Gear

What to buy, what to skip, and what the cheaper one actually costs you.

The BRO Gear GuideBuy once, fix it, pass it down: a cost-per-use calculator, a warranty decoder and a repairability checklist.Judge it before you buy

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GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20265 min

Buying rain gear that still works in hour three

Most jackets keep rain out for twenty minutes. What matters is what happens after that, and it's usually not the waterproofing that fails.

GuideWes Dunbar22 Sept 20265 min

Buy the cheap pry bar. Never buy the cheap ladder.

A working rule for which tools you can buy off the bottom shelf, and which ones cost far more than the money you saved.

Ask BRO

Rehearse the raise conversation with me

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GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

The Pocket Knife You'll Still Be Carrying In Ten Years

Steel gets all the attention. Weight, pocket manners and whether you can take it apart are what decide if a knife survives a decade.

Names.com — The name is the first thing you sell

PartnerNames.com

6 min read

Boots worth resoling, and how to tell before you buy

Flip the boot over and look at the edge. Thirty seconds there tells you whether you're buying five years of wear or fifteen.

Poll

What was your first ever job?

GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

The truck kit that handles almost every roadside problem

Four failures cause most breakdowns. Build for those, spend where it matters, and leave the rest on the shelf.

GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

The watch you'll still be wearing in twenty years

Most watches get retired for reasons that have nothing to do with quality. Here's how to avoid buying one of those.

CancerDefying.com — The research, protocols and reading in one place

PartnerCancerDefying.com

GuideDean Shaw17 Sept 20262 min

Where "buy cheap, buy twice" is true — and where it's nonsense

Some tools genuinely justify the money. Plenty don't, and the difference is usually how often you use it.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

ReviewDean Shaw14 Sept 20262 min

What actually makes a boot last a decade

Not the brand and not the leather. It's how the sole is attached, and it's printed on almost nothing.

Two-year phone upgrades versus running it into the ground

The driveway version says keeping your old phone saves two grand. The real version still says keep it, just with a lot less swagger.

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Plan a cook for eight people

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GuideAutosRay Okonkwo7 Oct 20265 min

The transmission quote that almost bought me a new truck

One $3,200 repair bill made a new truck payment look like a bargain. Then somebody asked what the truck costs besides the payment.

Shirts.com — Design it with AI. Wear it this week.

PartnerShirts.com

StoryTools & OrganizingDean Shaw7 Oct 20265 min

The Weekend Rate Isn't a Personal Challenge

What you learn standing in the Saturday line for a floor sander, and the lesson inside every line you'll hear before your name gets called.

Poll

How many days a week are you actually training?

StoryWoodworkingWes Dunbar7 Oct 20265 min

Nobody at the lumber yard thinks your 2x4 is two by four

A Saturday morning in the stacks, a napkin sketch, and the lessons the guys in line learned the hard way so you don't have to.

StoryAutosDean Shaw7 Oct 20265 min

Nobody at the parts counter can guess which engine you have

A Saturday morning in line at the auto parts counter, where every wrong guess comes with a lesson you can use before your next oil change.

GermProof.com — An invisible germ barrier on your skin for hours

PartnerGermProof.com

StoryTools & OrganizingDean Shaw7 Oct 20265 min

What Gets Said in Aisle Nine Before the Coffee Kicks In

A breaker labeled with a question mark, a paint chip called "wall color," and the real lessons hiding behind every line at the Saturday counter.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

Five questions, honestly answered, and a plan for the next fortnight.

Gadgets6 min

The watch that keeps telling Grandpa to stand up

Autos5 min

How to jump a dead car, in the order it really happens

Ask BRO

Build me a 30-day training plan around two sessions a week

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GuideTools & OrganizingDean Shaw6 Oct 20265 min

How to Build Flat-Pack Furniture and Still Be Speaking Afterward

The box says two hours and one person. It's wrong about both, and the argument usually starts at step one, not step nine.

Coconut.com — Tell us when. We find where the sun is.

PartnerCoconut.com

Gadgets6 min read

A desk with a motor, and a chair that never needed one

The standing desk has presets, sensors and an app. Grandpa's old chair has a squeak he fixes with a wrench. They both stayed.

Poll

Where does your phone charge overnight?

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