Most Unusual Microwave Ovens

 By Bruce Shawkey

Manufactured in Japan in 1976 by Matsushita Electric Co. for J.C. Penney. It is a horizontal design, meant to set on a table or countertop.

I was working a Penney's East Towne during this time, but don't ever recall seeing it in the appliance department, so it must not have been a big seller.

Here's another one: 

• The Husqvarna Cupol

  A microwave oven from a weapons factory that some consider to be one of the world's weirdest. 

Husqvarna has a long history of making a diverse bunch of products, though today they are chiefly

known for their lawn care products. Here's a look at what they produced prior to this:

1689 – Firearms The drilling work at the waterfalls in Husqvarna, southern Sweden, was the first large plant. The state-owned rifle factory had some 1,000 employees at the beginning of the 18th century. The company was spun off from Husqvarna Vapenfabriks Aktiebolag in 1959. Shotguns were produced for 300 years, the last in 1989.

1872 – Sewing machines When demand declined, it turned out that the machinery for production of rifles was well-suited for producing sewing machines.

1874 – Kitchen equipment in cast iron Husqvarna started a foundry to produce details for sewing machines, a large part being the base frames. Soon the assortment was broadened to include such products as kitchen equipment in cast iron and later on stoves and ovens.

1896 – Bicycles Bicycle production began in the Huskvarna factory. Several patents were registered. The last bicycle was produced in 1962.

1903 – Motorcycles The first motorcycle, which could reach the impressive speed of 4–5 km/hour, was produced in 1903. Starting in the 1930s, Husqvarna's lightweight engines helped make some successful track racing and motocross bikes. Husqvarna's first titles in Motocross World Championship came in 1959 and 1960. The operation was divested in 1987 and since 2013 is part of the KTM family.

1919 – Lawn mowers When Husqvarna acquired Norrahammars Bruk in 1918, the product range expanded to heating boilers and lawn mowers. The first test with a lawn mower powered by an engine was done in 1947.

Another one:

Called the Melissa 253-007, it isn't  all that weird, except for the name and the fact I can find no information on the history of this company,

This is a steampunk project, one of a kind, price on request, but I suspect it's in the thousands of dollars. There are other "one offs" but I'm note going into those because they are not production models.

More on microwave ovens:

Before microwaves were helping us cut corners while cooking, they were helping Allied forces use short-range radars during World War II. Once the war was over, companies who had been making the equipment for the military had to pivot. This is how Raytheon began experimenting with microwaves (the waves) to create the first microwave (the appliance). There's a popular legend about how this now ubiquitous gadget came about: Supposedly, an engineer named Percy Spencer was working in the lab when he noticed that the candy bar he had in his pocket was melting. He then began experimenting with other foods to see whether he could replicate this effect. 

Eventually, Raytheon began putting the brain power of its employees to work on a way to replicate this effect in an appliance. Although this story makes for good marketing, the reality is probably less fit for Hollywood. Like Spencer, many researchers in the magnetron lab noticed that radiation heats things up, and several people likely contributed to the invention.

Whatever the case may be, the result was the Radarange, a 1947 microwave oven that was meant for restaurants and airplanes rather than homes. These ovens were huge, and sold for up to $5,000, which would be around $70,700 today! Eight years later, Raytheon would unveil its first household microwave, the Tappan Model RL-1, which carried a price tag of $1,295 (or almost $15,300 in current money). However, its first year on the market was lackluster, with only 34 units sold.

How the microwave conquered home kitchens

Price wasn't the only issue with the Tappan Model RL-1. Because the model was gigantic, and had to be wall-mounted, people had to open a microwave-sized hole in their kitchen. In nine years, only 1,369 Model RL-1 microwaves were sold. Rather than being deterred, Raytheon kept working on improving the product, no doubt partly because other companies in countries like Japan were beginning to sell their own versions. The company finally hit gold in 1967, after acquiring Amana Refrigeration. Under this company, and after decades of research and technological improvement, Raytheon began selling the Amana Radarange. This countertop microwave had a retail price of $495 ($4,700 today), and would change world kitchens forever.

Now that the appliance was smaller, it could fit in practically any kitchen, and didn't require an entire home remodeling project. Less than a decade later, in 1975, microwaves were sold in higher numbers than gas ovens. A first time for the product, but certainly not the last. Amana Corporation continues to exist, and it still sells microwaves, though other companies like General Electric and Samsung have edged it out of its market reign. Not everyone is completely on board with microwaves. There have been scares about their potential health risks since the 1970s (some people even question whether they can make body parts explode). But while the appliance is not really necessary, it certainly makes our fast-paced life easier. Because of that, we're betting that it's here to stay.