Experts are often very generous with advice. You might try e-mailing some of the people who specialize in refurbishing (some have websites) and see if they have any suggestions for you. I would love to get a Chambers wall oven buffed up (in L.A.) but nobody does this much and it turned out not to be worth it compared to buying a new oven. A real shame.

Depending on how much coffee you need to have "on tap" it might be worth considering something like the Bunn NHX-B 10 cup drip unit or a suitably sized inexpensive French Press. I prefer the French Press coffee maker but it is a bit of a nuisance to clean and you also need a kettle. Or a perc that doesn't shut off to use as a kettle! Seems like Dualit may be running on past glory. There is a lot of that these days in a lot of areas. Very shortsighted. Or maybe they got scammed by a bait and switch component maker. Or the component maker got taken by a material supplier.

I had a similar experience with Best Buy and have seen the same language in many service plans -- once they repalce, they are done. You do have the manufacturer's warranty then, but if you had a 5 year contract, you could still be left hanging a while. You have to hope the odds are that you won't get a second lemon. In my casse, it was a 3 year plan and I got left uncovered a few months longer than I'd expected on a newer machine. Then Whirlpool offered me their service plan. Given all the trouble with the Calypso, we figured that we should get the service plan and try not to replace the $2500 laundry pair for a while. To be fair, the control panel on our dryer was replaced and we had a pump and motor replaced on the washer. Apparently, on these machines, certain parts are provided at Whirlpool's expense and don't factor into their repair cost. I'd probably have a running machine if the A&E techs had properly diagnosed the problem. I had another company's tech come out and diagnose it (Hmm -- electrical part to control timer and communication issues -- not mechanical parts. Makes ssense). Trouble was, at that point, they'd ordered and paid for enough wrong parts that the cost was prohibitive. If I'd been footing the bill, I'd have felt the same way -- except, I would have had recourse against the service folks to not pay for their incompetence and to just pay for the proper repair. I could even give them the unneeded parts back for their future use.... Anywway, we are where we are with that and the service plan folks are talking to me like I'm the idiot who knows nothing and couldn't tell if the tech did the right thing or not (pretty good clue that a machine that got stuck on the cycle timer now seizes and makes horrible sounds after he works on it was not properly repaired). Anyway, we are due a replacement credit -- not a replacement, and we are at odds with how they are applying the terms there. They do have an arbitration clause -- that applies to disputes over "costs." I'm sure they invoke that to prevent anyone from coming after them snce it will make it cost more than it is worth, but my main issue is not a "costs" issue. ;-)

Look up "total trainer",,,I wanted the Total Gym really bad with pilates,,price was like $1500 for real one versus QVC version, so after a lot of research I found them,,they are out of Lousiana somewhere,,my owner's manual says www.total-trainer.com,,from Bayou fitness 800/230-1256,,,anyway they have many different quality levels and configurations and I'm not kidding when I say I got great quality,,since I went with the highest price pilates one they make that is combo of total gym with the pilates accoutraments so I can do both for $500 including shipping. Everything was included and didn't nickle/dime you on other accessories...really glad I got it,,had video etc. and I read reviews of it,,mine has the glides that are chrome so it's quiet,,take a look at website.. glad I found this forum since I'm usually on decorating forum!!