Shiraz Balolia and Southbend lathes

[Dave Lehnert]

I was reading on the web (so take this for what it's worth) that Shiraz Balolia is going to bring back to life the South Bend Lathe co. I am not a machinist but find that interesting.

http://www.southbendlathe.com/

http://www.mmsonline.com/news/legacy-brand-reborn-with-new-ownership-product-line.aspx

[Ken Fitzgerald]

It looks like SBL built metal lathes.....

[Scott T Smith]

It looks like SBL built metal lathes.....


They did and I own two of them. They were an industry leader for many, many years.

[Keith Outten]

Good News!

It took me twenty years to find an SB9 metal lathe in pristine condition with all the attachments but I found one five years ago. The leather belt drive is my safety net that keeps me from getting hurt when I do something stupid, I keep the belt a tad lose so it can slip. This is a great metal lathe for an amateur metal turner.

Not many know that the South Bend lathes were instrumental in making parts for the war effort in WWII.
.

[David G Baker]

I have a heavy 10 SBL that has the Navy emblem stamped at the end of the bed. I think it made the Korean War era because the serial number dates it as being made in the late 40's or early 50's. I keep looking for a 17 inch SBL that is in pristine condition and has a lot of tooling. My heavy 10 has a leather belt and as Keith wrote, the slipping belt has saved me a couple of times.
I have read that SBL had been purchased, hope they copy the quality.

[Ed Bamba]

And it will be manufactured in Taiwan---sheesh:( . I,m sure it'll be some great machinery, but come on! Why isn't it feasible to keep manufacturing here? Most companies, or individuals, that would by these high-end machines (I'm assuming they are high-end) would likely be able to afford the cost should they be made in the US. That is of course if retail price is one of the driving factors of manufacturing this line off-shore.

[Matt Meiser]

Not many know that the South Bend lathes were instrumental in making parts for the war effort in WWII.
.

Kind of ironic that the new ones have Japanese or German bearings according to the article.

It will be interesting to see the new smaller lathes when they come out to see if they are South Bends manufactured in Taiwan or Grizzlys with a different paint job. It looks like that is the case with the bigger ones, but that's just at a quick glance.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Matt,

The way I read the article they will be SBLs manufactured in Taiwan.


Ed.......the company was defunct. So Shiraz bought the company. Someone made money on the deal. Get over it. When it becomes as economically feasible to manufacture things here in the US, they will be manufactured here. Companies either make a profit or go out of business.

[Ed Bamba]

Matt,

The way I read the article they will be SBLs manufactured in Taiwan.


Ed.......the company was defunct. So Shiraz bought the company. Someone made money on the deal. Get over it. When it becomes as economically feasible to manufacture things here in the US, they will be manufactured here. Companies either make a profit or go out of business.

Sorry Ken, at the risk of being banned by you, I'll have say, I will not "Get over it".

[Rod Sheridan]

Matt,

The way I read the article they will be SBLs manufactured in Taiwan.


Ed.......the company was defunct. So Shiraz bought the company. Someone made money on the deal. Get over it. When it becomes as economically feasible to manufacture things here in the US, they will be manufactured here. Companies either make a profit or go out of business.

Hi Ken, I partially agree with your argument.

If price is the only objective, then yes offshore will probably be less expensive every time.

If however, you include quality and country of origin in your purchasing objectives then the results change.

Our fascination with cheap, at the expense of everything else, is devastating over the long term.

Looking back at my parents, they had less possessions than we do now, however the items they purchased were bought because they felt that they gave good value. That didn't mean cheapest, that meant a high quality, repairable, extremely long life product.

50 years later, the GE chrome toaster that they received as a wedding present, made great toast. The cord had been replaced a few times, thus avoiding a trip to the landfill.

Our parents weren't cheap, they were frugal.

My generation seems to have miss understood, and confused frugal with cheap.

That's what we have now, an enormous amount of cheap, short life-cycle objects that are destroying our environment and our financial security.

So yes, South Bend will be made in Taiwan, however just like a General International machine isn't a General, a new SB lathe won't be a South Bend.

And since we do have the power to make selections based upon more advanced criteria than price, we could perhaps support a South Bend lathe that once again wears a "Made in USA" sticker.

Regards, Rod.

[Ed Labadie]

Up until several years ago SB would sell you parts or refurbish your old lathe. A friend looked into it since his SB was in pretty rough shape. The prices they wanted for parts & service were astronomical! You could have bought several new Tiawan lathes for what they wanted to refurbish his 10" SB.

