Ask Lemmy

1940s Parker vacumatic skyline.

Writes like a dream and it is neat to use a piece of history.

Hmm, probably my weightlifting gloves. I've used them at least five times a week for ten years, but they are starting to fall apart.

Still a great buy for $15.00.

My brain (since 1990), or at least I have been trying.

I have a mix of hand tools like scrwdrivers, wrenches, and hammers inherited from my father in law who said some were from back in the 60s that I use as needed.

They are still in decent shape so they get put to good use regularly to make up for being left in a closet for a few decades.

My house was built in 1955, same year my parents were born. I’m not going to count that though. I have a pair of high speakers from the early 70s that get daily use.

I have a folding card table that currently serves as my desk. I don't know how old it is -- 1960s, maybe, based on the style of the brand/sales label on the back? It's almost certainly older than I am, at least... Got it from my uncle back when I was in college and its still working well enough that I haven't bothered to replace it.

Got a Gillette Fatboy slim safety razor, it's over twice my age!

A spoon. One Sterling Silver spoon that I have used in my coffee cup since 1978. It has survived every move. It knows more about me than any human on Earth. It has become so ubiquitous that I get really annoyed if I misplace it and I will look for it before that first cup.

I have no idea why.

My razor handle was manufactured in the 50s

My Laptop from 2009 still works like a charm

We have a formica dining table made in the 50s, I think. It looks cool, is in great shape, and I love spotting them in older movies.

I've got this little blue plastic cup I've had for almost 30 years. Use it for my toothbrush. Got it when I was a kid and it's the only toothbrush holder I've ever had since.

Refrigerator. 30 years old and still working fine. Had to change the compressor once

We've been living out of backpacks on the road for the last ten years, so it's easy to keep track of your stuff... Only item in our bags that hasn't changed is a zip-up flannel towel. It's perfect for keeping your toiletries in order, light-weight and washable, doubles as a flannel on the rare occasions you need such a thing, and has Hello Kitty on it.

Since the bags themselves have been replaced, it's the clear winner. 2nd place is a Tony the Tiger colour-changing spoon from a bag of Frosties in 2016.

Everyday tools? Scissors and knives I've had at least since 2000. (Fiskars stuff is indestructible)

Computer stuff? My Commodore 64. (Don't use it daily but pretty regularly, sits in a box in my living room for easy access)

Physical item: LL Bean Laptop Bag. Was designed for laptops much bigger than the one I have now and it’s held up well… except for the buckles.

Digital: Rollercoaster Tycoon got it in a cereal box and I still play it today.

I think my laptop, a Samsung Notepad with touchscreen. Before I got it it was already used and has been with me for more than 10 years. A couple of years ago I gave it a new life by installing Linux and I hope it will last me another 10 years.

For me, the house I'm in was built in 1912 but it's still holding strong. My parents have me beat though, they got the original governor of south carolina's front doors which were from somewhere in the late 1700s

My dining room table was originally owned by my great grandmother and was passed down through the family and transported almost 2000km to it's current location in our house.

Not sure if fruit trees would pass the “use daily” criteria, at least not in the generally acceptable sense.

I have a workshop that was converted from a barn quite a long time before I was born.

I put a little string of fake pearls on my daughter about every day, and they were mine and my sisters' when I was a toddler, so they're about 30. I don't know how they've survived so many toddlers cause they'd break with any real pulling. She loves them though and is very careful with them. She also uses tiny baby sized silverware from my mom's babyhood(early 70s) It's cute and funny to watch her use miniature stuff that's just her size

I think that's the oldest thing other than furniture (we use my great grandfather's bedroom suite)

I wet shave. Ordered a vintage Gillette Fat Boy from the 70s. Definitely my oldest personal item. I've had it only about 10 years though.

A Mackie mixer and two nearfield speakers I bought 25 years ago still see hours-daily usage. When the fancy Kenwood tuner died 2-3 years later, I replaced it with a Boss 50w/chan 12vdc transistor amp that still never even gets warm.

Speaking of Casios, I have an F-105 [1572] 'Illuminator' that's 20 years old and still using the same battery. It gains about 1 minute per year.

Until the oil pump shaft broke: a 1965 Holder AG3 European vineyard tractor. Centre articulating, 35+ Hp diesel, close to 2 metric tons, and a third the size of a VW Beetle. We used it extensively on our orchards for a good four decades, or just shy of that.

Sucker was stupidly strong for its size, and could out-pull most tractors twice its physical size. Last I was using it for was some pretty extreme landscaping in the front yard. Another story, because it takes some explaining, but yeah.

So apparently the oil pump shaft broke late 2023, and we thought it was just overheating. Nope. Plus, the mechanic also found a rather severe hydraulic leak into the oil system, which was about the only thing that kept the engine from totally seizing.

Unfortunately, we are about three decades too late for most of the required parts. The engine place does a lot of remanufacturing and machining, so I did ask them for their “fuck off” price (gotta have a benchmark in that regard). But they did strongly suggest a Kubota engine as a replacement, primarily because the original oil pump required some pretty unusual maintenance to avoid breaking like it did. Whoops. No-one in my family realized that, least of all my father who had bought the tractor in the 80s.

Still using my microwave from my wedding. It's from 2009 and it's a Panasonic. Also my Kettle is from around that same time too and still chugging along, it no longer beeps though.

My teapot probably from the 1940's

I have a Grundig radio my grandparents bought in the fifties. It's completely restored and I had the aux changed to a mini jack, so I can play stuff on it over Bluetooth.

A great-grandparent's dresser.

I have several vintage film cameras I use pretty often, oldest are probably my Nikon F or Leica M3 from the late 50s.

TI-83 plus

I use a nice handmade wooden desk every day. No idea how old it is but my mom bought it at an antique store in the 70's, so it could be 80+ years old. And it's still in fantastic shape!

Edit: I heard back from my mom and she said it's (supposedly) from the late nineteenth century, so it's way older than I thought!

Probably my razor, shaving brush and soap mug. Bought them around 2012.

The soapmug is an Old Spice mug I got second hand off ebay. Not sure when it was made. 80's maybe. The others were bought new.

I have a teeny tiny screwgate carabina from about 1997 that I use as a key ring.

Oldest thing I use frequently may be a 100~ year old ring.

My car and also my scooter are from 2009. I use them (for commute) alternately depending on which season it is and if it's raining or not.

In terms of actual daily use the oldest thing that I can actually date would be the table my computer sits on - that's been in the family since at least the 60s (when one of my uncles scratched his name into the drawer). It's just a basic solid wood desk, still holding up fine and unless abused will continue doing so for quite some time yet.

Aside from that some of my dinner plates are over 30, the motorbike I usually commute on is a '97 model, and the butter knives I like are not dated but I believe could be anywhere from early 1900s onwards (faux bone handles, made in England with various Sheffield makers marks).

I do have a few tools, cameras, and telescopes around which are also reasonably old but they aren't daily use items.