Wowee 1950's Lifetime SS Cookware is Boss

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jetcone

jetcone

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Just got my "new" Lifetime SS pressure cooker. It weighs a ton! 16 pounds.

I'd say its early 1950's as it matches my other Lifetime cookware from the same era that is also SS.

All this 1950's Lifetime ware is magnetic so it all works on my induction cooktop too !

 

Just cleaned it up today. She was a grimy cook !

 

I bought these 1950's pieces as larks but now that I am using them they are fast becoming some of my favorite day to day cookware!

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Lifetime!

Is GREAT cookware, Dinah Shore used to advertise it.All that door to door stuff made back then was wonderful, and a lot of it still is, Townecraft, Aristo Craft, Vita Craft, Permanent,Wear Ever, Health Craft. and ON and ON.....
 
Jon that is such an amazing pressure cooker!  I had no idea

that Lifetime was being made that long ago!  I have a set of

Lifetime pots that my Mom bought from a door to door sales

lady in the 1980's.  She never used them that much so I took

them when I moved out in 1985.  I love the set and it is true,

they do last a Lifetime!  The pots and even the handles look brand

new.  The set I have have been used on electric, gas and now Induction.

Great find you have there!  It is beautiful!

 
 
All those door to door cookware brands..

Are wonderful, if terribly expensive, I still think they are worth the cost if you really cook, everyone is going nuts over All Clad, but to me, its no where near as good as any of these door to door brands, I have a set of Aristo Craft from the late 50s and its great.
 
From Greg's post I followed the link to the Saladmaster website. Interesting that they are still around. Annette's mother has a full set of the all aluminum Saladmaster cookware from the 50's.

Of course being a door to door sales company they don't state pricing. I have a hunch that it is sky high. They go on and on about all the advantages of 316Ti stainless interior. Apparently they think they can fool people into thinking that alloying a little Titanium into 316 stainless makes it better suited for cookware. Unless you get your cookware to 900 deg F on a regular basis the added Ti is really just a marketing advantage.
 
I have a complete set of Salad Master cookware at the beach place, from wife's grandmother. It took some learning how to use it. It is slow to heat up but retains the heat and much lower cooking temperatures. I check the website and they show that if you ever have a problem with them, to return and they will correct or replace the item. They even offer a service, send them the pots and pans they will clean and polish and replace handles and knobs and they will look new again. Don't know that the price for that would be, but these are going on 2nd generation and they still look like new. I think a great deal for the money originally spent.

Jon
 
NOTE!!!!The Titanium will withstand LESS heat than the SS part of the pot.Note that jet engine/gas turbine blades are ALWAYS made from high grade STEEL-not Titanium.Titanium is for jet engine-gas turbine FAN& COMPRESSOR blades!Titanium will soften when exposed to 900 degree heat.
 
Rex,

The new Saladmaster cookware doesn't have a Titanium lining. It is lined with 316Ti alloy stainless steel which is simply 316 stainless with a bit of added Titanium to improve its properties. The only real improvement is corrosion resistance at temperatures FAR above anything cookware would encounter. It is pure marketing, like a "Titanium" MasterCard. If it is Titanium, it has to be good...

In any case, the strength of the metal from which cookware is made is a moot point as it isn't ever stressed nor does it ever see temperatures over about 500F or so. Aluminum is weaker and has much lower hot strength but makes fine cookware :)

Please forgive the offtopic rambling
 
That maybe all true Phil

but I find the finish in these direct market pans to be of a much higher standard - they tout "surgical steel" wether thats true or not -  in reality they are so well polished that they are non stick if you use them as directed - "medium to low; is all ya need to know". And nothing ever sticks , and they clean up better than non stick cookware.

 

So there is something to be said for the higher price point. Once I got my pans and started using them, I gave away my All Clad. No comparison.

 
 
Jon,

I'm not saying that Saladmaster doesn't make a great product, or that they don't provide excellent service etc. They may even be a good value, but without jumping through hoops I don't know the pricing. To me that says "beware"...

The 316Ti thing is a second beware in my mind too. Its more justification of potential over pricing. Sell the product based on quality and service you offer, not on spurious buzz words that mean nothing.

It's a lot like the Titanium Nitride coated gold drill bits that you see at all the home stores. Making cheap Chinese drills pretty with a super thin layer of Titanium doesn't make them a good drill but it sure helps market them to the unknowing...
 
All of

The cookware sold door to door or at parties like Tupperware, is extremely high quality, I have a piece of Cordon Bleu I bought at the goodwill,believe it or not, and it is 7 ply, it cooks perfectly even ,about all of these brands are made by either Regal or West Bend, and they stand by their products, Ron Jones had some 1950s Vita Craft that needed handles, they sent them no charge, not only did they have the parts, but they stood by the guarantee over 60 years later!Doesent matter which brand you get, Saladmaster, TowneCraft,Vita Craft etc, they are all good, no way they could sell them at the high prices they charge and stay in business if they were not better than just about anything.
 
