Our First Microwave Oven

[locknut]

Parents bought a 'Hitachi MR-6450 Auto Sensor' microwave back in the early-mid 80s, around 1984 maybe? They used it for many years, and mam kept it like new, until she decided she wanted a smaller one... that's where I took on ownership, to replace the tiny one I had.

It's still going strong, only failure it's had is the turntable motor, where the gearbox had elongated one of the gearwheel holes in the casing.

[dglcomp]

First I can remember was a Moulinex Quickchef 600, that ended up with my Auntie for a bit as we acquired a larger Sharp Carousel, had the plug fail iirc and it needed new bulbs at some point but that was it. Got replaced in the 00's? with a modern Sharp all-in-one that our next door neighbour was getting rid of.

[Richard_FM]

My family had a Toshiba oven from the Norweb shop in Stockport in 1986, which lasted until 2007 when my parents did up the kitchen & had a newer microwave built.

It was stored for a year & I had hoped to take it with me when I moved out, but it didn't want to work when it brought out of storage & tested!

[Paul_RK]

We've yet to own one of any kind, but the very best sounding radio I possess, a Proton 300, looks as though it wishes it were one. It needs to be an exceptional performer to be forgiven for looking like this.

Paul

[ITAM805]

I have my old Mum's Sharp from about 1980, and it's still in daily use, it has a mechanical timer and dings a bell when it's done. It's never needed servicing so why change it

[HG MICKE]

Still using daily a Zanussi MW500 that is 40+ years old and made in USA, not exactly efficient by todays standards 1000W in 500W out but it still does the job. Only had to relace the light bulb once also one failure had to change the rectifier and fuse.

Colin

[Graham G3ZVT]

I think in about 1990 they changed the way that microwave oven output power is measured. Consequently, your appliance gained some Wattage (on paper).

[LukeG83]

My Tricity microwave from the late 1970s is still in daily use.

[dglcomp]

Interestingly the Sharp carousel models use 120V lamps for illuminating the interior, with two of them in series. A few years ago (would have been 2007 at the earliest) I remember going into our local repair shop and seeing if he could get a replacement bulb for ours and knew exactly what I meant when I described it and a week or so later he got in a genuine sharp replacement!

[kirstyd]

my 20 year old belling microwave packed up last week [blowing it fuse] before i chucked it i thought i would have a quick look .After ten mins poking about i found one of the three microswitched operated by closing the door was stuck in the on position .fitted a new one and it up and running .Lets hope its ok for another 29 years

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by dglcomp

Interestingly the Sharp carousel models use 120V lamps for illuminating the interior, with two of them in series. A few years ago (would have been 2007 at the earliest) I remember going into our local repair shop and seeing if he could get a replacement bulb for ours and knew exactly what I meant when I described it and a week or so later he got in a genuine sharp replacement!

I was working at a place doing repairs on behalf of Domestic & General.
Believe it or not, we wrote off a newish microwave because I couldn't source a replacement 120v lamp!
I don't remember it being a Sharp though. Tefal perhaps, or maybe Breville?

There was a whole range of Sharps that suffered from poor bonding of the flexible ribbon cable to the LCD display.

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by kirstyd

my 20 year old belling microwave packed up last week [blowing it fuse] before i chucked it i thought i would have a quick look .After ten mins poking about i found one of the three microswitched operated by closing the door was stuck in the on position .fitted a new one and it up and running .Lets hope its ok for another 29 years

Yes, that door interlock microswitch arrangement became universal, and is designed to crowbar the mains, thus blowing the fuse (and probably the plug fuse and MCB too), if it operates out of sequence.

[electronicskip]

Our first microwave was a plustron bought in about 1983 from Rumbelows where I worked at the time.
It was pretty basic and didn't even have a turntable and we got a free microwave cooking set with it!

[Brigham]

Originally Posted by vidjoman

My first was a Moffat, supplied in the UK by Thorn, but made in the USA. No turntable but a stirrer fan in the feed at the top of the oven...

I obtained one of these second-hand from the original owner, when she finally updated to one of the 'new-fangled' ones. Domestic microwave ovens were rarer than BBC2 in those early days.
It had a delightful little bell sound to remind you when it was running. I used it for years, until the metalwork of the cabinet became too corroded. Even then, I still hung onto it, with a view to making a gun out of it.
I never did get around to that project, although I did mould some beeswax lenses...

[G6Tanuki]

A Microwave-related memory: in the mid-80s I got a gig at a large nuclear-facility in Cheshire, and bought a house nearby. To defray the costs I rented the top floor [what had been servant's quarters] to a young couple who were looking to move to the area .

At the time I was a newly-licensed G6 ham and so had a few 2M receivers in my part of the house, the car etc, which included one usually tuned to the GB3HH "Harpur Hill" repeater in Derbyshire, which came in with a stonking great signal.

On occasions, even though I knew all my receivers were off, I cound hear CW sending "HH" in the distant background.

Turned out the tenants had a Siemens microwave that sent .... .... as its signal that the cooking was complete!

The mystery was solved, I was not going mad after all.

[At the end of my year's Cheshire contract when I moved back to South Oxfordshire I sold the house to the tenants - at a profit - and without the need for estate-agents fees etc - though I never did get round to recovering the 2M beam and collinear from the chimney].

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by electronicskip

Our first microwave was a plustron bought in about 1983 from Rumbelows where I worked at the time.
It was pretty basic and didn't even have a turntable and we got a free microwave cooking set with it!

I wrote about the Plustron in a recent thread

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...25#post1570325

was it the same model? I regarded ours as quite sophisticated for the time.

[thermion]

My first encounter with a microwave was in the early 80’s. They had one in simon engineering canteen for nightshift to warm up meals from a vending machine.
Of course us apprentices had to have a go at it not realising how fast it was. It could turn a burger into a smouldering lump of charcoal the size of a 50p after 20 mins on full power.
It was the size of a laundrette washing machine with a tiny little door. It was over 40years ago. All gone now. Light industrial units on the site. Making me feel old reminiscing like this

[JonSnell]

Our first microwave was a Toshiba as well, bought it from Debenhams Electrical back in 1980, when it failed many years later, I bought a Philips Showerwave,with no turntable. Wonderful machine.
As a Sharp Microwave authorised repair agency, I had a job sent to be by Sharp, to attend an address in Bournemouth on their behalf.
The complaint was, "Hand gets hot inserting food into the microwave".
Well, I was astonished, it was located in a chip shop and there were eight of them in a row on a shelf above the fryers on the rear wall.
All had the glass/plastic front windows removed, the mechanical timers were gaffer taped on permanantly and the staff were inserting pies/withdrawing them as the microwave was powered on!
I refused to service them, offered my advice and drove back to my workshop where I contacted the Sharp warranty claims department and enlightened them on my findings.
I got call out and time on site paid.

[Nickthedentist]

Darwin Award for them!

[CambridgeWorks]

Our first microwave was a Sharp, bought secondhand from my former boss for £50 around 1978.
Mechanical timer and bell.
Never been without one since back then.

About 15 to 20 years ago my daughter bought me a set of 3 plate warmers as she was fed up with my repeatedly putting plates of food in the microwave once dished up, so we all had hot food together.
The most used Christmas present ever!
I think they all have just the one ring tab left now.
Work extremely well and with just my wife and I we use them every time we have a hot meal, leaving them under the plate whilst eating.
I did crack a plate once by getting it too hot.
These:
https://www.lakeland.co.uk/13008/mic...-plate-warmers

Cheaper types available.
Rob