My wife and I took CPL classes a couple weeks ago, and our NRA instructor gave a lot of pointers and advice on what to buy and not buy. Some I already knew was marketing, some sounded legit, and some I kind of wondered if he knew what he was talking about. He definitely had his favorite brands, and talked bad about whatever he didn't like.
So he was pretty patriotic, and definitely pushed American made firearms. He talked up S&W and Colt, and really put down Glock, Sig Sauer, and others that I know to be quality manufacturers (I own a Glock, and it has been flawless). He generalized with statements like "yeah, they're all somewhere in Europe."
When he listed reputable American/USA made companies that we should consider, I noticed he omitted Ruger. I have owned a 10/22 for almost 20 years, and I was always under the impression that they were American made, even if not 100%. When I asked him about it, he addressed the whole room and said "well, Ruger isn't really made in the USA... they're imports. They get almost all their parts from Japan. They are just "assembled" here." After our range time, I privately asked him again to clarify, because one of the models we were interested in for my wife was a Ruger. At that time, without the rest of the class present, he suddenly couldn't say for sure what country they got parts from...
So me being naturally suspicious, I wondered if he was intentionally trying to tarnish their reputation, or if there was some merit to it. I'm sure every company at some point imports some components, but are Ruger firearms primarily USA made, or no? Was He trolling me hoping I would just believe him and buy a S&W (which I did, but not based on our conversation)?
So he was pretty patriotic, and definitely pushed American made firearms. He talked up S&W and Colt, and really put down Glock, Sig Sauer, and others that I know to be quality manufacturers (I own a Glock, and it has been flawless). He generalized with statements like "yeah, they're all somewhere in Europe."
When he listed reputable American/USA made companies that we should consider, I noticed he omitted Ruger. I have owned a 10/22 for almost 20 years, and I was always under the impression that they were American made, even if not 100%. When I asked him about it, he addressed the whole room and said "well, Ruger isn't really made in the USA... they're imports. They get almost all their parts from Japan. They are just "assembled" here." After our range time, I privately asked him again to clarify, because one of the models we were interested in for my wife was a Ruger. At that time, without the rest of the class present, he suddenly couldn't say for sure what country they got parts from...
So me being naturally suspicious, I wondered if he was intentionally trying to tarnish their reputation, or if there was some merit to it. I'm sure every company at some point imports some components, but are Ruger firearms primarily USA made, or no? Was He trolling me hoping I would just believe him and buy a S&W (which I did, but not based on our conversation)?