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Overkill objects for everyday life

neil.computer

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Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#331

Post by neilpanchal »

lucb1e wrote: post #255

This started off as a fun article about "what's the most overkill way I can get this?" and then looking for second-hand fighter jet seats just for the shits and giggles. I like that. But then it goes south from there, the author seems to believe that anything that isn't from the USA military must be crap: > Made in the USA from military grade [...] preferably a military supplier [...] This is the real thing, used by…

Author here. I need to push back on this. This whole post is tongue in cheek, totally over-the-top and my way of doing things. I thought that was obvious including a lofty claim of an average consumer. People seem to be hung up on that. No one is calling you an idiot - and no, I have no romance for US military. Bought plenty of things from Swedish, Canadian and Swiss military and other industries. You’re unnecessarily painting a character picture that’s going with your biases, borderline politicizing it with gun ownership - I’d like you to think about this and reconsider how you judge people.

For what it’s worth - I’ve also bought overkill items and they’ve turned out to be a disaster. For instance, for the TPI fan in the example - I had to get an industrial fan controller because it was too damn loud and restaurant grade containers that are not BPA-free.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#332

Post by ValentineC »

Arch-TK wrote: post #271
dan-robertson wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dishwashers are another example. You could buy a commercial one but it will come with no roll-out trays (you load up different plastic racks for different things and you can load a rack while the dishwasher is running) and it’s designed for an environment with lots of ventilation (you just open it when it is done and let the steam get ventilated away) which people are unlikely to have in their own kitchens. Other ite…

You need to spend at least £600 to get a decent home espresso set up but it will get you something pretty close to good cafe grade coffee. The reason those big £3000+ machines are impractical for the home is not the cleaning or even the warm-up time (as both of those factors are the same for any espresso machine even the home ones) but rather with the fact that the bar grade espresso machines expect to be plumbed int…

> You need to spend at least £600 to get a decent home espresso set up but it will get you something pretty close to good cafe grade coffee.

There are also the lever espresso makers like the Flair or Cafelat Robot, which are cheaper, more robust (no fancy heating elements), but also a bit more troublesome.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#333

Post by SavantIdiot »

seoaeu wrote: post #323
SavantIdiot wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you teasing us: do you actually use a compass camping? I've never met someone (who wasn't a Boy Scout) that camps so hard they need a compass! (Said in a joking yet genuinely curious voice.)

If you are going into the wilderness, you should really check a map beforehand. At very least, figure out which cardinal direction you can go to get back to civilization. Even just knowing "walk west and eventually you'll hit a highway" greatly improves your odds if you get very lost.

Funny you mention that. Last year in Oregon a man stepped off the trail near a place called the Gorge while hiking too close to sunset, its is a huge wilderness north of the 26. People kept saying: dude, if you just went south you'd hit the freeway, but apparently he tried that and there were unscalable hills/cliff faces/vegetation for dozens of miles that when he followed them for a place to descend got him even more lost! Beyond me why someone would go off trail, or even start hike that late in the day!

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#334

Post by mysterydip »

systemvoltage wrote: post #309
goatinaboat wrote: post #257

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“Military grade” means “made by the lowest bidder” in reality

Disagree. Picking any other bidder is foolish. If you’ve ever looked into military procurement, there are a number of MIL standards and a specific list of requirements. If the product meets specifications and testing results, picking anyone but the lowest bidder accounting for other “soft” commercial aspects such as company stability, leadership, and book health; would be foolish and irresponsible. I’ve seen several…

Sometimes the lowest bidder is the lowest because they purposely underbid knowing they will have cost/schedule overruns later and the customer would rather throw good money after bad than start the process over with nothing to show. I like the second lowest bidder process mentioned elsewhere.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#335

Post by JoeyBananas »

stakkur wrote: post #103

A note about the 'Ka-Bar' knife, since I've both been in the Marine Corps and am into knives: the military doesn't use it. In the real world, if you want a knife in the service, you typically buy it yourself. Does the USMC still use 'bayonets'? Yes, in certain circumstances they're issued--but it's not common, and it's not the Ka-Bar, it's another brand (I forget which one). TL;DR: Ka-Bar 'USMC knives' are a marketin…

