Cheapwad Finds--Opposite of Blow That Dough!

Mentioned in a another thread, I have been looking for a new luggage set.
Found 3 piece set, originally $440, for $119 on clearance. I thought that was a good deal.
 
At the cabin this winter I realized my heavy jackets were old, like 30 years old. Here in Louisiana you only wear a heavy jacket a couple times a year. But spending a couple winter months in the Colorado mountains I wear a heavy jacket every day.
So I started looking for a new jacket with new technology. Found a Columbia Tipton Peak II jacket on amazon for $65, new retail it's $190 as on the tag. Nice and lightweight.
 
Andre1969 said:
This is more a story of a cheapwad mentality, more than a cheapwad find, but here goes...

I have three recliners, that used to belong to my paternal grandparents. I have no idea how old they are, in my memory, they were always around. Well, after Granddad died, and my uncle was clearing out the house, he told me to take whatever I wanted, and I snagged them. They're sort of a light brown/sandstone color, so fairly conservative, and not something that really dates itself. I've had them since 2017.

Well, just today, my housemate sat in one, that's in the upstairs rumpus room. His back is bugging him, and he made a comment about how it's kind of uncomfortable when your back is hurting.

I replied yeah, I think the springs are starting to go, and its losing some support in the base cushion. I've been thinking about swapping it out with the chair downstairs.

His response? "Or, you could swap it out with one from the STORE!!" I guess old cheapwad habits die hard! My rationale for it though, was that the one downstairs hardly ever gets used, so swapping them just made sense to me.
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Yeah, our two recliners came free from the neighbors when they went to assisted living. The "leather" is ripped in the arms and the head rest, but they are comfortable. The wooden handle came off of mine (makes it recline) so I'm using a pair of channel-locks to operate the reclining function. But, the good news is that we have a back up (for one of our chairs - probably mine, since it's in the worst shape.) We bought (for $100) an "electric" recliner a few years back from another neighbor. It w*rks fine, but isn't quite what I like in the way of a recliner. BUT it does have the "ejection seat" feature (pushes you out electrically.) Eventually, it will be mine and the old one will be in the dumpster.



So, we simply do not spend a lot of furniture. Cheapwad to da max.
 
Koolau said:
Yeah, our two recliners came free from the neighbors when they went to assisted living. The "leather" is ripped in the arms and the head rest, but they are comfortable. The wooden handle came off of mine (makes it recline) so I'm using a pair of channel-locks to operate the reclining function. But, the good news is that we have a back up (for one of our chairs - probably mine, since it's in the worst shape.) We bought (for $100) an "electric" recliner a few years back from another neighbor. It w*rks fine, but isn't quite what I like in the way of a recliner. BUT it does have the "ejection seat" feature (pushes you out electrically.) Eventually, it will be mine and the old one will be in the dumpster.



So, we simply do not spend a lot of furniture. Cheapwad to da max.
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gotta love the channel-lock hack :LOL:
 
Koolau said:
Yeah, our two recliners came free from the neighbors when they went to assisted living. The "leather" is ripped in the arms and the head rest, but they are comfortable. The wooden handle came off of mine (makes it recline) so I'm using a pair of channel-locks to operate the reclining function. But, the good news is that we have a back up (for one of our chairs - probably mine, since it's in the worst shape.) We bought (for $100) an "electric" recliner a few years back from another neighbor. It w*rks fine, but isn't quite what I like in the way of a recliner. BUT it does have the "ejection seat" feature (pushes you out electrically.) Eventually, it will be mine and the old one will be in the dumpster.



So, we simply do not spend a lot of furniture. Cheapwad to da max.
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I sure hope it is not a brand name pair of channel locks. This is the Cheapwad Finds thread. If it is, maybe you should post it in the BTD thread.:LOL:
 
Vice-grips (the off-brand clone, of course) would be a far better tool for that job.
 
Fixed my hvac system myself, avoiding who knows how much $$$ on a repairman.
It was a relay. Tried to cheap out on the replacement relay.


