Comment by nicpottier | Hacker News Reader

Comment by nicpottier | Hacker News Reader

On one hand I kind of agree with this, there certainly is something to be said for buying nice stuff now and then, especially when it is stuff you love doing.

For play, I use a ratio I call the Fun Factor. Essentially, that's the $/hr of fun I get out of something. So if you go see a movie and it is $10, and it is the rare money that is actually fun to watch, then the fun factor is roughly $5.

So then you apply it to other things. Sure, $2,000 is a lot to spend a mountain bike, but divided out by the number of hours I've had on it, I'm way below $5 these days, so I consider it a fair deal.

A smartphone and laptop I love is always worth it in fun factor dollars.

That said, I do take issue on the 'lasting forever' bit, because wow, stuff just isn't made to last forever anymore and nor would you want to. I think it is a clever trick that we play on ourselves, oh, "This will be the last [blank] I ever have to buy", but how often is that really the case?

I can think of a few things I have that qualify, but they are few. I bought a $100 chef knife about a decade ago, still use it daily, still love it. I don't see my Ortlieb messenger bag ever breaking down, so maybe that's another. A few hand tools, but most hand tools last forever regardless of quality.

What are yours, what have you bought that you think you might keep forever?

I use the Fun Factor rationalization too, but I find it can be problematic in many cases. Mainly with bigger purchases. When you amortize that $2000 bike out per use, the difference between it and the $1500 bike can seem rather insignificant. "$1.5 v. $2 per use? Hell, I might as well get the better one." But, it's still $500. That's real money that could be used to earn more money somewhere else. Ratchet that up if we're talking about cars or boats or houses. So, I like the Fun Factor rationalization, but it can be dangerous.

As to the "lasting forever bit", I don't think it's necessary that things last literally forever; the point is more that making very long term purchases is a worthy goal. 15-20 years maybe. That said, I do try to buy things that literally will last me forever, though the list isn't very long, yet:

I try to buy tools that will last forever, or close to. With things like digital cameras (or any consumer electronics), it's silly to expect anything to last more than 10 years, on the very long end.

But, with power tools, I buy things expecting them to last forever (with routine maintenance and not heavy duty use). I more or less expect my nice knives to last forever. I expect most of my furniture to last forever. I expect my weight set to last forever.

> But, it's still $500. That's real money that could be used to earn more money somewhere else.

On the other hand the 2000$ bike is perhaps so much nicer that you ride it more often and have more fun doing it. It might last longer as well lowering the fun factor even more.

> With things like digital cameras (or any consumer electronics), it's silly to expect anything to last more than 10 years, on the very long end.

I think that's an unreasonable assumption. I had a Kyocera camera (designed in 1999) but even though I would call myself frugal (some people would call me cheap) and I didn't have much money I basically had to replace it around 2006 because of technology progress and lack of batteries, replacement parts.

I just bought a 260 lb. high quality anvil. It will be an excellent anvil for at least 200 years (if not 300 or 400 years).

How's that for longevity?

Did you buy new or used?

Only if it is taken care of. I have seen anvils with broken horns, chipped edges, and deep rust pits that were no more than a hundred years old. I even saw one anvil (don't know its age) that had been broken almost in half AND was seriously rust damaged.

My 2001 Z06 Corvette that I bought new in 2000. Hand tools only last forever if you don't use them; I beat the heck out of mine. I buy craftsman tools at sears, at least the basic hand tools. They replace them free when they break/wear out, no questions asked. For more complex tools (torque wrenches and the like), I spend the money and buy Snap-On (or equivalent).

Other things I've spent money on (that I'm happy with): heated slate floors for my bathroom - nothing like 85deg toasty floors when you get up in the morning; Benchmade knives; our latex foam mattress. Probably more things I can't think of at the moment.

Other things I've spent money on (that I'm happy with): heated slate floors for my bathroom - nothing like 85deg toasty floors when you get up in the morning; Benchmade knives; our latex foam mattress. Probably more things I can't think of at the moment.

If a person does any amount of cooking a nice set of knives is one of the best things a person can spend money on. They make preparing meals easier, faster and safer.

One thing that I have spent good money on is sheets. I spend 6-8 hours/day in bed sleeping so why not be as comfortable as possible?

I think frugal people also recognize the importance of good enough. One of the easiest places to see this in action is when buying wine. Going from the $5 bottle of wine to the $10-$20 bottle of wine often yields huge quality increases. When you start going from the $20 to $50 and $100+ the changes are often barely noticeable if at all. Most things that we buy have a similar scale and the key is finding that spot that is good enough for the best price.

In the kitchen alone: A good set of stainless pans (even the best nonstick will need replaceed eventually), A couple cast-iron skillets, enameled cast-iron (le cruset). Good knives, like yourself. Good steak knives as well.

In the garage: Any cars you're committed to taking care of. For me, my passion, is Mercedes. I see somebody slse mention Vette's. But there's all the tools I have. Spend a little more and they'll truly last.

High quality hi-fi equipment.

High quality hardwood furniture.

Aeron Chairs.

Probably more, but that's what came to mine :)

I have a small knife for in the kitchen that costs €8.95. This is relatively expensive for that kind of knife, you can get a similar one for €0.75. I have used it nearly every day for 3 years (that's about 2 cents per day) and people are still amazed how sharp it is when they cook at my place. The problem with the very cheap knives is that they bend and they get blunt quickly.

http://www.scharenenmessen.nl/index.php?act=viewProd&pro...

This is the best knife I've owned, better than much more expensive chef's knives. Sometimes the best things are not the cheapest nor the most expensive.

As a rule I've found things that look cheap but are expensive for how they look are the best. You can buy good looking expensive "design" scissors that are likely to be bad in every other department, or you can buy relatively expensive cheap looking scissors that stay sharp forever.

The one thing that I'm still looking for are quality bicycle lights on batteries.

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