A brand new Leatherman multitool costs less than 100$. For that price you get a knife, a serrated blade, a pair of pliers/wire cutters and some other stuff that absolutely comes in handy in the real world. It's not as good for fixing to the end of a rifle and stabbing someone, but for every other real world situation it's better.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#336

Post by systemvoltage »

mysterydip wrote: post #334
systemvoltage wrote: post #309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Disagree. Picking any other bidder is foolish. If you’ve ever looked into military procurement, there are a number of MIL standards and a specific list of requirements. If the product meets specifications and testing results, picking anyone but the lowest bidder accounting for other “soft” commercial aspects such as company stability, leadership, and book health; would be foolish and irresponsible. I’ve seen several…

Sometimes the lowest bidder is the lowest because they purposely underbid knowing they will have cost/schedule overruns later and the customer would rather throw good money after bad than start the process over with nothing to show. I like the second lowest bidder process mentioned elsewhere.

I’ve worked in procurement and let me tell you - there is a lot more than looking at a ranked list of bidders and going “oh look, lowest bidder. Job done, let’s go with these folks.” The caricature on HN is so incredibly misleading. Supplier selection is quite involved.

The right term is “optimal”.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#337

Post by lostlogin »

dan-robertson wrote: post #53
notatoad wrote: post #4

I love to use professional-grade items where i can, but sometimes "overkill" means a worse product. like the professional-grade fan - it's not just designed for a high duty cycle, it's also probably designed to be operated in an environment where people regularly use hearing protection, so quiet operation is not a consideration.

Dishwashers are another example. You could buy a commercial one but it will come with no roll-out trays (you load up different plastic racks for different things and you can load a rack while the dishwasher is running) and it’s designed for an environment with lots of ventilation (you just open it when it is done and let the steam get ventilated away) which people are unlikely to have in their own kitchens. Other ite…

> You could buy a commercial espresso machine and coffee grinder to make yourself coffee every morning but the machine is designed to warm up at the start of the day, pull a lot of shots, and get thoroughly cleaned later.

It is. But with home use you don’t pull 300+ shots, it can be cleaned less. I have a 20 something year old Cimbali and it’s just great. It’s on a smart plug to turn on early and warm up.

It had a load of leaks and I decided to upgrade, but first talked to the local agent. He gave 4 washers and said try them.

20 mins later it’s completely fixed at a cost of $0. That’s the only repair it’s had in the years I have owned it. I thoroughly clean it every few weeks.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#338

Post by adrianmonk »

pengaru wrote: post #153
adrianmonk wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, that stand mixer isn't going to fit in my kitchen cabinet. Compare that to my consumer-grade Sunbeam. It's smaller, and the top part (motor, etc.) separates from the stand part via a quick-release button, so it fits on a shelf which isn't very tall at all.

We made the mistake of ordering a Sunbeam set of chef knives w/wood storage block off Amazon for the kitchen at my last startup. Every knife was dull and identically serrated like a budget steak knife, despite presenting as a comprehensive set of chef knives. The whole set was almost completely useless. Sunbeam is not the reasonable quality brand it once was back in the Sears days, stay away.

Wow, that does sound like a truly terrible set of knives.

The mixer I have is a hand-me-down from probably the 1970s. (Model 1-7A, in "beautiful" almond color scheme.) Still works perfectly.

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#339

Post by seoaeu »

abeppu wrote: post #85

> The average consumer wants this stuff. It sells. They want pizzaz over functionality and durability. What is functionality though? What is pizzaz? When are they the same and when are they different? E.g. the famous Emeco 1006 chair, which won a contract to supply the US Navy by being thrown out a window and not breaking. It became a design classic, and now sells for $600 each. It gained a kind of following, which i…

The functionality is making the owner feel superior to consumer who buy consumer grade products

Re: Overkill objects for everyday life

#340

Post by jedberg »

One thing I've always wished I had space for was using a seat from a Mercedes or BMW as my desk chair. I saw someone post about it decades ago. You can pick them up from the junkyard for less than a fancy desk chair.

You screw it to a piece of plywood and get a car battery to power it, and you've got a 26 way adjustable seat with lumbar support, seat heaters and seat coolers, and all the other fancy features of a car seat. And it's usually made of super durable easy to clean materials. You get a swingarm to hold your keyboard and monitor and you're all set with the ultimate chair.

But it takes a ton of space.

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