Things that people pay way too much for

[daviscw]

Thank you M-Bizzle. Just as the picture shows, the Polo is also a great woman magnet.

[Cigarlover 1]

What's amazing to me is how many people still pay retail price for the majority of purchases. Between ebay, craigslist, Marshalls/TJ Maxx, the sale sections on companies websites and all the other options on the net I rarely pay retail for anything anymore.

[flechero]

What does a $100 - $150 per pair of sunglasses do that a $15-$25 pair won't?

According to my ophthalmologist, there is a significant difference in high quality glass vs. plastic and other inferior glass lenses.  

Good glasses cost less than almost any rod or reel I have...  so for less than half the cost of one rod/reel combo, I won't risk my eyes to cheap glasses.  Besides, once you have a good pair, the cheap ones will never do again.  The optical quality is so much better.

[Eddie Munster]

I agree with Burley and company about the Gilette Fusion. Fantastic razor worth the extra $$. I don't shave everyday but those cartridges last me at least a month sometimes two.

I don't care for the taste of Starbucks coffee but I do buy Millstone brand which is about $7.00 for 11 ounces of ground beans. I used to drink Maxwell House/Foldgers all the time but liked the taste of Millstone enough to pay extra. Same goes for beer. I stopped drinking Black Label or PBR in the military once I developed a taste for decent beer.

Paying extra is all relative. I would NEVER pay $200 for a set of sunglasses just as the guy who does would NEVER pay $22 for a fishing lure like I did.

Now at the top of my list of things I feel people pay too much for is:

New cars. But hey, if they didn't buy new I couldn't buy their used vehicles for 1/3 the price they paid for it just a couple years before. God bless em.

[Mike 12345]

What's amazing to me is how many people still pay retail price for the majority of purchases. Between ebay, craigslist, Marshalls/TJ Maxx, the sale sections on companies websites and all the other options on the net I rarely pay retail for anything anymore.

I have to agree with you on this one.  Very seldom will I pay retail for things.  Most of the 'nicer' fishing gear that I have I have purchased at 40% to 60% off-  thats how I could afford it to begin with.

Even if I can't get a deep discount on something, then I closely watch prices between retailers in town, and spring on the item of interest when a sale starts.

And yes, I also go to the grocery store with coupons - you'd be amazed at how much you can save  

[SirSnookalot]

Things that people pay way too much for

Their employees

[bass wrangler569]

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Starbucks coffee. That is nasty stuff that is nowhere near as good as what you get at the average convenience store.

For the price of a Lucky Craft Pointer I can get two Rapala X-Raps that, in my experience, are far superior baits.

I managed a department store for years and was always amazed at men who paid big bucks for Ralph Lauren Polo merchandise. It was the poorest quality merchandise we sold. The knit shirts shrank about 20% in length with a couple of washings and the lapels on the suits would not lay flat.

Wow, I can honestly say I respectfully disagree with every point you made. I think starbucks make's excellent coffee (although I will concede that it is overpriced), and I don't know what kind of convenience stores you have where you live but the ones where I live all have terrible coffee.

While it is true that x-raps are cheaper than pointers, IMO they aren't even in the same league when it comes to fishing, especially when the water temperature is in the forties, pointers are golden.

As far as Ralph Lauren Polo's, I don't wear polos as much as I use to but all the Ralph Lauren Polo's I've owned have been of much higher quality than other comparable brands.

[Muddy]

as an aside Starbucks is trash coffee, mass produced, over roasted trash. I grew up on D'Amicos coffe, one shop , on Court St Brooklyn, roasts daily on the premises,Same Italian  family owns it for 68 years. Starbucks opened a few blocks down, didn't last 2 years!

[bilgerat]

Geez Muddy, I thought you were gonna say Shimano reels....

[christopherjake]

You got what you pay for.  G-Loomis vs. Ugly Stick.  Case closed.

[Bassboy15]

Why buy a fenwick when a ugly stick will do?

For the quality of the product

[Bassboy15]

You got what you pay for. G-Loomis vs. Ugly Stick. Case closed.

Geez, Great mind think alike, I'm just 30 mins late haha!

[Bassn Blvd]

Bottle of WATER. Why do people pay $1.50 for a 12 oz bottle of water is beyond me (even though I do it everyday).

$1.25 for a regular size Milky Way.

Cell Phone taxes/surcharges. Fricking SCAM.

Alcohol by the glass. Example: 6oz Filet Mignon, Maryland crab cake, garlic mashed potatoes, bread and glass of water = $19.00

Wife gets 2 glasses of wine= $17. Same brand at grocery store by the bottle is $10.

Greeting cards. Why buy them? The receiver reads them for about 20 seconds and in the garbage they go. Great wast of 3 bucks average.

I WILL pay top dollar for toilet paper though.

Property taxes.

Sales tax on the same item. Example: I buy a car and pay sales tax. I sell the car to you and you pay sales tax on it. You sell it to a friend and he pays sales tax on it. Ridiculous.

Oh yea, these ATM charges are gtting out of control too.  $3 fricking charge to take out 20 bucks.

[burleytog]

Greeting cards. Why buy them? The receiver reads them for about 20 seconds and in the garbage they go. Great wast of 3 bucks average.    

I stopped buying cards a few years ago.  I tell my family to not bother getting me a card as it is a waste of money.

