[brucetim]

I've been canning for many years. Learned it from my grandmother while I was growing up, but she did the super old-school wax seals. A game changer for me are Tattler reusable lids: http://tattlerproducts.com

I bought some big bags of both the "regular" and wide-mouth lids/gaskets several years ago and have never worried about the metal lids that come with the jars when they're new (got them saved in a separate box "just in case" and also use them occasionally when I'm gifting canned goods). There is a slight difference in the way to tighten the lids during processing, but the occasional "didn't seal" is usually my fault, and we just eat the contents of that jar sooner rather than putting it on the shelf.

If you do any volume, or don't want to get stuck without metal lids, I cannot recommend the Tattler lids enough! Be sure to get the originals; there are some knock-off brands which are not made with the BPA-free plastic, don't last as long, etc.