Buy cheap buy twice

[greenorelse]

e-bay can be good too if you know what you're doing.

The 24" iMac I'm typing this on was a bargain but I got in touch with the guy selling it first and got to know him a little; it gave me a bit more confidence in the deal.

[gregorach]

Wouldn't buy 'em new, but Pendelton woollen shirts are great if you can find decent ones second-hand. My favourite dates from 1962 - eleven years older than I am! It's had a number of buttons replaced, but it's still in great condition otherwise. Not many other shirts will last that long!

[Stonehead]

Wouldn't buy 'em new, but Pendelton woollen shirts are great if you can find decent ones second-hand. My favourite dates from 1962 - eleven years older than I am! It's had a number of buttons replaced, but it's still in great condition otherwise. Not many other shirts will last that long!

Crowther country/work shirts were good, too. I have several that are 10-15 years old and worn day in, day out. The collars are just starting to go now. The only downside of them was that the cotton was so thick that it took a good 12-18 months of regular wear to get them worn in and comfortable. No longer made, unfortunately.

[crowsashes]

Those were just the 80s and 90s ordinary ones we used to use; my OH also has a proper collection of old cameras too like box brownies and things that I don't have a clue what they are. I'm sure he could sell those ones!

theres still a market for 1980's and 1990's slr cameras and rangefinder cams - any film camera branded nikon is sure to sell well too. take a look at ebay .

i use an olympus om-10 its early 80's and a sought after cam much like the nikon fm's and pentax cameras. all because they are fully manual.have a few japanese ones and a zenit all are used regularly!

ah box brownies, really need to run a roll through one some time!

currently using an old kodak junior from around the 1950s-60's ish (not 100%sure on it! )

***ok im sounding like a geek, ill stop gibbering bout cameras ****

[Shirleymouse]

Le Creuset stuff - brilliant! One of my favourite kitchen items, their heatproof mats are also really good.

Braun stick blender is the other kitchen item I use most days - it's done 6 years service so far and it still as good as new.

I bought some expensive smart black trousers from French Connection for work and wore them most days for several years before they finally fell apart, that was money well spent and I have a pair of jodhpurs that are still going nearly 20 years after I bought them with only one or two very minor repairs.

In terms of bad value, my Dyson was rubbish although it used to belong to my gran so it was prob quite old when I inherited it. Cheap shoes just ain't worth it either, they never last for long. I have finally learnt to read the washing instructions on things before I buy them after wasting money on things that I never wear because they are dry clean only!

[Archanejil]

The OH is craning over my shoulder because I mentioned this thread to him. He seemed to think his thread had arrived -- not because he's self sufficient, but because he likes stuff that just doesn't break, bless him.

Other recommendations for goods: 1980s water-cooled VWs (apparently). Nokia 1100s. Norwegian fleeces. And in fairness, our Honda Civic (although high on insurance & not the most fuel efficient) just keeps going with very little maintenance or care. Mission M33i speakers -- though apparently the older models are better because the newer ones have been bought out and are now made cheaply. And we have a 1960s/1970s HMV radiogram which still works really well (and looks great too).

Apparently Mitsubishi electric & Daikin airconditioning and heat pump systems are really long-lived too (and the companies release upgrade packages to keep them in line with new tech). NES machines. I still have a very functional one :D

Caterpillar boots. They last for ages and are pretty comfy.

Bads: The OH has feelings regarding Vauxhalls, mostly because he's experienced them being unreliable, breaking lots and being poorly designed. Mostly the astras, from the sounds of it.

Ikea sofas. They are uncomfortable and break fairly rapidly, in my experience. Ours has a buttgroove in it from where I wrote my dissertation and we've only had it 18 months. And I'm only 12 and a half stone.

Himalayan steel toe cap boots. Massively uncomfortable after extended wear (the OH replaced his with industrial DMs which he loves massively).

[Harasimow]

Bad buy
Draper flask from garden center, didnt keep heat in, handle broke, metal lid "unstuck" from plastic inlay. all within 2 weeks of buying.

[Uller]

I also love Le Creuset, including their stainless steel saucepans - I think just about everything in my kitchen is Le Creuset now.

Our washing machine is coming up to 14 years old - it is by Asko. Expensive to buy and it needed the motor replacing about 7 years ago, but otherwise brilliant.

I've had no problems with Dyson - replaced our first one after 8 years, but only because we moved house and needed one of the compact ones because of lack of storage.

[mrsflibble]

wonderful buy: antique scissors (sorry, still enamoured with them) terrible buy: Delta sewing machine, £39.99 aldi. died within 6 months. was told it's worth nothing more than skip-fodder. my Jones machine from my auntie however? amazing. just wih i had enough cash to get it fixed right now. bought a cheap second hand stopgap toyota lol.