William:
It's too bad your father feels the way he does. Vintage appliances are not only fun and cool, they're CHEAP.
I recently bagged a General Electric range from 1972, the Model J 370. It's a 30-inch range, only one model away from the top-of-the-line. It has a lighted control panel, P*7 self-cleaning, an automatically timed oven and an automatically timed convenience outlet. There is a Sensi-Temp burner that is thermostatically controlled like an electric skillet; you dial a temperature and the burner will not exceed it. That same burner also has Coil Select; you can set the burner so that only 4 inches, or six inches or eight inches of its surface will heat, maximizing efficiency with smaller pieces of cookware. There is also a griddle that fits on the Sensi-Temp burner; you need never worry about burning pancakes, bacon and the like. Many of these features are not available on today's ranges, at any price.
Cost? Fifty dollars, and every single thing on it works. It is all porcelain outside; there is NOTHING painted on its exterior.
My Maytag 806 pair (1968) was all of $75. The KitchenAid KDS-55 dishwasher (1966) was free. My Amana RR-4D microwave (1974) was $6. My Singer Touch-Tronic 2001 sewing machine (1978) was $130, in the top-of-the-iine Flip 'n Sew cabinet.
Yes, I've put some money, time and expertise into repairing certain things on a couple of appliances, but nothing like what it would cost to buy new stuff. And nothing new comes close to the quality I have.
So, while I respect your dad's preference, I also hope that one day he'll be in someone's house and see vintage appliances doing their job - safely, effectively and economically. Maybe the light bulb will go on over his head!
P.S.: The photo below is my "new" range. Now I ask you - does that LOOK like an old, broken-down piece of crap?
