What are your favorite items of equipment, implements, products or Brands?s ?

[OLD ROOKIE]

Everyone let's recommend or discuss the products, items, companies that are your favorites. Let's also talk about the ones that you avoid, recommend against.
I mean things or companies are your go to, No brainer, nothing else, worth it, end of discussion in it's category.

I have told others that HP Laserjet printers are hands down, the most reliable, bullet proof, best performing implements I have ever used. On a side note, in my opinion: inkjet printers generally suck and they are a scam. Companies like HP, Epson, Brother etc. love selling or giving these away because then they can sell you new ink.

The only way HP laser printers break is when you drop them or the user destroys it using something like a knife to clear paper misfeeds. When you change out the toner cartridge it is like getting a whole new printer again. In fact I have gotten used HP laserjets bidding on ebay for as little as $50 that had as little as 500 sheets printed out when I got them. Then I would print 50,000 sheets through it and give it to my nephew or somebody when they said there printer wasn't working.


I have put 15,000 to 25,000 sheets of paper yearly through these things over the last
25 years. I bought a HP 1200 for $500 back in the mid to late 90's. That $ is the equivalent to over $1000 plus today. Hewlett Packard toner was $80 and staples equivalent was about
$50 at the time. Later they upgraded the 1200 to 1300 and the price went down and $10 toner refilled cartridges came out. They came out with scanning and copy heads for this model. This was the Toyota Corolla of printers and don't be surprised if your local Dicks still uses one of these to print out fishing licenses or mailing labels.

I probably destroyed this particular one using something like a Buck lock blade to
dislodge paper jams I caused by sticking the paper in nilly willy. I currently recommend a HP 1217MFP and HP 1102. Pickup a used one for $100-$150 on EBAY and you will print out 20 boxes (1000 lbs } of paper before the plastic busing start squeaking.

Talk about your favorites. Equipment, vehicles, trucks, razors, cars. Talk about the dogs also. So don't be the one who says my printer isn't working. Buy ANY HP laserjet and you won't utter those words.

 

[RustiePyles]

razors,

I'm a fan of the Gillette "Fat Boy" safety razor. They're starting to get up there in price though. But blades are still less than 10cents each.

 

[Grimly]

Ditto on the old HP printers - I have a Laserjet 5P sitting here that just carries on spitting out the odd page. I married it with an HP LAN-to-parallel adapter, so that I could carry on using it when MS decided to stop supporting its native interface.
Similarly, the colour HP CP1020 I'm using at the moment is quite decent, and was cheap used, but not sure yet how reliable it will be in the longer term. Its running costs are dirt cheap though, with aftermarket toners.
I eventually got totally sick of colour inkjets, as I wasn't using them enough and every time they'd clog up if left unused for more than a fortnight. HP were just as bad as Epson in that regard.
Cameras - large format, Linhof. Hands down, the best made I've ever handled. I've got a couple of them dating from the late 30s and early 50s and you'd think they were made last week, there's so little wear on them. I know for a fact that the 1950s one had a long and hard professional life before it was retired. Probably bumped into the storage cupboard by a newer model.

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

When the brain needs a kickstart.



I never log into a forum without it...

 

[mick71b]

My '96 F150. 300 six with a five speed. loaded Eddie Bauer 120k and still runs great and gets 20+ mpg. Purchased from a great friends' estate when he passed. Kickass stereo, too.
RIP Weez.

 

[rsor]

How about Ping golf clubs? They will last you like forever.

 

[OLD ROOKIE]

I loved my 1997 Ford Ranger. I put 133K with minimal problems. Then my son wrecked it. It never burned oil.
After 100k I took it in for a tune-up. The mechanic looked suprised.

I heard so many good things about the Ford F-150 straight six.

 

[OLD ROOKIE]

Ditto on the old HP printers - I have a Laserjet 5P sitting here that just carries on spitting out the odd page. I married it with an HP LAN-to-parallel adapter, so that I could carry on using it when MS decided to stop supporting its native interface.
Similarly, the colour HP CP1020 I'm using at the moment is quite decent, and was cheap used, but not sure yet how reliable it will be in the longer term. Its running costs are dirt cheap though, with aftermarket toners.
I eventually got totally sick of colour inkjets, as I wasn't using them enough and every time they'd clog up if left unused for more than a fortnight. HP were just as bad as Epson in that regard.
Cameras - large format, Linhof. Hands down, the best made I've ever handled. I've got a couple of them dating from the late 30s and early 50s and you'd think they were made last week, there's so little wear on them. I know for a fact that the 1950s one had a long and hard professional life before it was retired. Probably bumped into the storage cupboard by a newer model.

Wow don't get me started. All I need is another collection. I need to look that up Linhoff.
People forget great pictures were taken before Nikon Canon Minolta. I remember my dad using
a German SLR he was proud up in the 60's

 

[gggGary]

Built in the 40's and still on the job.

 

[MaxPete]

View attachment 191682
Built in the 40's and still on the job.

Gee - I think JRP looks pretty young to have been born in the 40's - that'd make him like.....at least 72 years old.

.....oh....you may be referring to the tractor.....

 

[gggGary]

Gee - I think JRP looks pretty young to have been born in the 40's - that'd make him like.....at least 72 years old.

.....oh....you may be referring to the tractor.....

Yeah he was built in the 50's and pretty much a loafer.

 

[Raymond]

Gee - I think JRP looks pretty young to have been born in the 40's - that'd make him like.....at least 72 years old......oh....you may be referring to the tractor.....

First thing I though too - but you were in there ahead.

