Blender Design Question
 

Our first blender was one my parents bought in the '50s - a Waring.
My wife and I received an Oster as a wedding present in 1969 - it
still works fine (and, parts are still available), tho' the color is
Avocado (ugh). We bought a KitchenAid around 8 years ago, and the
clutch coupler failed on it recently, and lo' and behold, the part is
no longer available. The blender's in perfect condition otherwise,
now it's off to the trash because of the unavailability of the part.

So, here's my question: why so few blenders use the metal to metal
drive system as does Waring, Oster, and VitaMix. Is it a patent
question? One would think that since the patents on the Waring and
Oster designs should have expired long ago, this wouldn't be the
reason. Or, is it simply cost?

Sometimes I think it's better to find an older blender from the '50s,
'60s, or 70s on eBay that's in good shape rather than buying a new
one! Sure, the old one won't have sophisticated CPU control systems,
etc., but I really wonder about the reliability of ANY new small
appliance compared to those built much earlier.

Blender Design Question
 

On Sat, 22 Mar 2008 16:20:40 -0700 (PDT), Don > wrote:

> We bought a KitchenAid around 8 years ago, and the
>clutch coupler failed on it recently, and lo' and behold, the part is
>no longer available. The blender's in perfect condition otherwise,
>now it's off to the trash because of the unavailability of the part.

I had a KitchenAid that died and the model had changed and parts were no
longer available. So they sold me a new refurbished model for a very
reasonable amount.

Don <www.donwiss.com> (e-mail link at home page bottom).

Blender Design Question
 

On Sat 22 Mar 2008 04:20:40p, Don told us...

> Our first blender was one my parents bought in the '50s - a Waring.
> My wife and I received an Oster as a wedding present in 1969 - it
> still works fine (and, parts are still available), tho' the color is
> Avocado (ugh). We bought a KitchenAid around 8 years ago, and the
> clutch coupler failed on it recently, and lo' and behold, the part is
> no longer available. The blender's in perfect condition otherwise,
> now it's off to the trash because of the unavailability of the part.
>
> So, here's my question: why so few blenders use the metal to metal
> drive system as does Waring, Oster, and VitaMix. Is it a patent
> question? One would think that since the patents on the Waring and
> Oster designs should have expired long ago, this wouldn't be the
> reason. Or, is it simply cost?
>
> Sometimes I think it's better to find an older blender from the '50s,
> '60s, or 70s on eBay that's in good shape rather than buying a new
> one! Sure, the old one won't have sophisticated CPU control systems,
> etc., but I really wonder about the reliability of ANY new small
> appliance compared to those built much earlier.

I'm still using my Oster Galaxie 10 from the mid-1960s with all the
original parts, and still love it. I put in it the pantry for a year or so
when I bought a Vita-Mix, but became disenchanted with the Vita-Mix because
the blender container (at least those at that time) could not be
disassembled, nor could it go in the dishwasher. I gave it away and pulled
the Oster back out of the pantry. :-) I will probably die before it does.

I am *not* impressed with the current generation of blenders, either in
design, weight, or function.

--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Saturday, 03(III)/22(XXII)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
Countdown till Memorial Day
9wks 1dys 2hrs 25mins
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I went on a 30-day diet - and lost 30 days!
-------------------------------------------

Blender Design Question
 

Don > wrote:

:So, here's my question: why so few blenders use the metal to metal
:drive system as does Waring, Oster, and VitaMix. Is it a patent
:question? One would think that since the patents on the Waring and
:Oster designs should have expired long ago, this wouldn't be the
:reason. Or, is it simply cost?

I don't know about blenders in particular, but in many cases it's
costs. The selection process for these things is, in many cases,
going to the store, and buying the cheapest one. So if it costs 16
cents more to make a widget that lasts forever than it does to make
one that lasts a year, they'll make the widget that lasts a year,
because that's what people buy. You might also look up what those
blenders from the 60s cost when they were new, and work out what that
is in today's dollars. I recently saw a Sears tool catalog from the
early 60s. The prices were astoundingly high. The lowest priced
circular saw, for instance, cost more in 196mumble than it did in
2008. Not in inflated dollars, mind you, but in actual ones. the
price in 196x was about $45. Sears had one for less than $40 when I
looked at the website. I've no doubt that the one from the 60s is a
much better tool, and is probably still working. I suspect if you
spent what fraction of a week's pay $40 represented on a tool then on
one today, you'd get one as good.