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Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

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Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#71

Post by mschild »

hosteur wrote: post #50
mschild wrote: post #29

Custom made leather boots. Expensive at around 900 Euros for the pair, but I've had them for 8 years now and they look new. You have to get the sole redone from time to time once it wears down, but the rest of the shoe will last you a good 30-40 years with adequate care.

I would love to learn more about custom leather boots. Do you have a link with more information on where you get this done, etc?

It will depend a bit on where you are located.

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

Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#72

Post by Cockbrand »

4ad wrote: post #59
listenallyall wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that hard, IKEA sells terrific stuff. Pleasant to look at, solid weight, no unnecessary ornaments.

I disagree profusely, IKEA cutlery is horrible. The fork tips are dull, the spoons are too shallow and too big, the spoon soup is completely the wrong shape, the handles are extremely unergonomic, the weight is not solid at all, they look and feel cheap, and they are ugly .

I know which ones you’re talking about, and I agree about them. They’re called 365+. While these seem to be the most popular, there are others which are shaped for better ergonomics and utility.

Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#74

Post by jacknews »

Leica 8x32 binoculars, bought about 20 years ago, second-hand.

Such things might become antiques in future, when we have Star-Wars style electronic bins (or even now, with optically-stabilized bins now a thing), but in that case my kids will inherit an antique.

Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#76

Post by blackshaw »

schiffern wrote: post #63
cinntaile wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you on constant immunosuppressants or why do you wear this all the time?

At-risk family members, long COVID uncertainty, and no real downside. Easy choice.

Do you plan on wearing a mask for the rest of your life?

Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#78

Post by jacknews »

dvh wrote: post #31

30pcs of Chinese Herb 330 fountain ink pen at $0.27 each.

The prices on those chinese pens are tempting, but I've found many models crack at the screw threads between top and bottom sections - the plastic is obviously thinner there, and usually just too thin, and barely last as long as a full refill of ink.

So maybe you'll need much more than 30, or you could buy something actually good for 30x the price.

Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#79

Post by schiffern »

blackshaw wrote: post #76
schiffern wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At-risk family members, long COVID uncertainty, and no real downside. Easy choice.

Do you plan on wearing a mask for the rest of your life?

By that you mean in public indoor spaces.

"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??"

Re: Ask HN: What are some of your “buy it for life” purchases?

#80

Post by stevekemp »

LeonM wrote: post #20
Dalewyn wrote: post #12

Good silverware. 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.

This is the biggest and most succesfull marketing trick from the last few generations. 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.

I moved house a couple of years ago, and decided to finally get matching cutlery for six people.

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.

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