c/buy-it-for-life-gear

Warning: My favorite boots lasted 10 years but the soles crumbled over 3 weekends

I got some harsh feedback on my Red Wing 875s from a cobbler in downtown Portland after 6 years of solid use. He told me I was ruining them by letting the cork dry out and the soles crack, said I should have been conditioning the leather every 3 months instead of yearly. Since I started following his advice and rotating two pairs, my newer pair from 2018 still looks fresh. Has anyone else had a cobbler call them out on boot care they thought they knew?

Hot take: That expensive Filson jacket looked way worse after just one winter of actual use

I bought a Filson tin cloth jacket last November for $350. Everyone says these things last forever. Six months later the sleeves are frayed at the cuffs and there's a permanent oil stain on the front that won't come out. I used their wax bar too. My buddy's Carhartt from 2019 looks newer than this. Am I the only one who thinks the BIFL hype on these is overblown? Anyone had better luck with a different brand for actual work not just sitting in a coffee shop?

My $500 rain jacket failed during a freak hailstorm in Denver last spring

I was hiking up near Red Rocks when the sky just opened up with marble sized hail out of nowhere. The jacket I dropped 500 bucks on started leaking through the zipper seams after only 10 minutes. Has anybody found a rain shell that actually holds up when the weather really goes sideways?

That $500 all-weather jacket I bought for hiking in Oregon totally let me down after 6 months

I dropped $500 on a supposedly rugged Gore-Tex jacket from a brand I trusted, but after 6 months of regular use in Portland rain, the inner lining started peeling off like cheap tape. The seams also gave out near the zipper after a few wet hikes. Has anyone else had a high-end coat fail way faster than expected, or did I just pick the wrong brand?

That $200 Filson bag my uncle swore by literally fell apart after 3 months of commuting

My uncle has been preaching about Filson for 20 years, claims his bag from the 90s is still going strong. I dropped $200 on a brand new one for my train commute in Chicago and the stitching unraveled on the strap by month three. Anyone else had a BIFL brand completely crap out on them lately?

Lost a $400 tent when wind ripped it off a cliff at Big Sur last August

I set it up 15 feet from the edge, turned my back to grab a stake, and watched the whole thing tumble down the rocks like a tumbleweed, so can anyone recommend a shelter that actually has stakes that bite into hard-packed dirt?

Wasted $350 on a fancy camping stove that failed after 3 trips

Bought that Jetboil-looking knockoff from a REI clearance bin six months ago and the igniter died on the second trip, then the valve got sticky on the third. My buddy's 20 year old Coleman stove lit right up in the rain while I'm out $350 and eating cold beans at a campsite near Shenandoah. What's a decent stove that actually handles mud and moisture without crapping out after a season?

Warning: spent $150 on a titanium spork that broke on day 3

I bought this fancy titanium spork from a boutique hiking store because everyone raved about it being indestructible, but it snapped in half when I tried to scoop some frozen ice cream out of a pint. Lost a whole $150 and had to eat my dinner with a stick I found on the ground. Anyone else get burned by overhyped camping gear?

My grandpa laughed at my phone flashlight and handed me a $20 headlamp

He just said 'you're gonna drop your phone down a sewer grate one day' and two weeks later I almost did. Has anyone else had an old-school tool just... school you like that?

Counted 8 people in my welding class using the wrong angle on their mig gun

I was watching a guy lay down a bead that looked like a bird took a poop on the metal. He was holding the gun at 45 degrees when the chart on the machine said 15 to 20. How do you handle telling someone they are doing it wrong without sounding like a jerk?

Wasted $200 on a so-called "indestructible" backpack that fell apart in 6 months. Don't believe the hype.

Old mechanic told me to never cheap out on jack stands - glad I listened

Buddy at the shop in Phoenix said spend the $150 on a set of Hein-Werners or don't bother jacking up your car at all. Found a cheap set on sale for $40 last year and one collapsed under my Tacoma while I was swapping the oil pan gasket. I bought the good ones the next day. Anyone else have a tool they'll never skimp on again?

My 15 year old $3 soup ladle just outlived my wedding china

I was packing up my kitchen for a move last weekend and noticed something weird. That cheap stainless steel ladle I bought at a restaurant supply store for $3 is still perfect. No rust, no bent handle. But my fancy wedding china set from Macy's has chips on half the plates after 10 years. Found out restaurant supply gear is made for constant abuse. 10x a day scrubbing, boiling liquids, dropped on tile floors. It's not pretty but it just works. Has anyone else noticed their cheapest kitchen tools are the ones that last forever?

Bought a used Filson coat off Craigslist 8 years ago and it looks better now than when I got it

The canvas broke in and the wool lining started forming to my body around year 3, but after that muddy hiking trip in Vermont last fall where I fell into a creek and the thing dried out looking tougher and more broken-in, I'm curious if anyone else has had a coat or jacket that actually improved with age like that?

