[HN Gopher] A Typical Workday at a Japanese Hardware Tool Store ...
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       A Typical Workday at a Japanese Hardware Tool Store [video]
        
       Author : Erikun
       Score  : 128 points
       Date   : 2025-05-10 10:18 UTC (2 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.youtube.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.youtube.com)
        
       | nervousvarun wrote:
       | Longtime Paolo fan, he does a great job with his "typical
       | workday" series.
       | 
       | Not sure of the exact number he's done, but I personally estimate
       | I've watched at least 20-25 of these across a wide range of
       | industries (majority are in food preparation/service but he also
       | covers construction, tech, animation, airlines, education,
       | politics, and many more) and if there's one overriding takeaway
       | it's the Japanese as a culture are extremely committed to
       | maximizing product quality.
       | 
       | It could be selection bias (maybe he only films exemplary people)
       | but it doesn't seem to matter if you're dealing with someone
       | preparing food, fighting fires, or delivering packages these
       | people seem to really care about the overall quality of the
       | service or product they provide.
       | 
       | A few others worth watching:
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0RX59G2jaA (movers...as someone
       | who only has experience with American movers this is ridiculously
       | better than what I experienced)
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8A_Hu_WqeQ (package delivery
       | worker)
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsLFm5SSJyQ (politician)
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjCzavpZoZI (fire fighter)
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCPZzEbhNJw (anime director)
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m4UxbDgGhc (car repair shop
       | worker)
       | 
       | Honestly if you like any of these you'll likely find they're all
       | worth watching.
        
         | lawgimenez wrote:
         | My favorite episode is this [1], the owner is very unique in a
         | way that he is a rare collector of hardcore punk CDs/vinyl.
         | 
         | [1] https://youtu.be/ky0YDKvGggo
        
         | terhechte wrote:
         | I'm also a huge fan. Started watching him after a Japan trip. I
         | like the format so much, I'd love to have something similar
         | (day in the life) for various other countries.
        
         | hbn wrote:
         | His videos are well produced and I've watched quite a few of
         | them, but it always weirded me out how much he says "Japanese"
         | like he's figured out the algorithm will favor him more if it
         | detects he's saying that a lot
         | 
         | Go to any of his videos with his wife, he'll consistently refer
         | to her as "my Japanese wife"
        
           | bitwize wrote:
           | Hey, those weeb eyeballs can translate into good money.
        
           | y-curious wrote:
           | Well the wife bit is probably to explain that she's part of
           | the culture. If his wife was, say, French, it wouldn't really
           | make sense why he's explaining what she does.
        
         | babyent wrote:
         | It's not surprising. They have a strong cultural identity and
         | their whole country is far nicer and cleaner than any country
         | I've been to.
         | 
         | Most immigrants here (I live in SF) are to be completely
         | honest, not from very strong cultural identities. I'm an
         | immigrant too, and my own people aren't that strong with their
         | cultural identities. After all, we GTFO'd the moment we or our
         | parents could. Whenever I've been back I hated the filth and
         | pollution everywhere, and the lack of care considering the
         | litter and trash everywhere. It's gross and sad.
         | 
         | Japanese people are happy with their culture on a broader
         | level. I'm sure they have their problems too. Everyone does.
         | 
         | When I visited Japan I was so blown away by how proper and
         | organized people were. It inspired me to live a more organized
         | life. I went all over in both cities and rural areas, never saw
         | trash. People were kind even with the language barrier. Even
         | their homeless (they only have like 20k total) were polite and
         | organized.
        
           | ok_dad wrote:
           | In a collective culture like Japan, you take care of your
           | responsibilities yourself to improve the collective good.
           | It's basically the opposite of the tragedy of the commons in
           | individualistic cultures, IMO.
           | 
           | The nail that sticks out gets hammered not because of a
           | requirement that you conform, but because you're not doing
           | your responsibilities, so someone else has to do it.
           | 
           | America is much more conformist than Japan, it's just than in
           | Japan you'll work a mediocre job and enjoy it because that's
           | your role and you appreciate that you're a part of a whole.
           | Whereas in America you might be able to theoretically do
           | "better", but there's no safety.
        
