Built to last?
Discussion
Storer said:
Over 80% of all Rolls Royce's ever built are still going strong.
Until towed by an idiot: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...227bhp said:
Storer said:
Over 80% of all Rolls Royce's ever built are still going strong.
Until towed by an idiot: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...I would like to think the Police will prosecute this chap as he was towing at least double the legal weight of the tow car.
That Shadow will now be a parts car so will 'partially' live on but the chassis will for one of the 20%.
Edited by Storer on Sunday 28th June 18:47
My mum had an awesome old Panasonic microwave that lasted for about 25 years before she got another. Not because it broke but because it wouldn't fit in the alcove in the kitchen of the house she moved into... 
I also have fond memories (which is a bit odd) of an old washing machine that served our 5 person household well for about 15 years until one day my Dad could repair it no more when the drum actually fell out of it.
I think most things will last a good length of time if you look after them well enough, the main problem these days is that things are made with cheaper parts because consumers demand cheaper products and so in turn they tend not to last as long.
My mum donated some old cast iron le creuset saucepans to me when I moved out, the things are as old as me (28) and are a bit battered but in better condition than some of my newer pots and pans!
My washing machine and kettle are still going strong after 5 and 3 years respectively. The kettle gets used constantly for all the tea my OH drinks, thankfully here in North Wales the water seems to be soft as warm butter because there isn't a mark on the heating element!
I don't know why but I do enjoy hearing about old stuff that is defying the odds by still working, even if it is horribly inefficient!
I also have fond memories (which is a bit odd) of an old washing machine that served our 5 person household well for about 15 years until one day my Dad could repair it no more when the drum actually fell out of it.
I think most things will last a good length of time if you look after them well enough, the main problem these days is that things are made with cheaper parts because consumers demand cheaper products and so in turn they tend not to last as long.
My mum donated some old cast iron le creuset saucepans to me when I moved out, the things are as old as me (28) and are a bit battered but in better condition than some of my newer pots and pans!
My washing machine and kettle are still going strong after 5 and 3 years respectively. The kettle gets used constantly for all the tea my OH drinks, thankfully here in North Wales the water seems to be soft as warm butter because there isn't a mark on the heating element!
I don't know why but I do enjoy hearing about old stuff that is defying the odds by still working, even if it is horribly inefficient!
TwigtheWonderkid said:
Wife has a Sony Trinitron 12" tv she got for her 12th or 13th birthday. It's in the loft now but still works fine and has a great picture. She's 52 now.
Can't quite beat that but I had a 14" Hitachi Instavision colour portable that I got in 1983 that I only got rid of recently - obsolete now surely due to digital switchover. Went through countless house moves with me over the years. Similarly, my dad's old Ferguson Videostar 3V30 top loading VHS from c.1982 - built like a tank.I only replaced my 13 year old R Series IBM Thinkpad as it was now a bit slow. Newer, Lenovo Thinkpads do not 'feel' as well built but work fine.
My suggestion though is any Jap, film SLR camera. My Canon AV1 and Pentax P30 were still working fine when I last bought film.
Edited by PlayersNo6 on Sunday 28th June 20:20
I have a 1992 Hitachi Opus Ni cam Television which was a year old when I brought it and has gone through 6 house moves, has the kids bashing it and generally abusing it and it still works perfect, sounds great and has a lovely picture. Made in the UK or wales to be more specific. I don't think any of the new s
te lasts 23 months let alone 23 years. My father recently took a television set to the tip for a friend (admittedly it was a generic Argos or supermarket television) but the chap at the tip said they usually come in a few months after the years guarantee has expired. Just another throw away item.
te lasts 23 months let alone 23 years. My father recently took a television set to the tip for a friend (admittedly it was a generic Argos or supermarket television) but the chap at the tip said they usually come in a few months after the years guarantee has expired. Just another throw away item. I have a portable colour TV that does still work it is about 20+ years old, it hasn't been used for a few because it is nigh on impossible to tune it without the remote. I had to buy a generic remote and since losing the code number to link them (batteries ran flat) it has been stored away (was fine for using with DVD player etc) since we removed it from our bedroom.
Edited by bexVN on Sunday 28th June 23:12
doogz said:
I have a couple of these in different sizes
One I acquired, second hand.
I used to buckle the crap out of cheap frying pans on a regular basis, these things are the cockroaches of the cooking world, they'll outlive me.
My cast pans are older than me and im sure will outlive me. One I acquired, second hand.
I used to buckle the crap out of cheap frying pans on a regular basis, these things are the cockroaches of the cooking world, they'll outlive me.
dudleybloke said:
doogz said:
I have a couple of these in different sizes
One I acquired, second hand.
I used to buckle the crap out of cheap frying pans on a regular basis, these things are the cockroaches of the cooking world, they'll outlive me.
My cast pans are older than me and im sure will outlive me. One I acquired, second hand.
I used to buckle the crap out of cheap frying pans on a regular basis, these things are the cockroaches of the cooking world, they'll outlive me.
