Amana Radarange

[rp2813]

Sandy, I'm with you. I've been defending my 27 year old Panasonic NE7720 because my partner wants a new microwave that matches the more modern appliances in our kitchen. I love my Panasonic for the same reason you love the RR you're seeking: it has dials, not touchpads. Just crank and go. I hope I never have to buy a microwave with a touchpad. Came close to agreeing to a brand new Panasonic that has a knob that cranks around like a dial but the display is still digital. A compromise I'll make if I have to, but for now the NE7720 is doing fine. I just need to get it a new belt for the turntable. It also has a temperature probe which apparently is a feature that has been dropped by manufacturers since I haven't seen any connection for a probe inside the cavities of current models.

I received my Panasonic as a Xmas gift from my parents back in 1980. I wanted a RR and went back to the dealer to see about an exchange but he talked me out of the RR and told me how great the Panasonics were. I still like the look of the RR but have to say this Panasonic has lasted longer than I ever expected. I think I've only seen one or two RR's out there like the one you want. They must not turn up very often.

Good luck and I urge all touchpad haters to keep up their boycotts!

 

[danemodsandy]

Ralph:

I'm not so much against touchpads, as I am against cheap, unreliable electronics and poor parts availability that can only be the products of a "planned obsolescence" mentality. Electronics have to be pretty high-grade to be reliable, particularly when the controls they replace were mechanical timers capable of performing for twenty or thirty years.

Shoddy electronics are not permitted in airplanes. In automobiles, they have been made reasonably reliable after a shaky start (there were some horror stories in the late '70s). Why on earth can't appliance manufacturers do the same? And why is the use of electronics a licence to drop parts within all too few years, facing the consumer with the dread "NLA" at the parts counter and forcing him to buy a new appliance?

Electronics- in and of themselves- are not necessarily a bad thing. But human nature has seen to it that they're used in appliances in ways that give the consumer a raw deal. Even the best manufacturers have succumbed to the temptation of replacing quality and substance with "features" nobody really needs made possible only by cheap control boards.

If touchpads were backed up with robust design- not just their own, but in all systems of major appliances- I wouldn't have so many objections. But I refuse to spend hard-earned money on anything that will perform a hundred and one tricks NOW- and none at all in a few years, because there was no quality behind the whiz-bang features controlled by cheap electronics. I had a TOL full-size Sanyo microwave die after only three years like this. Repair costs were going to be more than I paid for the unit. Too bad, because it was a very nice and convenient unit to use.

 

[hydralique]

Keep Your Old Panasonic . . .

I have a big and rather attractive three year old stainless steel Panasonic microwave. For years I liked Panasonic stuff because it always seemed well made . . . however the last two Panasonic appliances I've had have been no better than average. The microwave door catch broke after less than two years of use by adults only. In the door assembly there is a tiny ballpoint-pen like coil spring in tension which loads the catch, with one end being on the catch and the other held by a tiny, tiny molded plastic arm sticking out from the inside of the door molding. It just snapped off for no reason. I was able to repair it by drilling a hole in the bottom of the door and using a nylon bolt from an aquarium hood to hold the spring end. For most people, though, the whole micowave would have been on the curb and it profoundly annoyed me to have to fix such a new and never abused appliance. The other Panasonic appliance I've had recently was a breadmaker that lasted two years and then just died. It seems clear to me that the new Panasonic appliances are nowhere nearly as well made as their old bulletproof stuff.

 

[volvoguy87]

RR-10

I use a 1980 RadarRange RR-10 every day. My housemates used to have a POS new "Westinghouse" that, aside from being junk, couldn't perform its tasks reliably. It never heated anything up right, it either incinerated things, or left them cold with nothing in between.
The old Radar Range is consistent in its perfection. It is a touchmatic, but unlike the new microwaves, the buttons on the chrome monster are smooth glass, easy to clean, and you barely have to touch them at all. The food comes out of the Amana just right every time, and if it breaks it will be fixed. A new microwave can be had for $40.00 but considering its performance, that would be a ripoff.

They just had it right the first time,
Dave

 

[brisnat81]

Old Panasonic is as strong as the RR

Various members of family have between them 5 panasonic Microwaves with Digital controls.

The oldest was bought in 1979 and the newest in 1985.

I've offered to replace my mothers (Purchased in 1984) with a new combination microwave/convection, but she wont have a bar of it.

2 of the 5 have sensor cooking which even at that early stage works great.

The only replacements have been light globes every 2-3 years, otherwise they're all original. Its the design of the electronics that causes failure, rather than the fact that its electronic itself. A good electronic microwave can easily last the 25-30 years.

I spoke to the service agent about having the door seals tested for leakage, and his advice was that the panasonic design was that good, that unless there was a gap between the door and the cabinet, or the door had sagged by more than 5mm then not to bother because they as a rule are always fine.

I've got my eye on a new Panasonic Combination convection/microwave, however I need our horrible LG to fail first.

 

[petek]

Speaking of lighbulbs the one inside our GE is still the original bulb after 22 years of daily use.