After 10 or 11 years of enjoying my pair of Rowentas, they are really, truly fading fast. They have served me well. We've been told that some previously fine brands are now being produced in Wallabanghalahara by the Vacation Bible School drop-outs. So. My question is - what iron have you bought lately that gets hot, steams, doesn't shut off until you say so and has a mighty heft to it? I know we've discussed this important element of our quilting many times and apologize that it must be run around again. Please share with us. Have you found a winner? Polly
I have a Conair 1500 watt iron that I just love. I bought it from AllBrands online about 2 years ago. It has a 12 foot cord, steam and spray buttons, visible water tank so you can tell when it is getting empty, and a toggle that allows you to choose auto off or not. It's comfortable in the hand and gets the fabric smooth in one sweep. It also has a beep that lets you know when it reaches the appropriate temperature. It has a digital display too - perfect for the geek in me.
When I travel, I take my color changing steam iron which is really a hoot. It's lighter weight and perfect for travel. Works like a charm and the colors look great too. That one is a Westinghouse I think and was the subject of a very long thread on the group not too long ago. It was being discontinued so the price dropped like the current stock market. A good number of us bought one. I had visions of seeing the board of directors going "what were we thinking"!
I bought an actual "made in Germany " Rowenta professional steam iron at Best Buy AND the service policy because -- I go thorugh irons pretty quickly and I have collected on the Best Buy iron service plan
-- once getting a brand new iron and once paying for a good portion of the Rowenta after the Shark I got as a replacement for my first Shark bit the dust too.
Thank you, Alice. My brother researches Everything and when we need to buy a washer or dvd2prhubarb whatever, we just ask him what's best . . . but, alas, he's not a quilter. I'll try the Conair. Polly
"AliceW" < wrote >I have a Conair 1500 watt iron that I just love. I bought it from AllBrands
Elspeth, I have not given my precious Rowentas namby-pamby treatment. Never, ever emptied them at the end of the day. However ...DH, what a honey he is, does routinely carry one to the kitchen and flush it like the manual recommends. If you will give your manual on 'the love and care of a Rowenta' a read, you may be able to make them go for a dozen or more years of daily use and neglect. They do not, however, much care for when the QI uses the ironing board for practicing their triple-swirl swam dive and launch the Rowenta to the floor. The old Rowentas were a treasure but they just aren't made for bouncing. Polly
"elspeth" -- I go through irons pretty quickly and I have collected on the Best Buy iron service plan
-- once getting a brand new iron and once paying for a good portion of the Rowenta after the Shark I got as a replacement for my first Shark bit the dust too.
Since hell will freeze over and I will buy a flatiron before I spend what they charge for a Rowenta on an iron, I have never used one.
I bought two irons after bidding a sad farewell to my 20 year old GE.
One is a less than $10 on sale Sunbeam that is still going after five years. It is a little small, which is good for some things. It gets hot enough, does not have an auto shut off, and it has a pointy nose which I absolutely require. The pointy nose is what got me to buy it because the world was going through that really stupid, irons should not get too hot and should have a blunt nose lest someone get hurt, phase when I bought it. The reason I bought another is that it is not as cat resistant as it might be, and the temperature adjust dial broke off after it hit the floor when a cat decided it needed more room on the ironing board. It still works fine, you just need to adjust the temperature setting with a pair of pliers. I usually just leave it set all the way up and pull out the other iron when I need a different setting, or to change settings over the course of a sewing session..
The other is a Black and Decker Classic. Works, never had a problem with it, has survived several cat induced diving incidents, has everything I want in an iron, and is reasonably hefty. They only thing broken on it is the stiff tail of rubber or whatever on the spot where the cord meets the iron. That broke, and that stiff bit was hollow rather than being molded tight to the cord. I do not approve, but it is still the best I have found that will take the pounding I give irons.
They both are supposed to steam, but I have never put water in either one of them. I either iron damp or sprinkle.
I can't do heavy, Polly - so I can't really help; but I always buy Tefal
- I think they are probably an acquired taste. Mind you, have just had our kettle die a few minutes ago, I must admit to buying kettles and irons in pairs, and considering them as short-term consumables. I don't know why - I give them the best of treatment ( I do empty them every time!), but never get a long-term 'relationship' >g< . In message , Polly Esther writes
I'm saving up for when my cheapo Aldi special steam generator iron (under £50, and perfect: gets left on all day and has stainless steel sole plate and steams like the 5:15 from Paddington in 1926!). I frequently leave the iron on all day when sewing stuff like yesterday (tailored lady's suit type stuff).
