This is arguably THE classic toaster-oven.

Agree. I even silver-soldered new Calrods into mine once.
But the new ones they make are just junk.

One reviewer -- who claimed to be an EE -- excoriated his year-old $150
Krups. Seems that one of the wires burned loose from its connection. He had
difficulty fixing it.

Had I seen good reviews of /any/ brand of "expensive" toaster (ie, $50), I
would probably have bought one. But I couldn't find any. So I bought a $30
unit. Heck, if it's made in China, it shouldn't cost any more.

There are two disappointing things about this unit. One is the change from a
bimetallic strip to a timer to set the toast darkness. (Almost all toasters,
regardless of price, have switched to this system, which makes getting
consistent darkness over multiple cycles difficult.) The other is that
opening the door doesn't shut off the current! This is a major
inconvenience -- and possible safety problem -- when I have to prematurely
terminate the toast cycle.

PS: You can clean Calrod units very nicely by dunking them in a strong
solution of citrus-based industrial cleaner and water. It really strips off
the shmutz, stuff you'd never believe would come loose.