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Belt again. Aged 12, hand tooled at a craft fair (remembers being dragged round them...) still wear it daily. It's a good reminder if I'm having a fat month.
Spent the whole of my first month's pay on a watch. Quartz Omega sea master. 17yrs of daily wear, some bits of the metal strap have passed into triggers broom status.
My 2 favourite 'things'.
I've got a Robert Saunders backpacker tent that I got for my fifteenth birthday, in 1979 and a Karrimor Jaguar rucksack from the same year.
I also have my Dad's Omega Constellation which I remember him buying in 1972. It was my daily wearer until I retired and treated myself to an Aqua Terra last year.
Record 52E vice, Stanley 16oz claw hammer and a Stanley smoothing plane
My Estwing hammer. Was bought for me by my dad when I first started my apprenticeship, it's picked up some battle scars and still like lightening (never hits the same place twice), but it's 24 years old and used every day.
Feathered Friends sleeping bag and MSR stove bought 30 years ago as part of a plan to escape the rat race. Obviously the plan failed but they are still in frequent use.
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One of these CK Fencing Pliers was my first proper tool I bought when I was gamekeeping. I was on £50.00 a week and these even then cost me £23.00 but still in the tool box today and deliver whenever they are used.
Mine look alot more worn than the image though! 😀
Discounting books and records.....
Up until last year I was still using the wooden spoon my mum bought me when I was packing to leave for college. We were in manchester for the day so she popped into the David Mellor shop and bought it as an in-promptu present. It was just a really good spoon - used daily for 26 years - until during my particularly vigorous rendition of US style home fries (where I let the potato burn to the bottom of the pan and repeatedly chisel it off) it snapped last year.
So at the end of last year when I was passing near the David Mellor factory near sheffield I popped in to pick up a replacement - I actually bought 2 so that enough to last me til I'm dead probably. £1.50 each so £3 well invested.
I then got a bit giddy and bought about £500 worth of his cutlery.
Second oldest thing in daily regular use is a bright orange T shirt with with a picture of an excavator and 'Backhoe Rodeo - Underground Safety Equipment Fair 1995' printed on the front. A friend bought it in a garage sale in the US and gave it to me as a present in 1997. For something that was probably made as a give-away freebee its really well made. Hasn't faded, frayed or lost its shape in 20 years of regular use.
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The biscuit tin from M&S from before we got married. 1983 vintage.
I have a Tissot watch that was bought for me on my 18th birthday that is still worn regularly. It's had 1 service in that time and still works perfectly.
I've also got a pair of shoes that I bought for my wedding that, whilst not old now, I intend to keep for ever.
Oldest possession that is mine is my tortoise and hare eggcup, ca. 1975. Still use it today. But I no longer cut the toast in to soldiers.
Oldest purchased new with my own money is either the Trangia stove, bought when I was in Scouts (still works perfectly, other than the rubber seal perished), or Casio FX451 calculator. Both were bought with my birthday money, but can't be certain which was the oldest.
Swiss army knife my dad brought home from Switzerland for me when I was about 8
Apart from a few of books it would be:
Nike 'Makalu' waist-pack from mid-nineties. Great condition.
Nothing special about it that makes me keep it other than a gauge/target to lose weight to the point where it's useful once more 😉
still using ash shafted stubai ice axe circa 1976 ideal for getting weeds out of joints on drive. still got whillans sit harness and pr EBs from same era,
1986 force 10 hurricane leaked a bit last summer a bit of TLC and good for a few more years.could be why garage is full of old gear
Original Braun voice control alarm clock. Bought when I was about 15. It's still working fine 35 years later. They still make it too, although the internals are nothing like the same.
I have Mickey Mouse and Buggs bunny teddies from when I was christened, 32 years ago, but, given that I'm younger than a lot of the things here, none of my bought new things are even close.
Have a 60 year old pocket calculator, but I didn't buy it new.
