6 ms·

At the risk of sounding like a salesperson, I'd like to mention a feature of basic/classic Dualit toasters - namely, the optional and elegantly simple sandwich

At the risk of sounding like a salesperson, I'd like to mention a feature of basic/classic Dualit toasters - namely, the optional and elegantly simple sandwich cage. [1] The cage is designed to take two slices of bread with a filling (in my usage, always heavy on the cheese). You put this into the toaster slot, which is vertical, and safely make cheese/whatever toasties. So, your 12-year-old had the right idea, but not the right toaster. FWIW, and now going full salesperson, Dualit toasters are low-tech and minimalist. The timer is clockwork. There is no automatic pop-up function; you can depress a lever to raise the toast during cooking to check its colour, if you like. All parts are serviceable/replaceable. I've had my bog-standard Dualit (plus two cages) for 20+ years, and so far I've not had to replace even a heating element; and this with usage at least five days a week. [1] https://www.dualit.com/products/original-sandwich-cage https://www.dualit.com/products/original-sandwich-cage

Dudeman112 4y ago
Generally I'm salty at people going full sales mode. But this time? I'm not even mad Sandwich cages are the kind technological solution people in general just have something of a blind spot against. Made myself a note if I decide to buy a toaster when I move next year Ah, the wonders of technology and engineering :)
dmix 4y ago
How do you deal with the dripping cheese part? I’m guessing a tray at the bottom you need to clean?
- ajdude 4y ago
  Removable stainless steel tray at the bottom of the toaster. The metal panels that the toaster rests on are easily accessible too. It doesn't have a spring-loaded "pop", but rather there's a lever on the side of the toaster to lift or lower the toast.
- natch 4y ago
  It’s explained on the website.
- lttlrck 4y ago
  it is closer to a panini maker that you'd think... lets call it a poor mans panini even if it isn't very cheap. The cage is very stiff and squeezes the slices very tightly together. So get the bread thickness and filling right, and it doesn't drip much/at all, and the slices will stick together. Crusts help. So it's not unlike a dedicated panini/sandwich toaster. It's not perfect, a dedicated device is worth it if you're going to use it a lot and/or you have the counter space.
ajdude 4y ago
When I was reading the GP comment, I immediately thought of the Dualit toaster. I'm not at all affiliated with them, but I own the classic as well as this sandwich cage and I cannot recommend it enough. They are expensive, but user-serviceable parts means that everything broken can be easily replaced from the logic board to the heating elements. I think we should support companies that not only support right to repair, but look towards quality and longevity of their products. Dualit makes the case. Bonus points that their classic series are hand built in-house!
RektBoy 4y ago
- mcphage 4y ago
  If you follow the link and go to the bottom, it says "Registered in England", so... no.
- samizdis 4y ago
  Er, Dualit is British: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dualit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dualit
- rexreed 4y ago
  "Dualit Limited, Registered office County Oak Way, Crawley, West Sussex RH11 7ST. Registered in England".
SECProto 4y ago
I would note the parent comment appeared to have been talking about an open faced sandwich, i.e. cheese topping on a slice of toast. Even if I'm incorrect and a closed grilled cheese sandwich was the culprit, a toaster oven would still be a better suggestion in my opinion!
- mmcdermott 4y ago
  A toaster oven, or even a conventional oven with a broiler setting.
  - stormbrew 4y ago
    Using a real oven for this is kind of a massive waste of energy. I got a smallish countertop convection oven and it's basically replaced nearly all uses I previously had for a small toaster oven and our proper mounted oven that takes 8 million years to preheat, along with a good chunk of microwave uses. The big one only gets used for really big stuff now, maybe once every few months at most.
    - 411111111111111 4y ago
      Dunno man, mine takes less then 5 minutes to get to about 150°c. I never measured it but just activating it before I take a pizza from the freezer is enough time to get it fully preheated. It really depends on the quality of the oven i think. There isn't that much more Air to heat so the wasted energy is less then you'd intuitively expect. And regular sandwich irons take at least as much energy, because it's not an enclosed space, consequently bleeding a lot of energy into the room