Rant: My neighbor lectured me for 20 minutes about why his $800 Yeti cooler was worth it while my $60 Igloo kept our beers cold just fine

He stood there in his driveway last July 4th, pointing at his Yeti like it was some kind of holy grail, but his ice was completely melted by 3pm while my cheap Igloo still had chunks floating at 8pm. Has anyone else noticed people just want to justify their expensive purchases and ignore the basics?

My week-long trip with a cheap duffel bag taught me a lesson about zippers

Last summer I took a train from Boston to Chicago with a $25 duffel bag I grabbed at a department store. By day three in Chicago, the main zipper split open and I had to carry my dirty clothes in a plastic bag from the hotel. It made me realize I should have spent the $100 on a solid canvas bag with a metal zipper instead. Has anyone else had a cheap bag fall apart on a trip and wish they'd bought quality?

Shoutout to the Stanley thermos I almost didn't buy

I always thought spending $35 on a thermos was dumb. A regular coffee mug works fine, right? Well I kept burning my hand on cheap ones or the coffee went cold in 20 minutes. My buddy brought his Stanley to a job site in December. It was 15 degrees out and after 4 hours his coffee was still hot. I bought one the next week and it's been 3 years now. The thing still works perfect and I've dropped it off a ladder twice. Who else was skeptical about a classic piece of gear like this and got proven wrong?

I used to think expensive chef knives were a waste until my $20 one slipped and I needed 6 stitches

Been using the same cheap knife block set I got at target for 8 years. Last month I was deboning a chicken and the handle literally slid off the blade. 6 stitches and a tetanus shot later. My buddy let me use his victorinox for a week and yeah I get it now. The grip alone is worth it. Has anyone else had a knife fail like that or am I just unlucky?

That $40 rain jacket I bought 5 years ago finally gave out... took me 3 weeks to find a worthy replacement

I figured a waterproof shell would be an easy swap, but every new jacket I tried either had zippers that snagged or the seams started leaking after one wash. Ended up ordering five different brands from REI and returning four of them. Has anyone else noticed that fabric quality on mid-range gear has gotten noticeably thinner lately?

That $80 Maglite I bought in 1998 still works after being run over by a forklift

I was loading a truck at my shop in Portland last spring and dropped my old 4D Maglite off the lift gate. The warehouse guy backed his forklift right over it. I picked it up, the tube was a little dented, but it still turned on and lit up like nothing happened. Anyone else still carry one of these dinosaurs or am I the last person holding onto incandescent bulbs?

Question about my wool sweater going from pilling to smooth after 8 years

I got this heavy wool sweater from a thrift store in Portland back in 2017 and for the first 5 years it was covered in little pills and looked rough. But around year 6 I noticed the fabric started to smooth out and now it's almost like felt, super soft and no fuzz at all. My theory is that the natural fibers finally settled after enough wears and washes, but my buddy says I just wore down the cheap outer layer. Has anyone else seen a garment totally change texture like that over a long stretch?

Watch out for those cheap 'lifetime' air filters on Amazon

I grabbed a 4-pack of those no-name furnace filters for $12 last month and they looked fine at first. After 3 weeks my AC unit started freezing up and the repair guy said the airflow was basically blocked because the material was too dense. Has anyone else had a cheap filter wreck your HVAC system?

Shoutout to my old Lodge cast iron skillet from 1998

I still use the same 12 inch skillet I bought for $25 at a thrift store. My roommate just bought a fancy nonstick pan for $60 and it's already scratched up. I don't season mine with anything special, just bacon grease and a stove burner. Anyone else still using kitchen gear from the 90s?

My $30 thrift store cast iron skillet turned out to be a 1940s Wagner

I picked up this crusty old skillet at a Goodwill in Columbus for $30 like 4 years ago, just needed something heavy for cornbread. Didn't think much of it until I stripped it down with oven cleaner last month and found a smooth as glass cooking surface underneath. Turns out the markings match a Wagner Ware from the 1940s, not some modern Lodge copy. I've been cooking on it every day since and it's dead even across the whole pan. Has anyone else found a hidden gem like that at a thrift store or am I just lucky?

That $80 leather belt I scoffed at finally wore out my old one after 3 years

I used to laugh at guys dropping serious cash on a belt. Like come on, it's a strip of leather, not a car payment. My $25 Target belt served me fine for about 18 months before the buckle started wobbling and the leather peeled at the holes. Then I overheard a guy at the hardware store complaining about his seventh cheap belt in five years. He said he did the math and figured he spent more on those disposables than he would have on one good belt that outlived them. That stuck with me. I grabbed a thick double layer belt from a local leather shop here in Portland for $78 and it's been two years now with zero sagging or cracking. Anyone else find that the math on cheaper gear usually works against you in the long run?