Consumerism

A bit of a faff, but AeroPress makes filter-style coffee quicker.

Sized right, they walk like walking boots. French look after farmers. Lining fails long before leaks. ‘Vario’ clamp will rip off.

Funny stuff. Think 3-in-one, but tea-derived. It’s weirdly persistent when used to rust-proof hand tools.

Durable, light and supremely comfortable. Soles fail (or wear out) first.

Extremely solid Scottish work boots.

Indomitable, and the perfect response to silly banker jewellery.

Simple on the surface but there’s a lot going on underneath.

A repairable toaster. Not for everyone.

Scissors that are good at cutting stuff.

As Anthony Bourdain said in the 90s: knives that aren’t allergic to kitchens. One-wipe to clean. Nice to sharpen. Nice to hone.

Possibly the only folks making good adjustables. Widely white-labelled (e.g. all my Spain-made Bahcos).

Neat and tidy cable dissasembly.

The best pair of pliers I own are an English-made pair from the 1910s. Most of my pliers are from Knipex.

Pricey, but lasts twenty years. Knockoffs have fragile enamel and add extra weight to walls for easier casting.

Useless to lefties. Required app clashes unreliably with Mac API. Behind those failures lies the best mouse ever built.

Not faultless, but thought-out, very good value and available in every country I’ve ever worked in.

The poor reputation of British exports (excepting jackets and supercars) has unfairly damaged cookware-makers.

My NWS grips (’water-pump pliers’) are so good that once, when I left them on a site, I drove back 150km on a Sunday to get them.

Opinel’s knives are cheap, plainly not weapons and the perfect tool for slicing saucisson.

Staple of German department stores. Steel bits will last longer than any of us will live.

Like All-Clad but UK-made and cheaper.

A cheap, light, bottle from the inventors of the aluminium water bottle. Spares available.

Still made in Birmingham, and still priced reasonably. Don’t buy off-shored supermarket crap.

Legendary compact studio monitors. Avoid if you want extra drama. Mine’ve outlived two much pricier UK-made pairs.

‘Small personal items belt’. A simple idea, executed well.

Clever gearing turns marking pressure into gentle lead rotation, which prevents development of a chisel tip.

Don’t soak cheap paper, do operate with little pressure and are frankly wonderful. I’ve inadvertently got through hundreds.

People have strong views about cars, but almost any car-owner would do just fine with a Golf.

Crazy unseen development. Driver heads fit uniquely well. You will rescue people who have bad screwdrivers.

Extremely good, quick-drying, shellac-based primer.

Excellent product from the period during which Apple had no Apple-branded displays. MacBook pixel density, lots of metal bits and perfect bezels.

I’ve got through twelve pairs in twelve months. Great to run in (if you’re accustomed to zero-drop), but uppers fail slightly prematurely.

Modern hand saws are sad, disposable objects. These coarse saws from Irwin Jack are wonderful. Precise, fast, durable and shockingly clean.

A durable oil-based finish that isn’t orange and shiny.

WAGO’s business is making small plastic mouldings that contain a few spring steel components that can exert a lot of pressure. They’re revolutionising wiring.

Silicone sealant is always the wrong choice. I trust Sikaflex.

One of those brilliant German firms that just keeps improving one small product segment.

Pragmatic running gear without any expensive fashion pretentions.

A high-quality but reasonably-priced general purpose car tyre.

Well-made in the UK and a pleasure to install, I like the legendary Logic Plus’s soft edges, short-throw switches and satisfyingly dampened chonks.

Unlikely others, these stock-flavoured cubes are fairly subtle and work on a bring-your-own-salt basis. Taste less like meat-flavoured crisps.

Drinking from delicate glasses is a delightful experience throught with hazard. I like a sturdy glass. Arcoroc glasses are like flint oxen.

Made of thick waxed cotton that will outlive you. Applied mud and dog slobber is fine. Clean and re-wax twice each decade.

Found a lost promo pack with 120 cartridges in 2017. Two blades are plenty. Cheap too.