Another thing to consider is the market for a high quality small manual lathe, it doesn't exist in the industrial world today. Even in the private sector it's a small niche market.
In todays industrial toolroom CNC machines are the standard, not the exception.

Example: http://www.haascnc.com/details.asp?ID=TL-1&webid=LATHE_TL#CNCLatheTreeModel

Ed

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Ed,

You have no risk at being banned for that comment. You have every right to disagree with a Moderator as long as you do it within the limitations of the TOSs.


It's an economic fact, however.

Companies make money or go out of business. When expenses.....taxes...payroll...workers benefits.....materials....shipping.....expenses... .become too great a company is no longer profitable ....it will go out of business or move somewhere else where it can be more profitable. That's the facts. You can't ignore them...they won't go away.

[Wilbur Pan]

And it will be manufactured in Taiwan---sheesh:( . I,m sure it'll be some great machinery, but come on! Why isn't it feasible to keep manufacturing here? Most companies, or individuals, that would by these high-end machines (I'm assuming they are high-end) would likely be able to afford the cost should they be made in the US. That is of course if retail price is one of the driving factors of manufacturing this line off-shore.

One of the main reasons that manufacturing has been leaving the U.S. is purchasing decisions like this one:


I have that exact same shaper (Grizzly 1.5hp shaper, which is not manufactured domestically) . I bought it at an estate sale (never used) and was missing all three spindles and the fence assembly.

Not only did this purchasing decision fail to support U.S. manufacturing, but since it was a used machinery purchase, it also failed to support a U.S. retailer.

Getting back to the original topic, I think it's great that Shiraz is making this move. At least it keeps the South Bend Lathe Company going, and one more American business stays alive.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Rod,

Again....I'd buy "Made in the USA" in a flash if I could within in reason.

It's not a good personal financial decision IMHO to pay several times more for something "Made in Canada" or "Made in the USA" just for that sake alone. If there is a significant difference in quality...maybe if it's something that requires that quality but to do it as a standard way of purchasing....no.

Those are decisions everyone makes everyday and probably doesn't think about it .....

[Matt Meiser]

The way I read the article they will be SBLs manufactured in Taiwan.

Yeah, saw that. What I meant by my comment is that I wonder if the smaller lathes they are going to sell will be identical to the Grizzlys with a different paint job or if they have access to the molds, prints, etc from the original SB lathes and will be reproducing those in Taiwan?

And if I'm not mistaken, didn't South Bend go out of business trying to make machinery in the US?

[John M Bailey]

“The diehard South Bend fans out there won’t be disappointed,” Mr. Balolia says. “The South Bend name deserves to be carried forward with its original reputation, and that won’t happen if it becomes just another rebranded machinery line.”

Mr Balolia is quoted here saying, in effect, that the New South Bends will not be Grizzly Lathes rebranded.

[Don Bullock]

...The leather belt drive is my safety net that keeps me from getting hurt when I do something stupid, I keep the belt a tad lose so it can slip. This is a great metal lathe for an amateur metal turner.

Not many know that the South Bend lathes were instrumental in making parts for the war effort in WWII.
.


Keith, your post brings back some great memories of my dad fabricating metal pieces on his South Bend. It was a super machine. Thanks for the memories.:D

[Chris Barnett]

Boy, if he needs a test bed for one of the smaller lathes, I will gladly put one in the shop, at a price I can afford that is! The other Griz equipment could keep it company :D. Always wanted a metal lathe but the woodworking stuff had won so far. Glad to hear it, so I better start saving the extra c-notes that I don't need.

[Randal Stevenson]

And it will be manufactured in Taiwan---sheesh:( . I,m sure it'll be some great machinery, but come on! Why isn't it feasible to keep manufacturing here? Most companies, or individuals, that would by these high-end machines (I'm assuming they are high-end) would likely be able to afford the cost should they be made in the US. That is of course if retail price is one of the driving factors of manufacturing this line off-shore.

Several catch-22's. While tool manufacturing has moved offshore (chasing profits), that makes it harder to make stuff here, as the substructure also moves offshore (sometimes before, sometimes same time, and sometimes after).
If your customers keep buying, you keep in the black. If not, you better move back before your closed, and can no longer move back.
Or in this case, you also lose a lot of your market, to CNC machines.

We are also loosing the skill sets to use these machines. Look at how many people can't do their own repairs. You bring things down cheap enough (throw away) and it becomes cost ineffective to fix. So Joe Schmo, who has never fixed anything, doesn't attempt it, and learn the skill set/mindset to fix things.

