Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

When my present (old) toaster gave up the ghost I nearly- very nearly - found myself weighing up the merits of the various current models on offer in my local Tesco. However, having come to my senses, a brief dalliance online was enough to net myself something a little sturdier in the shape of a nice old Swan model, 'untested' for a tenner. Not a lot to go wrong with these! Once the original fossilized mains cable and round-pin plug had been replaced with a more modern arrangement, it was up and running for the first time in many years I should think.

The modern flex is only a temporary arrangement- although I've struggled to find the traditional black/white flecked 'iron' flex in local hardware shops in recent years. I wonder if it's now extinct?

Steve

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Needs autoreverse!

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

I have one (possibly two) of these, and the slice of bread should slide down onto the flap when it's lowered so that it's the other way up when raised - thus achieving the desired auto-reverse.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

If I had that Steve I would be using it , these modern toasters are useless ,take to long dry the bread out make horrid toast . I have resorted to using the grill on my oven .Mick.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

"Having come to my senses" :laugh1: Great Steve! I showed this thread to my [actually very tolerant] wife and said "You think you've got problems with me"8-\ I imagine the toast will be of a very high quality!

Dave

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Several on line vendors offer newly manufactured but vintage style flex, primarily for lighting, but also suitable for other appliances of modest loading.
Often 2 core, but 3 core can be found.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Proper toast! I recently got some black with white fleckd flex online for SHMBOs iron.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Excellent, thanks for the tips on sourcing flex. And yes Dave, the toast is superior! And it's quick too.

The one thing to watch with these toasters is that you don't forget and leave them switched on. I dread driving halfway to work and thinking 'did I turn that off?' There's no cut-out or protection at all, so you'd have a nice little half-kilowatt convector heater running all day. I'm sure that must have happened quite a lot when these were current. Having said that, they are all-metal, so there's nothing really to melt or catch fire.

I believe these non-automatic toasters were in production right up to the mid sixties as cheap entry-level models. I'm not sure when the first UK pop-up toaster appeared. 1950s I guess? I bet someone on here will know.


Steve

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

let's be honest. Fun but now considered very dangerous! John.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

At least the "dangerous" wires glow red, what twit would touch them? I have looked at my current pop up toaster and I can very easily touch the elements when it is on.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

I have no connection with the seller other than as a satisfied customer. Will this meet your requirements?

https://www.creative-cables.co.uk/la...595001188.html

Colin

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

That brings back memories from my childhood. We had one of those - precisely like that. It was used every day, and eventually the element packed in, probably in the very early 70s.

But my Mum found that the local hardware shop - a real Arkwright's - still had an element stashed away, so my Dad fixed it.

So the toaster lived on. I have no idea what ever became of it.

I do remember that it needed attention, peering in through the slots on the top, to ensure that it was toast and not a cinder, which could happen really quick.

Craig

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Fascinating: lovely but frightening in equal amounts. I admire your courage in wanting to use it on a regular basis. My grandparents had something similar in their 'sixties house though I think the 'chassis' of their one was grey vitreous-enamelled cast iron. It was powered from a 2-pin 15A socket, and sat on the Formica worktop right next to their [presumably earthed] kitchen-range.

[I never liked the toast it produced: it toasted far too quickly so the bread was burned-on-the-outside but still soft and damp inside. I prefer toast slow-cooked so it can properly dry-out and gets crispness-all-the-way-through]

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Perfect, thanks Colin :thumbsup:

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

As a toast connisseur, I would have to be honest and mark it down for it's uneven toasting- the bread is nearer the elements at the top as it leans inward. I've discovered that you know when the toast is done as the smoke comes out from the slots on the top :o

Steve

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

I think the difficulty is finding appropriate three-core flex with small enough overall cross-section. When I replaced the original two-core with three-core on mine, I found the flex a bit too fat to fit comfortably. With that amount of metalwork in close proximity to the elements, I wasn't willing to run it unearthed - as it would have been back in the day.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

That's very true, Dave. The original cable is quite a thin 3-core.

Steve

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

At least yours is three-core. Mine was two-core.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

You can get 3- and 4-core 0.75mm 'high temperature' flex [white rubber sheathed] from places that do central-heating supplies, where it's used for wiring diverter-valves. Rated for 150C continuous - I'd be happier using that on a toaster than any rubber- or plastic-insulated flex.

To make it look vintage, cut the ends off a long walking-boot-lace, pull the inner cords out and slip the resultant braided sleeve over your flex.

I've done this in the past to make up 'vintage-looking' headphone/microphone-leads for WWII military radios. You can even get 'speckled' bootlaces if you want added authenticity.

Re: Crumbs! Toast the vintage way
 

Any fan of vintage toasting should see this (bear with the light-hearted presentation for a while!).

https://youtu.be/1OfxlSG6q5Y