      - SECProto 4y ago
        Toaster ovens and toasters are at most 1800W appliances. Typical electric oven elements are in the 3000-3500W range. If you're broiling, toaster ovens are much more efficient. Ovens I've used take roughly 15minutes to warm to 400F (200C), regardless of if they are electric or gas.
frogpelt 4y ago
Ha. I knew the influencers would eventually make their way to Hacker News. But seriously won't the cheese drip out the bottom?
- mypalmike 4y ago
  The cage holds the bread slices together, creating more friction for the cheese to counter the gravitational force. So somewhat surprisingly, little if any cheese drips out.
slowhand09 4y ago
But DOES IT MAKE FRACTAL PATTERNS ON THE TOAST?!?
- SV_BubbleTime 4y ago
  If it doesn’t, all it takes is a microwave transformer. EASY! Oh look, my channel now has 200k subs! Cool.
nsxwolf 4y ago
There's no electrocution risk with that?
- whywhywhywhy 4y ago
  Yeah. Using literally any other normal method seems much safer and cleaner than that idea.
- lttlrck 4y ago
  No. Also it's incredible difficult to touch the elements even if you wanted to: there is a mylar sheet covering them (and they are behind a cage...). See: https://assets.dualit.com/images/landscapehalf/50027-classic-proheat.jpg https://assets.dualit.com/images/landscapehalf/50027-classic...
schroeding 4y ago
> There is no automatic pop-up function That's a bit too low tech for me, but otherwise looks like a solid device :D
- traverseda 4y ago
  Presumably it does turn off on it's own.
  - samizdis 4y ago
    Yes, when the clockwork timer runs down.
ip26 4y ago
It's a fun idea, but I must say I have discovered quite by chance that an inexpensive toaster oven is the tool for this job - as well as countless other jobs. Not just toasting bruschetta - it's secretly a $60 patio oven, opening the door to things like baking fish mid-July without heating or smelling up the house.
- conductr 4y ago
  This is my take. Mid 40s and I’ve never owned a toaster in my adult life, but the toaster oven gets frequent use. However I don’t make plain toast ever. I suppose if I did, especially in the AM, I’d see the appeal.
  - bee_rider 4y ago
    I still don't see the appeal, what's the advantage of the non-oven toaster? Maybe it is quicker or something? But the toaster oven is a timed device anyway, just run it while the water is boiling for coffee...
    - corrral 4y ago
      Toaster's smaller and easier to clean. Quicker to start, if only slightly. Probably faster. Wouldn't be surprised if they're more power efficient per slice of finished toast. Toaster oven, being large and having so much functionality overlap with a normal stove (and microwave, to some extent), is far less common (at least in the US) than the smaller and more focused toaster. Most two-slice toasters you can easily stuff in a drawer or cabinet. Toaster ovens demand permanent counter space.
    - jstarfish 4y ago
      Takes up way less space!
      - conductr 4y ago
        Has way less utility! Jk, this is a valid point, I just happen to have plenty of space so this isn't a factor for me
bityard 4y ago
I've been looking for a toaster that works as well as the ones made 60 years ago. And for once, a marketing page has me convinced to pry open my wallet. But there is no link or button anywhere on the page that tells me how to buy one. :(
- samizdis 4y ago
  In the UK, you can find Dualit stuff in stores that have a kitchen appliance section (John Lewis, say). I've seen them in shops in Germany and the Czech Republic, too. Not sure where you're based, though. Mind you, there is a little shopping trolley icon at the top right corner of the page ... Or the site map has "shop" listed: https://www.dualit.com/products https://www.dualit.com/products Don't know if that's international or just UK. A basic search shows Dualit stuff at Target and Home Depot, though. Amazon, too.
  - b112 4y ago
    While a nice looking toaster, and supposedly good, I could buy 10 cheap toasters, each lasting up to 10 years, for the same price as one of these. It is at this point I realised my toaster oven is fine, for that once a week serving of toast. Now, if they had a 30 yr parts warranty, or some such, at least I'd feel semi-secure..
    - selectodude 4y ago
      They're engineered for restaurants so they're absolute overkill for any home use. Your home toaster isn't going to successfully pump out 400 slices of toast per hour.