 

[Downeaster]

Anything on four wheels (other than tractors) around here is a Toyota. All started with an 03 Corolla, followed by a '12 Corolla and a '13 Tundra. Put me off domestic vehicles entirely. Gave the '12 Corolla to my daughter as her Pontiac was rapidly approaching the point where they'd refuse to put an inspection sticker on it, and replaced it with a '20 RAV4. B-i-L drives a '17 Yaris.

 

[jetmechmarty]

'13 Tundra

I believe it's built entirely in the US. There's a reason Toyotas are expensive. They're worth it!

 

[MaxPete]

I have quite a few daughters and they are relatively close in age so when they were graduating from school and moving away from home to start their first jobs, they needed vehicles in which to commute. I needed vehicles - several of them - and I didn't have tons o'dough or time to mess with fancy exotic BS cars. Being an engineer, I did a bit of a study, including a survey of auto company executives about what sort of company cars they got for their wives and kids, and found that the best balance of:

• mechanical simplicity and robustness (I wasn't buying new - so no warranties);
• parts availability and cost plus easy repairability (i.e. cheap & easy enough for me to fix....);
• features (they had to have decent stereos, A/C and carrying capacity due to changes in jobs & apartments, etc.);
• crash safety (the various daughters were new drivers with busy lives living in new cities and....mistakes happen);
• affordability (like I said, a lotta daughters) and insurability.

....was found in the 2011-12 Ford Escape - the older boxy ones (see photo). They're not very sexy - but they were the clear winner in the safe/cheap/simple/durable sweepstakes. I agree that Toyotas and Hondas may have an edge in durability, but they are significantly more money and good used ones are harder to find up here. Besides, my priorities were safety and affordability - and so that meant domestic.

This all started in about 2015 when I bought one for daughter #2 (she just had a baby on Tuesday, BTW). She was becoming a supply teacher in a suburb of Toronto - so big city, different school every day and she was a relatively new driver who did not have time to plan her route or seek lower traffic streets. I got her a blue 2011 Escape XLT for about $14K with about 60K km (35,000 miles and still some factory warranty). She liked it a lot and so did we, so I bought one for me when my 2007 Jeep StP and died. Escape #2 was a grey 2012 XLT with around 70K km for about $12K at the time (absolutely indistinguishable from the 2011) which I turned over to D#3 a few months later. Then son-in-law #2 needed a car and was going to finance a new one, so instead I got him a gold '11 XLT for around $10K which he paid me back over several years - and finally, I got myself the gold '12 XLT in the photo for about $8.5K. It has more miles on it and is rustier because it was an Ottawa car and they use a lot of salt up there - but everything works perfectly and I like it.

All of the Escapes are 3.0L V6s with automatic trannies and the first three were 2WD with the final 2012 being an AWD model. All have air, OK stereos, ESC and were clean and presentable when bought. There has been one small fender-bender when D#3 had a driver cut in front of her without signalling - but otherwise, no incidents.

So, I assembled a fleet of four of these puppies for well under $50K (over about 2-3 years) and collectively, we have put more than 500K km on them over the last 6 years with total repair costs for all four vehicles of about $1,800 including parts and some labour if I wasn't available or the vehicle was in another city. Nobody has ever been stranded or had a no-start condition needing a boost and all of the cars are still running well. The girls have begun to move on to newer cars, but two Escapes are still with us and I have no plans to deal mine even though it is getting pretty crusty.

Granted, they are a little harder on fuel than a more modern vehicle, but they are cheap to buy, have lots of guts (with the V6), they can haul a lot of stuff (mainly clothes, hair stuff and make-up, I guess) and they are durable and reliable - plus if some nitwit bashes into one of them, the Escape occupants will not likely lose - unless the other vehicle is a semi or a concrete mixer.

So - if you are looking for a cheap, reliable, durable and safe people/stuff-hauler, check out the 2011-12 Ford Escape.

Pete

 

[jetmechmarty]

So - if you are looking for a cheap, reliable, durable and safe people/stuff-hauler, check out the 2011-12 Ford Escape.

Will it haul two motorcycles on a trailer into the Appalachian Mountains?

 

[MaxPete]

Will it haul two motorcycles on a trailer into the Appalachian Mountains?

Yes sir - it certainly would! That thing would tow my house off its foundation.

 

[FB71]

Will it haul two motorcycles on a trailer into the Appalachian Mountains?

I've seen two Honda VT250s INSIDE a Ford Festiva... Transported from Ohio to VA.
I've had a Ford 4.6 4v, 4R70W trans, and an Explorer 8.8 rear in a Festiva, all at the same time...
By the way, I like Festivas...
I'm also partial to old Simplicity/AC lawn tractors.

 

[OLD ROOKIE]

View attachment 191682
Built in the 40's and still on the job.

Jhadng on four wheels (other than tractors) around here is a Toyota. All started with an 03 Corolla, followed by a '12 Corolla and a '13 Tundra. Put me off domestic vehicles entirely. Gave the '12 Corolla to my daughter as her Pontiac was rapidly approaching the point where they'd refuse to put an inspection sticker on it, and replaced it with a '20 RAV4. B-i-L drives a '17 Yaris.[/QUOTE]

The Ford Taurus made me want a Toyota. Got a brand new 2006 Sienna. I would still be driving it if my kid didn't wreck it.
I have a 2009 Camry, my third, I also had a 1999 and 2003 Camry and a 1981 Tercel. I sold the Tercel with 133k when my family got bigger. Shined up like a new penny. I put an ad in the paper and dozens of folks called.

 

[OLD ROOKIE]

Lava the best hand cleaner for the working man ever devised.
Anyone notice other than me that it is hard to find LAVA soap at the store?
Maybe its because retailers don't make as much money on great effective cheap brands.
Could it be because one bar of Lava soap does a better job than a $6 to $10 of the pump goop?

i ordered a 48 bar box of Lava for $46.99. That is likely a lifetime supply.