I have a very old (30plusyrs) pressure cooker that is still very functional (but always alarms me while cooking, keep waiting for her to blow!). There is an electric one out there now that is the bomb! No worries at all with this one, though I am to cheap to buy a new one. Pressure cookers are a very good tool, and I am glad to see them come to the fore once again like in the 70's. gotta say, though- I prefer the low and slow cooking.. crock pot to the rescue there! There isn't much you cant cook in a crock pot. The pressure cooker is good for the time crunch and a very useful tool. It saves a lot of energy (elect.,gas) for sure. One hazzard- if you have a smooth cooktop made of glass(the newer ranges) this is something to have to consider. My range of this sort won't even do the dutch oven for a long and slow without making some mess on the surface...I havent' truly tried my old faithful PC on there-but will do so soon cause my curious mind wants to know. A pot roast is great in a PC, and you can do a whole chicken. You gotta dig for the recipes, though, cause the PC has fallen away from favor. The oldies are the goodies for sure.