More duff stuff

[Yorkie]

Bosch, Neff, Siemens - all the same outfit, and all have their weak point, notably those in regular use, such as flimsy plastic door handles on which thee fixing points held in place by self-tapping screws fracture, door hinges, catches, interlocks etc.

You just must be very unlucky or have people who use more than reasonable effort David.

Gary

I was referring mainly to my daughter in law's Bosch machine. There are five in their household so the washer is in regular use, but that's neither here nor there - the handle would stand up to that if it was more robust. I've replaced the handle a couple of times - the door catch is quite strong, so the handle has to be tugged to open it. The handle fits around the rim of the door from about the 10 o' clock position to about 2 o' clock is flimsy plastic held in place by three self tapping screws which screw into hollow pillars moulded into the handle. Quite simply, over time, those pillars snap off the handle moulding, and when one snaps, that puts pressure on the others, which then also snap due to the added stress.

All the washers spares outfits stock them, as not surprisingly, they're a high turnover item. If you saw the poor design of the handle, I think you'd agree that it does rather blow away the myth about German goods invariably being top quality and more solidly built. Often, it's a perception that doesn't stand close examination, but it's the perception that helps German products command a higher price. The price doesn't necessarily mean a better product - its the 'brand premium'.

I'm not, as you might imagine - whinging about this - the handles are cheap, as well they might be, and it's no big deal to remove the three screws from the remnants of the old handle. All things mechanical will break down, and I'm not of course suggesting that duff door handles mean that the whole machine is of poor quality, but the handle isn't simply a decorative trim - it's a functional part which is used every time the machine is used.

As to too much 'ain't it awful' on the forum, in a thread entitled 'more duff stuff' in the 'general chat' section, it's inevitable that posts will be about personal experiences with naff products, but as with all threads, posts aren't force fed - they're self selected, and just as it's ok for me to be writing this post as long as it's decent and honest, we're all endowed with free will, and everyone has an inalienable right to just ignore it as a load of hot air from a windbag who could bore for Europe. Anyone who has read this far has done so because they've chosen to - not because they're compelled to.

I dare say that there are many forum members who only ever read posts about vintage radio (it is after all, a vintage radio forum!) and never look into the lounge, general chat or whatever. In the same vein, I couldn't be less interested in TVs, audio, old phones, tape recorders, turntables, Dansettes, computers, battery portable radios, old clocks, toasters, vintage Christmas lights and lots of other stuff, so I routinely ignore such topics and leave them to those who are excited about them.