I've been pretty impressed with my mobile. It's a HTC Desire HD, and is now well over 4 years old, all still works perfectly. Took a gamble a couple of years ago by swapping to a sim-only contract and glad I did, saved myself a fortune in new mobile phones I don't need.
One of my DSLR bodies is 10 years old and still going strong (Nikon D70s).
Most of my hifi (mixture of Quad and Linn separates) is 15-20 years old and still stands up well to new stuff. Future proofed with a little Bluetooth box for streaming from my ipad.
My old VW Passat is 25 years old and done 270000 miles, that a bit of a triggers broom though so Don't think it counts, guess the main thing is the shell hasn't succumbed to rust yet
One of my DSLR bodies is 10 years old and still going strong (Nikon D70s).
Most of my hifi (mixture of Quad and Linn separates) is 15-20 years old and still stands up well to new stuff. Future proofed with a little Bluetooth box for streaming from my ipad.
My old VW Passat is 25 years old and done 270000 miles, that a bit of a triggers broom though so Don't think it counts, guess the main thing is the shell hasn't succumbed to rust yet
kev b said:
We have a microwave made in 1977, used/hammered in a restaurant kitchen since 1998, that has outlasted over 20 modern microwaves including v expensive commercial ones. Had to change bulbs a few times though.
Yes but is has probably been gently irradiating your internal organs for all of that time.You know that lovely warm feeling you get inside every time you use it...it's not pride!!!
doogz said:
CharlesdeGaulle said:
Brilliant. Kettles to mumsnet in less than 2 pages. PH at its best.
Men can cook too.I think you're in the wrong thread, the sexism one is over there >>>
lufbramatt said:
I've been pretty impressed with my mobile. It's a HTC Desire HD, and is now well over 4 years old, all still works perfectly.
I am confused why you would NOT expect a 4 year old device to still be working perfectly. Unless of course you regularly drop it down the bog and often goes for a few cycles in the washing machine, then I too would share your impressed-ness.
All that jazz said:
lufbramatt said:
I've been pretty impressed with my mobile. It's a HTC Desire HD, and is now well over 4 years old, all still works perfectly.
I am confused why you would NOT expect a 4 year old device to still be working perfectly. Unless of course you regularly drop it down the bog and often goes for a few cycles in the washing machine, then I too would share your impressed-ness.
Lots of the HTC Desire range would just overheat, lock up and reboot after a while so I'm quite surprized mine still works.I'm astonished that my iphone 4 with which, through its smashed screen, i am typing this message is still in perfect working order....since buying it in 2010.
In no particular order:
-Within a week of getting it I dropped it while running and accidently booted it 50 feet down the road
-dropped it in a bubbling saucepan of spaghetti bolognese - it sank to the bottom, and then once clean i left it on the still switched on electric hob until i smelt burning plastic!
-dropped it in the toilet
-lost it in deep snow for 2 days
-o/h stood on it with a heel
-dropped countless times
-its gone into a cup of tea
-ive even left it on trains twice and its found its way back to me on both occasions, and it was pickpocketed out of my jeans in Fabric nightclub once, only to be found in the pockets of the thief (along with several other phones) by a bouncer at the end of the night and returned to me
Sometimes the speaker gets muffled after its got wet but it fixes itself, and sometimes it throws a strop and wont power up properly or open apps properly... but let it calm down and its back to normal.
Ive never updated the operating system since 2010 and it sports cracked front and back glass... but still works perfectly!
In no particular order:
-Within a week of getting it I dropped it while running and accidently booted it 50 feet down the road
-dropped it in a bubbling saucepan of spaghetti bolognese - it sank to the bottom, and then once clean i left it on the still switched on electric hob until i smelt burning plastic!
-dropped it in the toilet
-lost it in deep snow for 2 days
-o/h stood on it with a heel
-dropped countless times
-its gone into a cup of tea
-ive even left it on trains twice and its found its way back to me on both occasions, and it was pickpocketed out of my jeans in Fabric nightclub once, only to be found in the pockets of the thief (along with several other phones) by a bouncer at the end of the night and returned to me
Sometimes the speaker gets muffled after its got wet but it fixes itself, and sometimes it throws a strop and wont power up properly or open apps properly... but let it calm down and its back to normal.
Ive never updated the operating system since 2010 and it sports cracked front and back glass... but still works perfectly!
I have a tractor which was built 41 years ago, it still runs as well as the day it was made, it's not rusting, it never breaks down, it's had a hard working life though, everything about it says quality/durability. Nothing is plastic or flimsy. I will be very surprised if it's not still going strong in 100 years provided it's kept in a shed and given an oil change every so often. It'll outlast me, and I bet a penny to a pound it will outlast most modern tractors.
Timmy40 said:
doogz said:
CharlesdeGaulle said:
Brilliant. Kettles to mumsnet in less than 2 pages. PH at its best.
Men can cook too.I think you're in the wrong thread, the sexism one is over there >>>
PopsandBangs said:
Ive never updated the operating system since 2010... but still works perfectly!
That is probably why - I miss my old iPhone 4. They have a weighty-ness to them that is missing from the later phones, plus if you ever want to Naomi Campbell someone, an iPhone 4 should be top of the list 
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