I bought some "expensive" in-ear headphones when I was at college, so circa 1989. Aiwa Pipe-Phones. I'd guess they were maybe £30? I remember at the time that they cost more than I'd paid for my cassette Walkman.
They've been with me to the moon and back, I've never got around to replacing them because I've never found a modern pair that sounded as good. Sadly that day has now come as they've got caught on something and yanked once too often, one of the earpieces started intermittently cutting out a month or so back. I'm absolutely gutted. (Expect a "what headphones" thread from me soon.)
I've a Casio fx451 that I bought when I started university in October 1985 and still in daily use.
So have I, probably the same age. I've not used it in years though (I'm usually nearer a computer than a calculator so why would I?)
intermittently cutting out a month or so back
^ fix them? Could be just a wire. Usually a way to do it. May not look pretty.
The stainless steel ruler which I bought as a kid is still on my table now. 😛
^ fix them? Could be just a wire.
I considered this but a) I think the break is inside the ear bud, or very very close to it, and b) I've fixed headphones before (when they've gone at the jack end) and IME headphone cable is bloody awful stuff to work with.
Excluding records, still used it's a Tag 1000 watch - 28 years iirc, not really useful for a while it's a Mission Cyrus one amp and ariston q deck turntable , had them both for about thirty years
NAD amp and MS speakers - bought new in 1996 and still going strong.
Babies though compare it the QUAD 405 that my dad bought in 1979 and is still in daily use
ive had a broom for 20 years. It's had 17 new heads and 14 new handles.
Patagonia Snap T top bought when I was 18 at the cost of £89 big ones (they super expensive when they first can in to the UK) was being payed £25 a week, its still going strong and it still fits 31 years later.I am sure its good for a few more years.
Russian Naval trenchcoat. Made from wool so dense it's like felt.
Pretty much impervious to all weather!
Had it since 1992, and it's still going strong.
Mission 780 SEs 20+ Years, Rotel RB/RC pre/power amps 30+ years old.
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Bought in 1976 for nautical college. Still use it today, 42 years old and still going strong, unbelievable really.
Me and a friend bought two Mountain Equipment Cerro Torre Jackets in 1983 and got them discounted to £60 each. Mine still survives and gets an airing every winter and is my most cherished posession. It will be a sad day when it's no longer fit for purpose.
[quote=maccruiskeen ]Discounting books and records.....
Up until last year I was still using the wooden spoon my mum bought me when I was packing to leave for college. We were in manchester for the day so she popped into the David Mellor shop and bought it as an in-promptu present. It was just a really good spoon - used daily for 26 years - until during my particularly vigorous rendition of US style home fries (where I let the potato burn to the bottom of the pan and repeatedly chisel it off) it snapped last year.
So at the end of last year when I was passing near the David Mellor factory near sheffield
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who knew he made spoons
My oldest possession is a Corgi Noddy car that my dad brought back from a western isles trip (he used to go the the Mhod every year) for me when I was just a wee boy. It was bought new and I certainly played with it. I'd link a photo but it's not letting me copy the bbcode from flickr on this iPad. If something happened to it I'd be absolutely gutted, it was special to me at the time, and it's not been deminished by time (40+ years). Obvs, it reminds me of my dad... 😥
It sits on the window sill in the kitchen, be pushing it to say it was used daily mind... 😀
Other than that I've a Rotary watch that I bought with my first months salary after finishing uni. It's still my main watch, bought from Gibbs The jewellers, Holburn St, Aberdeen. Lovely people, fitted the strap for me, gave me a discount unasked for (my folks had tried to get my 21st watch repaired through them when I bashed it off a wall crashing a motorbike and I think they remembered me). Given me years of sterling service, I hope they've had a good retirement.
There are a couple of mentions for Animal here. I always remember a bit of text on a t-shirt label I bought years ago:
"When what is left of this t-shirt is being used to polish your bike, boat or whatever, remember the good times you had when wearing it..." 🙂
Stainless steel flask from Coleman 25 years old slightly dented still keeps stuff roasting hot all day