Tuners Nickel
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![]() Genuine Wittner Stable Nickel Fine Tuner 1 2 1 4 Violin US $2.39
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![]() New BAND Durand Silver Nickel Plate Lacquered Alto Saxophone SaxTunerCase US $329.99
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Goodbye Pontiac – RIP
The glory days of Smokey Yunick and Fireball Roberts charging around the stock car tracks of the south and Farmer Arnie Beswick tearing up the drag strips through out the country are long gone... as are the Firebirds Burt Reynolds thrilled us with on the big screen. Government Motors snuffed out the life of this once proud automaker on April 27, 2009. Once number three in sales, Pontiac had slipped down near the bottom in recent years, a victim of union excesses, inept corporate management, insurance standards and government regulation.
Pontiac's story is one of the entire American auto industry. Union contracts that were almost reasonably workable when the industry was living high on the hog and making so much money they built amazing buildings as monuments to themselves, seem oddly out of place when the profitable sales have been lost to foreign competitors. The adversarial relationship that seemed appropriate when the big three had the US market all to themselves remains, to the detriment of all concerned.
Times change, so do market conditions. The US automakers were up against foreign competition where labor and management understood they needed to work together to produce a product that would penetrate the US market. Somehow the this spirit of cooperation never caught on in the US, even at Pontiac where once there existed a pride in achievement. The unions kept asking for more and more and the greed and lack of resolve on the part of the companies made avoiding the lost production of a strike outweigh the long term destruction of overpriced contracts.
Many other factors played into the downfall of the auto industry, not the least were government regulations in the name of safety, fuel efficiency and others, just because they could. Some of us remember the foolish “double nickel” speed limits imposed by our “benefactors” in Washington until sanity returned. What we saw in this case and around the industry were companies that paid attention to their operations, but not the market or environment they lived in.
In the early '60s I was considering attending General Motors Institute... a fine engineering school with the obvious emphasis on the automobile industry. While checking into this I had the opportunity to visit the main offices of the Pontiac Division. The place was adorned with all sorts of signs touting the number three in sales and an institutional pride rarely seen in the business world. The company took a higher price product and went head to head with lower priced Ford and Chevy. These were the victorious days of Roberts and Beswick. Management at that time had taken a dull, stodgy, but reliable product and morphed it into one of the most desired cars of the time.
They worked on the concept that you could sell a young man's car to an old man, but you couldn't sell an old man's car to a young man... and it worked. They turned out some of the baddest street machines for their time and backed it up with winning efforts in NASCAR, NHRA, USAC and who knows how many other forms of racing. For myself, I had a Tri-Power '60 Ventura and, later, a '64 GTO. Both were fun to drive and just a little nicer than their lower priced Chevrolet cousins.
This was not to last, however, as fuel shortages, insurance rates and government regulations put and end to the no holds barred competition between the auto companies... and we started the long, downward spiral to the indistinguishable econobox lumps so popular today.
The point is that, for the most part, the excitement of the “new car” has been beaten our of our society. Few really are exciting. They have become so expensive that without a rich daddy, young people can't afford anything remotely interesting. Foreign manufacturers, reading the market better than their American counterparts, brought annoying little cars the kids call “tuners” into this environment. Once again, the big three were outmaneuvered. Parking lots that once were filled with Chevys, Fords and Pontiacs are now homes to Hondas, Mazdas and Hyundais. As Chester A. Riley used to say, “What a revoltin' development this is!”
So one more American icon is passing from the scene. It's a sad day. However to the progressive ideologues inside the beltway this is a good thing. The old must be destroyed to make room for the new, the centrally planned Government Motors car that looks like all the others and is certainly less than what are used to, but more then they believe we deserve. For those familiar with the development of the first Volkswagens it is, to quote a great American philosopher, “deja vu all over again.”
In honor of the occasion, perhaps we should dig out a copy of “Little GTO” by Ronnie and the Daytonas – and play it a few times.
About the Author
Larry Miller
After far too many years of working in IT and involvement in political activity, Larry Miller now designs business and political websites at www.simplewebs.biz and recently began the web site and blog www.PoliticalChristian.org as a resource for Christians in the public arena.
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Sell Free Shipping 6pcs in line Nickel Vintage guitar tuners/guitar machine heads/guitar keys $13.89 Guitar machine heads,guitar tuner,guitar gearing,guitar machine tuner,guitar tuning heads,guitar parts,Lp guitar tuners,guitar |
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Fender Schaller Locking Tuners $69.99 Fender Schaller Locking Tuners |
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Vintage1971 Fender Tele Blnd (Tuners) $3500 In Store Vintage VINT 1971 FENDER TELE BLND (TUNERS) |
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Sperzel 6 In-Line Locking Tuners Gold $74.99 Sperzel 6 In-Line Locking Tuners Gold |
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RhythmTech RT7306 Medium Lengh Index Tension Tuners $11.99 RhythmTech RT7306 Medium Lengh Index Tension Tuners |
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Rhythmtech Rt7306 Medium Lengh Index Tension Tuners $11.99 RhythmTech RT7306 Medium Lengh Index Tension Tuners |
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Wd Music Tuners 6 In Line Chrome $29.99 WD Music Tuners 6 In Line Chrome |
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Balalaika Ukulele, Tuners $194.25 Our Balalaika Prima Ukulele has 4 strings and measures approximately 27 inches in length. This Tenor-sized instrument is based upon a 430mm (17 inches) scale. The body has the classical triangular shape. The back is slightly bowed and made of alternating staves of sheesham rosewood (Dalbergia sissoo) and lacewood (Platanus orientalus). The darker back contrasts with the light colored wood of the soundboard. The neck is solid sheesham rosewood and features a nut width of 37mm (1 1/2 inch) with a bone nut. This instrument is outfitted with standard friction ukulele tuners. The tension on each friction tuner can be adjusted by tightening or loosing the screw on the top of the tuner. SPECIAL NOTE: No Warranty on Strings: Manufacturers recommend that you change the strings on your instrument as soon as you receive it. Your instrument has completed a long journey before it ever begins the final leg to your home. During this time the elements affect the strings and may shorten their lifespan. It occasionally happens Height: 7 Width: 0 Weight: 14 |
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Vintage 1925 Martin A Style Mandolin (Replaced Tuners) $799.99 In Store Vintage VINTAGE 1925 MARTIN A STYLE MANDOLIN (REPLACED TUNERS) |
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Used Schecter Hellraiser V With Grover Tuners 022512 $549.99 In Store Used USED SCHECTER HELLRAISER V WITH GROVER TUNERS 022512 |
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Vintage '66 Gibson Es335td Snbrst (Tuners) $4500 In Store Vintage VINTAGE '66 GIBSON ES335TD SNBRST (TUNERS) |
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Fender Replacement Vintage Bass Nickel Tuner Set $79.99 Replacement tuners for Fender American Vintage Precision and Jazz Bass guitars. Nickel plated. |
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Saturn tuners Hooded Sweatshirt by CafePress $45 The hoodie: the perfect utilitarian piece of clothing. Leave your hat and scarf at home Stay warm and comfy in your Pullover Hooded Sweatshirt. This hoodie is constructed with a cotton/polyester blend - both durable and comfortable.Heavyweight 90 Saturn tuners Hooded Sweatshirt Tee, TShirt, Shirt The hoodie: the perfect utilitarian piece of clothing. Leave your hat and scarf at home Stay warm and comfy in your Pullover Hooded Sweatshirt. This hoodie is constructed with a cotton/polyester blend - both durable and comfortable.Heavyweight 90 |



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