I’ve read some recent reviews on doc martens being total garbage now.

!buyitforlife@slrpnk.net

Miele, but I think they recently got bought out and enshittified. Their vacuums and dishwashers were built insanely well, sometimes you can still find old stock. They last decades.

Pacsafe backpacks too. Mine has lasted well over a decade. Fuck jansport and all those backpacks that fall apart.

At this point, I don’t generally give trust to brands but products. Too many companies that used to be a name to trust have decided to monetize that trust (or get acquired by another company that doesn’t see the value in maintaining that trust), but they might still have good quality products in their lineup along with the cheap ones.

Though I’ve also done well with the “just buy one to see how important it is to have quality in this particular thing”. I just sold my old cordless drill after owning it for about a decade. It was weak but I didn’t even really notice that until I wanted to drill a hole through a stone counter top. A bought another cheap corded drill for that, but have since also bought a quality cordless drill set that might even allow me to sell the corded drill.

And if you need quality, look for stuff marketed to professionals. People who use their drill every single day aren’t going to be using the ones that can’t hold a charge or break after 20 hours of usage. Booster Juice doesn’t have shitty blenders where the connection between the motor and blade wears down with each use such that the motor spins but the blades do not before 3 digit uses, or even 4.

Doc martens are not so great quality now. The general consensus is that Solovair are the spiritual successor (in terms of quality) to what Dr Martens were. This video has more info: https://youtu.be/vkhCcvfVHRs?si=21bH9fSvkNgmjwm1

For laptops O would recommend framework laptops. The idea is that they have upgradable and repairable.modules. You can follow them on mastodon too: @frameworkcomputer@fosstodon.org And we have a Lemmy community too: !framework@lemmy.ml

For hiking and camping gear: Savotta

If you’re not from Finland you’ve probably never heard of them but I’m yet to buy one product from them I’m not satisfied with. They make gear for the Finnish defence forces aswell.

Looking around my immediate environment, I see very few things that aren’t

A. already 30 years old made by companies that are essentially defunct and if the brand does even still exist it’s transitioned to another parent company as a zombie brand that produces identical temporary garbage to the rest of the industry, like my Kenmore 80 series washer and dryer.

B. Modern shit with a single-digit year life expectancy, like any computer hardware I have, my cell phone, my printer, etc.

C. Isn’t from a company that has completely pissed me off glares at my very, very last Dell products

D. I didn’t make myself from scratch, like an increasing amount of my furniture.

The only item that falls in my eye line that I can say “buy it now and your grandchildren will actually want it” is my Revere stainless steel frying pan. It’s not as ragnarok proof as cast iron but it also won’t cave in my glass cooktop. I think my grandmother bought mine in the 80’s, you can still buy them today.

I do want to mention my Kitchenaid mixer. The unit itself is well made, I’ve made at least one pizza a week with it for the past…six years? It’s a quality power tool. I dislike the company and their product range. They have a tendency to discontinue attachments in favor of incompatible and worse ones. For example, I’m aware of three different meat grinder attachments, one metal one and two plastic ones only one of which the food mill attachment is compatible with, and they did their best to prevent people from learning that, because the difference between the plastic one you probably already have, that was possibly packed in with your mixer, and the one that’s compatible with the food mill, is like, a few millimeters in diameter here and there. If I show you their marketing pictures (of white plastic on that White Marketing Void background) you couldn’t tell them apart, and the model numbers are very similar. That has rubbed me the wrong way in a bad place.

Solovair are better than doc martens by a mile.

Miele (European) (dish) washing / dryers / fridges

I have good luck with Duluth products, I have shirts from 5 years ago that still look new.

Winter Jacket - Klim I bought my jacket with the intent of never having to purchase another one. After speaking with many friends and the sales people at my local motorcycle/snowmobile shop, the consensus was a snowmobile jacket would last.

I chose Klim and have had this jacket since 2016 with no tears or rips. I did have an issue with the zipper but they replaced the entire zipper for free within the last few months.

I will recommend Klim brand jackets for a forever jacket. They are expensive though.

Groove Life makes some fucking solid belts. And if you do actually manage to destroy it somehow, they have a lifetime warranty.

If you toke and like resin carts, Eleaf batteries are amazing. I was going through whatever I could find at smoke shops about once or twice a month before I got an Eleaf. I’ve had this thing for 2 or 3 years now… So long I can’t even remember exactly. It lasts for days and charges in like 10 minutes if you have a quick charge capable charger. Plus it’s compact and also has voltage settings.

Been about 10 years now and my GoRuck gear doesn’t even look used despite being carried any time I take a trip, which is quite often. Multiple continents, planes, trains, hiking, backpacking, etc. I’d say GoRuck (at least the American made stuff) is BIFL. knocks on wood

Iron Lodge Cast Iron Skillets I have purchased a few and have yet to need a replacement.

Dyson vacuum cleaners. I’ve had mine for about 20 years, had to replace a part here and there, but it’s just as strong as the day I got it. Probably the single best purchase I’ve ever made. A close second would be my Sonicare toothbrush.