selector pin 44 a guide slit 46 and a spring loaded switch body 48 the selector pin 44 may be operatively connected to a user control that is accessible from the outside of the housing 2 of the steam iron 1 said user control may take any suitable form and for example be a turnable knob a dial a slider etc alternatively when the selector pin 44 is itself suitably shaped and positioned the selector pin 44 may be identified with a user control the selector pin 44 is slideably moveable within the guide slit 46 that is provided in the support structure 31 the guide slit 46 extends slantingly upwards as can be best seen in fig3 the switch body 48 is also slideably moveable within the support structure 31 in a generally vertical direction it deserves notice that this direction has a component that is perpendicular to the direction in which the guide slit 46 extends the switch body 48 is spring loaded by a spring 54 and serves inter alia to define a number of selectable selector pin positions each of which is associated with its own steam rate to this end a top surface of the switch body 48 is provided with serrations 50 between any two of which the selector pin 44 is partly receivable the spring action of spring 54 forces the switch body 48 upwards to lock the selector pin 44 in place between a selected pair of serrations 50 and an upper edge of the guide slit 46 the selected position of the selector pin 44 determines the vertical position of the switch.