[Jeff Duncan]

I believe what also may have been a factor in SB going under was that they were built too well. As small entry level lathes I see them everywhere up here and they really last. Since most of the guys that own them are machinists, if new parts were needed they would likely manufacture them in-house.

Of course that doesn't mean cost wasn't the larger factor. Truth is many small shops just don't want to spend on quality. I've noticed many small shops near me that are closing these days are loaded with less expensive Asian machines that just aren't worth much used. Makes me scratch my head, I can see buying less expensive as a hobbiest, your only putting modest hours on a machine. But to depend on inexpensive imports to make a living? Been there done that and won't be fooled again;)

JeffD

[Ed Bamba]

One of the main reasons that manufacturing has been leaving the U.S. is purchasing decisions like this one:



Not only did this purchasing decision fail to support U.S. manufacturing, but since it was a used machinery purchase, it also failed to support a U.S. retailer.

Getting back to the original topic, I think it's great that Shiraz is making this move. At least it keeps the South Bend Lathe Company going, and one more American business stays alive.

Well Wilbur, you're right, and it seems like a lot of us here are not supporting our US retailers. That doesn't make my purchase right with regards to retailer support. Check out our classified section. I'm sure that you are not suggesting that we all should refrain from purchasing second hand products, just to support the retailers. I did support the person who needed the cash though;).

Anyways, I guess the point I should've made earlier was that our unemployment rate is creeping towards the double-digit figure (I'm sure you are well aware of that). And it seems like more and more of our manufacturing jobs are being being sent off-shore. There are many variables responsible for that, as Ken pointed out. Mr. Balolia has forgotten more than I'll ever know about business management and product manufacturing, and like I said, I'm sure they will be great machines.

[Dave Lehnert]

Yeah, saw that. What I meant by my comment is that I wonder if the smaller lathes they are going to sell will be identical to the Grizzlys with a different paint job or if they have access to the molds, prints, etc from the original SB lathes and will be reproducing those in Taiwan?

And if I'm not mistaken, didn't South Bend go out of business trying to make machinery in the US?

I did read some place that they did get the old molds and such so they will be made from the original.

I have always wanted to get into metalworking but don't know enough to buy a lathe.

[Rod Sheridan]

Rod,

Again....I'd buy "Made in the USA" in a flash if I could within in reason.

It's not a good personal financial decision IMHO to pay several times more for something "Made in Canada" or "Made in the USA" just for that sake alone. If there is a significant difference in quality...maybe if it's something that requires that quality but to do it as a standard way of purchasing....no.

Those are decisions everyone makes everyday and probably doesn't think about it .....

I would previously have agreed with you on that Ken, however as I've watched my friends and neighbours become unemployed due to my actions, I've changed my purchasing strategy.

I no longer purchase imported stuff when local stuff is available.

I've also tried to limit my purchasing of imported items to those made in countries with similar environmental laws and social systems.

It's inconvenient, and more expensive, however It's about time I put my money where my mouth is.

Regards, Rod.

[Wilbur Pan]

Well Wilbur, you're right, and it seems like a lot of us here are not supporting our US retailers. That doesn't make my purchase right with regards to retailer support. Check out our classified section. I'm sure that you are not suggesting that we all should refrain from purchasing second hand products, just to support the retailers. I did support the person who needed the cash though;).

Just to clarify, I don't think there is anything wrong with buying used tools, or buying tools made outside of the U.S. per se. I've bought used tools, and I've bought machinery made in China. I just think that if one is going to bemoan the state of U.S. manufacturing, then their actions should match their words.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Rod,

That's interesting.

On 9/13/2009 you recommended a General International mortiser that's made in Taiwan. I bought it on the following Saturday at Spokane's Woodcraft.

Folks. It is a globalized economy. Decades ago people showed Sam Walton they could accept less quality and didn't care where stuff was made. Walmart's business plan was born and has expanded to many other companies.

1. Made in the USA used to stand for quality. It HAS NOT been true for several decades. If you have an hour I will relate to you about a 1983 full-sized Chevy Blazer I bought that I went through 4 transmissions and the 5th one was going out when I traded it after 4 1/2 years and 41,000 miles. That is the only vehicle with which I have ever had a transmission or major problem of any kind. I haven't bought a GM product since. I have bought Ford, Honda and Toyota, however. I don't care who the CEO of GM is and how many hours he stands in front of a TV camera and tells me how great his product is. When my friends tell me that after 10 years their GM vehicle is still functioning as advertised, then I might consider buying one. A reputation once tarnished, is damned difficult to regain IMHO.