             | latentsea wrote:
             | > The nail that sticks out gets hammered not because of a
             | requirement that you conform, but because you're not doing
             | your responsibilities, so someone else has to do it.
             | 
             | Unfortunately, in practice it's ingrained by a tonne of
             | instances of getting told off for minor infractions of
             | seemingly very arbitrary rules, to the point where it's so
             | ingrained that you just stop questioning it because it's
             | not worth the energy to do so anymore.
        
         | 7thaccount wrote:
         | The video where he interviews a lawyer on the Japanese "guilty
         | until proven innocent" legal system was pretty scary if I'm
         | being honest.
         | 
         | They apparently try to force a confession even if you're
         | innocent as the alternative is to basically let you stay in
         | jail for up to 23 days per infraction. There is no bail and
         | they interrogate you without a lawyer present (lawyer not
         | allowed). It's honestly made me second guess traveling there as
         | a foreigner. I'm incredibly respectful of other cultures, but
         | would be scared something weird would happen and I'd somehow
         | disappear into that administrative nightmare. You can't even
         | talk to your family until that period is over, so you just roll
         | the dice and hope confessing gets you a slap on the wrist.
         | 
         | On the plus side, I know the cities are supposed to be super
         | safe.
        
       | chris_st wrote:
       | The kindest of interviewers.
        
         | aredox wrote:
         | NHK World is full of such interviews and documentaries:
         | 
         | https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/shows/programs/
         | 
         | Highly recommended - even live (no ads).
        
       | Calwestjobs wrote:
       | Excellent example how population density can make even
       | reuse/second hand markets viable.
        
         | nemomarx wrote:
         | Population density and I believe relatively business friendly
         | zoning to make it easier to be close to apartments and etc?
        
         | mitthrowaway2 wrote:
         | Reuse and repair is also encouraged by having relatively more
         | expensive, high quality but lower-production-quantity goods.
         | When it costs less to buy something new, more gets discarded.
        
           | jandrese wrote:
           | It's hard to ignore the labor costs to repair things like
           | hand tools. For someone doing it for themselves it's not an
           | issue, but when it is your day job it can be a lot harder to
           | do the repairs without driving the price of the tool beyond
           | the cost of a new one. Not if you want to keep current on the
           | rent and have money for groceries.
           | 
           | As the price of goods drop you will observe the subsequent
           | decline of repair shops for said good. TV repair shops used
           | to be in every medium size and larger city. They are now
           | extinct. Vacuum cleaner repair only exists for specialty
           | brands. Computer repair is sometimes a side business but it's
           | also dying out. Cell phone repair is still a thing, but
           | mostly because screens break a lot and batteries are wear
           | items so there is at least a good volume of customers.
           | Appliance repair is still a thing, but the spare parts
           | situation has gotten so bad that even they tend to be closing
           | shop.
           | 
           | Cheap goods kill repair industries.
        
         | rightbyte wrote:
         | I would guess that low yield businesses per storage area is
         | more viable in sparsely populated areas?
        
         | potato3732842 wrote:
         | We have a used tool store like this near where I live. While
         | technically being within city limits of the county seat it's
         | located in the kind of population density that HN turns up its
         | nose at for being unsustainable. But it's fairly easy to get to
         | off a couple major highways so in practice it's more accessible
         | to the kind of people who tend to need rebar tying guns and
         | chain come alongs than it would be if it were downtown. It's
         | possible it couldn't even exist downtown because its inventory
         | might not turn over fast enough to pay the rent.
        
         | obelos wrote:
         | Also nationalized control of healthcare costs.
        
       | ape4 wrote:
       | You can see how those workers would have a good job satisfaction.
        
