I bought my Continental from VCS, too. Have had it now for about 6 months and love it. It did stop heating after third use. DH is an electrical engineer and he took it apart. Apparently a "spade" connector (the part that attaches the cord inside the iron) had come loose. He tightened it and viola! Works like a charm. Love the heft of the iron. Have used many different brands over the years, but this is the first true dry iron I've had. Won't go back to steam irons.