      - b112 4y ago
        They're engineered for home use, that's why they are sold at home depot, on amazon, and in retail outlets. Restaurants buy proper commercial gear, from hospitality supply depots. You don't buy restaurant ovens, and gear, from amazon or home depot. A strong tell is, restaurants aren't looking for candy red, enamel coated stuff. They want stainless, and their gear is hidden away in the kitchen, and they don't want to pay a penny more for trend. Honestly, why would you say that? There is nothing about this that is commercial. A 30 yr parts warranty is what tells people it's actually well engineered.
lttlrck 4y ago
The clockwork timer on mine broke, so I bought a replacement and repaired it. I bought it in Europe so it was 220v. When I moved to the US I purchased 110v heater elements and swapped them out. It's metal, held together with screws, and toasts bread. It's perfect.
avereveard 4y ago
They sell uncaged vertical toasters?!?!?
SeanLuke 4y ago
I want to give a shoutout to a similar but much nerdier design, which is no longer sold. Kenmore (rebadged as De'Longhi) used to make a single long-slot toaster with an adjustable width all the way out to about 2 inches. I have one. The heat element isn't amazing, and it, like the Dualit, is manual lift with a timer. But critically, you can move the toaster elements manually together or away from one another with a lever on the top of the toaster. In other toasters, the elements are fixed in position regardless of the bread width. As a result, this toaster is amazing for big thick hand-cut slices of bread. And no need for a sandwich cage at all: you can put entire hoagies in there. A picture: https://www.lowes.com/pd/De-Longhi-2-Slice-Aluminum-Toaster/3559982 https://www.lowes.com/pd/De-Longhi-2-Slice-Aluminum-Toaster/...
drewzero1 4y ago
This morning I was making toast in my cheapo toaster and was reminded of the Dualit a customer brought in last year for me to repair. The date code was 1997 and it sounded like it was the first heating element replacement it had needed in that time. I thought the one side/two side heating element switch was particularly clever. Honestly I was just impressed that the parts were available. Most consumer-grade toasters use nearly-identical mechanisms, with zero available replacement parts (maybe a crumb tray if you're lucky).
- jandrese 4y ago
  Conventional toasters are so cheap it makes no sense to try to repair them. Plus they aren't built to be repaired at all. When my last one died I tried taking it apart to see what went wrong (element burned through as it turned out) and see if I could fix it, but the whole mechanism was basically as single piece put together with spot welds and rivets, and with part markup being at least 2x or 3x initial cost there would be no way repairing it would make sense. I could gripe about it being cheap junk designed to fail, but it lasted over 20 years and browned thousands of slices of bread. If some well built toaster that won't fail costs more than 4 times what the cheap toaster does, then it probably doesn't make sense to buy it. Especially if you can't guarantee that the well built toaster will actually last a lifetime.
  - imtringued 4y ago
    In theory you want anything with a finite lifespan to not need any repairs or maintenance during its lifespan and only fail once its lifespan has been exceeded. Repairing isn't supposed to make sense, you get the next, better iteration of the product. In practice, products fail way too early and for easily avoidable reasons justifying the need for repairs.
  - drewzero1 4y ago
    If it cost only 4 times as much I'd probably consider it, but 10+ is just a really hard sell unfortunately. I had to scrap a perfectly good toaster because I couldn't find a replacement for a cracked plastic part that is supposed to make or break contact in a switch and engage the electromagnet. It would still toast fine if you held down the lever, and it pained me to toss it, but I couldn't source or fabricate a safe replacement part. I'm sure the manufacturer(s) don't want to worry about self-service causing house fires though, and it costs a lot to create, maintain, and distribute a stock of replacement parts for what ultimately is a disposable appliance. I just wish I could find a solid basic consumer/prosumer toaster in the sub-$100 range.
m-p-3 4y ago
Even with the cage I'd be worried that the content could still slip into the toaster. I'll keep using my toaster-oven for that.

