paghat wrote:

... And such UGLY tools with garish yellow or
orange handles...


In general I agree about the quality of current tools. However, for
those of us who are relatively careless about our tools, those garish
orange handles do stand out amid the foliage when we lay it down
somewhere in the garden and walk off to do something else and come
looking for it an hour later. The bright colors serve a function.

Some cheap tools are cost effective. I am death on shovels (or shovel
handles, anyway), so I generally buy the $7 versions. One time I bought
a $30 shovel, fiberglass handle, etc. The fiberglass didn't hold up well
in the sun and after a couple of winters it was all split and hard to
hold. It lasted less time than the wooden handled $7 versions. PS: I
paint the shovel handles bright red so I can find them. Adds another
dollar to the cost (the paint wears off and has to be renewed
occasionally). The red handled shovel makes a good marker to let me know
where I left off working in a row. I can see it 400' away.

To avoid the cheaply made junk I try to buy from displays rather than
mail order or online. That way I can evaluate the quality at purchase
time. You have to invest the time to get the quality.