[Closed] Oldest Possession - Purchased New - Used Often - What You Got You'd Really Miss?

14" Zildjian New-Beat hihat cymbals. Had them since age 14, I will cry when they eventually break.

Swiss army knife.

APF

Bottle opener in the shape of a clog painted with fresian cow markings.
given to me by my wife before she was my wife on her first visit to UK to see me after we met travelling. 20 years old and used to open pretty much every home drunk beer I've had since......so everyday then!

A pair of Oxfords I've had since I was sixteen. My first pair of bespoke shoes. Still amazing. Sadly, the cobblers that made them recently closed.

Which hospital was that then flashy?

Animal beanie, bought in 1991, still my favourite hat. Wife keeps trying to "lose" it for me, will start divorce proceedings if she succeeds.

Also a Mint Sauce mug from around the same time, and a Cool Tool but that doesn't get used much nowadays.

Wolf motorcycle jacket, red.
My first one.

New from Skid Lids on Deansgate in 1986.
Not fit me for years, but I can't throw it out.....

My first new big rucksack - bought in the late 70s, now relegated to shopping duties only

Arf, DD! 🙂

Duckers, in Oxford. I've got a pair of boots and a semi-brogue from them as well. Now trying to find a suitable cobbler to look after these.

Technics hi-fi - bought 30 (or so) years ago with cash saved from a part-time job.

Still used every day and sounds fantastic 🙂

Corsair HX620w PC power supply.

Just about to celebrate its 11th birthday, it's been through 4 full computer rebuilds and still going strong.

Hang on, forgot the records!

First I bought with my own money was Rocking All Over The World, by the mighty Quo.

Still gets played.

Oh and a pair of Tannoy m1 bookshelf speakers, God knows when I bought them, they must be getting on for 18 to 20 years old... not super expensive but I can't justify upgrading them, they bring much joy.

Oh and a pair of Tannoy m1 bookshelf speakers, God knows when I bought them, they must be getting on for 18 to 20 years old... not super expensive but I can't justify upgrading them, they bring much joy

20 years? That's nowt 😉

@mattyfez: You gave me some good advice regarding PC upgrades - much appreciated, all going well 🙂

I did have a 15 yr old chef's knife until last week, it was my oldest possession. Really nice quality and still sharp, with a lifetime guarantee. Wife broke it cutting dandelions out of the lawn 🙁

Maybe a patio would be lower maintenance and cheaper.

I have a Fender Jazzmaster from 1976, it's in bits in the loft. Looks like this, except really grubby.. I will one day (been saying that for about 10 years now) fix it back up.

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'Animal' leather wallet.

Its a big old bulky thing but its been practically everywhere with me since I walked into a bike shop in Dorchester in my mid-teens, whatever I wanted was out of stock and so I ended up impulse buying this wallet at the till.

From memory it was about £30 which was a lot of dough for a 15 year old, I reckon its around 20 years old.

I've abused it so the card slots are all stretched and I alway leave loads of old receipts in there so can't quite believe it hasn't fallen to bits 🙂

A linen tester in '72.
I still use it a lot on print jobs.
And a couple of Thornton slide rules just to be bolshey.

Oh and a pair of Tannoy m1 bookshelf speakers, God knows when I bought them, they must be getting on for 18 to 20 years old... not super expensive but I can't justify upgrading them, they bring much joy

I have the same, got them on my 18th birthday. Probably my oldest possession.

A pair of Scarpa Bronzo boots bought in 1980. Used a few times a week in the winter months.

The oldest thing I own, that was bought with my own money, and is in use if rarely, is my Ibanez M310 Acoustic guitar. Like This:
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I was about 18, and it was second hand already, so at least 30years old or more now. I stretched my meagre pennies to get the £100 together for it. When I got it home and had a good closer look I realised that it was much more than a £100 guitar. A lovely thing to play, sounds great, and looks brilliant.

Oh and a pair of Tannoy m1 bookshelf speakers, God knows when I bought them, they must be getting on for 18 to 20 years old

20 years? That's nowt

Black leather jeans belt. Got it when I was 16, I'm 45 now and still wear it most days. It's more brown creases than black now.