       | TrackerFF wrote:
       | Paolo has a bunch of cool vids on this topic, I've watched them
       | all. I binged through them for hours when I first discovered the
       | channel...my initial reaction was: Damn how long people in Japan
       | work. Most people seemingly woke up, went to work, went out to
       | eat and drink, and then get maybe a couple of hours at home
       | before it all repeats.
       | 
       | But on the other side of the spectrum, you have:
       | https://www.youtube.com/@salarymantokyo
        
       | philosophty wrote:
       | The most interesting part of this video to me is when the repair
       | guy with 20 years of experience says tool quality has improved
       | over time.
        
         | dfxm12 wrote:
         | I have used some hand-me-down tools from my father and recently
         | bought new tools. I don't have 20 years experience, so take my
         | opinion for what it is worth, but I concur with the repair guy.
        
         | potato3732842 wrote:
         | Pick up anything with a power cord or a battery from 2000 or
         | 1980 and it becomes pretty obvious.
        
         | tristor wrote:
         | Tool quality has definitely improved over time, but... and this
         | is a big but... many people buy lower quality tools now than
         | were available previously because of their low cost. I would
         | put any of my Japanese or German/Czech hand tools up against
         | any of the big brands of the past (many of which I also own
         | thanks to yard/garage sales) and say they're better, not just
         | from an ergonomics and design perspective but from an actual
         | strength/reliability perspective. Most people, at least in the
         | US, though are only familiar with low-quality China/Taiwan made
         | tools which have lower quality metals and a lot of plastic
         | content when it comes to hand tools.
         | 
         | If you invest a bit of effort into finding good hand tools, the
         | options are much better these days but you have to be willing
         | to pay.
        
           | haiku2077 wrote:
           | On the flip side, the cheap tools are great when I need to
           | use a tool rarely- sometimes once.
        
         | stronglikedan wrote:
         | What was so interesting about that? Seems so obvious as to be
         | mundane to me, so I'm curious as to what I could be missing.
        
           | pinkmuffinere wrote:
           | It is a very common gripe that items have decreased in
           | quality compared to some 'golden era' in the past. You've
           | likely heard somebody say "They don't make 'em like they used
           | to!" I think the parent comment is saying it's interesting to
           | hear a technician say quality has _increased_, because the
           | opposite complaint is so stereotypically common.
        
         | aaronbaugher wrote:
         | That may be true overall, but it depends on the tool. I've
         | bought a lot of my tools for a few bucks at farm and estate
         | auctions. I have two large Craftsman adjustable wrenches. The
         | older one, made in the US, is heavier and there's a lot less
         | play in the mechanism, so it's the one I reach for first.
         | That's been typical for me.
         | 
         | Generally, newer tools are lighter, which is nice when you're
         | carrying them around, but sometimes it means they're more
         | fragile. I have a 1955 McCulloch chainsaw, and it's a beast,
         | must weigh 40 pounds and have about 200 parts in it. The carb
         | is a complicated thing with a lot of moving parts, and there's
         | a gearbox between the engine and the chain. But I bought it for
         | $12, cleaned it up a little, got a stuck part in the carb
         | unstuck, and it started. Not bad for a 70-year-old piece of
         | equipment that looked like it'd been gathering dust for years.
         | 
         | My 2024 Stihl is a much better saw. It's far lighter, which is
         | important when you're carrying it all day. It's much simpler,
         | with fewer things that can go wrong with it. It runs higher
         | RPMs, so it cuts wood faster. But there's enough plastic in it
         | that there's no way it's going to be around in 70 years. I'll
         | be happy if I get 10 out of it.
         | 
         | The ideal would be the design quality of the Stihl, with all
         | the legitimate improvements they've made over the decades, with
         | the materials quality and manufacturing care of the McCulloch.
         | That combination is probably available in a high-end line, just
         | not at consumer prices.
        
       | bityard wrote:
       | Man, I would love it if this kind of thing existed in the US.
       | Unfortunately, shopping for used or refurbished products is
       | increasingly seen less as something smart people do and more as
       | something "poor people" do. I've heard more than one co-worker or
       | family member refer to buying pre-owned goods as "buying someone
       | else's problem."
       | 
       | The closest thing we have around here to a used tool store would
       | be thrift shops that maybe have one broken drill, pawn shops with
       | varying degrees of sketchiness, or rolling the dice on eBay.
        