2. When it becomes cheaper to manufacture stuff on the North American continent than it is else where in the world, it will be manufactured here.

3. You have a right to purchase "stuff" manufactured where ever you like. I accord you that privilege and demand the same for myself.

4. You aren't helping your neighbor's immediate financial situation when you have to save an extra 2 years to buy something locally made. You only help them when you spend your dollars.

[Dan Friedrichs]

I would previously have agreed with you on that Ken, however as I've watched my friends and neighbours become unemployed due to my actions, I've changed my purchasing strategy.

I no longer purchase imported stuff when local stuff is available.

I've also tried to limit my purchasing of imported items to those made in countries with similar environmental laws and social systems.

It's inconvenient, and more expensive, however It's about time I put my money where my mouth is.

Regards, Rod.

It's either your neighbor goes unemployed, or someone in a different country goes unemployed. Merely on the basis of rewarding hard work, I'd say the foreigner deserves employment a lot more than your neighbor does.

[Mike Cruz]

Well, I was going to post this in Deals and Discounts, because of THIS thread, but thought it might be seen by more folks that might be interested in it/them if I posted in this thread. It is parts for a SB lathe....great timing, huh...

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/tls/1390488647.html

[Rod Sheridan]

It's either your neighbor goes unemployed, or someone in a different country goes unemployed. Merely on the basis of rewarding hard work, I'd say the foreigner deserves employment a lot more than your neighbor does.

Dan, you're making an assumption about my neighbour, as well as ignoring the social hardships and expenses that go with unemployment.

As Warren Buffet stated, we were lucky and won the ovarian lottery. You or I could have been born in Calcutta, where our circumstances would have been much different, assuming we lived to become adults.

Those of us who were fortunate enough to win the lottery, should be aware enough to realize that we have some obligations to go along with our undeserved fortunate circumstances.

Regards, Rod.

[dan sherman]

They did and I own two of them. They were an industry leader for many, many years.

Sorry Scott,

I have to take a little exception to that statement. Companies like make Pacemaker, Hardinge, Monarch lead the industry when it came to performance and craftsmanship. What Southbend did was produce range of smaller machines with decent specks, that found there was into almost ever high school shop class in the country.

This is one of the reasons they are so coveted, because a lot of people learned machining on them. Bridgeport was the say way when it came to mills.

[Dan Friedrichs]

Dan, you're making an assumption about my neighbour...
Those of us who were fortunate enough to win the lottery, should be aware enough to realize that we have some obligations to go along with our undeserved fortunate circumstances.


True, I am.

My suggestion is my obligation is to ALL other hard-working honest human beings, not simply US/Canadian ones.

[jim hedgpeth]

I realize this may put me on many #$%^ lists but, American workers have not helped to keep manufacturing here. There are two businesses in my home town that are prime examples.

One is now closed, and moved to Mexico. I worked there for several years, and tried to warn my coworkers. Many had the attitude "I don't get paid to care". It caused quality issues. That caused lost contracts. Then "We don't get any overtime so. Less production from workers. Production dates get missed, more lost contracts, CLOSED.
Luckily I saw it coming and got out in time.

My uncle is in a similar situation, but from a managers side. Workers don't care about quality because business has been slow. He can't get them to understand its slow because of the quality problems. He has got contract bids in, and even got the ok to run samples, but they don't care enough to get the samples right. I saw a couple of these contracts once at lunch w/ him. These are BIG contracts, enough to put this company back at full capacity for 2-3 years, more if the customer renews. You get the idea, very frustrating for him. Worst part for him is he's only 4 years from retirement and don't think they will last that long without change.

I won't even get started on the younger generation. Work is not social hour, but someone forgot to explain that to them.


So I am done ranting now, and I know not all workers are that way, but enough to ruin it for everyone else. It takes few to kill it for the many.


Sorry to anyone who may be offended.

Jim

[Mike Cruz]

I, for one, AM offended! But not at you. At those that you just pointed fingers at. I've experienced the exact same thing. People not caring enough to pay attention to detail because it isn't "their" company. They get their paychecks either way. If everyone treated their job like it was their company to sink or swim, there would be a lot more companies with their heads above water right now...

That said, the economy sucks. That plays a major factor. But still, the lesson that many don't learn is have respect and pride in your company...whether you own it or work for it. The world doesn't OWE you anything. You must earn it.

