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The answer to this question is always the same for me. At least, lodge 12-in cast iron skillet. It is no mess, no fuss, just a great quality product that won't let you down, very reasonably priced, and will probably outlive you.

Is it the hunk of fucking cast iron. Be kind of hard for it not to.

After that I can say things like darn tough socks, Leatherman multi-tools, isotunes headphones , and other things would lifetime warranties that they do a great job of honoring.

Vitamix. I got a new one about a year ago and it is an absolute beast and a half. Blender food processor combo and worth every single penny.

First time hearing from Lodge and Isotune. Thx, I just checked those out and will remember them if I need those.

Check the sidebar! It's full of recommendations, many all sorted by type.

Frost River bags.

Filson jackets. At least the wool ones that are still made in the US

Simms fly fishing waders, mine are G3’s and they are great.

Sony MD 7506 studio headphones. Been made for decades and they’re still industry standard.

Ashland Leather

Chicago Comb

Suwada

Seki

Hanks Belts

Zippo

Karve Razors

Am I Crazy or did Hanks belts price double in the past year. I used to get one for dad and I every couple years. Went to look this time and got sticker shock.

I will.

I've never heard of vitamix as buy it for life. Always heard they were a good quality machine, but I've never really heard stories of them lasting forever

Amana refrigerator. Mine that I bought in 1992 is still working perfectly with no repairs ever needed.

Frankenmuth Woolen Mill comforters, Fiestaware, Rada are a few that come to mind

How much were you paying? I have three and the price still looks the same to me as when I bought my last one

There has been quite a bit of debate about cast iron pans in this subreddit, and it mostly comes down to the finish of the surface. Older pans tend to have flat finish while newer pans have a "pebbled" finish.

The pebbled finish has been the favourite for a while because if you are using some form of oil or grease it actually creates a better barrier between food and pan.

The old school flat finish is much better at creating a even sear on food (especially meats) but needs to be run at hotter temperatures and requires more attention/skill.

Buying new belt every 2 years doesn't seem very BIFL

I think there's no debate that a $15 cast iron is worth it. It's a.versatile functional pan for life for less than three cups of Starbucks coffee.

Now can you upgrade? Absolutely. Blacklock, Le Crusette, stargazer, etc.. But it's not necessary.

I bought an Everyday belt in 2018; looks like they've gone up about 50% in 5 years.

Kitchenaid artisan mixers are still made really well and are fully serviceable.

Anything from Stanley and Coleman

Which isotunes do you recommend?

Pro 2 all the way.

I got the extras originally but I literally went through 3 pairs on warranty because the circuit connection at the base of the earbud kept failing. They'd last 3-4 months but they'd all eventually develop shorts. They worked great and I honestly like the design better, but eventually they got tired of warranting me and upgraded me to the pro 2s. I'm 8 months in of daily wear for 12 hour shifts and they are comfortable, battery is holding up great, and performance is as.good as ever.

Haven't used the Frees or the NoiseAwares. Neither really fits my needs. I work factory so I have to have that noise cancelling power and that 16hr battery life on the Pro 2s is amazing. Music all night with no charging.

I've been holding off getting a new pair of anything because I want (need?) a much higher battery life and something more durable/rugged for daily heavy use. You just sold me!

How's the audio quality? How's the microphone noise canceling for calls?

I mean as far as I'm concerned the Audio quality is good. I'm not gonna claim it'll beat out your bose or anything like that but the noise cancellation certainly will.

Audio filtering on the mic is just okay. It does fine with ambient noise but if you're moving a lot and it's brushing up against your clothes you'll notice.

