Vintage Pressure Canner, or buy new?

[Contrariety]

I desperately want a pressure canner so I can quit taking up room in the freezer with stocks.  I've been poking around ebay, and there are a few vintage models that are priced favorably.... but they are old.  I don't need anything fancy, no all american or anything, plus some of those vintage ones are kinda cute (drab olive green and poopy gold? yes, please!).  Have there been any revolutions in pressure canners that render the old ones useless?  Should I suck it up and start saving for a new one?

[kitchensqueen]

The risk with buying a pressure canner used (especially a dial gauge canner) is you can't be sure it's been calibrated properly so the pressure settings are correct. 

And there have been some new innovations over the years with steam/safety release valves that make today's canners much safer to use than yesteryear's. This is one item I'd recommend buying new. You can find decent quality ones for under $100 though - Presto makes one that's gotten good reviews, and I think it runs about $70-80 in most places. 

[Katie T]

What do you want to can? A lot of stuff can be hot water bathed. I got my canner new online for around $100 and it holds 20 pint jars. I don't use it much though and didn't use it at all this year. I feel like it was  a waste of my money. : (

[kitchensqueen]

Originally Posted by Katie T 

I got my canner new online for around $100 and it holds 20 pint jars. I don't use it much though and didn't use it at all this year. I feel like it was  a waste of my money. : (

Wow, 20 pints! You got a giant workhorse. Mine only holds 7! You can always use it a stockpot for big batches of soup and whatnot, and not just canning. :-)

[annethcz]

I love my presto weighted gauge canner.  I bought it new many years ago for $50 and use it all the time. 

I also have my grandma's vintage dial gauge canner.  I've never gotten around to using it because I know the dial gauge needs to be calibrated, it needs new seals, and the weighted gauge is just so much easier to use.

I vote new.

[Contrariety]

Obviously I would pressure can low acid food .  I already water-bath can just about everything I can can! :)  I love the idea of canning my own pasta sauce, soups, corn, beans, stocks, etc so these things can quite taking up room in my freezer!  I don't have big freezer, just the little one on top of my fridge.  Not enough room!

I guess it really does make sense to buy new.  I can save up my swagbucks for a few months and buy one.  With shipping on ebay it wouldn't be much savings after all.  Though in the mean time, my neighbor lent me her mom's old weighted gauge presto, so I'm going to give it a whirl tomorrow!

[lifeguard]

Definitely something I would not by old. The new ones have more safety features built in & are more reliable. As a pp mentioned you can also be more sure they are properly calibrated.

[velochic]

I would buy new.  I pressure can and cook a lot and have 5 different pressure canners and cookers.  By far, my All-American 923 is my easiest pressure canner to use.  Unless I have to do a LOT at a given time, I don't even bother getting out my old Presto canner.  The other 3 are cookers, from 16 quarts to 10 and again, my newer model is the one I prefer, as it's easier to use.

Oh, another thing about the All-American is that it doesn't have a gasket, which is much nicer.

Happy canning!!

P.S. Kitchensqueen... are you sure your canner holds only 7 PINTS?  If so, then it's probably too small to can in.  Anything under 16 quarts is too small to safely can in.  Anything over 16 quarts that is a pressure canner should hold at least 7 QUARTS  (that is 7 (one quart) jars).

[Arduinna]

You can get a new 23 quart presto for less than 100 dollars on Amazon, if cost is the issue. The closest sized All American is over twice the price. If you are just getting into pressure canning you might want to start with the lower investment. I've never had a problem with gaskets, even on my 20 year old pressure cooker that has one, which I've had longer than my pressure canner. But bottom line, I'd buy new for the safety release valve which may not be on the older ones, depending on age and design. 

When I get a second pressure canner I'm seriously considering the All American though. I could use a second one to save time. 

[KatWrangler]

I have an All American pressure canner and love it!  But this sucker is heavy!  My pressure cooker is Presto and I love that too.

For safety reasons, I vote new.

[kitchensqueen]

Originally Posted by velochic 

P.S. Kitchensqueen... are you sure your canner holds only 7 PINTS?  If so, then it's probably too small to can in.  Anything under 16 quarts is too small to safely can in.  Anything over 16 quarts that is a pressure canner should hold at least 7 QUARTS  (that is 7 (one quart) jars).

Hahahaha pregnancy brain! It holds 7 quarts! It's a 21 quart pot. 

[jennlyn]

Just for reference, you might check with your county extension service to see if they check the gauges on older pressure canners.  Ours does, free of charge.  

[Ruthiegirl]

I have an old one and it freaks me out.  I have used it once and it scared the bejeezies out of me.  The gauge was faulty and I had no confidence that I was using it correctly.  

I do a lot of water bath canning, but if and when I want to pressure can,  I will absolutely buy a new one.  

[TreeofLife15]

I am going to throw in a lonely vote for vintage. I was gifted a very very very old one, but i have seen them as low as $6 in thrift shops. The lady who is in charge of the canning stuff at my local county cooperative even drove TO ME to test my dial guage for accuracy. I personally like a dial guage anyway. Of course my ancient guage was waaaaaay off, but no worries, i easily found a brand new replacement very inexpensively on eBay. I mostly just can chicken stock, but i love love my vintage canner

[kitchensqueen]

Originally Posted by TreeofLife15 

I am going to throw in a lonely vote for vintage. I was gifted a very very very old one, but i have seen them as low as $6 in thrift shops. The lady who is in charge of the canning stuff at my local county cooperative even drove TO ME to test my dial guage for accuracy. I personally like a dial guage anyway. Of course my ancient guage was waaaaaay off, but no worries, i easily found a brand new replacement very inexpensively on eBay. I mostly just can chicken stock, but i love love my vintage canner

How much did the replacement gauge cost?