Anything you purchase to put between you and the ground. Shoes, tires, beds, furniture, foundations

I have recently needed to travel for work and my duffel bag was a pain in the butt to carry around the airport. All the rolling bags I saw for purchase didn’t seem well made and were pretty expensive while somehow not utilizing all of the available overhead space. Even well known brands like swiss gear seems to have critical break points on their luggage. The last trip I made, I noticed that all of the flight crew used the same brand of luggage that looked very well made and was reinforced in all the right areas. So I looked it up and found that their non-commercial line was just as shitty as everything else I was seeing, but their flight crew line was top tier… But only flight crew could buy it. So I found a website that would sell it to me! $240 for a suitcase that looks like it will last my lifetime and fits the exact dimensions of the overhead space saving me $40 per trip to not check the bag (my company doesn’t cover checking bags). Return on “investment” is 6 flights or 3 round trips. The brand is Travelpro for anyone wondering. And the site I purchased from is mypilotstore.com. They even sell spare parts such as wheels/bearings or leather handles. Super happy with my purchase!!

Almost any repair tools, gardening, or anything NEEDED to DIY. You can do a lot of personal projects with very little money.

That being said, it’s very easy to fall into a trap of going beyond what is needed into a full, fancy workshop, with all the shiny new equipment. If that’s what you’re goal is, that’s fine. If you’re doing it to save money, there’s a lot of ways to just get the bare minimum, and be extremely effective. Especially if you can get used, or even non-functional equipment and fix it up yourself.

My wallet cried a little when I bought new bike, then I calculated the cost of alternative (car, public transport) and was surprised that even nicer bike is cheaper.

If I count only operating cost of car it will pay off in about 1 - 1.5 years. Public transport is at about 2 years.

Yes I know that I have some infrastructure, and other things that make it possible for me to use it everyday as car.

Also I stay fit and healthy when I don’t sit in a car - so this is another value that can’t be easily put in monetary perspective.

A 3D Printer and CAD software, especially if you can get around free software.

Break a plastic thingy, why spend $50 on a replacement when you can make one. On no that broke, learn why and make it better.

I’m at the point where I can 3D print small tablet cases, and it’s funny watching the included injection moulded accessories fall apart, while mine is going strong.

It’s not for everyone, and there is a skill gap that’s bigger than most people are comfortable jumping. But if you have the desire/want to learn CAD or 3D printing, it will pay for itself, if you use it right.

An old, ugly bike and a good bike lock. No one will ever steal it and can bring you wherever you want without the fear of leaving it in the wrong spot

Potato peeler. Saves so much time over using a knife.

• A good quality belt. A cheap belt may last a year or two while a good one lasts decades but doesn’t cost 10x as much.
• Any sort of micro-mobility device (bikes, scooters, etc. or even costlier electric versions of these) that replaces a regular commute has good ROI over driving or even public transit (unless you’re lucky enough to live in a city where it’s free).
• A big sack of rice. It’s kind of insane how many meals you can get out of one of those.