Old gear or new gear

[Alan]

Was old gear actually better or are we just nostalgic? I hear people say things were built tougher decades ago. What's this community's take?

 

[wapakfred]

Broadly speaking, I see the older stuff being better made. Corporate mergers and moving manufacturing overseas are the main reasons for this (IMO). Somewhere in there has to be the stuff that is still made here, but cheapened up to compete in the market. I still use a pair of Sorel pac boots I bought maybe 35 years ago, ab=nd they are still in great shape but I had a much newer pair of Lacrosse pacs completely split (both of them) across the rubber lower part after not being used nearly as much. I have a lot of similar stories, that was just the most recent. Trying to find high quality anything these days requires a search, and asking questions at forums such as these.

 

[Alan]

Broadly speaking, I see the older stuff being better made. Corporate mergers and moving manufacturing overseas are the main reasons for this (IMO). Somewhere in there has to be the stuff that is still made here, but cheapened up to compete in the market. I still use a pair of Sorel pac boots I bought maybe 35 years ago, ab=nd they are still in great shape but I had a much newer pair of Lacrosse pacs completely split (both of them) across the rubber lower part after not being used nearly as much. I have a lot of similar stories, that was just the most recent. Trying to find high quality anything these days requires a search, and asking questions at forums such as these.

Some older gear just seems overbuilt by today’s standards