RE: Is quality what it used to be??
There is some good equuipment out there so if one wants to pay for quality, its there to be had. There is however a lot of cheap stuff out there which may still be worth the money but stuff that you won't be passing on to your grandkids. Take knives and Optics. There is something in everyones price range. Much of it is well worth the money but is not top quality stuff. Quality always has cost more money and I don't see that its changed much.
However customer service has really dropped off IMO. It seems that new sales are more important than repeat customers. When I was growing up, a satified customer was the number one concern of most retailers. I sure don't see that anymore. There are exceptions however, Savage has been very good at repairing or replacing problem equipment for me.