What are the "AK-47" of items? (cheap, durable, just works)
What are the "AK-47" of items? (cheap, durable, just works)
This is not a conversation about guns. This is a conversation about items that have withstood abuse that are near unbreakable.
Some items I have heard referenced as AK47 of:
Gerber MP600: It's a multi tool
Old Thinkpad Laptops
Mag lights
Toyota Hilux
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I've been interested in this subject for a while and have a few recommendations.
Stanley Thermos. It could get hit by a fucking train and would still outlive you. Don't recommend putting cofee/milk products etc in them though because it will make the gasket smell. Excellent water container though.
Double edged straight razor. The handle piece is virtually indestructible. I bought a package of like 500 blades for like 30 dollars and haven't had to buy new ones for actual years. Fun fact as well, once you learn to use one it's better for sensitive skin because you're only dragging one razor across your skin per stroke instead of 5 or 7 or whatever the fuck the "better" ones have. Can confirm the "more blades = better" shit is just pure predatory marketing.
Buck knife. Multi tools are cool but if you tend to use the knife often, invest in a higher quality knife and stones to sharpen it. Sharpening stones (not the crap ceramic stuff they try to sell) will last a lifetime and will also keep all your kitchen knives beautiful for years. While you're up to it, get a piece of raw leather, like the back of of an old belt, and use it as a strop to polish off the blade when you're done sharpening, it really does make the cut smoother.
People say Mag light, but I'd personally recommend Olight as well for flashlights. The Olight Baton 4 is a ~600 lumen adjustable brightness flashlight with strobe which will blind you if you aren't careful and its smaller than a pill bottle and comes with a reversible clip and inset magnet in case you need to stick it somewhere to keep the light steady.
A graphite metal "magic" pencil. Instead of using normal graphite, these metal bodied pencils have end pieces you screw in as a tip, are erasable, and one nib takes forever to run out, something like 5 pencils. They dont draw as dark as a regular pencil due to the hardness but for general usage they are handy.
Mighty plugs ear plugs. Want to know what it's like to be deaf? Buy these. They aren't too costly, completely seal the ear, and I only have to get a new package once every few years. They're so effective I had to purchase an alarm clock built for deaf people which shakes my mattress instead of making a sound because I couldn't hear any normal alarm clock after I started using these. This combination is unbeatable if you have awful neighbors or live on a busy street with night traffic.
Any self winding watch. Stop fucking around with button cell batteries and evolve. If it's cheap, that's probably better, if it gets scratched you don't have to care. Seiko is a good brand in my experience.
If you're into camping get a decent mid sized carving hatchet. I have a mid sized Hultafors swedish steel one. People like splitting axes because they do what they're advertised to do, but theyre huge, heavy, and you cant carve or skin with them. A lighter smaller carving axe will do the same job splitting a log if you baton it with a medium sized stick. If you need something bigger to cut down a tree, go for a curved folding saw to bring with the hatchet. The Silky Saw Big Boy is great for that. Also buy a wool blanket. That shit will keep you warm in -35 C if you use it correctly. Also tents are neat but cumbersome, instead invest in a tarp and learn to make a lean to/other tarp configurations in combination with a ground sheet. If you expect you'll be facing inclement or extremely wet weather, get an oilskin tarp (or make one yourself its literally just a cotton sheet which you have ran through a few dryer cycles as hot as possible, and then soaked through in a 50/50 mix of boiled linseed oil and mineral spirits and hung outside until completely dry. Don't put an open flame near it at any point in that process).
I probably have a bunch more, but can't think of them off the top of my head.
Just bought some earplugs. They better be legit! I use silicone earplugs right now and they’re okay but on nights when my husband is really stuffy, he’s like a chainsaw.
The ones I recommended are similar to some other silicone ones, but are a bit softer. As a result I find they seal better in comparison. I had been using silicone ones prior to discovering these and they are definitely my preference.
Thank you! Fingers crossed that they’re even better than the ones I’m currently using. Which are pretty good (Eargasms) but don’t have a super high decibel rating and I definitely have to toss each pair after about a week and a half of wearing them every night, just because they stop being as…sticky? They’re not really sticky but they do adhere when they’re fresh, and not so much after a few days.
I see. Over a long enough time I do find that these ones harden as well at which point I change them, however that's usually a month or more instead of a couple weeks. I hope they work out well for you should you buy!
As heads up as well, the little pucks they come as are way too big for my ears, but you don't want them to be too small either.
These are amorphous like a sort of putty, so I usually tear a puck in half, and then another into quarters, and then mash them together such that I have 75% the size of a puck for each ear. This insures they completely seal my ear, but also cant get stuck or anything.
This also has the benefit of not needing to worry about sizing though!
