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Generation Junk

walterkirn.substack.com

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Re: Generation Junk

#331

Post by denton-scratch »

hooby wrote: post #245
mijamo wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I do not know where you are from but the description of the plugs basically match the ones still installed in France (although many don't require screws because they have built it fixations that just "click"), and I have never seen one that requires glue or soldering. Appliance life expectancy has also gone way up statistically, just like cars, although people often complain about the complexity of both. Most washing…

Not the sockets - I'm talking of the plugs that you put into the sockets. I haven't seen a plug with screws in ages. They all are a single molded piece now, aren't they? See: https://www.kulthifi.de/WebRoot/Store19/Shops/80012341/5E84/... for example.

I think there are regulations requiring that new products with mains plugs must have them moulded on. I think it's a safety thing; users tend to fit plugs incorrectly, causing fires. I think it's regrettable; the correct remedy would have been to teach kids how to wire a plug correctly. Oh well.

Re: Generation Junk

#332

Post by denton-scratch »

willis936 wrote: post #27
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.

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…

Dualit 2-slice toaster: £160. It's held together with ordinary screws, contains no transistors, the timer is mechanical, and all spare parts can be ordered. It costs nowhere near $2,000.

Re: Generation Junk

#333

Post by dl9999 »

dehrmann wrote: post #255
lawgimenez wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone who drives an “old” Honda 2006, I’m surprised that this machine is still running very good. I could just take it to my local shop and had it fixed in 1-2 days. Based on my logs, I took the car for repair on average of 3-4 times a year. I am looking to purchase a new family vehicle in the future but with all the softwares, screens, and fancy stuffs I am not sure if I liked it. Anyone feels this way?

> I’m surprised that this machine is still running very good I'm not. It's a Honda.

This isn't specifically about Honda quality, but I think it's a nice Honda anecdote.

My wife bought a used Accord before we got married. Eventually it died on the highway and we had it towed to the dealer. The engine needed to be replaced because of the failure of a part that had been recalled (when it was owned by the previous owner) had not been replaced. Since it was due to a recalled part, Honda replaced the engine for the price of the oil.

We bought Hondas for the next 20 years after that. We still own a 2012 Accord that my son is running into the ground. Our current car is a Volvo, lots of nice features, but I think our next will be a Honda.

Re: Generation Junk

#334

Post by mikrotikker »

ggm wrote: post #237
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…

I think your survivors bias thing is very true. I've used old things which would survive nuclear blast, and still have some. And, old things which were gimcrack rubbish and unusable. Some old plastics de-polymerised badly in heat. A lot of old chrome and tin plating corrodes. Bone handled cutlery is not designed for dishwashers. Sure, the mix master is going strong but it was gold plated when my mother in law got it.…

My Stihl shopvac finally crapped out. Not sure how old as it came with the house. I went to the Stihl shop to see if they had replacements and they asked me what museum I pulled it from. No replacement motor but still replacement filters so now it's a prefilter for my new Stihl shopvac.

Re: Generation Junk

#335

Post by fipar »

ProcNetDev wrote: post #108
fipar wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

The population of old cars that you see driving around today is very different from the population of old cars that ever existed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivorship_bias

I didn’t mean to say all old cars lasted longer but I can see that it came out that way. I just wanted to point out that some are still around, and further, the US is probably not the best market for a study on car lifetime since it seems most people change their cars when they’re still far from being EOL.

Re: Generation Junk

#336

Post by mikrotikker »

AussieWog93 wrote: post #257
ip26 wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s the old fuel injection vs carburetor debate. Do you want something that usually runs for 200k miles without a single problem, but takes a fancy shop to fix? Or do you want something that needs a complete rebuild every three months and needs to be retuned for your ski trip, but can be repaired by a high school boy with a tongue depressor, a q-tip, and a hammer? The rapid exodus of carburetors shocked and dismayed…

One thing I suspect has tipped the scales in favour of less repairable products is the massive decline in social capital. 30-40 years ago, if your lawnmower broke down you'd ask Dave from two doors down to come and have a look at it. Now, you'd either take it to a professional repairman (and get it back 2 weeks and $100+ later), try to work it out yourself via online tutorials, or just throw it in the bin. Either way…

What's responsible for that decline in social capital do you think?

Re: Generation Junk

#337

Post by fipar »

pixl97 wrote: post #151
fipar wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

The Gremlin is probably too extreme an example (and as someone not from the US, I’m only aware of it because it became the Butt of jokes in US TV and movies), but I still agree with your larger point.

In my country the closest example for those years would be the Alfa Romeo, which led to a popular saying here in the 80s that an Alfa made you happy twice: when you bought it, and when you sold it!

Re: Generation Junk

#338

Post by mikrotikker »

lawgimenez wrote: post #117
edrxty wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On average they didn't (oh no, that repair costs more than the "car is worth" as if that's a metric that actually means anything) but it was far easier to keep one running indefinitely. You could take an engine to a small machine shop and get the head and block resurfaced, valves reamed and cylinders lapped. Without any electronics to fail it was just a block of metal that was slowly losing material and a quick hit w…

As someone who drives an “old” Honda 2006, I’m surprised that this machine is still running very good. I could just take it to my local shop and had it fixed in 1-2 days. Based on my logs, I took the car for repair on average of 3-4 times a year. I am looking to purchase a new family vehicle in the future but with all the softwares, screens, and fancy stuffs I am not sure if I liked it. Anyone feels this way?

There's a few tricks to know for each model. I got a mid 2000s ford with a by all accounts unbreakable engine (600hp possible on stock internals) but the radiator and trans cooler is the same unit and often cracks pushing coolant into the trans. First thing i did to it was to buy an aftermarket external trans cooler for my specific model and install it.

Re: Generation Junk

#339

Post by lawgimenez »

dl9999 wrote: post #333
dehrmann wrote: post #255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I’m surprised that this machine is still running very good I'm not. It's a Honda.

This isn't specifically about Honda quality, but I think it's a nice Honda anecdote. My wife bought a used Accord before we got married. Eventually it died on the highway and we had it towed to the dealer. The engine needed to be replaced because of the failure of a part that had been recalled (when it was owned by the previous owner) had not been replaced. Since it was due to a recalled part, Honda replaced the engi…

The engine of my 2006 Honda hasn’t had any major issue besides from oil leaks, and busted air coolant pipes, etc., minor stuffs. I guess the most important stuff is that to have its yearly complete maintenance.
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