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Generation Junk

walterkirn.substack.com

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Re: Generation Junk

#151

Post by pixl97 »

fipar wrote: post #84
somewhat_drunk wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They didn't last longer. https://auto.howstuffworks.com/under-the-hood/diagnosing-car...

Well, they do (present tense) last longer in the sense that they’re still around and working, which of course doesn’t mean newer cars are worse. It’s a bit like saying someone who’s 70 lives longer than someone who’s 7. I think newer cars seem to be more reliable but older cars probably lasted longer than you think, it’s just that your view is skewed due to the market you’re used to (reading your link, while a millio…

An AMC Gremlin came out in the 1970s, and you don't see almost any at all because they were complete crap.

Especially the 70s US cars and somewhat later were complete shit and lead to the meteoric rise of Japanese cars in the US. Almost nothing US built those days got close to 100k miles without massive amounts of rebuilding.

Re: Generation Junk

#152

Post by Pxtl »

kube-system wrote: post #147
fullstop wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A toaster in 1951 was $21, which is about $250 today. I would argue that a $250 toaster today is still not a "buy it for life" item, but it would certainly have a lot of bells and whistles and almost no user-serviceable parts.

> I would argue that a $250 toaster today is still not a "buy it for life" item, but it would certainly have a lot of bells and whistles and almost no user-serviceable parts. Not if you buy one that is $250 because it has bells and whistles . You can buy a $250 dollar toaster that is just a toaster and it will be of good quality. https://www.webstaurantstore.com/waring-wct708-4-slice-comme...

This is a good point:

The problem isnt that long lasting, durable products no longer exist.

It's that they're no longer marketed for home use.

You can get stuff just as good as back in the '60s, for comparable after-inflation prices. But they don't sell them at Sears or HomeSense, they sell them at industrial or kitchen or office supply stores.

Re: Generation Junk

#153

Post by kristjansson »

Most of the stuff inside Target would compare unfavorably to cake simulacra made for Netflix to put on television.

This isn’t a bad thing! Sometimes a ratchet set made out of fondant and priced below a pair of lattes is enough to get the job done. A coffee mill with the structural integrity of sprinkles will nonetheless last long enough for one to figure out if they give a shit about fresh ground coffee.

For stuff that needs to last, going just a little out of the way makes all the difference! Need a pen? Find someone selling Pilot Vcorn [1], buy 10 for $30, and you’ve got pens for years. Get a Bodum burr grinder for $50 and wash your hands of your coffee appliance graveyard. Buy kitchen things from your local restaurant/commercial kitchen supplier and beat the shit out of them as they were designed to be beat.

[1]: https://www.pilot.co.jp/products/pen/ballpen/water_based/vco...

Re: Generation Junk

#154

Post by pixl97 »

x0x0 wrote: post #137
woopwoop wrote: post #12

So this article implies that a number of things that we buy previously were built to last longer, and indeed did last longer. The first few examples are kitchen appliances. In this case I don't really know, but I'm at least willing to listen. Ultimately the evidence is people responding to a thread on Twitter where he solicited complaints. Not so compelling. But then he mentions a "hybrid sedan". Here I'm aware of th…

Well, the explanation that people are getting exactly the dirt-cheap shoddy crap they demand is correct. You can buy a nice burr grinder from a company that not only sells spare parts for at least 5 years after they stop selling the model, but who also shares youtube videos on how to disassemble and repair the grinder. Mine is 11.5 years old and I replaced the central gear when it stripped around year 7 or 8, after g…

I mean for myself buying a cheap burr grinder is probably all I'd ever need, that said I've never chased quality coffee and don't care about it much.

For myself I do the 'harbor freight' tool buying method. I buy a cheap whatever first, and if it's something I find useful and demand higher quality then I more research into what quality is with at least some experience.

This said, I've also had a lot of cheap tools that have effectively lasted far longer than expected so crap doesn't always fail fast.

Re: Generation Junk

#155

Post by pixl97 »

shepherdjerred wrote: post #145
im_down_w_otp wrote: post #68

I’ve had to buy a lot of furniture and other things for my new house this year, and one of the things that really sticks out to me is that practically every category of product seems to be split into a bimodal distribution: cheap crap & luxury boutique. There are practically no entries occupying the middle of the market that are on the basic end regarding features & frills but also high-quality. It’s incredibly annoy…

That's a mind-boggling anecdote. As an example, Crate and Barrel are known to make good, high-quality couches, and many of them are far less than $5000

Can you get them these days? I was looking at some C&B stuff during the pandemic 2 years ago and they were looking at 7 to 8 month delivery times.

Re: Generation Junk

#156

Post by pixl97 »

LeafItAlone wrote: post #132
LiquidPolymer wrote: post #106

We have friends that just laid out $3000 for a new washer drier set and washer is already leaking from the front door. Pursuing warranty repair has been a major hassle. My wife and I use a washer and drier set from the late 90's that are nothing to look at but work really well. They appear to be designed with service in mind and changing components is usually extremely easy - something I have done infrequently. These…

> We have friends that just laid out $3000 for a new washer drier set and washer is already leaking from the front door. What brand?

Not Op, but if I had to guess Samsung. I won't buy their appliances.

Re: Generation Junk

#157

Post by Nux »

klausa wrote: post #78
willis936 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Toasters are an interesting case study. I went on a tear last year after being fed up with every toaster doing the same bad job. I thought maybe someone made a proper toaster. What I found is that when you pay more the coat of paint gets nicer and maybe there's an MCU+LCD, but the guts and logic are identical. There is no good commercially available toaster today. It's sending a very loud message about how markets op…

Either I'm having insanely good luck or I have extremely low expectations of a toaster, but I genuinely don't understand how a toaster does "bad job". What were the issues you were having?

Agreed 100%.

We've been using a cheapo £10 tesco or argos one for the past few years. It toasts..

I used Dualit in various places, it does as good or bad a job, can't tell the difference.

I love the Dualit idea, but in the end can't justify the price, not for this particular kitchen item.

Re: Generation Junk

#158

Post by pram »

pixl97 wrote: post #155
shepherdjerred wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a mind-boggling anecdote. As an example, Crate and Barrel are known to make good, high-quality couches, and many of them are far less than $5000

Can you get them these days? I was looking at some C&B stuff during the pandemic 2 years ago and they were looking at 7 to 8 month delivery times.

I don't think thats necessarily new, I got my couches from C&B in 2012 and it took like 4 months.

Re: Generation Junk

#159

Post by dcchambers »

> I can’t say the same about my coffee grinders. I use the plural because I’ve owned a lot of them, all bought in their original packaging and dead within a year. They’re good ones, supposedly, with burrs not blades, but they stop performing before long

Anecdotal, but if anyone is looking for a good coffee grinder that doesn't break the bank, can't say enough good things about my Baratza Encore. 10+ years of near daily use. All original still except I did install upgraded burrs a few years back. Baratza encourages repairs, builds them so they are repairable, and provides replacement parts for sale.

Re: Generation Junk

#160

Post by defen »

ericbarrett wrote: post #82
willis936 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Toasters are an interesting case study. I went on a tear last year after being fed up with every toaster doing the same bad job. I thought maybe someone made a proper toaster. What I found is that when you pay more the coat of paint gets nicer and maybe there's an MCU+LCD, but the guts and logic are identical. There is no good commercially available toaster today. It's sending a very loud message about how markets op…

They are probably all made with the same guts from one or two manufacturers. Same with microwaves, nearly every model from $100 to $5000 is made by Midea. (Source: Wirecutter)

What can a $5,000 microwave do?
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