Knipex pliers/wrench and Knipex Cobras

Wera or Wiha screwdrivers (ie Wera Toolcheck Plus)

Allclad pans

JBL 305 speakers (Not BIFL but going above this you are spending thousands, this is the dot on the diminishing returns)

Sennheiser HD6xx (Not BIFL but going above this you are spending so much more, this is the dot on diminishing returns)

Thermapen

Zojirushi ricecookers

Victorinox Rambler (a perfect EDC tool for a minimalist, everything you need, nothing you don't)

Darntough socks (boo, boring)

I'll piggyback off your post

I have these and the jbl 305... these Klipsch RP-160M speakers at around $200~ are also a great value and good quality: https://www.newegg.com/klipsch-1060686/p/0S6-0033-001D7?item=0S6-0033-001D7&nm_mc=knc-googleadwords&cm_mmc=knc-googleadwords--home%20audio%20speakers--klipsch-_-0S60033001D7&source=region

I'd also suggest koss portapro headphones. I've been using them for over 10 years. They are affordable, sound great, and have been in production forever. They have a lifetime warranty. I've gone through a couple pairs but it's like $10 for shipping to get them replaced.

Koss seriously hit hard for the money. I have the Portapro and the KPH30is! Hell I have KPH30is on my other desk.

Ankarsrum mixer. Made in Sweden, way better than the current KitchenAid.

Oh shit, you’re right. I just pulled up a receipt from a belt I ordered in 2018 too and I paid $58.43 for the gunner belt and they’re $75 now.

Feel like it still just requires more care. A thick stainless steel pan is really impossible to mess up no matter what you do.

> Wera or Wiha screwdrivers (ie Wera Toolcheck Plus)

I feel like Wera is a bit gimmicky. Yeah nice quality but I hate the screwdriver handle shape (and how dirty it gets over time). Toolcheck is nice and compact to throw in the car.

Wiha is okay.

But truly top end screwdrivers don't cost any more. Like, Vessel from Japan is even cheaper. PB Swiss is a little bit more pricey but really amazing quality. Hazet and Gedore are also really great (Oplast). Williams is also reasonably priced (basically same screwdrivers as Snap On sells).

That is completely inaccurate . Quite possible to gouge it with metal cookware, scorch it, or warp it with fast temp change.

Not sure how you'd gouge a stainless steel pan without an angle grinder. You can burn food in anything, but you can wire brush a stainless pm without a worry. Probably best not to do that to cast iron if you want to keep the seasoning in it...

Most of my stuff is Wera. I have the Toolcheck Plus and it's honestly pretty clutch when paired with Knipex, fixes nearly everything I need to do.

Some feel gimicky for sure, ie the Zyklop (didn't get that). But imo they're high quality, ie check out Project Farm for tests.

But yeah all of these and the ones you mentioned are a HUGE step up from the average person just not thinking about tools and grabbing some Walmart box.

Yeah I mean, Wera is overall pretty great and the bits and tips are top notch, I just dislike their handle shape. Most manufacturers offer at least two or three shapes and a soft/rubber grip and classic hard version.

I like that the sockets have the color coding, that's awesome, and very grippy knurling for sockets which typically aren't. Just hate that the numbers are only laser etched on, not stamped - in 20 years that probably will no longer be visible, I have some old chinese sockets like that and the etching just faded away. Btw they make all the ratchet mechanisms (also for wrenches) and sockets in taiwan. In the Czech they pack them up, but also forge the wrench handles, ratchet handles and all the bits and screwdrivers and allen keys.

I think Wera allen keys are the best on the market overall. They messed up with the annoying sleeves and holder, but functionally, no other allen key offers what Wera does...

For screwdrivers, Vessel is simply the best. Fraction of the cost of PB Swiss or practically any other brand, but in their catalogue there's around 60 pages of solely hand tool screwdrivers (electric screwdrivers and bits are separate). Around 30 handle shapes and types (soft, hard, composite, wood...). The Vessel Power Grip is probably the most beefy screwdriver on the market. The Crystalline is the classic hard handle with extremely clear acetate. There are eco-composite handles, there are true wood handles, there are non-acetate (some solid color plastic) hard handles, there's a few types of soft handles, from the most common megadora to the spongy gel type, there are wood-composite (kind of like very hard cork) handles meant for use in oily conditions where typical plastic handles get slippery, and lots of goofy Japanese gimmicky stuff too (want glow-in-the-dark neon handles? yeah they got them).

Old hickory and dexter russell kitchen knives

Powerbuilt has some decent ratchet wrenches for a good price