Not including cars or houses, what is the one purchase where you spent a lot and you would still do the same today?
Anything from mattresses to sports cards, paintings etc
Bonus points if you initially thought it was way too expensive but ended up realizing it was worth every penny.
Saw a post from a Google Play user whose Lord of the Rings Extended Editions disappeared from their library. When they reached out, support told them the movies weren't available anymore and they could not get a refund because the purchase was from 2022, so tough luck.
Google later walked it back. Turned out to be a support screwup plus a library bug, and the guy's purchases were fine the whole time.
Are you guys buying movies digitally or physical (Blu Ray etc) these days?
Everyone swears by it. You bought it. You used it.
And eventually thought... Why the hell did I buy this?
What’s your pick?
I put every bifl (buy it for life) item I could actually verify into one list, sorted by category. A couple things I figured out while compiling it:
There are two different reasons something lasts, and people constantly mix them up. Some stuff lasts because it's simple. No electronics, no coatings, no seals, nothing added for convenience that can fail. Other stuff lasts because the company's warranty is genuinely real. The kind that replaces it even when you broke it yourself. Almost everything worth buying once falls into one of those two buckets. If it has a motor, a battery, or a screen, none of this applies. Cheap is just cheap.
A sample from each category:
Lodge cast iron skillet. No coating to wreck. The surface is the pan.
Victorinox Fibrox knife. Runs actual restaurant kitchens, beats knives 5x the price.
Bialetti Moka Express. Unchanged since 1933. The only wear part is a $3 gasket.
Estwing hammer. Forged from one piece of steel since 1923. No joint to fail.
Knipex Cobra pliers. Widely called the best pliers made.
Craftsman hand tools. Snap one, swap it at any Lowe's. No receipt.
Zebra F-701. All metal pen for pocket change.
Buck 110 knife. Made in Idaho since 1963. Forever warranty.
GRIP6 belt. No holes, no buckle, lifetime guarantee that covers wear.
Darn Tough socks. Unconditional lifetime guarantee. Any hole, any reason, no receipt.
Nalgene bottle. No seal to fail. People throw these down mountains.
Vortex binoculars. Warranty covers them no matter how you break them, even used.
Full running master list with live prices: https://smartvalue.me/buy-it-for-life-master-list/
I want to make this the actually complete version, so what have you owned for 15 or more years that you'd buy again without thinking? Drop it and I'll verify it and add it.
I keep seeing people swear they'll never go back to just toilet paper after getting one.
Was it actually that big of a difference, or is it just reddit hype?
Learnt this lesson from a mentor of mine and it stuck with me ever since. We are not valuable to just our employer.
We need to treat our career like a business, the same way companies "trim the fat" and cut costs. We too need to treat our career as a business (if not go into business ourself).
This morning while sipping a strong cup of coffee I realized that they don't make certain products the way they used it. Everything lately seems to be designed for maximum profit over quality. But i know there's some brands or products that still make things using high quality materials and was wondering if you guys had any examples of those kind of products.
What’s something you’ve had forever that you still use?
Not necessarily the most expensive thing you own, just something that ended up being an incredible value.
Maybe it saved you money, saved you time, or just eliminated a recurring hassle.
What purchase has paid for itself many times over, and why?
Looking for tips on what to buy if you had $100 to buy something(s) to improve or optimize your daily life?