#240846 - 10/11/2004 06:06
Toasters
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/06/1999
Posts: 2993
Loc: Wareham, Dorset, UK
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Can anyone tell me why modern toasters are so abominably KACK? The majority seem to have been designed by morons - why, for example, is the toating area always smaller than the average cross-section of a normal loaf? I mean, loaves haven't changed size much in my life time - if anything they are smaller - but damnit, I hate having the top inch-and-a-half of the slice untoasted so you get a "Crisp to Soggy" transition halfway through eating it. It's not as if the testers couldn't SEE that the bottom half and the edges are burnt to buggery and the top hasn't been touched, surely? And do they forget that people sometimes LIKE thick toast instead of the designer's obvious preference for wafer-thin slices. None of the door wedges I cut will FIT in the damn things these days - too thick! What's the take on the stupid temperature contols, too? I mean even though the damn things are fitted with a variable control, it seems like they only have two positions - "Don't Toast" or (Dalek Voice On) "EX-TER-MIN-ATE!". I am fed up with having to hammer the damn smoke detectors to death just because I turned up the toast control by a smidgin in order to try and even up the colour a bit, or even get it to start toasting in the first place! Surely, people must be getting sick of replacing the batteries in smoke alarms? Unbelieveable. I feel like kicking this stupid tin can around the garden to prove a point. Mutter. Grumble. In my day, toasters were made for MEN, not panty-waisted girlies rushing to work in their MPVs. 
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One of the few remaining Mk1 owners...  #00015
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#240847 - 10/11/2004 08:09
Re: Toasters
[Re: schofiel]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 09/08/2000
Posts: 2091
Loc: Edinburgh, Scotland
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Hmm - I have seen some great ones recently...fully adjustable width (up to near doorstop size) and a sensible crispy control (from lightly warmed all the way to black with many gradations in between)
Think Marks & Spencer had one of the better ones, and John Lewis also had a good one.
But what you really want is an Aga - best toast ever, at any size!!!
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Rory
MkIIa, blue lit buttons, memory upgrade, 1Tb in Subaru Forester STi
MkII, 240Gb in Mark Lord dock
MkII, 80Gb SSD in dock
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#240848 - 10/11/2004 08:47
Re: Toasters
[Re: frog51]
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enthusiast
Registered: 06/03/2003
Posts: 269
Loc: Wellingborough, UK
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There was some fuss made over a new toaster about a year ago, I seem to recall. It had an optical sensor that could "see" how brown your toast was. Ah, here it is: http://www.engadget.com/entry/4607362272658138/Regarding thick slices of toast - that feature is known as "wide technology" or "bagel technology". And I thought that software marketeers were bad!
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#240849 - 10/11/2004 10:29
Re: Toasters
[Re: schofiel]
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addict
Registered: 05/05/2000
Posts: 623
Loc: Cambridge
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You need one of these. The slots aren't quite deep enough for really tall slices, but the manual lever makes it easy to pop up the toast, turn it around and put it back down without having to turn it off.
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#240850 - 10/11/2004 11:34
Re: Toasters
[Re: schofiel]
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veteran
Registered: 21/01/2002
Posts: 1380
Loc: Erie, CO
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I gave up on toasters a while ago and bought a toaster oven. I hate the toaster-size bagels they sell at the grocery, and the full-size ones would keep getting stuck in my "full-size bagel toaster". I try to use the toaster oven for things that you would normally microwave like cold pizza, etc. It's great.
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#240851 - 10/11/2004 15:21
Re: Toasters
[Re: David]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 21/05/1999
Posts: 5335
Loc: Cambridge UK
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Quote:
You need one of these. The slots aren't quite deep enough for really tall slices, but the manual lever makes it easy to pop up the toast, turn it around and put it back down without having to turn it off.
The Dualit ejection system is a bit crap - it tends to push the bread on an angle, sometimes causing it to jam.
I've started buying commercial catering equipment these days. You can pick it up online for prices which are often equivalent to or cheaper than domestic equipment, but it is designed to just work - for a long time. Plus, all that stainless steel looks pretty cool!
Rob
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#240852 - 10/11/2004 15:22
Re: Toasters
[Re: schofiel]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/03/2000
Posts: 12338
Loc: Sterling, VA
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That's odd. Maybe there's a difference in European toasters  All the toasters that my family or I have owned have been deep enough. If anything, it's difficult to get the toast out afterwards because it's too deep My problem with toasters is that they seem to be the most problematic kitchen appliance. I think my parents have bought about 10 of them in the 20 years they've lived in their current home. It's springs and heating elements, why would it break so much??
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Matt
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#240853 - 10/11/2004 18:08
Re: Toasters
[Re: rob]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 10/06/1999
Posts: 5916
Loc: Wivenhoe, Essex, UK
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Quote:
The Dualit ejection system is a bit crap
Couldn't agree more, I often end up with squashed bread. It is every worse with scones, tea cakes etc
It is a good job it looks great.
