Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?
A while ago someone asked about best purchases under $200, and it made me wonder what items people have gotten the most use out of. What are some of your favorite items that are made to last?
204 comments
[ 3.8 ms ] story [ 205 ms ] threadPans which never go in the dishwasher.
A decent glass water jug which fits on the refrigerator door.
A small toolkit of decently made screwdrivers.
A reasonably simple Victorinox Swiss army knife.
At least one raspberry pi.
A strong "U" kryptonite style bicycle lock.
Glasses cleaning cloth. 15 years going strong.
A digital alarm clock you can adjust the brightness on. I went Sony, it uses DVB-T signals to get time.
After a lot of research, for Christmas 2020 I got a few "Airpro" masks[1] ($40-50). In short, it's a wearable HEPA filter that pumps filtered air into any standard N95 or KN95 mask.
In theory this gives better filtration (both from higher efficiency and positive pressure), but mainly I love it because it eliminates hot mask face.
My original unit is still going strong. I'm pretty careful, but it's still had numerous drops.
Tips after >2 years of use:
* I always use it on high, unless the battery is low.
* I bring my own N95 masks that I prefer, the (sadly discontinued) Harbor Freight N95s. Choose one you like. I change it about once a month.
* I (gasp!) convert my head straps to ear loops. Much easier to eat that way: open, shovel, close.
* The design is made to accommodate a carbon pre-filter, so I just cut rectangular prefilters out of standard surgical masks. Changed monthly, I still haven't needed to replace the original HEPA filter.
* Be sure to check out the review from "TX gadget nut" for how to seal the internal leak paths.[2] I potted the entire board with food-grade caulk, since I noted small through-holes in the PCB.
* To protect the silicone hose from strain, I hang the unit sideways using the lanyard.
* If you're really obsessive (guess how I know...), you can use a small file to remove the mold lines inside the outlet port, slightly reducing the pressure drop.
* As with any mask, it's important to perform hand hygiene before and after touching or adjusting it. A dollar store conical spray bottle and rubbing alcohol works fine.
* It's surprisingly nice to completely avoid wood smoke and diesel exhaust. I didn't realize how ubiquitous it was until I had the option to not breathe it in.
Fingers crossed, but so far it's been very effective and comfortable. All told I estimate it's about 15¢/day.
I'm ordering a couple spares, since I never know when a product I like will get discontinued...
(not exactly BIFL given the consumables, but before this I went through an N95 per week so I'm still ahead)
[1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YWLBVF2/
[2] https://www.amazon.com/portal/customer-reviews/media-gallery...
Found it: https://youtu.be/CRi8r0XQFHU?t=5402
As always, a great sense of humor. I saw him speak shortly after the Intel Mac release, and got him to sign my computer "Woz Inside." Inaccurate, but he was a good sport about the joke!
I get about one inquiry a month, usually at the store. People seem to like it, especially when I mention the comfort.
"Don't you want to kill your family members?" No, not really. Just my personal choice.
A comfortable mask isn't some great burden to me. The whole line of questioning feels strange, like someone incredulously saying "Do you plan on wearing pants for the rest of your life??"
I’m from Western Europe and mask wearing both never was political, was well followed during the much more stringent restrictions we had at the peak of the epidemic and has virtually disappeared from the past two years.
It’s a very different attitude that what it seems to be in the state but our relationship with diseases is already culturally extremely different than what it is in the USA.
As you may note, that's not what I said.
> Suggesting that a mask in 2022 has anywhere near the utility of pants
Didn't say that either.
It's simply strange to me that people get so worked up over it, just like it would be strange if people got super worked up over wearing pants.
In my experience, absent of the 'hot/stuffy mask face' it's no big deal. YMMV
> maybe even virtue signaling
Or maybe even, as they said quite plainly, "at-risk family members".
Personally I wouldn't wear a mask any more; as others have said I think there comes a time where unless there's a specific heightened risk you have to accept that you either stop at some point or wear one for the rest of your life.
That said, I have immediate family who are extremely immuno-suppressed. I either wear a mask, or every day I increase the risk of killing them. So I wear a mask.
Sometimes the argument is pointless. The "other side" may even agree with you. Yet life often makes a mockery of our choices and forces behaviours upon us.
I ask because this very much applies to me. I have very at risk family members and if by wearing a mask daily I make them 1% less likely to die, that's worth it to me. But these family members themselves have stopped wearing masks... That doesn't mean my masking will do nothing, but when they're not even trying I find it hard to justify.
That company went out of business as far as I can tell though, so it will be back to the Airpro when I run out of filters, if I can find it.
