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submitted 2 months ago by MrMakabar@slrpnk.net to c/degrowth@slrpnk.net
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[-] Hegar@kbin.social 25 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

What's are some of yall's less obvious "always buy second hand" items?

Crockery, cutlery, pressure cookers and computer peripherals are some things I think it makes no sense to buy new. 2nd hand they're usually under a tenth the price and often better quality.

I've heard some arguments that buying 2nd hand cars is usually better for the climate owing to how much of a car's lifetime carbon generation is the manufacturing.

[-] JacobCoffinWrites@slrpnk.net 18 points 2 months ago

Tools! With the exception of a few big power tools like a table saw or miter saw, where the new safety features make it worthwhile, I get everything I can used. I prefer stuff passed down from family with sentimental value, but I get a lot of my tools from Everything is Free, junk stores, yard sales, estate clean outs, swap shops etc.

Older tools tend to be simpler, easier to fix, and remarkably sturdy. I've read that the metallurgy wasn't as good sixty+ years ago so they overbuilt them a bit to compensate, and then decades of use weaned out the weaker ones, so anything left still working is basically survivorship-bias guaranteed. I've got a drill press that's been in the family for four generations and will probably outlast my grandkids.

They're cheaper, sturdier, easier to fix, generally well-documented online (sometimes better than the new stuff), and they don't come with sheaves of unnecessary styrofoam and plastic packaging. And they have history and stories in them, even if I don't always know what those stories are.

[-] Tikiporch@lemmy.world 9 points 2 months ago

Adding to this, my local library has a library of things which includes a lot of tools. From niche saws to power drills everyone could use.

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this post was submitted on 27 Apr 2024
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Degrowth - Economics as if People mattered

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