Automatic Beyond Belief!

When I was younger I remember my grandma had an automatic toaster.  All you had to do to make toast was drop 1 or 2 pieces in the slot and the toaster did the rest, perfectly, no levers no loud noises just toast!  It’s the year 2013, why aren’t all toasters like this, that damn lever seems like a step back in time.

For the past few years I have really wanted to find one of these toasters of my own, my grandmothers disappeared at some point along the way.  I did some research and found out these automatic toasters were patented and sold by the Sunbeam corporation starting in the late 1940’s. They were called Sunbeam Radiant Control Toasters.  The marketing slogan used to sell these toasters was “Automatic beyond belief!” and they were sold all the way up to about 1997.

The toaster works because of a piece of metal which expands when heated and shrinks when cool.  It is only a small amount of movement but the toasters internal mechanical parts magnify this tiny movement 175x  to be able to raise and lower an entire slice of bread. When you drop in a slice of bread on the one slice side a lightly spring loaded bar which is pushed down by the weight of the bread activates a switch which turns on the heating elements. The heating elements are only on the outside ends of the toaster with polished reflective shields in the center of the toaster. The expanding piece of metal located in the middle of the toaster get warm and expands and lowers the toast into the toaster. A thermostat in the middle of the toaster activates when the pre selected (dial on the end) amount of toasting has been reached and turns off the heating elements.  The metal then cools, shrinks, and raises your perfect toast.

Inside the Sunbeam T-20B Automatic Radiant Control Toaster

I could have purchased one of these marvels on e-bay but they are collectible and there is a risk of the bakelite handles being damaged in shipping.  Not to mention these toasters are collectible and are not cheap to buy.

I am a thrift store junkie, I visit several thrift stores each week looking for records, books, electronics, and anything interesting.  You never know what you are going to find and its fun to explore, its always a laugh to see piles of last years trends and failed products piled up for pennies on the dollar. Occasionally you find a gem that can’t be left behind.

One of my favorite thrift stores is the Hospice thrift store, it is very close to home and I try to stop in at least twice a week if not more whenever I pass by.  The store is well laid out and they get some really nice things.  As morbid as it may seem they tend to get the best stuff when people pass away.  One whole section of the store is dedicated to antiques and collectibles, these items are priced a little higher than similar items which are only a few years old but the prices are still very reasonable.  The employees there who price things seem to know antiques well and they seem to find that perfect place where the store gets a good price yet the buyer is still paying far less than the item would be priced at in an antique shop.

I just knew that this would probably be the place I found a Sunbeam Radiant Control Toaster of my very own. Yesterday was my lucky day, I walked over to the antique section and there it was on the bottom shelf just waiting for me. Sunbeam model T-20B Radiant Control Toaster manufactured November 22, 1954.  The price was $6.99 with no warranty, there was no physical damage and it looked to be in working order so I snapped it right up.  This morning I blew out the crumbs, removed the price tag, and gave it a quick wipe down and plugged it in, it works!

My “new” Sunbeam model T-20B Radiant Control Toaster. Manufactured 11/22/1954

I hope to share more thrift store finds of mine with you,  dear reader, if you would like to learn more about the Sunbeam Radiant Control Automatic Toaster I recommend this website.  www.automaticbeyondbelief.org