Dudeman112 4y ago

Generally I'm salty at people going full sales mode. But this time? I'm not even mad Sandwich cages are the kind technological solution people in general just have something of a blind spot against. Made myself a note if I decide to buy a toaster when I move next year Ah, the wonders of technology and engineering :)

dmix 4y ago

How do you deal with the dripping cheese part? I’m guessing a tray at the bottom you need to clean?

ajdude 4y ago
Removable stainless steel tray at the bottom of the toaster. The metal panels that the toaster rests on are easily accessible too. It doesn't have a spring-loaded "pop", but rather there's a lever on the side of the toaster to lift or lower the toast.
natch 4y ago
It’s explained on the website.
lttlrck 4y ago
it is closer to a panini maker that you'd think... lets call it a poor mans panini even if it isn't very cheap. The cage is very stiff and squeezes the slices very tightly together. So get the bread thickness and filling right, and it doesn't drip much/at all, and the slices will stick together. Crusts help. So it's not unlike a dedicated panini/sandwich toaster. It's not perfect, a dedicated device is worth it if you're going to use it a lot and/or you have the counter space.

ajdude 4y ago

When I was reading the GP comment, I immediately thought of the Dualit toaster. I'm not at all affiliated with them, but I own the classic as well as this sandwich cage and I cannot recommend it enough. They are expensive, but user-serviceable parts means that everything broken can be easily replaced from the logic board to the heating elements. I think we should support companies that not only support right to repair, but look towards quality and longevity of their products. Dualit makes the case. Bonus points that their classic series are hand built in-house!

RektBoy 4y ago

mcphage 4y ago
If you follow the link and go to the bottom, it says "Registered in England", so... no.
samizdis 4y ago
Er, Dualit is British: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dualit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dualit
rexreed 4y ago
"Dualit Limited, Registered office County Oak Way, Crawley, West Sussex RH11 7ST. Registered in England".

SECProto 4y ago

I would note the parent comment appeared to have been talking about an open faced sandwich, i.e. cheese topping on a slice of toast. Even if I'm incorrect and a closed grilled cheese sandwich was the culprit, a toaster oven would still be a better suggestion in my opinion!

mmcdermott 4y ago
A toaster oven, or even a conventional oven with a broiler setting.
- stormbrew 4y ago
  Using a real oven for this is kind of a massive waste of energy. I got a smallish countertop convection oven and it's basically replaced nearly all uses I previously had for a small toaster oven and our proper mounted oven that takes 8 million years to preheat, along with a good chunk of microwave uses. The big one only gets used for really big stuff now, maybe once every few months at most.
  - 411111111111111 4y ago
    Dunno man, mine takes less then 5 minutes to get to about 150°c. I never measured it but just activating it before I take a pizza from the freezer is enough time to get it fully preheated. It really depends on the quality of the oven i think. There isn't that much more Air to heat so the wasted energy is less then you'd intuitively expect. And regular sandwich irons take at least as much energy, because it's not an enclosed space, consequently bleeding a lot of energy into the room
    - SECProto 4y ago
      Toaster ovens and toasters are at most 1800W appliances. Typical electric oven elements are in the 3000-3500W range. If you're broiling, toaster ovens are much more efficient. Ovens I've used take roughly 15minutes to warm to 400F (200C), regardless of if they are electric or gas.

frogpelt 4y ago

Ha. I knew the influencers would eventually make their way to Hacker News. But seriously won't the cheese drip out the bottom?

mypalmike 4y ago
The cage holds the bread slices together, creating more friction for the cheese to counter the gravitational force. So somewhat surprisingly, little if any cheese drips out.

slowhand09 4y ago

But DOES IT MAKE FRACTAL PATTERNS ON THE TOAST?!?

