When you buy a big ticket item

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Apr 7, 2017
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Mississippi
Is your foremost concern longevity/reliability or is there other considerations? I know sometimes reliability and longevity are mutually exclusive
 
Generally I get more satisfaction out of having things for a long time, than having the latest and greatest. I really like cars when they're new and when they're really old and comfortable like an old shoe. It's those in-between years where it's tough to resist the urge to sell, but I just chant "money-in-the-bank" until the feeling goes away.
 
Cost is important. Finding items like a lawn tractor to spend better then bargain (just spent $1800) but don't buy the $5000 John Deere either with only 50% more life.
 
Both!
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Define "big ticket"...

$1,000 TV or phone?

$50,000 car?

$300 tool?

Different considerations in each category, but in general, I prefer quality over features or slight price advantage.
 
For the most part, I want the highest quality I can afford. Quality = longevity and resale value. In this day and age, you can no longer trade on name brand or price, you really have to do your research on virtually everything you buy to know whether it's money well spent or money flushed down the toilet.

We just bought a new washer and dryer, after much research we found that one of the name brands was using a pot metal internal frame on the washer that was corroding and failing within 3 to 6 years. At the price of these darned machines, you want a whole lot more out of them than that! BTW, the failed part was more expensive than replacing the machine. The current major purchase is a new blender, simple, right? No, not really . . . Again, after much research, she's decided on a $550 model. Basically a commercial quality blender that will be able to stand up to the use she intends to put it through.
 
Originally Posted by Burt
Generally I get more satisfaction out of having things for a long time, than having the latest and greatest. I really like cars when they're new and when they're really old and comfortable like an old shoe. It's those in-between years where it's tough to resist the urge to sell, but I just chant "money-in-the-bank" until the feeling goes away.


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Originally Posted by mbacfp
Originally Posted by Burt
Generally I get more satisfaction out of having things for a long time, than having the latest and greatest. I really like cars when they're new and when they're really old and comfortable like an old shoe. It's those in-between years where it's tough to resist the urge to sell, but I just chant "money-in-the-bank" until the feeling goes away.


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Reminds me of my 84 cutlass. I got it 15 years ago, so not when it was new (I was hardly a year old then) but its like an old shoe.
 
Vehicles, no, other things that are more meaningful, yes.
My wife and I had a home built on 5 acres. Most everything about the home is an upgrade: Built mainly by Ohio Amish and Mennonite craftsmen, copper infused roofing shingles, 6" studs, 3/4"plywood, no OSB, Rockwool insulation, ceramic paint on the outdoor painted surfaces, impact resistant windows, quartz counter tops, stained interior wood trim and solid interior wood doors, Grohe plumbing fixtures, 2 master bedrooms, over 200' of concrete driveway. Ferris stand on rider, Speedqueen washer which I dislike because of the small tub. My laundry/mud room is set up for two washers and dryers., but it's just my wife and I so we don't have two sets.
 
Favoring lower quality recently if good price point involved. I don't feel like new "quality" stuff lasts long enough to overcome the premium price point typically involved.
 
In this day and age, you can no longer trade on name brand or price, you really have to do your research on virtually everything you buy to know whether it's money well spent or money flushed down the toilet.

This. Oh h~ll, yeah.
 
Long time ago, I remember reading a two page article in Reader's Digest named "A Father's Advice" to a son. All it was was a series of one liners, reading kind of like Proverbs. One of the lines was "Anything you can see yourself owning for longer than 5 years, buy the best you can afford."

Generally speaking, I try to follow that advice. I own tools from a number of manufacturers, but I do not own 1 tool from Harbor Freight; but I also only own 1 Snap-on tool, which I bought used. Kudos to the guy whose house was built by Amish & Mennonite craftsmen. True Craftsmen of any skill are becoming extinct.
 
Originally Posted by Ihatetochangeoil
Long time ago, I remember reading a two page article in Reader's Digest named "A Father's Advice" to a son. All it was was a series of one liners, reading kind of like Proverbs. One of the lines was "Anything you can see yourself owning for longer than 5 years, buy the best you can afford."

Generally speaking, I try to follow that advice. I own tools from a number of manufacturers, but I do not own 1 tool from Harbor Freight; but I also only own 1 Snap-on tool, which I bought used. Kudos to the guy whose house was built by Amish & Mennonite craftsmen. True Craftsmen of any skill are becoming extinct.


That's great advice. I never spend much on vehicles, so I really don't care much about longevity. I'm a mechanic, so reliability doesn't matter near as much. I've never in my life kept a vehicle 5 years (15 years on the road).

Talk about a TV? Different story. I want the best value I can get without going cheap. I bought my Vizio P-series 60" LCD in 2014, and at the time it was the absolute best of the "almost budget" sets. Just a tick over $1,400 at the time, and it was loaded. 4k, VA panel, local dimming, true 120hz refresh rate. For reference, you can get a VERY well rated 75" TCL R615 today for $1,299 at BB. Anyways, I still have the same TV to this day, and it's got plenty of hours on it. Lots of hours. Other than the occasional hiccup that's solved with a reboot, it's been absolutely rock solid. I keep shopping for a new set, but I just can't justify it.
 
I'm currently shopping for a 75"-85" TV for my main HTS. Reliability comes immediately after picture quality and features such as Dolby Vision and HDR10+. I'll likely go with a Sony as I don't want to play the panel lottery with some of the less expensive sets. I Love my Kuro Elite and it's served me well for 12 years but it's only a 50" display and I'm finally ready to make the jump to 4k. The Kuro will now be used in my 5.1 gaming system.
 
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