Is there any such thing as a repairable bread maker?

[Why Not Indeed]

I've owned at least 8 bread makers in the past 20 years, of which I only bought 2-3, most of them being cast-offs from friends/family who liked the idea but not the actual reality.
They seem to be pretty unreliable in general, easily the least-reliable domestic appliance. In the same time I've owned 4 toasters and two washing machines.
So are there any that are user repairable? I bought an absurdly expensive Dualit toaster on the basis that almost all parts are available, either from the manufacturer or third parties, and I expect the toaster to out-live me as a result. Parts wise, bread makers seem to be limited to pans and paddles.

 

[Koolpc]

My mate had a fantastic bread maker. Superb loaves. Always turned out amazingly. Lasted for over 20 years too!

He then divorced her!!

 

[Rodders53]

I bought a Panasonic as they were supposed to have good parts avaialability? Got ours yonks ago as a 'refurbed' unit. Not gone wrong so far. {Touches wood}

eSpares / Currys and their clone sites seems to have 'no availability' though. But Kitchenwareonline.com do!

I'm not sure the cost to repair would be worthwhile if/when something goes wrong, though cf buying new.

 

[RandomGrinch]

So are there any that are user repairable?

Most are repairable in some way or another - have a look at this thread...

Panasonic Bread Maker

Panasonic Bread-maker SD255 My 3rd (& last) Panasonic machine has started to throw out rubbish bread. It seems to bake alright, to my desired colour (well,,,, almost - I'd love it darker) but doesn’t fully rise. I put it down to age,,, but it hasn’t been used a lot. I’ve tried Basic (Lg &...

www.diynot.com

Many successful repairs affected by a change of the motor capacitor.

 

[opps]

Annoyingly, the manufacturers go out of their way to make it difficult for owners to fix devices. My stepfather recently wanted to repair my mum's Von Hausen food processor. I had to spend a tenner+ on screwdrivers with triangular heads. Once ordered, he was able to fix it. Other times, to replace the flex on a green Bosch hedge trimmer, I started off by using Torx screwdrivers and discovered that the screw buried deepest into the plastic body was a Torx with the central pin.

I had to buy a long set of them.

I understand firms not wanting customers to tinker with machines and then claim that the machine was dodgy, but you could mitigate the risks by using security tape. The use of obscure screws is clearly intended to thwart DIY repairs.

 

[lloyda]

I've had my current Morphy Richards fastbake since 2011. It's used at least 3 times every week. Apart from replacement pans and paddles (easily obtained from espares) , I've had to replace the belt. A bit awkward, but not impossible.

 

[Why Not Indeed]

Here's this year's bread maker - Breville VM015:

The two large gears aren't aligned properly, so they slip past each other [sometimes, but not all the time] and it makes an incredible racket. I think the bearings are worn so that's why the gears are no longer in the same plane. I could probably replace the large gears with pulley wheels...if it's worth the effort.

 

[opps]

Here's this year's bread maker - Breville VM015:
View attachment 355607
The two large gears aren't aligned properly, so they slip past each other [sometimes, but not all the time] and it makes an incredible racket. I think the bearings are worn so that's why the gears are no longer in the same plane. I could probably replace the large gears with pulley wheels...if it's worth the effort.

Might it be the case that the teeth have worn down?

 

[Notch7]

I've owned at least 8 bread makers in the past 20 years, of which I only bought 2-3, most of them being cast-offs from friends/family who liked the idea but not the actual reality.
They seem to be pretty unreliable in general, easily the least-reliable domestic appliance. In the same time I've owned 4 toasters and two washing machines.
So are there any that are user repairable? I bought an absurdly expensive Dualit toaster on the basis that almost all parts are available, either from the manufacturer or third parties, and I expect the toaster to out-live me as a result. Parts wise, bread makers seem to be limited to pans and paddles.

I’ve had a top of the range Panasonic, done hundreds of loaves in it and so far it’s been ok

 

[Why Not Indeed]

Might it be the case that the teeth have worn down?

The teeth aren't quite as mangled as they look in the picture, it's a mixture of tooth dust and grease.

 

[ericmark]

Ours seems to be OK, but in the past we have bought items which could be repaired, until discontinued and parts no longer available. First one had a toothed belt, and replaced it a couple of times, then could not get replacements.

 

[Why Not Indeed]

This one just seems to be a design flaw. The toothed gears are so large that the leverage means they will only engage fully if perfectly aligned. Any play in the shafts and that's it, they grind each other up and align even worse. It made it out of the warranty period, so it was engineered just well enough, I guess