Marantz CD-52 mkII from 1992. Still sounds great.

Snap On 1/2 inch drive ratchet - I've had since I was an apprentice - 34 years.

Dennis Wick 4B cornet mouthpiece. Bought when I was just learning to play, aged about 6. Still got it 30-something years later, still use it when I play cornet.

Linn Sondek LP12, 30 years old. Admittedly it's only the plinth that's original now. Lots of vinyl from late seventies.

My mission 760i speakers are now relegated to garage duties since I went "home theatre" in the living room but still used most days - bought them in the early 90's with money saved from my paper round. I've still got the CD player too but that's in the loft.

I've got Ron hill tracksters that are 20 years old. Indeed my "Sunday best" ones (the ones with the least paint on them) are at least 15 years old

Snap On 1/2 inch drive ratchet - I've had since I was an apprentice - 34 years

Me too, quite a few tools still in frequent use from my apprenticeship including? some I made myself.
Otherwise a 1990 Les Paul custom, bought on the never-never once I was earning (shudder to think what interest I paid) and an Audiolab hi-fi amp. Loads of vinyl too, still played

MyBike windstopper SS jersey, ace this time of year, now about 17 years old and still going strong, i'll cry the day the zip goes, it has one small hole and that's it...amazing bit of kit!

Black leather jeans belt. Got it

What is it with belts, I've bought several in my time, but the only one that's lasted is one I pinched off my dad years ago. And God only knows how long he had it for.. Newer ones seem to break at the buckle or look incredibly shit after a year or two.

A black leather belt that my mother made about thirty years ago. I think she was doing leather stuff as physio therapy. Too late to ask now.

My first electric guitar, bought at age 12 with money left by my great aunt. 23 years later, still play it

My Grandad's Record block plane. I've had it since he retired in 1987 and its had a new iron but the rest is original. Every time I use it i remember who's it was.

@Glen

You gave me some good advice regarding PC upgrades - much appreciated, all going well

Happy to hear it, long may she run!

Wavy Davy shifters not doing 10 or 11 speed !

Probably the oldest thing I own, that I bought with money I earned, and now approaching its half-century.
I had it repaired and serviced very recently after the mainspring broke, and I'm wearing it every day.

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Can't remember what it cost, but I was earning less than a tenner a week in '71, which is when I think I bought it, so probably no more than £25-50, seen well-worn ones going for over €1000 now.
A very treasured thing.

I have a pair of, Scott racer ski poles, the black and yellow ones.
Had them for about 20 years at a guess, which is pretty good.
Nothing special about them, newer poles would probably be lighter and stronger but they refuse to die.

I've a Casio fx451 that I bought when I started university in October 1985 and still in daily use. Cost the same as a week's rent.

When I was six, in 1965, I bought a 1916 shell in an oak frame which had
been used as a gong. I bought it from a local junk shop for sixpence;-)

It was on my paint mixing bench for many years, I used to stuff bit's of rag with paint on in it. It's still used.

A Nikon D70 - the first ever viable digital SLR. It's now converted to record the infrared bit of the spectrum and retired from professional duties. I love its six megapixel, black and white goodness.

I'm on my second Sony cube alarm clock. First was a gift in 1980, second I had to buy myself. It's a bit sad that I'd miss something that gets me up for work 🙁 I'd hate taking my phone to bed though. What will I do if FM radio goes??

I spent all summer working on a farm, to get a bit of cash. It must have been the early 1980's. Then a trip to London to get my first SLR, a Pentex MX.

Lots of tools have stuck around but one thing I think about each time I use it is a brown leather belt.
I bought it from Lewis's in Dortmund Sq Leeds when I was 16 (34 years ago) at the time it seemed very expensive but its now been used most weeks for all that time so turned out quite good value.

edit: just read the previous posts re belts, curiously I also have a Marantz CD albiet a 63.

I've got lots of old things I love, but nothing that I'd be particularly upset about losing beyond that fact that (in some cases) they're worth a lot of money.