[jim hedgpeth]

Mike Cruz

I, for one, AM offended! But not at you. At those that you just pointed fingers at. I've experienced the exact same thing. People not caring enough to pay attention to detail because it isn't "their" company. They get their paychecks either way. If everyone treated their job like it was their company to sink or swim, there would be a lot more companies with their heads above water right now...

That said, the economy sucks. That plays a major factor. But still, the lesson that many don't learn is have respect and pride in your company...whether you own it or work for it. The world doesn't OWE you anything. You must earn it.


Exactly.

Especially this one.....

If everyone treated their job like it was their company to sink or swim, there would be a lot more companies with their heads above water right now...

Thank you Mike, its good to see I am not the only one who believes this way. Anything worth doing should be worth doing as best you can.

Another thing that gets me, "hey, here comes the boss/supervisor, watch out."

My typical response is "Yea.... and?"
If he/she was doing what they are supposed to be, how it's supposed to be done then they would have nothing to be worried about.

Jim

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Folks,

This economy didn't just happen over night. It actually started several decades ago and has just now started peaking. I worked with a manager at a local hospital who predicted the US was going away from a manufacturing base and moving to a Service base...over 20 years ago. He left the hospital and went to work for a global company headquartered in Germany. He's quite a way up in the management chain these days. He was right and he saw it coming 20 years ago.

Companies have to make a profit or go bankrupt eventually. When it becomes too difficult to make a profit producing a product in a given location, management has 2 choices...find a way to cut costs.....or let the company go bankrupt. One of the ways to cut cost is to move the manufacturing processes elsewhere. Lower labor costs and less restrive environmental standards have a big effect on production costs. When this happens it usually a result of faults that can be shared by everyone involved....management....shareholders.....workers ......and/or taxes placed by local, state and federal governments in the case of USA based companies. Usually no one group is completely free of some of the blame.

Some will try to convince you it's a simple solution...black and white. I suggest few things in life are simple.....black and white. I suggest that it is a whole lot more complex than that.

I don't think I've seen anyone involved standup and take responsibility for their portion of the blame in the economy and the current business crisis.

When it becomes more profitable to build here than overseas, manufacturing jobs will return.

[Richard Wolf]

Step one in improving the American work ethic;

1) Take the cell phones away.

Richard

[Randal Stevenson]

I won't even get started on the younger generation. Work is not social hour, but someone forgot to explain that to them.


Jim


Step one in improving the American work ethic;

1) Take the cell phones away.

Richard

Both part of the same entitlement feeling, I keep working to get out of the kids I work with.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I have to agree with Richard. I have been in the electronics business for 45 yrs. I can't tell you how many I have reprimanded or fired due to cellphones especially texting. I saw two go in the back room and I just watched. After a hour I couldn't stand it anymore. I went back there and they had been texting their girlfriends during that hour time period. Fired them both. I mean for a hour at work and who knows how long it would have went on. My granddaughter averages 5,000 text a month. I told my son that wouldn't be happening if it were you. I get this, "oh dad that's just the way it is." Now they make the kids shut off their phones because they caught a bunch of them texting answers back and forth on a test. The kids think it is cruel to make them shut them off.

Work ethic is not there any more. They come in and do as little as possible because all they care about is when is it payday so I can get a check. For gosh sakes don't be standing in the doorway at quitting time or you will have tennis shoe tracks up your back from them rushing to get out of work.

Ok like Jim I am done ranting.

[Thom Sturgill]

<rant on>
I agree with a lot of the sentiment about workers not caring, BUT stuff comes down from the above, and bad attitudes are catching. The companies stopped caring about workers a L-O-N-G time ago, so the attitude is why should they care back? Think about the implied change in business attitude from 'Personnel Office' to 'Human Resources'.

I for one would be glad to 'Buy American' and that's one of the reasons I started shopping at Wal-Mart. It was not until after Sam died that everything changed to 'Made in China' - a while back I tried to buy an American flag there and it was 'Made in China':mad: (I didn't buy it, but did complain. So did others. Their American flags are now made in USA)

This has nothing to do with the OP. </rant off>

I remember rebuilding a SB lathe my dad had back in the mid 60s. Would love to have it, but he sold that one decades ago and I have not seen one for sale.

[phil harold]

I remember selling my dads 9" SB lathe to my brother-in-law

He asked me what came with it, I told him everything

When we went to get it out of dad's basement he commented "Holey moley!when you said everything, I did not understand you meant everything!"

