W8ye, I also remember when Japanese stuff was considered substandard, and I think this was generally the impression well into the 70s. Yet I remember OS engines from the 70s, and they were well made. Well, I guess if you've been making engines since 1935, you gotta get it right sooner or later.

The test on the rifles was about 6 or 7 years ago, and the Springfield M1A is still in production. The Ariska rifle of WWII was a rough, far fetched Mauser copy, and indeed the workmanship left much to be desired, much like the Mausers of the late war years. Pump them out as fast as you can was the order of the day for both Japan and Germany, and quality fell by the wayside as their resources diminished.

This is hardly relevant to the topic though except as a digressive example, unless you consider that Communism could well be a factor in limiting a country's R&D in the private sector as most such resources are funneled into the government machine, which brings to mind how much better Chinese military arms are than those produced by private companies like Norinco et al.

I bet if there was a need for military model engines in China, there would be far fewer returns to Hobby Shack.