Several cheap and good relays on the market for under $10 each. Heartbreak, though. Nothing fit in properly, even though the sellers said they would. Ended up getting an original equipment relay. It was $44 including shipping.



End result : no stress over allowing repairman to mess with the hvac. OE equipment installed, fits perfectly, system running again. All for $44. (Plus an embarrassingly large amount of my time, but I sort of enjoyed it, lol).
 
Wally World Window Washer Fluid -20F clearance $2.00, regularly $3.79. Scooped up 5.
 
jim584672 said:
Wally World Window Washer Fluid -20F clearance $2.00, regularly $3.79. Scooped up 5.
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I would have been right behind you in line had I been there.

I never understood why they don't sell the winter fluid until, well, winter. Even if you're the type of person who doesn't buy it until after your tank is empty, some of that summer stuff will still be in the tank when freezing weather returns.

I like to keep a gallon or two on hand so I don't have to rush out and buy it when I run out. Which means I can't buy it except during the winter, and then I have to stock up.
 
Don't know if this post belongs here, but........I was in a store ready to buy toilet paper. (I am loyal to a certain brand.) The 9 roll package was $22. The 12 roll package was $20 !!! I looked at the pricing twice, but that's what it said. How could the 12 rolls be cheaper than the 9 roll ? So I go to check out. The actual price of the 12 roll pack was $17. Probably pricier than some of you pay, but I have reason to stay loyal to that brand. Moral of the story...... doesn't hurt to compare pricing, even with the same brand.
 
Momcpa said:
Don't know if this post belongs here, but........I was in a store ready to buy toilet paper. (I am loyal to a certain brand.) The 9 roll package was $22. The 12 roll package was $20 !!! I looked at the pricing twice, but that's what it said. How could the 12 rolls be cheaper than the 9 roll ? So I go to check out. The actual price of the 12 roll pack was $17. Probably pricier than some of you pay, but I have reason to stay loyal to that brand. Moral of the story...... doesn't hurt to compare pricing, even with the same brand.
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I was picking up some yard trash bags at Walmart (30 gallon, quantity 20). Saw that their "Great Value" bags were more costly than the name brands, Same size, quantity and thickness. Go figure.
 
Have been very impressed with a SunJoe brand electric pressure washer over the last 3-4 years. A friend is having a birthday and we decided to spring for a new one for him - about $150 with 2 year warranty; mine was in the $80 dollar range for a refurb. Ordered the new one up and it arrived today. Yesterday we went yard sale-ing and someone had the exact same model we had just ordered for $30. Snatched that puppy up, it works great, and will upgrade and replace my old one, which is starting to leak and has a weak spot in the hose.
 
Momcpa said:
Don't know if this post belongs here, but........I was in a store ready to buy toilet paper. (I am loyal to a certain brand.) The 9 roll package was $22. The 12 roll package was $20 !!! I looked at the pricing twice, but that's what it said.
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I've seen this before with other things, it sometimes does pay to look twice at the prices and not assume the larger package costs more. As to why, I'd guess the manufacturer has a sale going on and not all stores sell all the different size packages.
 
Walt34 said:
I've seen this before with other things, it sometimes does pay to look twice at the prices and not assume the larger package costs more. As to why, I'd guess the manufacturer has a sale going on and not all stores sell all the different size packages.
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I'm not sure how prices are listed in the US but here in Canada all prices have to include a price breakdown per weight, amount, or unit. Toilet paper would be $xx per xx sq meter, meat would be $xx per 100 gr, liquids $xx per 100 ml.

It completely eliminates the need to navigate tricky or misleading math.
 
Music Lover said:
I'm not sure how prices are listed in the US but here in Canada all prices have to include a price breakdown per weight, amount, or unit. Toilet paper would be $xx per xx sq meter, meat would be $xx per 100 gr, liquids $xx per 100 ml.

