[biomcgary]

Part of the short-term thinking is because reviews can be gamed. Why would I buy an expensive thing, if I don't have a reliable signal that it is higher quality and worth the extra cost? Price is a clear signal, reputation for quality is not.

[throwaway173738]

If you can handle the object you can also judge quality. I buy hand tools at specific stores and I pick the tool up and examine it for failure modes. I’ve broken cheap sledge hammers and framing hammers before so I try to be careful. It’s really important to look at the grain of the wood in the handle