The Future of Repairing ... (list those soon to be extinct..)
 

The sewing machine thread (funny pun) got me thinking about repairing those machines as well as other things like old clocks, old appliances and what have you.

The generation of teens now have no clue how to do anything with their hands let alone get involved in such things as repairing old clocks or sewing machines.

Lets start a list of the things that will be soon impossible to find repair folk for...

I'll start:

Typewriters
Mechanical Clocks
Sewing Machines

Your turn...

Coasters.

Roller or stationary?
SmileWavy

The mechanical clock/watch industry is alive and well - not sure about the other two. That said sadly society is becoming disposable

Automobiles. Some companies literally keep the proprietary OBD2 information under lock-n-key.

Computers. Apple and Win8 designed for 8yo.

Those are significant.

The PC thing really gets me. Not that long ago it was common to 'build' a PC from parts, either the fastest/best or the cheapest stuff you could find, your call. Now PC's are so cheap it doesnt make much sense.

I cant think of the last time I saw a typewriter, not sure there are any in use.

Small engine stuff is getting ridiculous, just buy a new weedwacker/blower every year or 2 instead of cleaning the carb.

I first thought of electrical components/appliances: TV, VCR/DVD players, CD players, kitchen appliances, etc. Maybe vacuum cleaner repairmen are still in business. But we've become a society where it's cheaper to buy a new one than it is to repair an older/broken one.

Shoe repair. Used to be a fairly common business. When was the last time you got your shoes resoled?

The last time I got a set of boots resoled, it cost more than the boots were worth.

Rapid obsolescence freaks me out. They say 1/4 of all the copper that exists on earth is now in landfills.

Of course new things just keep getting ''Better''... However, most of the things from the past that no one can now fix are fairly easily repaired by a competent do it yourselfer. But when was the last time you saw carbon paper or a mimeograph machine ?

How about a dial phone ? I'm pretty sure you can't even hook one of those up anymore. Well, you can, you just can't dial one...

I got a pair of cowboy boots resoled and rebuilt for $40. Way cheaper than replacing thm and they were nicely broken in.

Tv repairman etc with a made in china consumer society are on the endangered species list.

Toaster.

I remember back in the 60's a neighbour was fixing one in his garage. There was a smell of burnt toast... Wait maybe I was having an epileptic seizure...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSN86kphL68

Even if cars were more repairable back in your day, they were often scrapped instead of being repaired.

Any simple appliance repair. I had to replace my washing machine due to a "bad circuit board". A replacement board isn't available anymore, and the washer was about 15 yo.

TVs used to last 20 years, and could be repaired. Now they last about 8 years, and are not nearly as serviceable, or cost more to repair than to replace.

A few weeks ago but they're some Florsheims. I'd like to have some hiking boots resoled. My brother left them in the garage so the glue that holds the sole on went to crap.

I'd love to find someone to clean and restore a Selectric that my parents bought and I keep in the office.

Flat panel TVs are surprisingly easy to repair as long as the screen isn't damaged if an acceptable repair is replacing the bad board inside the set. Since they keep getting larger/better and prices keep dropping I can see why a lot of people don't do it.

Residential HVAC I feel is trying to go to a replace instead of repair scenario. Everyone I know gets a sales pitch for a new system that has however many more SEER than their broken one and uses a different kind of refrigerant. Nevermind the $5-$10K bill the new one instead of 1/10th that to repair what they have.

"Right to Repair" legislation is changing that with autos.

I had a favorite pair of boots re-soled last year, so yes there are still shoe repair guys / cobblers around.

I find television repair places and the like to be non-existent anymore. Ditto appliance repair places. They're all throwaway now and cheaper to replace with new than to repair.

With today's high tech products and the rapid advancement of technology it really doesn't make much sense to make a TV or a toaster or even a car that is highly serviceable. People just want to go get that latest and greatest for the lowest price down at Walmart or Harbor Freight or the Porsche dealer . The item they're buying may obsolete and out of production in a year.

Capitol assets (made in the USA at least) are, at least in my opinion, doing very well in terms of serviceability. Just about every industry pushed the envelope in terms of capability until they went too far. The desirable capability is well known and many product lines have been developed over half a century or more. In many cases, the ideal product has been in production longer than its service life and lifetime extension programs are economical and practical. For locomotives, a road unit should have six axles and ~4,400 hp and switcher should have 4-axles, 60k lbs tractive effort and 2k hp. A ship should be panamax size or smaller. A bulldozer should be in the D6-D9 size range.

The BNSF is using a locomotive built in 1943 in every day use. It was built for the Great Northern as an FT B-unit #400C and then rebuilt by EMD in 1959 as GP9m #905. In 1992 the BN had it rebuilt by Morrison Knudsen into a GP28m and it's currently in service as BNSF #1521. It could be sent to EMD to be rebuilt into a GP22ECO which would extend its useful life through its centennial. As a matter of fact, nobody builds new 4-axle power anymore because everyone is just rebuilding their stuff over and over again. Even the brand new SD70ACe will probably see 40-50 years on the high iron.

CAT dealers are busy fully remanufacturing fairly new equipment.
Ship yards are busy overhauling ships.
The lifeblood of Lycoming and Continental is engine remanufacturing.

All of these companies are reaping the rewards of producing highly serviceable products, some would go out of business without them. They'd be downright stupid to make a product you couldn't take apart, inspect, put back together and use for a good while longer. Oh boo hoo you are required to replace the roller lifters on an IO-360-L2A at overhaul. They probably lasted longer than the flat tappets you'd probably have had to replace anyway.

That's not to say some competitors aren't going for the Walmart toaster model. GE locomotives just get scrapped after their 20-year lease is up. You don't see much older equipment of lesser brands on construction sites. Chinese ships just get scrapped after 10 years.

Just don't confuse technological advancements with a crappy product.

I use one in my study at home. 1950s Bakelite model, it works, as in makes and receives calls, but doesn't handle the "press 1 for accounts, press 2 for dispatch" type options.
When I got it, the kids (then 12 & 16) took a while to figure it out.

Agree. I've said this before but "new" to me simply means "cheaper, chincier, more prone to breaking and of questionable quality - probably made in China".

I think we've "jumped the shark" in terms of the zenith for customer quality on most products. Everything now seems to be made as cheaply as possible - lots of plastic, tinny construction, terrible build quality, etc. Sadly as customers we're our own worst enemies here. If we simply demanded better it would happen, but we stupidly roll over and keep paying for this junk (usually multiple times since things break several times, requiring repeat business).

I don't see "brand new" as a positive feature on a product I'm looking to buy. In fact more often than not the opposite is true.

Just like new windows that will save you heating money! Only if you live another 50 years.

It's the law of entropy guys. A battle that won't be won. Everything disintigrates...just a matter of how long it takes.