It completely eliminates the need to navigate tricky or misleading math.
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Yeah, I notice that many of the required price-per-(whatever) here in the USA are almost useless. If I want to compare the price of soft drinks, the 2 liter bottles might say "so-much per liter" and the caned soda might say so-much per can. Useless! Funny - I can't do the math in my head anymore even though I know exactly how to make the calculations (and most of the conversions.) SO, I have to whip out the phone and use the calculator function. What a pain. Good on the Canadian system!
 
Koolau said:
Yeah, I notice that many of the required price-per-(whatever) here in the USA are almost useless.
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The reason is because unit pricing is regulated by states, not the federal government, and only about half the states have such regulations.

Perhaps I'm just lucky, but I always notice excellent examples at my local supermarket (Kroger) where the unit pricing is clearly displayed and nearly always in the smallest reasonable unit (such as ounce).
 
I have seen the unit pricing get better over the years. I see far fewer products where the math is just flat-out wrong. But I still don't trust it. One thing I see a lot is when one brand is priced by weight, and the competitor is priced by "each."

And, yes, you have to look to see whether the larger size, or store brand, is really the cheaper option. Usually, but not always!
 
braumeister said:
The reason is because unit pricing is regulated by states, not the federal government, and only about half the states have such regulations.

Perhaps I'm just lucky, but I always notice excellent examples at my local supermarket (Kroger) where the unit pricing is clearly displayed and nearly always in the smallest reasonable unit (such as ounce).
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I shop at Kroger also and I wonder if they adjust the unit pricing for any sales that’s going on. Thankfully, my main way of shopping is to get my preferred brand on sale. I don’t do too much shopping between brands.
 
Jerry1 said:
I shop at Kroger also and I wonder if they adjust the unit pricing for any sales that’s going on. Thankfully, my main way of shopping is to get my preferred brand on sale. I don’t do too much shopping between brands.
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They put a yellow sale sticker on the shelf next to the regular white price sticker. The yellow one shows the sale price per unit.
 
Not sure if this belong here but I recently updated my home office. It's a great space, but the Herman Miller chair I had bought simply wasn't comfortable and I never got around to upgrading my other seating from the Ikea Poang.

So last week my better-half sat down with me and helped to pick out a super comfortable office chair along with a powered leather recliner. I also got a large flatscreen (FireTV) to put on the wall opposite my desk and an ultra wide-screen monitor for my desk along with a wireless mouse, keyboard and laptop hub, so I can use the TV as a monitor and type from the recliner if I feel like it. Furniture has already arrived and both the chair and the recliner feel amazing. Recliner goes to zero-g mode with the touch of a button and the office chair has memory foam cushions in all the right places. Better-half heads to Europe later this week for a short trip, so I'll have plenty of time to hang the TV and set up the monitor.

Best part is that the total for everything was under $2k, which seemed like quite the "cheap wad" upgrade from the Poang and an iPad next to my laptop. Plus I got $300 from selling the Herman Miller chair!
 
CO-guy said:
Not sure if this belong here but I recently updated my home office. It's a great space, but the Herman Miller chair I had bought simply wasn't comfortable and I never got around to upgrading my other seating from the Ikea Poang.

So last week my better-half sat down with me and helped to pick out a super comfortable office chair along with a powered leather recliner. I also got a large flatscreen (FireTV) to put on the wall opposite my desk and an ultra wide-screen monitor for my desk along with a wireless mouse, keyboard and laptop hub, so I can use the TV as a monitor and type from the recliner if I feel like it. Furniture has already arrived and both the chair and the recliner feel amazing. Recliner goes to zero-g mode with the touch of a button and the office chair has memory foam cushions in all the right places. Better-half heads to Europe later this week for a short trip, so I'll have plenty of time to hang the TV and set up the monitor.

Best part is that the total for everything was under $2k, which seemed like quite the "cheap wad" upgrade from the Poang and an iPad next to my laptop. Plus I got $300 from selling the Herman Miller chair!
Click to expand...


I'm thinking about redoing the masking tape around my Les Nessman office.:cool:




"Oh, the humanity!"
 
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DW & I didn't want to eat @ home after church so we split a bowl @ Chipotle and used points for free guac... $10 lunch for 2!
 
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