Cars

Buying it, keeping it running, and the jobs worth doing on your own driveway.

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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Gold-plated cables and the other things you can leave on the shelf

The pitch comes right after you've spent real money, when a small add-on feels like nothing. Six to pass on, what to do instead, and the one case where each is fair.

GuideStyleTobias ReedOct 9, 20265 min

Buy one pair of black cap-toe oxfords and stop shopping

One pair of dress shoes has to handle a wedding, a funeral and a job interview. Here's the spec to buy and the upsells to ignore.

Ask BRO

Give me something to do with my kids this weekend

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GuideTools & OrganizingDean ShawOct 9, 20266 min

The 200-piece tool set is a number, not a toolbox

Most of that count is bits and keys you'll never touch. Skip the big box and build a kit around the tools that actually do the work.

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

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GuideGadgetsRay OkonkwoOct 9, 20266 min

The warranty offer at the register is a bet you'll probably lose

The cashier asks every time for a reason. Seven protection plans to turn down, what to do instead, and the one case where yes makes sense.

Poll

How often do you see your closest friends?

GuideGearDean ShawOct 9, 20265 min

The kitchen drawer flashlight should be boring and ready

The light that works at 2 a.m. isn't the brightest one. It's the one with fresh batteries and a switch you can find in the dark.

GuideWoodworkingDean ShawOct 9, 20265 min

Your first saw should be a Japanese pull saw

It cuts on the pull, it's forgiving to learn on, and it fits in a drawer. Skip the power saw until you know what you need.

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

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GuideGadgetsDean ShawOct 9, 20265 min

Home wifi that reaches the back bedroom and the garage

Your router isn't too slow. It's in the wrong place, and one box can't cover a family. Buy a mesh system, wire what you can, skip the rest.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

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

GuideTools & OrganizingDean ShawOct 9, 20265 min

Skip the 200-piece kit and build this one instead

A new homeowner needs about fifteen tools in one case, not two hundred in a plastic tray. What goes in, what stays out, and where the money belongs.

GuideStyleTobias ReedOct 9, 20266 min

A belt and a wallet you'll still be carrying in ten years

Two small pieces of leather, two different ways to fail. Here's what to inspect, what to read in the warranty, and what a cobbler can fix.

Ask BRO

Pressure-test my business idea

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GuideWoodworkingDean ShawOct 9, 20265 min

A bench vise should outlive you, so buy it like one

Weight, a good screw, and parts you can still get in 2060: how to pick the one shop tool your kids will fight over.

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

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GuideTools & OrganizingDean ShawOct 9, 20265 min

A drill outlives its battery. Buy the battery first.

The motor will run for years. The pack that feeds it won't. Here's how to buy a cordless drill that's still useful in 2035.

Poll

Where does your best time with your kids happen?

GuideGadgetsRay OkonkwoOct 7, 20265 min

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.

GuideWoodworkingDean ShawOct 8, 20266 min

The cut takes nine seconds and the setup takes twenty minutes

One pine board, one rip cut, two very different Saturdays. The difference has nothing to do with the cut.

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StoryTools & OrganizingDean ShawOct 7, 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.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

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

ReviewGadgetsDean ShawOct 6, 20266 min

The watch that keeps telling Grandpa to stand up

It buzzed while he was flat on his back under the sink. He has complaints, a few good jokes, and one concession that matters.

StoryWoodworkingWes DunbarOct 7, 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.

Ask BRO

Rehearse the raise conversation with me

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StoryTools & OrganizingDean ShawOct 7, 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.

Dude.com — 16 AI advisers who listen, talk and are here with you

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ReviewGadgetsDean ShawOct 6, 20266 min

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 best time with your kids happen?

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