Well, in india the purple masks were more effective than the red ones;)
I must say I admire your ability to keep cool when the minimizers creep out of the woodwork.
I still have it over 30 years later, although my need to staple these days is exceedingly rare.
I posted an image to twitter and received sympathy from Fiskars but no other comment. I had to go and buy another pair - orange handled, for left-handed people.
(Was obviously not intentional, but I guess the insulated handles helped save me!)
For stuff that most everyone can use, I would mention cast iron cookware. I have cast iron skillets and pots that I have used for over two decades that I expect to last me many years still. And I use them all the time. The brand name is not very important although you probably want to avoid the very cheapest.
Next, I would say good quality knives. Both for use in the kitchen as well as in the forest, on hikes, etc. For Chef's knives, I think F. Dick makes decent ones that last very long for home use. And for forest use, I would recommend LionSteel.
Has made more pots of chili, chicken soup, bone broth and pasta than I can count.
Other items not nearly as old: Le Creuset 5qt Dutch Oven, Lodge 10", 12" and 6" Cast Iron Skillets, and an old Griswold 8" which I really like because it is half the thickness of the Lodge, so temp changes more rapidly and it is lighter.
It gets completely flat on my hiking shoes after a year or two, leading to notably reduced grip, and that's the main reason I have to replace them once in a while. But mine are medium priced, so I am wondering if higher priced shoes like yours last longer.
I'm probably going to use that fork/knife/spoon until the day I fucking die, so I might as well make sure it's damn good.
The truth is that any metal cutlery will outlive you, regardless of the price.
And metal cutlery is also very cheap to produce, a full set should cost less than $20, and will last a lifetime.
In the past I had enough for myself and two friends, after that it was all mismatched knives, forks and spoons which were randomly acquired over the years - Although I had a couple of butter-knives I'd had since I moved out of my parents home 30 years ago!
Having matching cutlery, that felt good in the hands, makes a surprising difference to mealtimes. I didn't even spend more than €100, though I took a long time handling and testing different designs before I found one that I liked.
Now I buy stainless from liberty tabletop, literally the last remaining stainless steel tableware manufacturer in existence in the us. It’s not that expensive and much better quality.
And proper chopsticks.
https://www.snowpeak.com/products/wabuki-chopsticks-sct-111
Why is this so expensive? My MAG-MR1-V3 was $16.15 and it seems pretty much identical.
Beyond that, you're paying some for the name, and some for a guarantee it's manufactured perfectly, so to speak. The price here is closer to $150, I definitely wouldn't pay 400 for it.
https://www.amazon.com/Sharpener-Jonurphy-Sharpeners-Rotatin...
If knives and sharp objects are your thing, you probably want to go with one of the bigger models.
Also, my cast iron skillet. It seems to get better as it ages, so it has a good chance to outlast most other kitchenware I purchased.
I love old woodworking hand tools. I buy them every chance I get. Slowly building my collection of Stanley hand planes. I have a couple of nice Swedish hand saws. Other assorted tools. USA made sockets and wrenches. Really any USA made old tools.
I got mine done in a very small shop in Berlin from a Schuhmachermeister. Shes unfortunately not doing shoes anymore. Supposedly there are only around 100 left in all of Germany. I know Florence in Italy also still has quite a few shoemakers.
Its likely a major city close to you still has at least one that still makes shoes. This is something you want to get done in person as they must have the exact measurements of your feet.
Bloomberg did a relatively short video on it a few years back. It explains a bit about the process. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITiyKmYnL-0
Of course it’s pure luck that these boots fit me perfectly.
So maybe you'll need much more than 30, or you could buy something actually good for 30x the price.
I got the audio speakers too about 10 years back. About double the keyboard price. Warranty was for 6 months.
My average daily computer use is around 10 hours, so it's not like they lasted long due to low usage.
Lacking any physical inheritance, I guess memories and ways of thinking--possibly including prejudices--are also durable in a sense.
That made me ponder what I would leave behind to the next generation.
Maybe Thinkpads, an upgradeable router/firewall, a custom AI/ML rig? A homelab? Books for sure. Hopefully some wisdom :)
I have a Unicomp keyboard. It's still going...
Books.
A good tea set.
I’m trying the same thing with a Les Paul now. I’ll let you know how it goes in 20 years.
Guitar playing (as well as, probably any and all other instruments) is just good for the brain.
I have a 72 Gibson acoustic I bought used. Sounds and plays amazing. I see no reason why it wouldn't be passed on to my kids and grandkids eventually.