I have some AllClad pans I bought from Belks years ago-work fine for me.Never seen DTD cookware-Did fall for a Cutco DTD knife/utensil salesman-best kitchen tools I have-they were worth it.
 
Phil I didn't think you were

I was just adding that sometimes the higher price does mean higher quality. But saying that I would never buy these items new, used on ebay or estate sales they are a steal!

They hardly wear out, you can still get parts for them and they still perform in a superior way.

 

Yes I agree just slapping some titanium on a drill doesn't make it a good drill at all !

 

Now I do buy Cutco direct from little cut Cutco College Boy. He delivers !! 

 

I know Greg is notorious for buying broken Cutco at estate sales and getting it replaced with NIB pieces. I never see it at estate sales here.

 

 

 
 
same with West Bend's TOL brands...

like Lustre Craft Waterless, now owned by Regal. I was furious when SWMBO bought a complete set from a door-to-door salesman, just prior to our marriage in 1971. It was priced at something like $350, a great deal of $$$ for still-in-college soon-to-be newlyweds in '71, and I was absolutely livid! 45 yrs on, I have to admit it was one of the best things we've ever bought. Over they years they've replaced several handles and knobs, and once a complete saucepan when it fell down the basement stairs and broke the spot welds on the handle mounting flange. You get what you pay for!
 
I sat through a Salad Master demonstration

At the Wichita Home show a few years ago.  I was quite impressed, but knew they were expensive just from the fact that the presenter refused to disclose the price until the end of the presentation.

 

When he finally passed around the "confidential price sheet" I just about died on the spot.  $7,995.  BTW--you had to sign a purchase agreement or decline before you were allowed to leave the area, and you had to give the "confidential price sheet" back to the presenter before you were allowed out of the roped area.

 

You know I am just so derned happy with my Calphalon Tri-ply.  But I do think I will eventually pick up a few pieces of All-Clad to complement my cookware.  I can add a lot of accessory items and still not spend almost eight grand.
 
I am TOTALLY on board with the "Buy the best and you only cry once" or that "The pain of poor quality long outlives the joy of low price". I am willing to pay $$$ to buy something once and have something quality that lasts. Look at the tools I buy or the electronic test gear I own...

BUT...

If that price Harley stated for a Saladmaster cookware set is even close to true, then we are dealing with an ALL FIRED massive RIP-OFF. It is totally clear why they won't disclose their price. Also why they feel the need to try to drum up fake awesomeness based on the idea there is Titanium in their product.

I'm not saying that their product isn't quality, or that service after the sale isn't exemplary. For that price I'd expect to get replacement parts for my life and have them make a house call to install and polish it!

High end All-Clad, Cuisinart or whatever isn't all that far behind anything else from a quality standpoint. And if it is available for 1/8th the price, it is the true bargain... There are costs that are justifiable and costs that aren't. There is simply no way that the Saladmaster product is that much better then the mundane stuff where they aren't afraid to disclose the pricing.
 
I did not exagerate.

And I'm not lying.  So I can assure you it was the "truth" at the time I was sitting there.

 

I was there.  Now you could have gotten the starter or "Personal"  set for $2,995.  I believe it was a six piece set.  The $7,995 set was the gourmet set. 

 

If you needed a payment plan, then you made your down payment there, and then made your monthly payments for 24-36 months.  They would ship your order to you after your payments were complete.

 

Here is the professional set on Ebay, at Ebay prices, they state the Retail is $4,600.   The Gourmet set also included the bakeware.   

 

At the home show you did get the food grinder, hand cranked food processor, for free if you ordered then.  You could also purchase the electric skillet for 1/2 price at the time of order.  

 

 

 

[this post was last edited: 1/14/2016-16:20]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-PROFESS...287624?hash=item25b4b0fbc8:g:RjQAAOSwoydWlaR6
 
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Polyamourous Cookware Lovin

There are differences between the brand names of the D-T-D cookware.  Some are heavier weight than others, edge or lip of the pans, lids are different shapes and vented/non-vented, etc.  It's best to shop around at Goodwill, estate sales and the like to find pieces or entire sets and try them all on for size.  Different shapes, handles, weights all play into the cookware, each cook prefers something different for reasons all their own.  My mother bought a set of Wonder Ware (Regal) along with a set of Cutco knives when she married in '65 and still has them all.  Several warranty replacements of lid knobs and sharpening/replacements of knives is all that she's needed.  That said, she's likely to fight for her Revere 1-1/2 qt. saucepan and lid among a few other oddball pieces that she compliments the WonderWare with.  

 

I have various pieces of Queen (Amway) and Seal-O-Matic that I enjoy using right along side my All-Clad and Kirkland Signature 5 ply as well.   I don't think I'll ever let my 4 quart All-Clad saucepan or non-stick skillet get too far away and I'm growing to love my All-Clad 2  quart "everyday" pan just as much.
 

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