We have had this unit for a short time and used it very little. This last weekend, my wife had the experience of the upper plate tilting out of alignment on opening. This was due to one plastic "pivot pin" having fractured, had both pins fractured the unit could have come apart posing a burn and possibly an electrical hazard. My inspection of the pin shows that the pin has visible gas pockets at the junction (fracture) of the barrel and head. I will not be purchasing a replacement B-D item.