         | Loughla wrote:
         | I've never had a problem with used tools on eBay. If the seller
         | isn't absurdly correct in their posting, eBay will take your
         | side.
         | 
         | The only thing that has ever gone wrong on eBay for me was when
         | a seller claimed I didn't return an expensive item that the
         | regular price had dropped on by the original company (he was
         | selling multiple of this item that was now $200 less than his
         | asking price from the main supplier website). He was going to
         | eat a couple hundred dollars so he tried to screw me over.
         | 
         | I sent pictures and videos of me packaging and mailing the item
         | to eBay and got my refund. They didn't let me review the
         | seller, though. It would've been an amazing review of that
         | human turd.
        
           | FireBeyond wrote:
           | eBay let someone scam me out of $700.
           | 
           | I sold a Mavic 2 Pro drone with 5 batteries. The whole
           | process was a mess. Scammer initially complained that it
           | didn't come with the CrystalSky tablet in one picture (that
           | was only added AFTER after start of bidding BY the scammer,
           | to show Flight Logs, andwas explicitly disclaimed as not
           | being a part of the package, nor was it in the receipts I
           | sent the buyer). After pointing out those details, silence.
           | 
           | Then, three weeks later:
           | 
           | "The batteries don't work. I want a refund."
           | 
           | "Batteries? Any of them? All of them?"
           | 
           | "All of them, none work. I want a refund."
           | 
           | Note that two of the batteries were less than 4 months old,
           | still in warranty.
           | 
           | He then stated he wanted a refund of $800. Realize that five
           | brand-new batteries would only be $670.
           | 
           | No evidence was shown, despite multiple requests (like a
           | video of a battery on a charger, or on the drone, failing to
           | power up). I stated I'd like to get the original batteries
           | back, as at least I'd be able to get them replaced under
           | warranty or possibly repaired and recoup some of my money (I
           | was skeptical there was -any- issue, but still, good faith).
           | He "happily" agreed. I asked him to send me a message on eBay
           | (so it was tracked and not avoiding their system)
           | acknowledging that offering a partial refund was contingent
           | on his sending me the batteries back and that he accepts me
           | disputing the refund if not.
           | 
           | He sends a message indicating all of the above.
           | 
           | Refund is sent (for about $700, to include his return
           | shipping costs).
           | 
           | Thirty-five minutes later, I get a message, "USPS says they
           | don't ship damaged batteries, so I will not be returning
           | them". (35 minutes? So what, you sat around waiting for the
           | refund, and then the moment I sent the money, you jumped in
           | your car, got to the post office, had this discussion, got
           | home, and were able to send me this message? When your home
           | address shows you about 15 minutes from the nearest post
           | office?)
           | 
           | I then suggest we meet in person to exchange them (I live a
           | few hours away, not convenient, but still, $700...). He umms
           | and ahhs, "How will I be able to prove that I gave them to
           | you in person?". I suggest we do it in a police station and
           | point out that his local PD even welcomes people to use their
           | lobby for CL, etc. on their website. More umms and ahhs. "I
           | need to contact eBay support to see if they allow this." I
           | point him to eBay's specific FAQ page describing exactly this
           | and how they recommend doing in person sales, and refunds,
           | documentation thereof, and how they support it. But he
           | ignores that and says, "I never heard back from eBay support,
           | so I'm not sure what to do". I point this page out again, and
           | he goes silent.
           | 
           | I opened a dispute. No evidence was provided for damage or
           | faulty goods, referenced the multiple requests for video, or
           | of anything.) Multiple instances of the buyer trying to show
           | something was problematic with the listing, not abiding by
           | the agreement and refusing/avoiding any method of returning
           | damaged items.
           | 
           | Overnight, no further inquiries.
           | 
           | "We have closed your dispute. Based on our review, the buyer
           | is entitled to keep the partial refund for damage. He is also
           | not required to return the damaged items".
           | 
           | So he ended up with a Mavic 2 Pro, with less than 20 hours
           | flight time, 5 batteries, for in the order of $950, all told.
        
