Sub Zero Fridges, amazing. Toyota, just about any vehicle they make. Vulcan Commercial gas ranges/ovens. Original Penguin Button Up Shirts or Pendleton outer wear. Stihl chainsaws. Festool power tools.
Sub Zero fridges are great, but keep the maintenance up on them.
I personally own a Wolf DF304 range and if you cook a LOT, they are well worth the money. Mine is 10 years old, is used VERY heavily and it is the best cooking stove I’ve ever cooked on.
I’ve got so many old Pendleton wool shirts. They’re back from the '60s when my dad was a surfer. I didn’t think I fit in him at the moment but I don’t want to get rid of them
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.
Savotta is bombproof. I have their Jääkäri S,. M and L, as well as their Keikka 50L and 80L. Used the Keikka duffle bags as check in luggage for international travel, and they’re still as good as new. They use stainless steel hardware on the Keikka duffles on the stress points. All their bags are made from 1000D Cordura with a rubberized liner, so they’re quite water resistant.
I really like Osprey. High quality and very functional. I used a kid carrier for both my kids and it was great. I also have a day pack from them that I love. My main backpack that I don’t get to use much these days is a snow leopard II by North face from 1992 I think. That’s a pretty good run.
For shoes, take a look at Arcopedico. Portugese made and kind of hard to find in USA, but without a doubt the most comfortable. They weigh almost nothing, and they seem to be undamageable.
Used to be a fan of Benchmade; kinda seems like they went cheap more recently.
For footware, I’ve had pretty good luck with Danners - they had an ABU compliant stitched sole boot that was super comfortable; one pair got me through 4 years of active duty, and remain my go-to pair of work boots. The ABU uniform was phased out since I separated, so if you’re lucky you might be able to find a crazy good deal at at military surplus store; otherwise I’m sure they’ve got a newer OCP boot now.
I didn’t think about military surplus stores. There seems to be some items that people really enjoy, like the army poncho liners or old ammo canisters for containers.
I’ve been looking for a genuine army poncho liner but can only find knock offs online and cant find a reputable surplus store online if it exists
I was Air Force, so no idea if our rain gear was comparable to the Army poncho. Ours didn’t strike me as anything special, but then again the one I was issued was several sizes too large, so I kinda hated that thing by default.
The best military surplus stores are going to be the ones near military bases - they have constant stream of new inventory coming in from folks who separate and want to make a quick buck pawning off their issued shit.
And while there are definitely a few gems among military inventory, don’t make the mistake of thinking military = high quality or even high durability. To the contrary, most of it’s the result of bidding wars for a government contract, resulting in the absolute cheapest shit available.
Idr the brand, but sticking with the boots example, the ones I was issued in basic training barely made it to the end of basic training. Those things were absolute trash.
The poncho liner is often referred to as a woobie if you know that name. Afaik the “on brand” ones are made by the blind kids. Something something school for the blind or whatever it is.
I’m actually having a hard time finding a shot the ABU rain gear liner that I was issued… closest I’m seeing is the pic below, but that thing actually looks decent.
Ours was a material that looked similar to that, but shaped more like a vest - nothing went over our arms. It was completely nonfunctional outside of the actual raincoat shell though - you couldn’t just wear like a vest or put it under the ABU top for a little extra warmth. It was cut in a way that it’d just fall off without being buttoned into the shell.
…I wonder if there was some supply issue, and the ones we were issued were a shitty backup. /shrug.
We bought a bag less vacuum 4 years ago. The turbo brush for pet hair stats showing some wear but the whole thing works solid to this day. Even the flimsy feeling handle is still fine Edit: EU - Germany
It’s not at all in the vein of work wear, but I have had Klipsch speakers all of my life and have never had any issues with any of them. My dad has some enormous old school Klipsch speakers from the 60s that are almost as tall as I am and are still crisp, clear and deep. I am rocking Klipsch throughout my house as well. They’re very expensive but I appreciate the clarity.
I’ve had their 2.1 computer speaker set for nearly 20 years at this point. The only issue I’ve ever had was crackling when adjusting volume, and that was caused by dust inside the knob. WD-40 to fix. Love them.
Baggallini bags are virtually indestructible in my experience. I have a tote and a purse that I’ve used daily for 5 years, and they both look exactly like they did the day I bought them.
The stitches came undone on some areas of my Baggallini after a few years of daily use and international travel. The design of the bag was so good and thoughtful that I just couldn’t bear to stick with the new purse I bought to replace it. I ended up repairing the old bag and going back to using it every day. I think it’s their Modern Everywhere bag.
Red Wing boots (only the classic ones). I’ve had my Iron Rangers for 6 years edit: 7 years now as my primary pair of non-athletic footwear. Occasional brush with a bit of conditioner and they look and feel amazing with no signs of slowing down. Will be replacing the sole when it eventually wears out but the original minilug is still going strong
Don’t think I saw this one yet, but Briggs & Riley luggage. Lifetime no-questions-asked repairs for all functional damage, even if intentionally inflicted.
They’re also just very good. The BIFLness is cool but I’d have gone with another if it weren’t also the best in general. Super practical design.
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