I probably never will need to buy another toaster again anyway, they are built to last (as they should be at the price the cost).
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Remind me to change my signature to something more interesting someday
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#240854 - 10/11/2004 19:27
Re: Toasters
[Re: schofiel]
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member
Registered: 10/09/2004
Posts: 127
Loc: Bay Area, CA/Anchorage, AK
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Quote:
toasters were made for MEN, not panty-waisted girlies rushing to work in their MPVs.
WHAT! You think we panty-waisted girlies rushing to work in their MPVs are any less persnickety about our toast?! My Cuisinart toaster does a fine job re: even toasting, though I have *done* toast faster over a campfire...
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#240855 - 11/11/2004 01:05
Re: Toasters
[Re: mdavey]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/07/1999
Posts: 5549
Loc: Ajijic, Mexico
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"bagel technology"
I just don't get bagels. Must be some fundamental personality flaw or something. To me, a bagel is just a really stale donut with all the good stuff scraped off the outside of it.
tanstaafl.
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"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"
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#240856 - 11/11/2004 01:31
Re: Toasters
[Re: David]
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old hand
Registered: 15/02/2002
Posts: 1049
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I second the Dualit recommendation. I love mine. Completely manual. High quality. Great stuff.
jim
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#240857 - 11/11/2004 01:31
Re: Toasters
[Re: tanstaafl.]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 06/10/1999
Posts: 2591
Loc: Seattle, WA, U.S.A.
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Quote:
I just don't get bagels. Must be some fundamental personality flaw or something. To me, a bagel is just a really stale donut with all the good stuff scraped off the outside of it.
Doug, get help.
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Jim
'Tis the exceptional fellow who lies awake at night thinking of his successes.
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#240858 - 11/11/2004 02:03
Re: Toasters
[Re: tanstaafl.]
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member
Registered: 10/09/2004
Posts: 127
Loc: Bay Area, CA/Anchorage, AK
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Quote:
"bagel technology"
I just don't get bagels. Must be some fundamental personality flaw or something. To me, a bagel is just a really stale donut with all the good stuff scraped off the outside of it.
tanstaafl.
Not even with lox and cream cheese?--'course, you've never had a fresh New York bagel, I suspect...the others tend toward cardboard imitations....
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#240859 - 11/11/2004 03:35
Re: Toasters
[Re: tanstaafl.]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/03/2000
Posts: 12338
Loc: Sterling, VA
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Quote:
"bagel technology"
I just don't get bagels. Must be some fundamental personality flaw or something. To me, a bagel is just a really stale donut with all the good stuff scraped off the outside of it.
tanstaafl.
I hate chewy bagels, but even a plain bagel with cream cheese is like heaven if it's really light.
And for some reason, in my entire area there is no longer any such thing as a good donut. I seem to be the only person I know who absolutely hates Krispy Kreme. Ugh, what crap.
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Matt
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#240860 - 11/11/2004 04:20
Re: Toasters
[Re: Dignan]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 06/10/1999
Posts: 2591
Loc: Seattle, WA, U.S.A.
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Quote:
And for some reason, in my entire area there is no longer any such thing as a good donut. I seem to be the only person I know who absolutely hates Krispy Kreme. Ugh, what crap.
Ugh, what crap!
I was being flip, but I wonder if Doug has any *real* bagels in Fairbanks. Doug?
There are lots of bad bagels and non-bagels out there, but I can't see how anybody who likes breads at all would not like a real, good, fresh bagel. Actually not that easy to find around here. Oh, for the bagel-only bakery in Brookline with the board with all the bulbs -- yellow for "it's coming!", IIRC, and green for "get 'em while they're hot!" The sesame bagels. Speechless.
Oh, on the subject of toasters, I bought one a while ago that is a bit garish, maybe a little unusual, but seems to do the job. It's French, I think (or at least concieved there) A Tefal. Ah, there. It didn't seem like the right moment to blow $200 on a toaster, and this one seems like the best $39 toaster I have had (so far).
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Jim
'Tis the exceptional fellow who lies awake at night thinking of his successes.
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#240861 - 11/11/2004 06:55
Re: Toasters
[Re: jimhogan]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/07/1999
Posts: 5549
Loc: Ajijic, Mexico
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I was being flip, but I wonder if Doug has any *real* bagels in Fairbanks
Well... if bagels really are tasty (tasty? Hell, I'd settle for vaguely edible) then I can only conclude that the concept hasn't reached Fairbanks yet.
If I'm going to eat some toroidal-shaped object, I'd just as soon it be soft with chocolate frosting and maybe some coconut sprinkles on the outside.
tanstaafl.
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"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"
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#240862 - 11/11/2004 11:09
Re: Toasters
[Re: Dignan]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 14/01/2002
Posts: 2858
Loc: Atlanta, GA
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Quote:
I seem to be the only person I know who absolutely hates Krispy Kreme.