I've put hundreds (possibly thousands) of hours into this (1971, so 46 years old), but I'd struggle to find any emotional attachment. It's all just stuff.

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Belt again. Aged 12, hand tooled at a craft fair (remembers being dragged round them...) still wear it daily. It's a good reminder if I'm having a fat month.

Spent the whole of my first month's pay on a watch. Quartz Omega sea master. 17yrs of daily wear, some bits of the metal strap have passed into triggers broom status.

My 2 favourite 'things'.

I've got a Robert Saunders backpacker tent that I got for my fifteenth birthday, in 1979 and a Karrimor Jaguar rucksack from the same year.

I also have my Dad's Omega Constellation which I remember him buying in 1972. It was my daily wearer until I retired and treated myself to an Aqua Terra last year.

Record 52E vice, Stanley 16oz claw hammer and a Stanley smoothing plane

My Estwing hammer. Was bought for me by my dad when I first started my apprenticeship, it's picked up some battle scars and still like lightening (never hits the same place twice), but it's 24 years old and used every day.

Feathered Friends sleeping bag and MSR stove bought 30 years ago as part of a plan to escape the rat race. Obviously the plan failed but they are still in frequent use.

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One of these CK Fencing Pliers was my first proper tool I bought when I was gamekeeping. I was on £50.00 a week and these even then cost me £23.00 but still in the tool box today and deliver whenever they are used.

Mine look alot more worn than the image though! 😀

Discounting books and records.....

Up until last year I was still using the wooden spoon my mum bought me when I was packing to leave for college. We were in manchester for the day so she popped into the David Mellor shop and bought it as an in-promptu present. It was just a really good spoon - used daily for 26 years - until during my particularly vigorous rendition of US style home fries (where I let the potato burn to the bottom of the pan and repeatedly chisel it off) it snapped last year.

So at the end of last year when I was passing near the David Mellor factory near sheffield I popped in to pick up a replacement - I actually bought 2 so that enough to last me til I'm dead probably. £1.50 each so £3 well invested.

I then got a bit giddy and bought about £500 worth of his cutlery.

Second oldest thing in daily regular use is a bright orange T shirt with with a picture of an excavator and 'Backhoe Rodeo - Underground Safety Equipment Fair 1995' printed on the front. A friend bought it in a garage sale in the US and gave it to me as a present in 1997. For something that was probably made as a give-away freebee its really well made. Hasn't faded, frayed or lost its shape in 20 years of regular use.

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The biscuit tin from M&S from before we got married. 1983 vintage.

I have a Tissot watch that was bought for me on my 18th birthday that is still worn regularly. It's had 1 service in that time and still works perfectly.

I've also got a pair of shoes that I bought for my wedding that, whilst not old now, I intend to keep for ever.

Oldest possession that is mine is my tortoise and hare eggcup, ca. 1975. Still use it today. But I no longer cut the toast in to soldiers.

Oldest purchased new with my own money is either the Trangia stove, bought when I was in Scouts (still works perfectly, other than the rubber seal perished), or Casio FX451 calculator. Both were bought with my birthday money, but can't be certain which was the oldest.

Swiss army knife my dad brought home from Switzerland for me when I was about 8

Apart from a few of books it would be:

Nike 'Makalu' waist-pack from mid-nineties. Great condition.
Nothing special about it that makes me keep it other than a gauge/target to lose weight to the point where it's useful once more 😉

still using ash shafted stubai ice axe circa 1976 ideal for getting weeds out of joints on drive. still got whillans sit harness and pr EBs from same era,
1986 force 10 hurricane leaked a bit last summer a bit of TLC and good for a few more years.could be why garage is full of old gear

Original Braun voice control alarm clock. Bought when I was about 15. It's still working fine 35 years later. They still make it too, although the internals are nothing like the same.

I have Mickey Mouse and Buggs bunny teddies from when I was christened, 32 years ago, but, given that I'm younger than a lot of the things here, none of my bought new things are even close.

Have a 60 year old pocket calculator, but I didn't buy it new.

