I’ve found myself looking for a really good can opener. I purchased my last one, a KitchenAid, from Target and I’ve been disappointed in it the whole time. Sometimes it doesn’t puncture the lid right, and it feels like it got rusty kinda fast–not at all what I want out of a utensil I hoped would last for a decade or more (who wants to keep buying can openers? lol).
I’m looking for a manual handheld can opener. I’ve always had the type that opens from the top, but a little bit of Googling shows that there are types that open from the side. I’m in the USA if that matters!
What does Lemmy think?
Oxo good grips is extremely highly recommended everywhere - it hits that perfect balance of well designed, durable, and not too outrageously expensive.
Agree, I’ve used the same one for almost a decade a few times a month with no degradation.
Wait wait wait. Stop everything. I’ve found my post.
I too was like you. Every flimsy-ass can opener I had ever used couldn’t puncture cans consistently, would get off track, leave uncut sections, and just generally suck completely. I got so fed up replacing them that I went off the deep end researching these things.
My wife got impatient with me. She told me to come back to bed; that can openers weren’t this important. That didn’t stop me. I was going to put an end to the suck. I read review sites, I visited stores, I called people. After literal days of research, I made my decision.
A can opener doesn’t need to be complicated or decked out with fancy features. Fundamentally, the qualities you want are reliability, comfort, build quality, and leverage (i.e. a powerful mechanical advantage).
I didn’t buy the OXO. Not a side-cutter (don’t get me started). I bought the EZ-Duz-It can opener—an unassuming name for the most brilliant can opener ever built.
It’s inexpensive and durable. It securely latches onto cans and glides through them with ease. The knob spins smoothly with little effort. This thing is a dream. Never before have I experienced such a drastic shift in how I felt about a product.
There simply is no other answer.
Best of Lemmy material here…
About 10 years ago I needed a new can opener. I also bought the EZ-Duz-It from Walmart, it was like $9 at the time, double the cost of the other one available. Totally worth it, and I still have it. The only way I see this thing breaking is if I start using it to loosen rusted bolts on the car while changing out the brakes.
My favorite is oxo good grips. They were designed for people with arthritis, but work great for everyone.
Get any kind of “safety can opener”. They are awesome. They cut the lid from the outside so contents never spills nor do you have to wash the can opener later on.
Get one of those that open from the side, they’re awesome.
Swingline.
uhm. aren’t those staplers?
Bwahahaha - yes, you are totally right.
Swing-away, not swingline.
Bought one of these in 2000-something at Walmart and it broke in 2020 found it again online at the link. The plastic handle gives out eventually but I haven’t found anything that’s better at opening a can.
I have an unorthodox one. I’m a sucker for a gadget so I got a Kitchen Mama Can Opener and it works great. There was a short learning curve but now I just put it on the can and let it roll. Cuts with no sharp edge and, an unexpected benefit, it’s stupid looking so I can always find it. I was making a roux last night, in fact, and set it to open a can with one hand while I stirred.
Swing A Way 7 inch had been my go to for years.
The newer ones seem to be less consistent. Ez Duz It is the modern equivalent to the old USA made Swingaways.
If you’re puncturing the top, you’re doing it wrong.
Watch:
That depends on the type of can opener, y’all. They aren’t all supposed to be oriented to the top, y’all.
Pretty much any opener that looks like this:
Video:
Bunkers and single wheel look almost identical, and butterfly and side openers aren’t that different.
I got one of these from pampered chef almost 20 years ago, and it is still used daily and in great shape.
But shilling for MLMs is unethical and buying their stuff supports their terrible business practices and we should never support the MLM model as it uses and abuses poor and vulnerable people forcing them to keep pumping money into it I stead of making a living.
The only type of can opener that never failed me is this. No need for anything fancy. It costs 5 or 6 €.
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