We have lived with this stove for over a year now, so I think it's safe to make some comments about its design, quality, and functionality. Before we bought it we compared other brands and chose the Dickinson because it had the highest BTU burners, a broiler, and a good reputation. We are living aboard and cruising full time, so we use the stove several times a day for all kinds of cooking: frying, boiling, simmering, baking, and broiling. In the past year I have discovered a some problems with this stove that vex me to no end! And Dickinson offers no help when I call them.
PROBLEM #1
The large burner in the back rarely stays lit. To keep it lit I have to wedge a spoon between the oven door handle and the rail to keep the burner knob pushed in. The igniter clicks away the whole time, but at least it stays lit.
PROBLEM #2
The big burner is in the back where it is partially obscured by the deck overhead. A large pot back there is very difficult to see into and almost impossible to work in. Everyone know the big burners on a stove are supposed to be in front! That's where all the action is: frying, sautéing, rapid boiling. You put the little pots that are just simmering on the back so they are out of the way, and all the intense cooking happens at the front of a stove. Did Dickinson even consult an actual cook when they designed this thing?
PROBLEM #3
The oven knob has temperatures marked on it, but they do nothing. It's all a joke. When I turn the oven on, the flame goes full blast and just keeps going with no temperature adjustment whatsoever. To keep my oven temperature anywhere near a constant setting, I use an oven thermometer and turn the burner off and on.
PROBLEM #4
The broiler is so puny that I can touch the broiler pan and not get burned. I usually run the broiler for 15 minutes before I put the meat in and I have an upside down cookie pan under my broiler pan to get the meat closer to the flame, but still our broiled meats are a sickly shade of beige. However, the outside of the oven door gets hot enough to cause burns. How can this be?
PROBLEM #5
There are many, many sharp edges on the stove, fiddle rail, and inside the oven. Cleaning the thing is downright dangerous. It's like the parts were cut out or punched out and never had the edges eased or sanded. Those sharp corners on the bottom of the stove make cleaning under the stove an arm cutting event. I am super careful when cleaning the stove, but I usually end up with at least one cut. I just keep the band-aids nearby.
CONCLUSION
The one good thing about this stove is that it's made of high quality stainless steel with a nice brushed finish. Hmmmmm, is that a good enough reason to buy a stove?
5 comments:
Now I really feel bad for throwing out the stove at the shop
Thanks for your review. Very helpful.
Kath
This review is garbage.
I used to think I wanted the burner at the front (a la Force 10) but I do most of my cooking on the smaller burners. I bet most of you do too. Having the lower power burners at the front on my Med is fabulous. And I don't have to lean in the see what I am cooking most often.
Of course the oven burner stays on full when you start the oven, it is Pre-Heating. I bought an oven yhermonmeter and usr that to guage the actual baking temp. If you look carefully you will notice the oven burner does reduce its flame during the time it is on.
To avoid problems of items burning use the top rack position and I do make smaller size items (tarts instead of pie, two smaller loaves of bread instead of a regular loaf, half full muffins instead of full muffin cups). Very few burning issues anymore. I also put one to two layers of silicone baking sheets cut to fit the rack to distrubutw heat.
Maybe my stove had rounded edges in some areas because I never have cut my fingers and I keep a clean stove top.
I am VERY HAPPY with my choice of this atove and oven.
I am seeking info on how to fix one burner that doesn't want to stay lit at the moment.... but I will keep looking.
I had to respond to the many negative comments you offer. I have owned for three years and have been happy notwithstanding the fussy burner. Others need to hear these bits of info too.
Vancouver, Canada
I think my Dickinson is outstanding. Oven holds temp extremely well. I also think the big burner belongs in the back. No complaints here, 3 seasons
Ah, Dickinson. This does look like a great galley stove which I would expect is assembled from readily available parts with very nice fabrication, but based on our experience with their Newport cabin heater I would not recommend a Dickinson product for anyone who is not handy with troubleshooting and repairs. Their customer service has been very poor in our experience, although the troubleshooting information in this stove manual looks very good. Is there anyone out there who can break the tie between the two conflicting opinions here? We think our trusty old 1984 Tasco stove may need to be replaced, as parts are becoming obsolete.
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