I just got back from looking at the 30" model. It was hooked up, so I saw the burners in action, but there was no hood so I couldn't actually try it out to cook anything. I have attached a link to some pics of the burners, drip pans/tray, etc. My initial thoughts, in no specific order... 1. As with all the American Range ranges, it is very well put together. Seams and corners are finished nicely. Understated look, less industrial by far than bluestar but not overly softened...just really straightforward pro-look. 2. The approach is a little different than bluestar, there is both a drip tray under everything and also separate drip pans under/around each set of two burners. More like the Bluestar drop-in cooktop, less like the range. Reminded me a bit of the Jade residential open burner ranges. 3. The drip pans are black enameled steel, and are very deep - seems like the likelihood of things actually making it to the drip tray is pretty slim. They also, however, don't seem to have any obvious way to get a grip on them to remove them...it was a bit fussy when I did it. 4. All the burners click when you ignite any single burner. 5. The center area on the 30" is a removable stainless steel piece...I don't know if they are going to offer an optional grate, but it seems like it would be really simple to get something to work even if they don't. 6. Unlike the other American Range ranges, the grates are free-floating...there are no "dents' for the feet to rest in and hold them in place. AS a result, the grates move around a bit more, and are noisier...this is especially noticeable because of the other "moving parts" (i.e., the drip pans and tray)...its a little "clanky." 7. My big reservation...the grates are really, really high. Pots are going to end up really far above the flames, which kind of seems to defeat the purpose of having super-powerful burners. I would be concerned that in the real world a lot less heat would be transferred to the pan on this than on, say, a bluestar (or probably a culinarian, but I haven't actually seen one of those in person yet). I may be wrong about this, but it worries me...I hope somebody does do some real world comparison testing soon. That's it for my iniitial thoughts. If anybody has any specific questions, feel free to ask and if I can answer it based on my look today I will. Here is a link that might be useful: pics

Wow: I think it's even worse than I expected! I wonder why the pic you found doesn't come up on the page for that faucet... Thanks for tracking that down. I think I'm going to have to find a different faucet for that spot, something smallish, traditional, pull-down, single hole... The sink is Silgranit 'cafe', granite is j. cappella. [Stock Photo]Though there are some black veins in the slab, I think that faucet would almost fight with the sink and the mica pendants with brownish downrods. Suggestions, anyone?

In 2002 I really wanted copper appliances Just how much do you want these? Is it worth a lot of money to you? Copper isn't exactly cheap. But the good news is that it is easy to work with. And most appliances are pretty straight-forward to disassemble. If you are sufficiently determined, you can take apart the front panel of your appliance and have a local metal fabricator replicate it out of copper. In some cases, you can also buy panel-ready appliances that would make this whole exercise a little easier. And in rare instances, you might be able to convince the appliance manufacturer to sell you a copper panel. I believe Bluestar has (or had) a "precious metal" series. I am not sure if it was available for all of their models. But I have seen that they can make copper oven doors. They look gorgeous. And of course, copper sinks are thing. Just head over to Dino Rachiele's website. So yes, if this is your highest priority wish-list item, then it absolutely is something that can be customized. As with most non-standard design choices though, it'll cost you. If you do go this route, you owe us pictures! :-)

It's likely just several plants that are stuck together. This is common when buying plants that originated from tissue cultured labs.