# Thank God they don't make them like they used to: your items **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 17, 2010, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311 "2010-02-17T07:55:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/1 "2010-02-17T07:55:36Z")
Admittedly, some consumer products used to be made with less competition, and therefore more of an eye toward a selling point of durability. On the other hand, some things used to be comparative junk. I have an '06 Toyota Matrix, and with decent oil changes, I’m going to be quite angry if it doesn’t do 200K miles before it’s not worth repairing. Shoot, I’m at 65K now, and have done almost nothing. My dad was just plain proud to get his '68 Buick Skylark to go 100K, and stopped the car to have pictures taken with him and me on the side of the road. I’ve changed I think 1 tire on the side of the road. Thank God they don’t make them like they used to. Computers: don’t get me started. Yours? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/2 "2010-02-17T09:06:55Z")
Well, they don’t make slide rules like they used to: those have been completely replaced by electronic calculators. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/3 "2010-02-17T11:10:38Z")
Pretty much any American made car from the 80’s. They were all intentionally built like crap because automakers assumed people would just buy new cars every three years. Of course, very few people can afford a new car every three years\* so we’d keep driving their crappy cars until they rusted away due to rain, or the front fell off. \*and what were we supposed to do with the old car? Throw them away? Idiots! ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/4 "2010-02-17T14:26:59Z")
Luggage - I remember a time before wheels were pretty much standard ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/5 "2010-02-17T14:33:00Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > Luggage - I remember a time before wheels were pretty much standard And when they did have wheels, you had to drag them along with a leash, which just made the bags tip over, so you’d have to carry it anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/6 "2010-02-17T14:34:31Z")
That saying (“They don’t make them like they used to, and thank God for that”) might have originated in the construction industry. That’s where I first heard it, and where I still hear it most often. To answer your question: houses. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/7 "2010-02-17T14:39:59Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > To answer your question: houses. Oh, yeah? Show me one new house that’s been around longer than an old one! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/8 "2010-02-17T15:35:55Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > Well, they don’t make slide rules like they used to: those have been completely replaced by electronic calculators. If it makes you feel any better, a type of [slide rule](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E6B) is still in use in aviation. Although most of its functions are now performed by GPS, most smart pilots still carry one and know how to use it in case of instrument failures. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/9 "2010-02-17T16:00:12Z")
All electronics: TVs, phones, computers, music systems, etc. I can’t think of an electronic device that hasn’t improved with time. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/10 "2010-02-17T16:07:34Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > All electronics: TVs, phones, computers, music systems, etc. I can’t think of an electronic device that hasn’t improved with time. Especially ones that are better if smaller - PDAs, cell phones, laptops, portable music players. We used to lug around huge bricks that didn’t work as well as the tiny items we have now. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/11 "2010-02-17T16:10:53Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > That saying (“They don’t make them like they used to, and thank God for that”) might have originated in the construction industry. That’s where I first heard it, and where I still hear it most often. > To answer your question: houses. Oh, hell no. I realize that the good old houses that are still around are still around because they’re good houses, but I _hate_ the new crap. It really is crap. No solid doors, you hear everything that goes on throughout the whole place, no character either. Most of the new construction won’t last half of what my 1928 house has stood through. You can’t even get the kind of old-growth wood they built it out of. Termites don’t even bother. And who _really_ likes that whole “totally open floor plan” thing? ---
**Author:** ![Surly\_Chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Surly\_Chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surly_Chick)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/12 "2010-02-17T16:18:10Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > Luggage - I remember a time before wheels were pretty much standard Hell, yeah! Everytime I relocate (which I do every three years or so) and am dragging two 70 pound suitcases (hooked together - another brilliant idea!) and a carry-on through the airport, I bless the person who came up with that idea. My new suitcases have wheels that go in every direction so I don’t even have to tip them to roll them. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/13 "2010-02-18T02:02:53Z")
You’ve got me on the interior house doors. Can’t they at least be filled with a dense foam or something to knock down the noise? ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/14 "2010-02-18T02:50:09Z")
They do sell solid core doors, Cardinal, but hollow doors are cheaper, so that’s what most people buy. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/15 "2010-02-18T03:53:43Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > All electronics: TVs, phones, computers, music systems, etc. I can’t think of an electronic device that hasn’t improved with time. My parents bought their first color TV in the 1960s. I remember one evening the gang and I were watching something and one of my buddies yelled, “Look! An orange black man!” ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/16 "2010-02-18T04:14:27Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Especially ones that are better if smaller - PDAs, cell phones, laptops, portable music players. We used to lug around huge bricks that didn’t work as well as the tiny items we have now. I think that too much of a good thing can be too much. Specifically, cell phones and laptops are too small to use effectively. The mouth piece of a phone needs to be close to the user’s mouth, and not located halfway up his/her cheek. If someone calls me on a cell, I can’t hear them talk very clearly. Laptops that are too small are difficult to use, with cramped keyboards and miniscule screens. I suspect the same thing with PDAs, but I have never had one, so I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/17 "2010-02-18T12:14:48Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Oh, hell no. I realize that the good old houses that are still around are still around because they’re good houses, but I _hate_ the new crap. It really is crap. No solid doors, you hear everything that goes on throughout the whole place, no character either. Most of the new construction won’t last half of what my 1928 house has stood through. You can’t even get the kind of old-growth wood they built it out of. Termites don’t even bother. > > And who _really_ likes that whole “totally open floor plan” thing? There are cheap house built today, and there are great houses built. For whatever reason, you have experience with the former. That does nothing to change the fact that the methods used for framing, plumbing, wiring, ventelation, etc, etc. are absolutely superior to those used 60 or 80 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/18 "2010-02-18T12:37:49Z")
Shoes. Unless they were custom made in the old days, you couldn’t even be sure there would be a right and left. They might just be neutral. And when was the last time anyone wore a hole through the sole? ---
**Author:** ![Chicken\_Fingers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Chicken\_Fingers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chicken_Fingers)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/19 "2010-02-18T12:58:38Z")
Menstrual pads! It used to be like having a loose brick in your pants. Now they’re whisper thin, with wings! ---
**Author:** ![Zeriel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/58956e/32.png) [@Zeriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeriel)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311/20 "2010-02-18T14:02:56Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > Shoes. Unless they were custom made in the old days, you couldn’t even be sure there would be a right and left. They might just be neutral. And when was the last time anyone wore a hole through the sole? _raises hand_ Me. After owning the damn boots for fifteen years! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thank-god-they-dont-make-them-like-they-used-to-your-items/529311.md?page=2)