Well at least I know it is put to good use

I kept the SB drll press and all the cleveland twist drill bits...

[Keith Outten]

My View From The Bottom:

If you don't discipline your children the odds are some day a judge will. One day your neighbors will tire of paying $30,000 per year per prisoner, particularly when they don't even make that much per year or they are unemployed. Prisoners in our local jail watch color TV and each have their own basketball issued to them :( Your local and state tax dollars pay for this nonsense.

If you work for a company you should be buying their stock. When you and your fellow employees become owners you may feel different about your work ethics and the company remaining profitable. At some point in time the workers will own the majority of the companies stock, then they can adjust the salary of their company President from ten million per year to something that isn't immoral.

Start using your heads and the power of purchasing. Don't buy any products from companies who pay their management outrageous salaries. How many cars does GM have to sell to pay their CEO 30 million dollars per year? That's your money folks, the sticker price of the car you just purchased pays these fat cats, seems like you would be tired of the abuse by now. If you lower the price of cars based on the money you saved reducing your top managers salaries you might still have a job.

If you add up your Federal, State, FICA, local, real estate, and sales taxes the odds are it amounts to 50% of your annual income unless you are a fat cat and you are able to take advantage of the tax loopholes. There is no wonder we need more money to survive when half our income goes to taxes. With this kind of overhead we will never be able to be competitive again in the world market. The days of America using technology to make up for lack of production and massive overhead are over.

Its a start.....
.

[Mike Cruz]

So...we should buy from manufacturers that don't pay their CEOs really large sums? Hmmmm, who would that be? Can't think of any. But what if there are some, they are outside the US? Then we aren't buying American...not based on price of the vehicle, not based on quality, not based on value to the customer, but based on principle.

I get your point, but seems like cutting off your nose...

[alex carey]

Hmmm, not too sure about that Richard and Bernie, Although I agree cell phones and texting can be a distraction taking them away from everyone seems too harsh. Especially from grown adults. Whether you keep your job or not should be based on your work output not whether you text.

For instance, I text constantly, in and out of class, I am on forums(including smc), facebook, email and so on during class. My lowest grade to date also happens to be an A- and I have now plans to ever get below an A again. I believe it to be highly unfair to take away cell phones and texting from people just because of a some bad apples.

Once someone can't handle responsibilty then their phone can be taken away.

In the case of your granddaughter Bernie, as long as she was getting good grades and otherwise being responsible I don't see how texting is an issue.

[Wilbur Pan]

Step one in improving the American work ethic;

1) Take the cell phones away.

Richard

The best way I've found to improve productivity at work is to read this blog.

The Ultimate Productivity Blog (http://productiveblog.tumblr.com/)

;)

[Richard Wolf]

Hmmm, not too sure about that Richard and Bernie, Although I agree cell phones and texting can be a distraction taking them away from everyone seems too harsh. Especially from grown adults. Whether you keep your job or not should be based on your work output not whether you text.

For instance, I text constantly, in and out of class, I am on forums(including smc), facebook, email and so on during class. My lowest grade to date also happens to be an A- and I have now plans to ever get below an A again. I believe it to be highly unfair to take away cell phones and texting from people just because of a some bad apples.

Once someone can't handle responsibilty then their phone can be taken away.

In the case of your granddaughter Bernie, as long as she was getting good grades and otherwise being responsible I don't see how texting is an issue.

The statement of taking away cell phones only applies to those that abuse them, of course.
My guess about your performance is either you are very gifted, or your course selection is not challenging enough for you. People that think they can Multi-Task are usually sacrificing devotion to both areas.
People that work for me get paid to pay attention to details, not talk to their friends. It is not just the 15 seconds to send a text message, it's the time spent preparing for the text and the time spent digesting the last one.
No one expects 100% all the time from an employee, but I do expect someone's head to be focused on what they are getting paid for, not what they are doing that evening.

Richard

[Ben West]

I guess every generation eventually develops the belief that the younger generation just isn't on par with theirs. My grandfather's did it to my dad's, my dad's did it to mine, and mine is starting to do it to the generation now in their late teens and early 20s. "They're just lazy...don't understand how to work...don't take responsibility, etc."

Many of you have stories to support this. I'll give you a counter one. A girl that we routinely use as a babysitter holds down 2 part-time jobs, babysits for us and others whenever asked, and attends college full-time (with an A average). She works harder than I, or my Dad, or my Grandfather ever did at her age. The younger generation is lazy??? Tell that to her, and then try and keep up with her.