PRS Factory tour, was pretty surprised.

[Digital Jams]

I'm still not seeing the point of this thread Scott? PRS still makes a great guitar...no matter how much you think it costs them to build it. Paul has built a proven business model for sure. They are still in very high demand and the market has agreed to pay their asking price. Actually, I think it's great that they spend so much time with QC and discarding all of the questionable guitars. I've yet to find a PRS with finish flaws like some Gibby's and Fenders have...that to me is a win in itself. You know as well as I do that putting together a bolt on guitar is a lot different assembling a set-neck guitar from scratch...

The other thing not evident here is....what is PRS paying their employees? If their guitars cost more, not because of materials cost or build time, but because he pays his workers a decent wage and benefits vs. what a Fender or Gibson does, that's cool with me.

Few years ago PRS had a jobs section on their website and the pay was low.......................8-14 an hour.

Have not been to that site in years.

Entry Level Production Sanders - 2nd Shift
Entry-level production sanders for our Stevensville facility. Hiring for 2nd shift, 4 pm to 12 am. Salary starts at $10/hr. with up to a $1 increase after 3 and 9 months!

Complete benefits package includes: health, dental, 401K, paid vacations, holidays and much more!

For an unskilled entry level position with no education requirements, that ain't bad. Especially full benefits. And I'd be willing to bet it's better than what Fender offers for the same position, although that's only a guess...

They have to offer benefits in Mexico??

The guy that built the Yngwie I tried is not very well paid I am willing to bet........... Benefits is a big one and raises the the total cost of the employee so I agree not a bad start for someone with minimal skills.