             | bityard wrote:
             | That sucks. I've been selling things on eBay for... longer
             | than I care say out loud but I've read enough horror
             | stories that I don't think I could get the nerve to sell
             | anything high-priced for fear that I would get scammed by a
             | "professional buyer" like you did. They know eBay's rules
             | and how to work within them to get what they want.
             | Unfortunately, as a seller you have to know the rules as
             | well as they do (or better) to keep the scam from working,
             | and even that is not always a guarantee.
             | 
             | When there is a dispute or request for a refund, as a
             | seller, the hardest part is knowing the correction action
             | to take when these things happen. If you do the wrong
             | thing, or do the right things in the wrong order, you
             | unknowingly paint yourself into a corner. You basically
             | have to be your own "ebay rules lawyer" and read _all_ the
             | docs and policies (some of which are hard to find) as well
             | as discussion threads.
             | 
             | One of the big things I do to defend myself against scammer
             | buyers is I make it clear that I don't offer partial
             | refunds, only full product returns where return shipping is
             | (initially) at the buyer's expense and the shipping is
             | reimbursed ONLY if the item is received by me in good
             | condition. This isn't 100% protection against the kind of
             | scam you encountered, but it's been effective for me so
             | far.
        
               | neilv wrote:
               | An additional trick for handling some kinds of suspected
               | scam eBay buyer problem reports, which has worked for me
               | multiple times...
               | 
               | I ask the buyer to double-check, saying that if there's
               | still a problem, I'll refund their money and ask the
               | Postal Inspector to investigate how the problem could've
               | happened.
               | 
               | Whether it works because the person is sure to go and
               | double-check, and thereby realizes an honest mistake, or
               | because the complaint wasn't honest to begin with, I can
               | only guess.
        
             | triceratops wrote:
             | I never ever sell anything online for this reason. In-
             | person only, cash in hand or GTFO.
        
             | phonon wrote:
             | You could still go to small claims court!
        
         | oldandboring wrote:
         | > refer to buying pre-owned goods as "buying someone else's
         | problem."
         | 
         | I suppose this is true enough, in terms of risk, when you're
         | talking about yard sales etc. But I'm perfectly comfortable
         | buying from places that screen, test, and possibly even
         | refurbish the incoming inventory before reselling it. I've
         | bought many cell phones from resellers like this online, and I
         | find that pawn and thift shops generally do a good job at this.
        
         | 0_____0 wrote:
         | I don't think that the 'shiny object' allure applies to
         | industrial tools to the same degree as with consumer goods.
         | Every machine shop I've ever been in, save for maybe a couple,
         | is stuffed with used machine tools, plenty of them older than
         | anyone who works there.
         | 
         | There's a healthy market for machine tools at auction, they're
         | just not things your typical homegamer would need/want/be able
         | to use (example: $200 for a 240/3ph drill press)
        
         | tartuffe78 wrote:
         | I've been finding lots of good used tools on Facebook
         | Marketplace. I've bought a handheld belt sander, a circular
         | saw, clamps, and more without anyone scamming me or giving me a
         | broken tools.
        
         | koverstreet wrote:
         | > I've heard more than one co-worker or family member refer to
         | buying pre-owned goods as "buying someone else's problem."
         | 
         | Well, there are lots of people with more money than
         | intelligence. Knowing how to evaluate purchases for quality is
         | a basic life skill, if you always buy whatever's available
         | brand new you'll get taken.
         | 
         | People like that tend to be fairly helpless as soon as they're
         | outside of where they feel comfortable.
        
