There is a good current discussion about looking for older Kitchenaid stand mixers not because they are less expensive but because they are better. I confess to doing this myself at times. Some examples include, perhaps the most obvious one, finding old tinned, heavy copper with cast iron handles. Others that come to mind include old French carbon steel Nogent knives, vintage cast iron like Griswold, tinned baking moulds, old Pyrex, and tinned Mouli graters (one is plenty). I also sought out an old waffle iron to avoid nonstick coated plates. I know @kaleokahu will sing the justifiable praises of older Sunbeam toasters. There are some older lines of cookware like Club and the anodized Calphalon worthy of mention. Do you have others?
People tend to believe that older things are of higher quality mainly because of survivor bias and nostalgia.
It is true that in our disposable, consumerist society that some items are made cheaply and don’t last long. (Cue the “planned obsolescence” crowd).
But most of those things don’t have a direct comparator from the past and those that do have modern equivalents can last as long or longer than in the past. As long as we compare price factoring in inflation.
Because the well made stuff from then was more expensive than most realize or remember, or will admit to.
I have a club hammered(?) aluminum pan of my mother’s. Can’t use it, of course, on my induction stove, but I’m happy when I see it stashed under the sink. Formidable.
I think you’re way out on a limb here. I’ll give you one category as an example: manual fruit and vegetable processing machines. There is really no quality (or longevity) comparison when it comes to things like apple peelers, cherry stoners, bean strippers, pea shellers, etc. Vintage units, usually made of cast metals and with replaceable parts, are more robust, and IMO work better. One particular example: potato ricers and garlic presses. Modern plastic versions warp, flex in use, and ultimately break. If I have a choice, I won’t buy any plastic versions of anything subject to mechanical force.
In the 60s and 70s, there were two editions of a cookware “encyclopedia”, basically a complete Cooks Illustrated gear guide. (Aha! “Coos Tools”) Anyway, the tools included are, IMO and across all categories, generally superior to what is made and offered today.
If priced using today’s prices, they would be significantly more expensive than the “modern plastic versions”
So they should be of better quality.
But better QPR? No.
Which is what we are asking for here, right?
No, I thought Tim’s query was pretty much along the lines of his title.
Anyway, the vintage items I’m describing are, on the only market there is–resale–, generally less expensive to acquire. And you acquire them once in a lifetime of cooking. Appliances less so, but mostly the same.
Your argument applies better to comparing, e.g., tools made by OXO to those by Matfer.
Visually it looks nice.
Not disagreeing with you that on “resale” they are cheaper.
But “older” does not necessarily equate to “quality” – which is my point.
If one were really interested in QPR, then buying a new item on sale would probably net you the same savings in buying a used “older” item. Plus, you get a warranty on the new item.
I understand that older may not equate to better quality, and I understand that on an inflation adjusting basis, many high quality older items were actually quite expensive. If I were to take it beyond my question and make a pronouncement, I believe that some older items are inherently better. I think an old hammered 3mm copper saucepan with a tin lining is better than modern equivalents, generally thinner and stainless steel lined. I feel the same about picking tinned moulds over the modern nonstick moulds. I think any repairable appliance is superior to the modern version, chiefly because microchip technology and heat do not get along well. Quality, of course, has multiple facets including durability, repairability, usability, and performance. Value is an altogether different attribute.
I sought out two older Crock Pots because their “low” setting is lower than modern ones - less likely to overcook so you really can set it and forget it.
Same. I have older ones for exactly that reason. Making apple butter, to give one example, is significantly easier in a vintage CP.
Agree and disagree… 
Regulars here will know the stuff in my kitchen: Mauviel copper pans, 15 years old Kitchenaid Artisan, Smeg stove with gasoven, e61 espresso machine, Le Creuset enameled cast iron, Pillivuyt porcelain, De Buyer carbon steel. These are all old, tried and tested products. But crucially, most (all) of these are still readily available!
No, I cannot get the same quality Mauviel copper anymore, but Falk has a perfect alternative. For the rest, I can just go to the shop and buy replacements.
I’m not sure if there is any one product that isn’t readily available anymore, that is inherently better than the current alternative. Personally, I prefer stainless steel lined copper over tinned. And between tinned and nonstick moulds there is still a wide array of options. Good potato ricers are still around, just get a Rosle.
I think it comes down to some products are made to last (10 years or more) and some are made to be replaced. There are far more replaceable products today. People may not want to admit that os what they are buying but the truth is that these products are not made to last very long. Society has changed. Today people buy new $20-30 calculators. They don’t bring a calculator to some dudes to fix it.
Not always, but with these tools, it’s a pretty good indicator, by virtue of the common fact that many products that are now vintage had likely already stood the tests of time. Many of the makers went OOB for reasons unrelated to product quality–or perversely–because they lasted so long.
I think people (as a society) attitude has changed. We may or may not recognize, but it is shown. In pre-1950s (-ish), moms will give used cookware to daughters for gifts. Cookware used to be made to last, but also more expensive. That is why newly weds used to inherit cookware from moms and grandparents. Most family could not afford to start having a large cookware set. They also slowly build up their cookware set over time. Maybe only start off with two pans and a pot. Now, you can go to Walmart and get a large complete cookware set under $100. Will they last long? No. But now the mentality is to start off a large cheap replaceable cookware set.
Sorry, I am not lecturing you or anything.
I agree, but I honestly think cookware that is treated as throwaway should last for generations in a home kitchen. A pan just should not wear out.
You are right that modern alternatives and replacements are generally available. Hwever, buying a new toaster which has no microchips and is repairable will cost a lot (Dualit) and an waffle iron with plates that are not nonstick is nigh unto impossible without going vintage. I am with you on the excellence of Falk, but I like tin mainly because it sticks much less and is just flat out as inert as any liner. Finding many moulds that are tinned rather than nonstick is getting pretty hard. For mashed potatoes I have taken a page from Robuchon and now use a tamis.
I also think the behavior is from both ends. Cookware and cooking appliances do not last as long and also our threshold of discard/replace has lower. In old days, I bet a pot that has dropped and dented won’t be thrown away, but that is probably more likely nowaday.
You and I were talking about cutting boards too. I think people used to spend more time to take care of their cutting board and not easier throw them away. I have a friend who intentionally put her wood cutting boards in dishwasher and knowing the dishwasher would kill the cutting boards in a few months, and she is ok with that. So for her, knowing her cutting boards probably will only last 6 months, she bought cheap $10-20 wood cutting boards, and not higher-end $200 cutting boards. (what I am trying to say here is that… many customers also push for the “cheaper and replaceable” and further push cookware companies in that direction)
So I think it is a combination of many things. I do agree with you that the philosphy behind making long-last cookware and cooking appliances is getting weaker. I also think that customer behavior further encourages that direction as well.
Can you point me to the tamis on Amazon?