SV_BubbleTime 4y ago
If it doesn’t, all it takes is a microwave transformer. EASY! Oh look, my channel now has 200k subs! Cool.

nsxwolf 4y ago

There's no electrocution risk with that?

whywhywhywhy 4y ago
Yeah. Using literally any other normal method seems much safer and cleaner than that idea.
lttlrck 4y ago
No. Also it's incredible difficult to touch the elements even if you wanted to: there is a mylar sheet covering them (and they are behind a cage...). See: https://assets.dualit.com/images/landscapehalf/50027-classic-proheat.jpg https://assets.dualit.com/images/landscapehalf/50027-classic...

schroeding 4y ago

> There is no automatic pop-up function That's a bit too low tech for me, but otherwise looks like a solid device :D

traverseda 4y ago
Presumably it does turn off on it's own.
- samizdis 4y ago
  Yes, when the clockwork timer runs down.

ip26 4y ago

It's a fun idea, but I must say I have discovered quite by chance that an inexpensive toaster oven is the tool for this job - as well as countless other jobs. Not just toasting bruschetta - it's secretly a $60 patio oven, opening the door to things like baking fish mid-July without heating or smelling up the house.

conductr 4y ago
This is my take. Mid 40s and I’ve never owned a toaster in my adult life, but the toaster oven gets frequent use. However I don’t make plain toast ever. I suppose if I did, especially in the AM, I’d see the appeal.
- bee_rider 4y ago
  I still don't see the appeal, what's the advantage of the non-oven toaster? Maybe it is quicker or something? But the toaster oven is a timed device anyway, just run it while the water is boiling for coffee...
  - corrral 4y ago
    Toaster's smaller and easier to clean. Quicker to start, if only slightly. Probably faster. Wouldn't be surprised if they're more power efficient per slice of finished toast. Toaster oven, being large and having so much functionality overlap with a normal stove (and microwave, to some extent), is far less common (at least in the US) than the smaller and more focused toaster. Most two-slice toasters you can easily stuff in a drawer or cabinet. Toaster ovens demand permanent counter space.
  - jstarfish 4y ago
    Takes up way less space!
    - conductr 4y ago
      Has way less utility! Jk, this is a valid point, I just happen to have plenty of space so this isn't a factor for me

bityard 4y ago

I've been looking for a toaster that works as well as the ones made 60 years ago. And for once, a marketing page has me convinced to pry open my wallet. But there is no link or button anywhere on the page that tells me how to buy one. :(

samizdis 4y ago
In the UK, you can find Dualit stuff in stores that have a kitchen appliance section (John Lewis, say). I've seen them in shops in Germany and the Czech Republic, too. Not sure where you're based, though. Mind you, there is a little shopping trolley icon at the top right corner of the page ... Or the site map has "shop" listed: https://www.dualit.com/products https://www.dualit.com/products Don't know if that's international or just UK. A basic search shows Dualit stuff at Target and Home Depot, though. Amazon, too.
- b112 4y ago
  While a nice looking toaster, and supposedly good, I could buy 10 cheap toasters, each lasting up to 10 years, for the same price as one of these. It is at this point I realised my toaster oven is fine, for that once a week serving of toast. Now, if they had a 30 yr parts warranty, or some such, at least I'd feel semi-secure..
  - selectodude 4y ago
    They're engineered for restaurants so they're absolute overkill for any home use. Your home toaster isn't going to successfully pump out 400 slices of toast per hour.
    - b112 4y ago
      They're engineered for home use, that's why they are sold at home depot, on amazon, and in retail outlets. Restaurants buy proper commercial gear, from hospitality supply depots. You don't buy restaurant ovens, and gear, from amazon or home depot. A strong tell is, restaurants aren't looking for candy red, enamel coated stuff. They want stainless, and their gear is hidden away in the kitchen, and they don't want to pay a penny more for trend. Honestly, why would you say that? There is nothing about this that is commercial. A 30 yr parts warranty is what tells people it's actually well engineered.

