[#17]

I have no problem at all with Blackhawk. I purchased a large MOB bag and tactical rifle case from them last year and the quality was excellent. They make good, high quality gear. In fact, I like their stuff better than Eagle's.

South Korea is not a problem for me. Never was. China, well, I guess cheap labor has always been the driving force in manufacturing. Maybe one day everything will be made in India by child laborers. This is the direction things are going.

Why not Mexico? Give the people jobs and maybe less of them with cross the Rio Grande. That would have my vote.

In any case, I like their gear and will continue to purchase it. If I see "Made in China" in the future, well, I'll deal with it when the time comes.

It's true most of the nylon components are probably produced overseas. That's the way it goes, but that doesn't mean it cannot be cut and assembled in friendly nations, preferably right here in the US. And why not give the Jenny Jones people jobs? Sounds like a win-win situation to me.

Posted: 2/27/2001 3:44:32 PM EDT

[#18]

223Shooter (and everybody else), we offer a 20% discount to prior and active military, police, EMS S&R and firefighters (that means you G21Guy)

LawDog, I was only counting the new ones :)

Have fun out there guys! Great posts, I'm sure Mike appreciates the support, he's working for you.

Dan
[url]www.gogetemgear.com[/url]

Posted: 2/27/2001 4:36:26 PM EDT

[#19]

Don't mean to offend any hard working union members but could "out of control" union leadership have helped to drive the manufacturing sector overseas?

Posted: 2/27/2001 8:03:03 PM EDT

[#20]

I just bought a blackhawk vest from ESP. His price was good, and delivery was prompt. I wouldn't hesitate to buy from him again. I believe that when you have a good experience with a business, you should let others know.

Potshot

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - BlackHawk selling out & going "hollywood"

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