I was gonna do it, but as the guy was talking me through how to do it (yes, he, too, reminded me to unplug the oven first!
), he mentioned that if the coil had taken out the thermostat as well, we might as well get a new oven since the repair would cost a lot. After tossing figures around for a while it became apparent that hiring him to come check the thermostat and/or replace the coil would actually be cost-effective: if the thermostat was shot, we'd only be out the cost of the service call; if it was just the element, it would be the service call plus the $30 part; and in neither case would there be any hospital bills when hubby and/or hazel fried themselves trying to do it themselves.
So we had Bob the Appliance Guy come out this afternoon. Took him about 10 minutes. It was just the element--and since hubby watched over his shoulder, hubby now thinks he can replace it himself if it goes out again!