I'm totally fed up with the usual 5-bladed razor crap from Gillette and especially Wilkinson. But I've always been to afraid to use an old school double-edged razor because I only, blindly, shave my head with it and maybe my pubes. Seems more risky. Any advice / recommendations?
I've been shaving my head and my balls with safety razors for like 15 years. Get some nice soap like sandalwood, cedar, lavender, frankincense, sasquatch or whatever name they're calling it these days and make a lather on your body in the shower. A lather from actual soap is critical to avoiding nicks, cuts, and especially razor burn. Use a new blade and gently drag the razor across your skin. Use short strokes, not long passes. Clean the razor. Add more lather when needed. Don't press hard or move the razor sideways or diagonally. That's how you cut yourself. Watch out and take care for any bumps and rounded corners, like warts, the back of your jaw, or any sagittal crest you may have. Hold the razor with one hand and use the other to feel for hair and smoothness. Make a pass with the grain and another against the grain. Reapply lather between passes.
Maybe before you begin, shave a little hair off your arm or leg to test the angle you hold the razor. The sensation of individual hairs being cut will be tactile and satisfying. When it's right, it'll feel right.
Get a sharps container for used blades. It'll take a lifetime to fill. Blades only cost like a dime, so just treat yourself and use a new one every time.
It ain't too difficult. Just be gentle, take short and slow strokes, feel your way around, and don't shave dry skin. You may be surprised how easy it is. They're called safety razors for a reason.
Guess I'm getting a safety razor for Christmas then. It really sounds easy enough. I usually combine showering and shaving so lather really shouldn't be a problem. Thanks!
You won't regret it. Safety razors, and if you decide to, straight razors are far superior. I used a safety razor for a few years and then decided to get a Dovo straight razor and I love it.
I've been getting the razors from Aldi's for when I (rarely) clean shave. Can't tell the difference from the "fancy" brands
Its a matter of practice. Just know that as long as you only move the razor in a straight line and dont wobble it side to side, you cant fuck up too bad. You want to learn to hold the razor such that it is always meeting the surface of your skin at a 45 degree angle, use very short strokes, and use your other hand to pull your skin taught.
You also want to remember that, especially when starting out, you dont have to do a great job on the first or even second pass. Do the best you can, and if there is still hair, just re-apply shaving cream and go over those spots again. Eventually you get good enough you can get everything in a single pass most of the time.
There are some good videos on youtube where people have tutorials on learning to use one. Also because it cuts closer to the skin, you may want to invest in a face moisturizer in addition to an aftershave. Really helps to prevent ingrown hairs and makes your face feel amazing after shaving with one. For pubes/longer hair, I would shave with an electric shaver first to shorten the hairs, and then follow up with the razor.
For those more sensitive areas you want to make sure you're getting a razor body where the blade doesn't protrude as far. Henson shavers are incredible quality but I dont remember if they have a razor body suited for body hair.
The idea with these razors is to not apply much pressure, just letting the weight of the razor itself do the pressing. As long as youre doing that, and not holding it at a stupid angle, you should find it quite difficult to hurt yourself shaving your head. Same goes for your pubes, but if you're going to shave your balls with it you'll need to take a lot of care.
I've been shaving with a DE razor for about 15 years now, and I haven't found it any easier or harder to cut yourself with them than the modern "Mach 84 Spike TV Edition" cartridge razors.
Just ordered a Henson razor today. Heard good things about it and it was also recommended here. Also I still had a promo code.
Wait, you're saying not to use coffee in a Stanley thermos?? Even if I don't have milk in it too? What's it for then, only soup?
Yea or water is what I primarily use it for. You CAN put coffee and such in there however, you will want to take off the gasket and clean the hell out of it. It absorbs smells quite strongly. You could also probably get a different gasket which is not as bad for it. Should the gasket begin to smell, I recommend soaking it over night in vinegar, and then another night in water. This really seems to suck the smell out of it.
In that case, it's probably any gasket that's susceptible to this, coffee is really strong-smelling. My Zojirushi thermos is only used for coffee, for this reason...
It can probably affect all gaskets, but depending on the type of rubber some might be better or worse. I haven't played around enough with testing different ones to know for certain though.
Maybe silicone would be a good material for this?
Instead of a curved folding saw I prefer a rope saw. I've always been able to take down limbs and trees faster.
For those that don't know what that is, imagine a chainsaw chain with handles on either end.
Rope saws are neat as fuck as well.
Do you use one that is actual chain, or braided wire? I've used the braided wire saws, and I like how tiny/light they are, but I've never used one of the chain style saws to see if the weight/volume increase is worth it.
Mine is the chain style. I cannot compare as I have never used the braided wire and I don't have to think about weight savings that much. I don't generally hike far to a camping spot.