Things that have gotten better than the olden days

[calmloki]

Was swapping out some shoes today and realized I haven't had a broken shoelace in years, even though they get mighty tugs. Seems like in the old days the laces would wear and break at the shoe eyes and it was common for my tenny-runners to have at least one broken and knotted together lace. Now I can't remember the last time I've broken a lace, though the shoes get worn out.

Tires, same deal (ok, maybe I was buying cheap tires or used tires from the wrecking yards back when). Still, been a decade or more since a flat that wasn't caused by serious outside agents (running over a broken toilet fallen out of the truck ahead of me).

What kind of things do you notice as being better built these days?

 

[Jerry1]

Cars in general are much better than in the past. Used to be that 50K miles was a lot and they didn’t even have a mileage gauge that went over 100K - they would roll over and it was a big deal. Now, I’d expect to get 200K out of just about any well maintained vehicle. I saw a Toyota 4 Runner for sale the other day with just over 300K and they still wanted over $5K for it.

 

[Qs Laptop]

What kind of things do you notice as being better built these days?

Baseball bats--made out of metal alloys instead of wood. Used for youth through collegiate leagues. One should last the average kid the whole season. Sure, they cost $200+, but still.

TV's--bigger, better, cheaper, most never need repairs, all come with a remote. Better than the old models that used vacuum tubes back in the 60's. My dad was an engineer and I used to beg for a color TV as most neighbors had them. His response: "I'm not buying a color TV until they are 100% solid state." I held him to that promise and we got a Motorola Quasar ("the works in a drawer") TV in 1968.

 

[GenXguy]

Things are made more disposable these days.

 

[Dawg52]

Golf equipment and balls much better. Made the game easier and have been able to maintain my distance for the most part even tho I’m a geezer.

 

[Car-Guy]

Cars in general are much better than in the past.

Yep... Some are almost bullet proof. Of course now it takes more than just a hammer to fix them when they do break.

 

[pb4uski]

Cars in general are much better than in the past. Used to be that 50K miles was a lot and they didn’t even have a mileage gauge that went over 100K - they would roll over and it was a big deal. Now, I’d expect to get 200K out of just about any well maintained vehicle. I saw a Toyota 4 Runner for sale the other day with just over 300K and they still wanted over $5K for it.

+1 I remember having to replace points and rotors and spark plugs. Just last week I replaced a set of tires at 69,000 miles... cars barely lasted 69,000 mi back in the day.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

I would agree on tires. They last much longer and you don't see near the flats being changed on the side of the road like you did in the 1970's

Last set of tires I put on my pickup cost more than my first two cars.

 

[Ian S]

Cars in general are much better than in the past. Used to be that 50K miles was a lot and they didn’t even have a mileage gauge that went over 100K - they would roll over and it was a big deal. Now, I’d expect to get 200K out of just about any well maintained vehicle. I saw a Toyota 4 Runner for sale the other day with just over 300K and they still wanted over $5K for it.

Indeed, and maintenance was far more frequent. Remember how cars from 50 years ago would have to go in for oil, lube and tuneup every few thousand miles? Tuneups consisted of replacing "points, plugs, and condenser." Now electronic ignition systems can last the life of the vehicle and plugs might get replaced at 75,000 or 100,000 miles!

 

[Dhickman57]

I would agree on tires. They last much longer and you don't see near the flats being changed on the side of the road like you did in the 1970's

Last set of tires I put on my pickup cost more than my first two cars.

Not to be a smart a but the last gas fill up cost more than my first car.

 

[tutan]

Light bulbs - LED bulbs run cooler, consume much less energy, and supposed to last a lot longer.

Refrigerators from what I hear have gone south however. My 30 year old Whirlpool may not be as energy efficient but still runs great.

 

[Texas Proud]

+1 I remember having to replace points and rotors and spark plugs. Just last week I replaced a set of tires at 69,000 miles... cars barely lasted 69,000 mi back in the day.

Except for OE tires... had an Elantra that lasted 25K... and my Genesis lasted a whopping 18K...


I will agree that flats are fewer than before... then again I just took my DDs car in to get a flat fixed... but still once very few years now for a real flat... and even some with a nail or screw do not lose air as fast as before...

 

[GenXguy]

Light bulbs - LED bulbs run cooler, consume much less energy, and supposed to last a lot longer.

Supposed to, but instead don't last as long and cost a lot more.

I haven't had any reduction in flats. There's a lot more to go wrong with a car these days. They were easier to maintain and repair many years ago compared to now, and for a fraction of the cost.

Yeah, it wasn't uncommon for appliances to run 40, 50 years. Now, good luck lasting 10 years on something that costs several times as much. Same with furnaces and central air units.