I bought some "expensive" in-ear headphones when I was at college, so circa 1989. Aiwa Pipe-Phones. I'd guess they were maybe £30? I remember at the time that they cost more than I'd paid for my cassette Walkman.

They've been with me to the moon and back, I've never got around to replacing them because I've never found a modern pair that sounded as good. Sadly that day has now come as they've got caught on something and yanked once too often, one of the earpieces started intermittently cutting out a month or so back. I'm absolutely gutted. (Expect a "what headphones" thread from me soon.)

I've a Casio fx451 that I bought when I started university in October 1985 and still in daily use.

So have I, probably the same age. I've not used it in years though (I'm usually nearer a computer than a calculator so why would I?)

intermittently cutting out a month or so back

^ fix them? Could be just a wire. Usually a way to do it. May not look pretty.

The stainless steel ruler which I bought as a kid is still on my table now. 😛

^ fix them? Could be just a wire.

I considered this but a) I think the break is inside the ear bud, or very very close to it, and b) I've fixed headphones before (when they've gone at the jack end) and IME headphone cable is bloody awful stuff to work with.

Excluding records, still used it's a Tag 1000 watch - 28 years iirc, not really useful for a while it's a Mission Cyrus one amp and ariston q deck turntable , had them both for about thirty years

NAD amp and MS speakers - bought new in 1996 and still going strong.
Babies though compare it the QUAD 405 that my dad bought in 1979 and is still in daily use

ive had a broom for 20 years. It's had 17 new heads and 14 new handles.

Patagonia Snap T top bought when I was 18 at the cost of £89 big ones (they super expensive when they first can in to the UK) was being payed £25 a week, its still going strong and it still fits 31 years later.I am sure its good for a few more years.

Russian Naval trenchcoat. Made from wool so dense it's like felt.

Pretty much impervious to all weather!

Had it since 1992, and it's still going strong.

Mission 780 SEs 20+ Years, Rotel RB/RC pre/power amps 30+ years old.

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Bought in 1976 for nautical college. Still use it today, 42 years old and still going strong, unbelievable really.

Me and a friend bought two Mountain Equipment Cerro Torre Jackets in 1983 and got them discounted to £60 each. Mine still survives and gets an airing every winter and is my most cherished posession. It will be a sad day when it's no longer fit for purpose.

[quote=maccruiskeen ]Discounting books and records.....
Up until last year I was still using the wooden spoon my mum bought me when I was packing to leave for college. We were in manchester for the day so she popped into the David Mellor shop and bought it as an in-promptu present. It was just a really good spoon - used daily for 26 years - until during my particularly vigorous rendition of US style home fries (where I let the potato burn to the bottom of the pan and repeatedly chisel it off) it snapped last year.
So at the end of last year when I was passing near the David Mellor factory near sheffield

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who knew he made spoons

My oldest possession is a Corgi Noddy car that my dad brought back from a western isles trip (he used to go the the Mhod every year) for me when I was just a wee boy. It was bought new and I certainly played with it. I'd link a photo but it's not letting me copy the bbcode from flickr on this iPad. If something happened to it I'd be absolutely gutted, it was special to me at the time, and it's not been deminished by time (40+ years). Obvs, it reminds me of my dad... 😥

It sits on the window sill in the kitchen, be pushing it to say it was used daily mind... 😀

Other than that I've a Rotary watch that I bought with my first months salary after finishing uni. It's still my main watch, bought from Gibbs The jewellers, Holburn St, Aberdeen. Lovely people, fitted the strap for me, gave me a discount unasked for (my folks had tried to get my 21st watch repaired through them when I bashed it off a wall crashing a motorbike and I think they remembered me). Given me years of sterling service, I hope they've had a good retirement.

There are a couple of mentions for Animal here. I always remember a bit of text on a t-shirt label I bought years ago:
"When what is left of this t-shirt is being used to polish your bike, boat or whatever, remember the good times you had when wearing it..." 🙂

Stainless steel flask from Coleman 25 years old slightly dented still keeps stuff roasting hot all day