Patti, while you are suffering the loss of your kettle, have you considered simply using the microwave to heat water? Our microwave is a fiercesome thing and can petrify anything. It can bring water temp from tepid to boiling before you can blink. Polly
"Patti" Mind you, have just had our kettle die a few minutes ago, I must admit
Polly, You know how I feel about the new Rowentas. So I won't go there. But I have recently solved the iron crisis, as it exists in this house, by buying a Naoamoto-57 gravity feed iron. I know that most quilters like to have the portability of irons but if you have a dedicated place for ironing, then this one will do the job. You can use it either dry or with steam. It is a commercial Iron that is used in the dry cleaning industry and it is used for 8 hours a day all day every day and it never quits. If it should burp and fail, it is completely able to be disassembled, and all parts are available for repair. It is connected to a large water reservoir, that hangs from above the ironing area, and feeds the iron through the connected tube. I have had it for about a month, and it is on all day, every day I iron, which is most days, and it never fails to give perfect service. I think the problem with a lot of the domestic irons is that they are just not tough enough to stand up to the prolonged use that quilters and professional users put them to. They are fine for those once a week shirts and skirts that get ironed by mommy, but if you are a power user, you need a power tool. The next time you go to a dry cleaner, ask them what they use for ironing, and I would bet that they would tell you either Naomoto or one of the other brand gravity feed or steam boiler iron. You can use either water source with the iron itself, so that expands it's versatility for the industry. They are very expensive, but if you add up all the money that is spent on junk Rowenta's and other domestic consumer irons, you will find that a professional industrial iron will save you money in the long run and save you endless bits of frustration. So far, that has been the case with me and this iron. If it is good enough for the commercial users it is good enough for me. You can have another portable iron to take with you when those situations arise, but with this, or other brand iron of it's type. problem solved.
Well, we had bought a spare, so we just fixed the fuse and plugged the new one in!! So, no deprivation! We do use the microwave when we have to run the generator in a power cut; but our kettles take two minutes to boil - the microwave has to be watched (well, we think so). We will at a pinch, though, or even a saucepan on the hob! Never quite without a source of boiling water. . In message , Polly Esther writes
I am making a quilt for a new member of the ever expanding in-law baby machine. I am doing it on the Bernina treadle that I made, and it is really neat. Much slower paced and more fun with finer point placements and fewer boo-boo's. A breakthrough in 19th century technology, and a bridge to another time and place. I may have found a new focus in quilting.
John, what happened to the no-hole-in-the-soleplate iron you got?
Looking thru' google rctq archives, I see my Sunbeam has been dependably ironing for at least 8 yrs; cost me $19 back then. That and the hairspray bottle full of water do the job, no fuss, low cost, plenty of heat. ... Dusty Cat lives upstairs, the iron is downstairs... that may explain the Sunbeam's longer life span.
Polly, are you going to get this iron before Christmas or add it to your Letter to Santa?
I ordered the Conair last night but will probably buy a 2nd one.... just in case, you know? I'd hate to be merrily pressing away late one night and have the only iron here surrender. I wouldn't want to use the curling iron to press blocks. And no, Sandy. No letter to Santa from me - whose name do you think is at the top of his naughty list? besides you, I mean. Polly
It is pricey, but well worth it in my opinion: a good steam generator iron. I have a Rowenta that is a few years old. No water goes into the iron itself, the water goes into a (fairly large) pressure type tank. Holds just over a quart of water, has a rubber "O" ring that needs replacing occasionally (a couple of extras come with it, but easy to find at a hardware store). You have steam, from a little to more to a whole lot, when you hold the lever, (easy). The iron itself is hefty enough and gets hot enough to really press too. (Normal irons, even my Rowentas I tend to set as high as they go. This one I still don't set it higher than cotton. and I press/iron fast.... want to get it done without spending hours standing at the pressing station. )
Don't have to fill the tank as often as with a regular iron, no drips since there is no water in the iron itself, hot, steam or not lasting a long time. Love it. One of the best investments I have ever made. When this one goes, I will be getting another.
Pati, > After 10 or 11 years of enjoying my pair of Rowentas, they are really, truly
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