They Used To Last 50 Years

Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by foxylad on Sunday March 19, 2017 @09:53PM (#13911124)

Microwave ovens are another classic. We got ours 25 years ago, and it's still going strong. In fact several people who know about appliances have warned us never to ditch it - apparently the magnetron tubes for all modern microwave ovens burn out in a couple of years.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by mrbill on Sunday March 19, 2017 @09:59PM (#13911162)

When we moved into this house, the wife made noises about replacing the "ancient" oven [0]. I asked "Has the technique of cooking food with heat, changed drastically since the 70s?" We left it in.

When I went to college in 1993, I was given my grandmother's original Amana RadarRange microwave from 1968 or so, the model with the two dials and the "done" buzzer that wouldn't stop until you hit a button [1]. It was huge, HEAVY, and we joked that it was full of lead shielding, but it got used for three years of college and after that was donated to my workplace when I moved to Austin. As far as I know it kept working there for another 2-3 years, and by then was most likely 25+ years old.

[0] https://goo.gl/photos/qrgoixCJDViks8am9

[1] https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hLhXgVAYoAE/maxresdefault.jpg

Addendum: I just realized that the microwave I have sitting in the kitchen was given to us as a wedding gift in 2001. The clock no longer works properly, but it cooks just fine.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by pfooti on Monday March 20, 2017 @01:04AM (#13911842)

One thing you might want to try is a sugar browning test [0]. I have an "ancient" oven - gas fired from the 1970s. It's a rental home and I don't feel like spending my own money on a kitchen upgrade, but it would probably be money well spent.

My own oven varies by over 100F plus or minus during regular cooking cycles. This is hugely significant when it comes to baking almost anything. If I put cookie dough in at the wrong time, they'll burn. I do my best to dampen the variability with a baking steel, but a more modern gas oven wouldn't have as much of a range of operating temperatures. Or, at least, a modern and high-quality one.

So, in response to your relatively sarcastic question: yes. Things have changed - not in how we cook, but in the quality of homeostatic controls for ovens.

http://www.xojane.com/diy/oven-calibration-article (technique from cooking for geeks)

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by reitanqild on Sunday March 19, 2017 @11:43PM (#13911504)

"Has the technique of cooking food with heat, changed drastically since the 70s?"

Ovens? I guess not unless you go for very very high end.

I'd like to say a few nice words about my induction stovetop though: if anybody is in the market for an electric stovetop the induction based ones are vastly better IMO.

Heats pans faster. Does not heat if there is nothing on top of it. Cools down quicker.

Feels a bit magic.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by ethbro on Monday March 20, 2017 @12:07AM (#13911609)

I have a Sunbeam Radiant Toaster from the 1960s that I inherited after my grandmother passed away.

It still makes toast like a champ.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by dagw on Monday March 20, 2017 @08:01AM (#13913359)

"Has the technique of cooking food with heat, changed drastically since the 70s?"

Convection ovens and steam ovens have become a thing since then. Modern ovens have also become a lot better at keeping a constant temperature.

Also my 'modern' (~8-9 years old) oven gets a lot hotter than my old oven.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by blubb-fish on Monday March 20, 2017 @02:48AM (#13912243)

well ... your wife refers to the oven (baking) and you respond to cooking. while I would still agree and keep the old oven, I have to say it does make a difference. modern ovens are much more easily regulated to and kept at specific temperatures. to give one example.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by mti27 on Monday March 20, 2017 @10:37AM (#13914549)

Ah yes, the Radar Range: https://youtu.be/uEywGpIt0vw?t=12

(That's Mike from Breaking Bad I think...)

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by hourislate on Monday March 20, 2017 @12:08AM (#13911616)

I justs recently replaced a built in GE Microwave's magnetron and diode for around $75 with parts off of Amazon (it was 5 years old). To replace the Microwave would have cost me around $800 and to call a repair person would have been about $250.

Thanks to youtube and about 30 minutes of work it is working like new again. These days I fix everything myself. Appliances, cars, electronics, furniture, etc. I also try to buy quality instead of disposable but that is getting harder every year.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by ams6110 on Sunday March 19, 2017 @10:03PM (#13911179)

I have a Goldstar microwave that I bought about 30 years ago. I belive this company is now named LG. But it's been flawless and still works great.

I also have a chest freezer that my parents bought in the late 1970s and it's still working perfectly as well.

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Re:They Used To Last 50 Years by mrbill on Sunday March 19, 2017 @10:09PM (#13911197)

I remember our first VCR in the 80s being a Goldstar.

I believe that LG at one point stood for "Lucky Goldstar" as they eventually changed company name and branding.

Ah, from Wikipedia: "GoldStar merged with Lucky Chemical and LG Cable in 1995, changing the corporate name to Lucky-Goldstar, and then finally to LG Electronics."

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