Sunday Open Thread: Perennial Best Choices?
Subscribers only
Prior to early 2021, this was a world where we knew the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Now we don’t even know the price.
Which makes every purchase decision just that much harder and/or more miserable.
In this thread, I’d like you to recommend “perennial best choices” in your chosen fields of labor and/or enjoyment, with special attention given to items that can be purchased, ahem, “pre-owned” rather than new. It could be a car or a computer or a piece of industrial equipment.
I’ll start it off with five of my favorite recommendations.
Hart Schaffner Marx clothing: This company was a bulwark of affordable-ish USA men’s clothing for a century. No longer. So you’ll have to go on eBay, where you will find HSM suits in like new condition for $100 or less. Get to know a tailor or alteration expert. Get measured. Then you can shop for stuff that can be tailored for you after the fact.
Eighth-Generation Honda Accord 2008-2012: Some of you will recall that this bloated, ponderous, domestic-looking Accord was widely panned by the press — except for the suckmeisters at Car and Driver, who somehow gave this sled the 10 Best award for every year of production after having denied that particular pelf to the stunning and much-desired 1996-1997 cars. At the time, everybody with any sense hated Honda’s decision to super-size the Accord, but in retrospect it was a change that had to come anyway. While no Accord other than the Crosstour will ever be a used-car showroom paperweight, these come close. Yet they are solid, reliable vehicles that are a pleasure to drive. They just don’t feel all that Honda-ish. The ninth generation was much better in all respects, which is why they’re still hilariously valuable — but the eighth-gen will give you honest service in four- or six-cylinder form.
USA Craftsman tools from the 20th century: If you’re a Project Farm viewer, then you know how often some raggy-ass leftover Craftsman wrench beats the brand-new competition from Taiwan and China. It’s still possible to get this stuff at a low price; the big numbers on eBay really only apply to new-old-stock Craftsman in the original packaging.
Yamaha FZ-1 Fazer, both generations: Long-time readers will recall that I own half of an early FZ-1 and enjoy the bike tremendously. There was a brief time when you could get brand-new second-generation bikes for $5995. Wish I’d done that. Now the prices are up but not staggeringly so. Whether you choose the rowdy first-gen bike or the chilled-out successor, this is a ten-second motorcycle with robust reliability, high quality finishing, and comfortable ergonomics.
Kershaw Leek By Ken Onion: The finest thirty-dollar knife in the world. USA-made, dead-nuts reliable, as fast as a switchblade to open but without the tedious legal baggage. All over eBay for less than fifty bucks, even brand new. It’s possible to spend a lot of money on a Leek, and God knows I’ve done that with various Damascus blade editions and LynchNW upgrades, but all of that is strictly unnecessary.
The stunning four-speed Dodge stakebed truck above is a kinda-sorta Honorable Mention, because it’s possible to get a good D150 for less than the equivalent Ford or Chevy. Each and every one of these trucks is at least 19.5 years old, however, so don’t think you’re going to pick one up at a used-car lot and drive it for a year without any mechanical intervention.
Alright, ACF, over to you.
I don't do much buying aside from 70s-90s comic books, so I'm not sure I have anything to add beyond the following:
People Socks. Merino wool/artificial fiber blend, made in the USA. I've been wearing them year-round for the past, oh, 5 or so years and while they do wear out it took me a pretty long time to do so. I buy them two four-pair-packs at a time, my current 8 pairs are still hole-free since their purchase during the government response to covid. Some pairs come farther up my calves than others, I prefer the longer ones, but whatever, I'm never picky about tomorrow's socks. Also, while I do sweat in them they dry very quickly and I rarely end up with long-term wet toes, except for the one day I went into the field last year wearing my waterproof steel-toe rubber boots and forgot to bring a pair of regular shoes to wear in the truck like an idiot. Even so, the socks went through the wash and came out stink-free, so in the end that's a win I guess.
I have a coworker who buys much more expensive socks from some company in New England somewhere (Vermont?) but I don't remember the name. They apparently guarantee their product for a lifetime, so if you get a hole you can send it in for a new one. I haven't tried it yet because my Peoples haven't let me down yet.
How does that old song go? 'When the world is running down, you make the best of what's still around'.
One of the things I hate with the passion of a million burning suns is that how ALL products out of China are just ONE VERSION! Yup, any particular item made in China is made in the same factory. Christmas lights? They're all exactly the same, same options, same behavior, same everything. Sure there are 20,000 vendors on Amazon selling them - but they're all selling the exact same damn product. There is ZERO variation! The PARTY HAS SPOKEN! It's like this with everything.
Like I want a high power LED flashlight that just turns ON & OFF - NOTHING ELSE! But guess what you can't buy anywhere on the entire fucking planet? I don't want to have to click through a dozen different button presses just to have a highpower LED light - but the Chinese government has spoken and they only make ONE type.
Is it wrong of me to want a nuclear war with China so all their production gets destroyed so we can have product variation again?