lttlrck 4y ago

The clockwork timer on mine broke, so I bought a replacement and repaired it. I bought it in Europe so it was 220v. When I moved to the US I purchased 110v heater elements and swapped them out. It's metal, held together with screws, and toasts bread. It's perfect.

avereveard 4y ago

They sell uncaged vertical toasters?!?!?

SeanLuke 4y ago

I want to give a shoutout to a similar but much nerdier design, which is no longer sold. Kenmore (rebadged as De'Longhi) used to make a single long-slot toaster with an adjustable width all the way out to about 2 inches. I have one. The heat element isn't amazing, and it, like the Dualit, is manual lift with a timer. But critically, you can move the toaster elements manually together or away from one another with a lever on the top of the toaster. In other toasters, the elements are fixed in position regardless of the bread width. As a result, this toaster is amazing for big thick hand-cut slices of bread. And no need for a sandwich cage at all: you can put entire hoagies in there. A picture: https://www.lowes.com/pd/De-Longhi-2-Slice-Aluminum-Toaster/3559982 https://www.lowes.com/pd/De-Longhi-2-Slice-Aluminum-Toaster/...

drewzero1 4y ago

This morning I was making toast in my cheapo toaster and was reminded of the Dualit a customer brought in last year for me to repair. The date code was 1997 and it sounded like it was the first heating element replacement it had needed in that time. I thought the one side/two side heating element switch was particularly clever. Honestly I was just impressed that the parts were available. Most consumer-grade toasters use nearly-identical mechanisms, with zero available replacement parts (maybe a crumb tray if you're lucky).

jandrese 4y ago
Conventional toasters are so cheap it makes no sense to try to repair them. Plus they aren't built to be repaired at all. When my last one died I tried taking it apart to see what went wrong (element burned through as it turned out) and see if I could fix it, but the whole mechanism was basically as single piece put together with spot welds and rivets, and with part markup being at least 2x or 3x initial cost there would be no way repairing it would make sense. I could gripe about it being cheap junk designed to fail, but it lasted over 20 years and browned thousands of slices of bread. If some well built toaster that won't fail costs more than 4 times what the cheap toaster does, then it probably doesn't make sense to buy it. Especially if you can't guarantee that the well built toaster will actually last a lifetime.
- imtringued 4y ago
  In theory you want anything with a finite lifespan to not need any repairs or maintenance during its lifespan and only fail once its lifespan has been exceeded. Repairing isn't supposed to make sense, you get the next, better iteration of the product. In practice, products fail way too early and for easily avoidable reasons justifying the need for repairs.
- drewzero1 4y ago
  If it cost only 4 times as much I'd probably consider it, but 10+ is just a really hard sell unfortunately. I had to scrap a perfectly good toaster because I couldn't find a replacement for a cracked plastic part that is supposed to make or break contact in a switch and engage the electromagnet. It would still toast fine if you held down the lever, and it pained me to toss it, but I couldn't source or fabricate a safe replacement part. I'm sure the manufacturer(s) don't want to worry about self-service causing house fires though, and it costs a lot to create, maintain, and distribute a stock of replacement parts for what ultimately is a disposable appliance. I just wish I could find a solid basic consumer/prosumer toaster in the sub-$100 range.

m-p-3 4y ago

Even with the cage I'd be worried that the content could still slip into the toaster. I'll keep using my toaster-oven for that.