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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?

#101

Post by ericpauley »

powersnail wrote: post #66

A few things that I've owned for a long time: - A Pilot Metropolitan fountain pen. I bought mine for $15 nearly a decade ago, and it is to this day my goto pen. It works as smooth as the first day, which is better than some much more expensive fountain pens. And it basically requires no maintenance, other than refilling it with ink. - A uni KURU TOGA mechanical pencil, also bought a decade ago. I don't use pencil ver…

I love my Kuru Toga pencil. Same as you, I don’t use it much, but when I do it makes my writing way more precise. Sure, some argue you can teach yourself to rotate the pencil as you write, but why would I learn to do that for the once a month I use a pencil?

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

#103

Post by _nhynes »

My Osprey Daylite+ backpack cost $80 and has been used every day for five years now. It has a small tear and broken zipper pull, but neither affects functionality. If it ever has a problem, I can always send it back to Osprey for repair or replacement under the warranty. It’s too good, actually. I want to get a GR1 but the Daylite+ leaves almost nothing to be desired.

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

#104

Post by UncleEntity »

e18hteen wrote: post #77

Levi's Denim Trucker Jacket.

I’ve worn out a few of those over the years.

Have one that is barely holding together which I cut off the sleeves after watching a movie based on the 80s in a fit of nostalgia, really need to get rid of that one. And another one I got for Christmas maybe eight years ago that is going strong but I don’t wear much because I splurged on a vinyl Levi’s truckers jacket that is my goto jacket when I’m not in sub-zero temps.

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

#105

Post by blueridge »

Not at all under $200 but I purchase one piece of solid wood furniture every year. No MDF, no glass, no metal, no molded plastic furniture, no polyester fabrics. Expensive? Very much so. But I save and budget for these pieces. To me it's like collecting art—I love a well-designed and functional piece of furniture.

We're not quite there, but almost all of our furniture in the house is solid wood. One exception is the sofa,though it's also a "buy it for life" item from Knoll:

https://www.knoll.com/product/florence-knoll-sofa

Woodworkers:

https://www.thejoinery.com

https://www.thosmoser.com (highly recommended)

https://hedgehousefurniture.com

https://57stdesign.com

http://www.57thstreetbookcase.com (some veneer and plywood)

https://www.spekeklein.com/home

These two makers are in a league of their own, extremely expensive, incredibly beautiful hand-made pieces:

https://www.sammaloofwoodworker.com

https://nakashimawoodworkers.com ($10-15K for a coffee table, plus shipping)

And if you're in the market for some high-end leather goods that'll last a lifetime:

https://tsuchiya-kaban.com/ (highly recommended)

https://www.marlondoleather.com (highly recommended)

https://buffalojackson.com/

https://www.bexargoods.com/

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

#106

Post by cmer »

High end loudspeakers for music/home theatre.

Turns out, speaker tech evolves pretty slowly. I bought a pretty high end set 15 years ago and it’s still miles ahead of most of what’s currently on the market. I don’t expect to change them for another 30 years.

The brand I bought is Monitor Audio. https://www.monitoraudio.com/

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

#107

Post by derwiki »

tobinfekkes wrote: post #13

Anything from Patagonia. And proper chopsticks.

I wish I could say the same about Patagonia, but I’ve patched one elbow hole in my flannel and need to patch the other. I wear it almost every day, but I’ve only had it four years.

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

#108

Post by bob1029 »

My list of things under $200 that last "forever" is getting pretty short.

Pyrex meal prep containers (1/2/4 cup). The silicone lids will eventually fail but you can replace them (or do without). Also, cast iron, knives and silverware seem to be fairly eternal.

Not sure I can recommend anything with motors, electronics or computers in 2023.

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

#110

Post by dublinben »

MayeulC wrote: post #64

A good soldering iron (~€70) A nice sleeping bag (~€300) We shall see about the rest. I recently bought a Stanley hot water bottle, I'll see how much I use it.

Any sleeping bag will inevitably lose warmth over time as the insulation (both natural and synthetic) becomes compacted. Their finite lifespan is quite a bit less than yours.
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