         | sybercecurity wrote:
         | That sentiment isn't shared across the whole of the US. One
         | area is in kid stuff. Thrift/secondhand stores selling
         | baby/small child clothes are very common in most suburbs. Kids
         | outgrow stuff very quickly so a lot of parents go to stores
         | that specialize in baby clothes, toys, and various stuff. New
         | designer kid's clothes are mostly bought by grandparents or
         | first time parents. There are some stores the specialize in
         | secondhand sports equipment too - so parents can have a trial
         | run to see if their kid really likes a new sport before
         | investing in it.
         | 
         | Online marketplaces seem to dominate the secondhand market in
         | the US though. Or there is a storefront but also has a big
         | online presence.
        
           | bityard wrote:
           | By "this kind of thing" I specifically meant the subject of
           | the video: tool stores. Used clothing stores are all over and
           | account for 90% or more of the floor space of most thrift
           | shops. In my area, there are even facebook groups for people
           | to give away their unwated clothes for free. Haven't found
           | any of those for tools, though.
        
             | alnwlsn wrote:
             | I think this might be because once you have a tool, you
             | either use it forever or until it breaks, and don't sell it
             | in a good enough condition that it would be worth anything.
             | My dad's circular saw, which he found in the trash 40 years
             | ago, will probably last the rest of his life and all of my
             | life.
             | 
             | Used tools are dirty, oily, and heavy. That's why my shop
             | is outfitted with a lot of estate sale finds. Old people
             | croak, and their next of kin don't want to move a half ton
             | of steel (even to the thrift shop, who also doesn't want to
             | move them around their store), so it ends up in the hands
             | of people like me for near scrap prices.
        
               | sumtechguy wrote:
               | As someone looking for a piano. It seems to be the same
               | there. Prices from 'get this thing away from me' to 'care
               | to take out a small 50k loan?'.
        
             | ElevenLathe wrote:
             | At least in my part of the US (midwest), estate sales are
             | the best place to find old tools. People hold onto them
             | until they die, but then you can buy them! estatesales.net
             | (no affiliation, just a user) lists the vast majority of
             | them, and usually even has pictures of what is for sale
             | that you can scroll through before actually going. I've
             | gotten a lot of insane deals on tools this way -- just
             | recently bought a vintage (good quality, perfect working
             | order) 10inch wood bandsaw for $20!.
        
               | bombcar wrote:
               | These are so hit and miss - sometimes they're just
               | everything is incredibly overpriced and sometimes if you
               | show up late, you get an entire garage tools for less
               | than the scrap value of the metal.
        
               | bityard wrote:
               | Hah. There was an estate sale in my neighborhood last
               | summer. Quite a few tools in the garage that I was
               | interested in but the prices were crazy. 30-50 year-old
               | tools priced the same as brand-new. Even asking 50% off
               | would be been too much for a lot of the stuff. I asked if
               | they would take X for something and the guy said, "we're
               | not doing any discounts, everything is as marked."
               | 
               | Walked back to my car shaking my head. Guess they didn't
               | want to actually sell anything.
        
               | aaronbaugher wrote:
               | Yep. I'm in the Midwest too. I paid $15 for my chop saw,
               | and it's a lot nicer one than I would have bought new. My
               | table saw cost $6, probably because the plug on the end
               | of the power cord was gone. New plug for $3, and it's
               | fine. Handheld tools like circular saws and drills
               | typically go for $3-5.
               | 
               | I get a dud once in a while, but at those prices, I still
               | end up way ahead overall.
        
         | GuinansEyebrows wrote:
         | that, and thrift has been utterly destroyed by resellers.
         | thrift stores now have to raise their prices on whatever crap
         | hasn't been picked out by resellers already. thrift shopping
         | used to be a lot more like going to yard/estate sales but now
         | almost everything left is just the absolute bottom of the
         | barrel, and anything that isn't is so expensive you might as
         | well buy new.
        
           | kcb wrote:
           | At my local thrift store I recently saw someone come in with
           | full gear, like a barcode scanner on their fingertip and a
           | phone mounted on their wrist. They scan and price out
           | everything with a barcode. It's pretty bizarre.
        