[wisturkeyhunter]

ammo the price keeps getting higher

[Redlinerobert]

Just depends what is important to you.  I'll take a $600 JDM rod over most anything made here becuase I like them.  I'll also wear $50 Chuck Taylor sneaks because, I like them.  

When it comes to high end name brand stuff, some of it is definitely made better.  Sure the 'fashionable' stuff is way overpriced, but realisitcally you will wear that stuff once or twice and then never wear it again because 'its not in style anymore'.  :

I have suits that are several years old, classic cut and they still look new.  Made by Gucci.  I probably could have bought 5 or 6 cheap suits for what I paid for one of these.  Those suits would not look as good as this one still does.   No exceptions.  

Again, if I didnt like nice suits then I'd probably opt for the cheaper stuff.  Like I said earlier, its what I like.  

[fourbizz]

All I know, is that people who concern themselves with how others spend their money, tick me off.

[SirSnookalot]

Oh yea, these ATM charges are gtting out of control too.  $3 fricking charge to take out 20 bucks.

Bassn, Bank of America..........no charge for atm withdrawals

[Captain Obvious]

Things that people pay to much for,

College Books!!!!!

Fast Food, sorry things are cheaper when you eat at home

Bottled water, biggest rip off know to man fill your own bottle at home for almost free

Luck Craft, maybe there is something to be said about the pointer, but the other stuff is over priced, you can buy two or three of any other brand for the same price and find at least one that is just as good as the LC

Cowboys tickets, I think that new stadium is going to make Jerry have another face lift ;D

Capt.O

[Olebiker]

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Starbucks coffee. That is nasty stuff that is nowhere near as good as what you get at the average convenience store.

For the price of a Lucky Craft Pointer I can get two Rapala X-Raps that, in my experience, are far superior baits.

I managed a department store for years and was always amazed at men who paid big bucks for Ralph Lauren Polo merchandise. It was the poorest quality merchandise we sold. The knit shirts shrank about 20% in length with a couple of washings and the lapels on the suits would not lay flat.

Wow, I can honestly say I respectfully disagree with every point you made. I think starbucks make's excellent coffee (although I will concede that it is overpriced), and I don't know what kind of convenience stores you have where you live but the ones where I live all have terrible coffee.

It doesn't take much to get better coffee than Starbucks.

While it is true that x-raps are cheaper than pointers, IMO they aren't even in the same league when it comes to fishing, especially when the water temperature is in the forties, pointers are golden.

My experience has been different than yours.

As far as Ralph Lauren Polo's, I don't wear polos as much as I use to but all the Ralph Lauren Polo's I've owned have been of much higher quality than other comparable brands.

It has been nearly 20 years since I worked in retail, but the defective return rate on Polo merchandise was about 30% back then.  Ralph Lauren was good about it though.  They would take the merchandise back and give us credit.  

[bass wrangler569]

Fair enough

[Tom H.]

As a real answer to your question -

Tools -

Why would anyone in their right mind spend money on the Snap-On , Matco ,or Mac truck , when they can run to sears and buy Craftsman ?

With over $30,000 invested in tools , I can tell you why I spend the cash on them -- CONVIENCE . No running back in to the store if something breaks or needs fixed . The dealer is there every Wed. or Fri. to fix it or replace it . And some of it has to do with arrogance . Gotta have the best

You can't be the best if you don't own the best regards -

[CSB]

Its all relative. I used to buy my fishing gear brand new and took it in the shorts because Im a bit of an enthusiast. I pretty much only buy used reels and mostly used rods anymore, I figure buying second hand means Im paying for the product itself and not for the marketing and packaging.

As for non-fishing items...

Bottled water tastes much, much different than the crap that comes out of the sink. I'll use some generic products, but things like soda have to be name brand because for whatever reason the generic brands cant compare.

Is it hypocritical of me to care about how others spend their money because I dont wish to associate myself with materialistic folk who judge others based on the value of their possessions?  :-/

[bilgerat]

As a real answer to your question -

Tools -

Why would anyone in their right mind spend money on the Snap-On , Matco ,or Mac truck , when they can run to sears and buy Craftsman ?

With over $30,000 invested in tools , I can tell you why I spend the cash on them -- CONVIENCE . No running back in to the store if something breaks or needs fixed . The dealer is there every Wed. or Fri. to fix it or replace it . And some of it has to do with arrogance . Gotta have the best

You can't be the best if you don't own the best regards -

Wow. I'm a mechanic and it's the opposite here in South Jersey. I've been doing this for about twenty years, here's my observations on the tool game:

Snap On (the corporation, not the individual dealer) is ridiculously overpriced. The dealers don't haggle anymore, most of them are corporate robots. They are only interested in selling the huge toolboxes at loanshark interest rates. We are lucky to see a Snap On guy once a month. Our shop is right around Atlantic City, NJ. Not exactly the middle of nowhere. They are good tools. Not THAT good.

Mac - I miss these guys. They went to crap when they were bought out by Stanley Tools a few years back. Stanley drove most of the independent dealers under, then put salesmen in tool trucks. Service plummeted. Most are gone now. They had some decent stuff.

Matco - Bringing up a distant third.

Sears Craftsman - Can only speak for my area. Have several Sears stores around. I can exchange broken stuff the same day. Don't have to wait for the tool truck that never comes. Quality is good (on most, not all) of their tools.

I won't pay 35% markup for convenience I don't get.

[Tokyo Tony]

Women.