# What thing just ALWAYS works for you? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 28, 2022, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390 "2022-09-28T14:06:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2022, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/23 "2022-10-13T12:10:17Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > Do yourself a favor and buy Ortlieb from the outset. They do go on sale from some of the big resellers. Well worth it if you ever want a buy once, cry once experience (they aren’t that much more expensive though). Absolutely! My only failure was one of the plastic buckles on the roller/closure section of one pannier, after 20+ years. They are fantastic beasts. They also have the spinoff benefit of providing floatation if you ever bike off a bridge or causeway into river 🙂 I really cannot say enough good things about them. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2022, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/24 "2022-10-14T05:54:09Z")
Sounds like Chase-Harper motorcycle gear. Awesome stuff, and if it ever fails, send it to them and they replace it, no questions asked. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/25 "2022-10-15T04:49:39Z")
25 year old Harley Davidson riding gear. My rain suit looks pretty beat up but it works every single time. New HD gear is nice looking crap IMHO, we bought our gear when HD cared about riders riding, not how they looked in bars. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/26 "2022-10-15T11:34:42Z")
I had a pair of Harley Davidson boots. They were expensive but worth it. For years they were my favorite footwear. Then one of the zippers broke. I took them to the leather goods store where I’d purchased them, hoping they could be repaired and expecting to pay for the repair. The guy commented on them; what great boots they were, how they didn’t make them anymore, etc. He did some paperwork, looked them up on his computer, then handed me the exact amount I’d paid. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_McQwark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4da419/32.png) [@Steve\_McQwark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_McQwark)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/27 "2022-10-15T12:28:38Z")
Twenty years ago, my wife came home from a garage sale with an electric griddle that she had bought for one dollar. I thought she had wasted her money because I didn’t think we needed one. She said, “It’s only a dollar. We’ll make pancakes or something.” Twenty years later that thing is still making perfect pancakes multiple times a month. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/28 "2022-10-16T17:28:28Z")
The dual action balloon pump I bought at Party City. It’s a sturdy miracle of modern science. It could only be improved cosmetically. It already looks something like a giant crayon. One of these days, I will make it look exactly like a giant crayon, complete with the word Crayola emblazoned on the side. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390/29 "2022-10-16T23:11:04Z")
Cheap jewelry & scarves. It sounds odd to most but I am a tall, plus-size woman who has trouble finding nice clothing and then trouble keeping it nice. But I have the knack of keeping long sleeve t-shirts and tunics unstained and undamaged by cat claws. I don’t know how I manage that. Why can’t I do this for sweaters and nice shirts? But after too much money spent trying to wear “nice” clothing for work (de rigueur in my former field) I discovered that with the wonder of a necklace or scarf, I could dress up my never-die long sleeve t-shirts. Other women even comment on how dressed up I am every day. But I’m really not. As for meals, I’m pretty good at whipping up a balanced meal from what looks like nothing. I learned from watching my mom and grandmothers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-thing-just-always-works-for-you/972390.md?page=1)