[Chokingdogs]

Need a new range, and I've been somewhat shocked at what's available currently after some searching.

Have no gas, and I cook with cast iron on a regular basis so smooth tops are out.

That leaves coils, which I'm reasonably fine with, except for the reviews ive read recently on units that one would "think" would be quality.

The only real wants/needs are as follows -
a bloody clock. blows my mind that some stoves arent made with them.
broil and bake elements cycle during baking/roasting.
decent temp control with burners. dont need ultra precision, but dont want "on-off switches" either.

it appears i'm limited to either GE or Frigidaire ( or kenmore versions of them ).

any advice, real world info and exp, would be great...

 

[BayouRunner]

All we cook with primarily is cast iron. Have been cooking on two different ranges with the smooth cooktops with no issues. You do have to use some care. Can't drop the pot and the manufacturers say don't slide it across with any pots and for the most part we don't. We do warranty work for several major manufacturers and to be honest you could bust a top just by dropping a salt shaker on it. But they are actually pretty tough. You would have to hit it just right to break. Cast iron edges won't break them. We don't change out that many tops. You can also include in your range search induction cooking. They are much faster warming up and you can set the temperature exactly where you want it to be. Tops stay cool as well. Two drawbacks though are they do not work with aluminum and the cost is higher. I would not be afraid to buy the smooth cooktop for cast iron. They do take a little longer to heat the pot in my opinion though