I think this has been covered here before, but I hate Krispy Kreme as well. Just because something has a lot of surgar doesn't make it better.
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-Jeff
Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings; they did it by killing all those who opposed them.
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#240863 - 11/11/2004 11:52
Re: Toasters
[Re: Dignan]
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old hand
Registered: 27/02/2003
Posts: 777
Loc: Washington, DC metro
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Quote:
I seem to be the only person I know who absolutely hates Krispy Kreme. Ugh, what crap.
Most of them are. The only ones that count are Hot Now. Mmm.
I spent way too much time at my brother's old condo, two blocks from one of the older Krispy Kremes, where we could see Hot Now light up from his deck. 
-jk
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#240864 - 11/11/2004 12:43
Re: Toasters
[Re: JeffS]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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I wouldn't be surprised if the new ones that opened during their big push are just not the same as the ones that have been around for fifty years. The one in Raleigh is one of the oldest ones still in operation.
That being said, I don't really like doughnuts at all, regardless of where they're from. I will say that I find Krispy Kremes edible whereas Dunkin Donuts are awful.
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Bitt Faulk
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#240865 - 11/11/2004 13:33
Re: Toasters
[Re: jimhogan]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 21/05/1999
Posts: 5335
Loc: Cambridge UK
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Quote:
Oh, on the subject of toasters, I bought one a while ago that is a bit garish, maybe a little unusual, but seems to do the job. It's French, I think (or at least concieved there) A Tefal. Ah, there. It didn't seem like the right moment to blow $200 on a toaster, and this one seems like the best $39 toaster I have had (so far).
That's a pretty standard European toaster. I suspect it's the general type of toaster Rob is complaining about, although I have one (no longer in use) and it did its job as far as I can remember. I don't get that worked up about toast though.
Rob
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#240866 - 11/11/2004 15:17
Re: Toasters
[Re: rob]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 06/10/1999
Posts: 2591
Loc: Seattle, WA, U.S.A.
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Quote:
I suspect it's the general type of toaster Rob is complaining about
I was just sandbagging him. An opportunity for him to come back with "Why you *ignorant* Corvette-driving colonial! That is precisely what I'm talking about!"
Quote:
, although I have one (no longer in use) and it did its job as far as I can remember. I don't get that worked up about toast though.
This one does a much better job on crumpets and ("English") muffins than other domestic cheapos I have had. But I don't get that worked up either.
That fancy one that David pointed out looked nice, but it's metric. And I hope their toasters are better than their ASP! I have seen lots of small appliances in Europe that I have wanted to bring home. But 220.
Edited by jimhogan (11/11/2004 15:18)
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Jim
'Tis the exceptional fellow who lies awake at night thinking of his successes.
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#240867 - 12/11/2004 00:56
Re: Toasters
[Re: jimhogan]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 20/01/2002
Posts: 2085
Loc: New Orleans, LA
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I've always preffered Toaster Ovens. 4 slices, crap doesn't fall off your sandwich, can warm pizza, etc. Oh, and it toasts well, too.
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#240868 - 12/11/2004 01:11
Re: Toasters
[Re: lectric]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 30/10/2000
Posts: 4931
Loc: New Jersey, USA
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Quote:
I've always preffered Toaster Ovens.
I recenetly bought this. Although it's a bit flimsy (what do you expect for $50 and WalMart exclusive), the rotisserie is awesome. So far roast beef and cornish hens were cooked in it, and both came out awesome. It takes about 6-7 minutes to cook toast, but the ability to toast bread and rotisserie-cook meats in one device is worth it to me. Counter-space is at a premium and if it's not out on the counter, it's not going to get used.
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-Rob Riccardelli
80GB 16MB MK2 090000736
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#240869 - 12/11/2004 14:52
Re: Toasters
[Re: jimhogan]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/06/1999
Posts: 2993
Loc: Wareham, Dorset, UK
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Well, this is the one my Mum and Dad got as a present recently, and their opinion (and I confess mine too after using it) - NO GOOD.
It has the same problem with the size of the bread, and whilst it has nice features (like - eerrrrrrrr - "Emergency Stop". Eh?) if it doesn't toast the top corner of the slice, then it's still a paperweight.
Damn, I thought you had the solution for a minute.
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One of the few remaining Mk1 owners... #00015
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#240870 - 12/11/2004 15:45
Re: Toasters - even more OT
[Re: schofiel]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 24/01/2002
Posts: 3937
Loc: Providence, RI
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Every time I see this thread I keep thinking it's about, um, switching teams.
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#240871 - 12/11/2004 17:17
Re: Toasters - even more OT
[Re: Daria]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/03/2000
Posts: 12338
Loc: Sterling, VA
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I guess that's a slang I've never heard before
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Matt
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#240872 - 14/11/2004 06:12
Re: Toasters - even more OT
[Re: Dignan]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 27/02/2004
Posts: 1914
Loc: London
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Dualit, excellent machine, all the bits are replaceable, nice wide slots, can't go wrong
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