 

[athena53]

The selection of healthier food in stores. Yes, there's plenty more junk food and plenty of stuff masquerading as "healthy" when it's not (some protein and energy bars, flavored yogurt brands, smoothies, all of which can have too much sugar and/or fat). Still, mainstream grocery stores didn't carry farro, quinoa, stone-ground oatmeal, plain Greek yogurt, kale and veggie burgers 30 years ago.

 

[scrabbler1]

I can't agree about shoelaces. I get maybe a year with each one before it gets frayed and soon rips apart. I bought 2 pair of them 2 years ago (through Amazon; I can only get my preferred type through them) and I already need to buy another 2 pair before the next one goes, which hopefully won't be for at least 6 months.

 

[Koolau]

I can't agree about shoelaces. I get maybe a year with each one before it gets frayed and soon rips apart. I bought 2 pair of them 2 years ago (through Amazon; I can only get my preferred type through them) and I already need to buy another 2 pair before the next one goes, which hopefully won't be for at least 6 months.

Heh, heh, my Velcro lasts the life of my shoes.

 

[youbet]

My DW.

 

[brucethebroker]

Indeed, and maintenance was far more frequent. Remember how cars from 50 years ago would have to go in for oil, lube and tuneup every few thousand miles? Tuneups consisted of replacing "points, plugs, and condenser." Now electronic ignition systems can last the life of the vehicle and plugs might get replaced at 75,000 or 100,000 miles!

OE brakes. Seems like brakes needed replacing around 40k in the 60's-70's when I was a new driver. Last 3 cars I have owned, the original brakes lasted into 90k, and once to about 105k.

 

[donheff]

Bike tires seem to have made a leap over the last 15 years. I used to get frequent flats and I still carry a pile of tools with me. But I haven't had a flat in at least five years now, maybe more. I would have to go through a bit of a learning process if I flatted on my new bike.

 

[GenXguy]

Bike tires seem to have made a leap over the last 15 years. I used to get frequent flats and I still carry a pile of tools with me. But I haven't had a flat in at least five years now, maybe more. I would have to go through a bit of a learning process if I flatted on my new bike.

I haven't noticed that. On one of the bike forums I read, people are always talking about ways to stop getting flats, using special tires and tubes, or going tubeless, using slime or flatout, or Tannus Armour inserts. A nail went through my expensive bike tire two years ago.

 

[arcyallen]

I'd love to see hard statistics on appliances. I think we all have fond memories of them "lasting forever", but I think that's survivorship bias clouding our memory. Everyone remembers that one appliance grandma had for 39 years, but seem to forget the others that everyone else has that died much quicker.

I'll second tires - you see MANY less flats than you used to. I bike about 300-500 miles a year and haven't had a flat in decades.

 

[donheff]

I haven't noticed that. On one of the bike forums I read, people are always talking about ways to stop getting flats, using special tires and tubes, or going tubeless, using slime or flatout, or Tannus Armour inserts. A nail went through my expensive bike tire two years ago.

It doesn't make much sense to me either. The tires don't seem to be any different. I am riding larger tires than many people used to ride (32cm) and larger tires are less likely to flat. But I have been riding them for 18 years and in the until the last 10+ I used to get flats all the time. Neither DW nor I have had a flat in many years and we still ride regularly. The only possibility I can think of is that the period of low flats may correspond to when I dropped the pressure on my tires to 60 PSI from 80. If that explains the improvement, it isn't things getting better but practices getting better.

 

[GenXguy]

I'd love to see hard statistics on appliances. I think we all have fond memories of them "lasting forever", but I think that's survivorship bias clouding our memory. Everyone remembers that one appliance grandma had for 39 years, but seem to forget the others that everyone else has that died much quicker.

I've seen ones that died much quicker, those are the newer ones. The older ones were built to last.

I'll second tires - you see MANY less flats than you used to. I bike about 300-500 miles a year and haven't had a flat in decades.

More bikes have converted to using tubeless, which get less flats when sealed up well. The typical standard tire and tube still results in a lot of flats, but there are things you can do to improve your odds as I mentioned earlier.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

Batteries! I was going to say hand vacs, as we had an old Dustbuster that lost a charge really easily and was heavy and bulky, but now use a Shark Wandvac, which is slim yet powerful and easy to clean. But most of the usefulness of it comes from the small but high-capacity battery.

Let's see, for me, better battery technology has improved (or enabled): Tiles and AirTags, car remotes, cell phones, laptops, tablets, wireless earbuds, wireless home alarm systems (sensors), electric toothbrushes, and, of course, portable battery packs that can fully charge your phone and maybe that of 1 or 2 other friends, too, yet is the size of your phone (or smaller).

Also, satellite radio makes road trips much less of a pain. It's nice to keep listening to the music you want, without hunting around the dial, and not lose reception.

 

[Brett_Cameron]

Televisions are much better.