           | bombcar wrote:
           | We need shipping costs to go up 10 times what they currently
           | are. It would solve a lot of problems.
        
         | dfxm12 wrote:
         | Speak for yourself, sure, and maybe your coworker or family,
         | but not an entire country. Tool libraries and used shops exist
         | in a lot of places in the US. The fact that you don't have nice
         | tools in local thrift shops is as much a sign that the people
         | in your community hold onto, take care of, share and/or repair
         | their tools as anything else.
        
         | archarios wrote:
         | There are also tool lending libraries in some areas. I love
         | mine <3
        
         | pinkmuffinere wrote:
         | This is such a shame to hear. I buy almost all my large
         | electronics used (laptop / cellphone), used vehicles are often
         | a steal, I love used clothes, recently looked into buying a
         | used suit (but I found a comparable quality new suit for less),
         | I'll even by mattresses/bedding/furniture used if it's coming
         | from a friend (so I can confirm I won't get bed bugs). I don't
         | know what my point is here, I guess just that used stuff is
         | soooooo good for the price.
        
         | blacksmith_tb wrote:
         | That's a shame, many US metros have a Habitat for Humanity
         | ReStore[1], I volunteer at one, which certainly does have used
         | hand and power tools, some pretty beat, others just fine (the
         | obviously busted ones that are donated get broken down for
         | recycling).
         | 
         | 1: https://www.habitat.org/restores
        
           | bityard wrote:
           | I wonder if they vary in quality by location? I've stopped
           | into ours at least a half-dozen times and never found
           | anything interesting.
           | 
           | We _used_ to have a warehouse-sized second-chance store for
           | home items and building materials. It was run by the city and
           | all items were donated. Prices on most everything was very
           | reasonable and all the funds went towards running the store
           | and maintaining the city's other recycling programs. It was
           | great. Every time I went in there, I came out with something
           | awesome and only a slightly lighter wallet. (Generally tools
           | or lumber.) Unfortunately, they shut it down at the start of
           | COVID for unclear reasons and never reopened.
        
         | mschuster91 wrote:
         | > I've heard more than one co-worker or family member refer to
         | buying pre-owned goods as "buying someone else's problem."
         | 
         | Well, products just aren't built to last these days. Just take
         | electronic devices... for phones, if it's not an iPhone and
         | maybe a flagship Samsung, after two years the resale value
         | isn't much because it's either bent and scratched to hell or it
         | won't get any more software update. For laptops it's just the
         | same. After 2-3 years, unless it's Apple, usually the battery
         | is shot, the hinges are worn out and the plastic body next to
         | the touchpad is as discolored as the keyboard is.
         | 
         | Cars are also pretty bad. It's either "buy a new car and risk a
         | lemon" or "buy an used car and pay the difference to a new car
         | in repair costs", and on top of that the second-hand car market
         | is pretty dead. You can't do much in terms of repair yourself
         | any more on any car younger than 10-15 years when cars started
         | to be hyper-crash-optimized computers on wheels, with a
         | shrunken chemical factory attached to the exhaust port.
         | 
         | Furniture, even worse. Almost nothing is made from real raw cut
         | lumber any more for weight and cost reasons, it's all sawdust
         | and glue... or in IKEA's newest trend, _cardboard_.
         | 
         | Clothing for adults, that's the worst, the fast
         | fashion/shein/... crap completely tanked the market. The stuff
         | that you get offered is falling apart after maybe two washes.
         | 
         | The places where second hand still rocks are the ones where
         | either the market is slooow moving (ham radios) or baby stuff
         | because babies grow out of stuff and need new stuff so fast
         | that it doesn't really make sense.
        
         | neilv wrote:
         | Yard sales?
         | 
         | If you find some old commercial grade tools (like a general
         | contractor might've bought decades ago), the ones I've used are
         | built like tanks, and a given one probably works fine.
        
       | geoffbp wrote:
       | Nice. Thanks for sharing!
        
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