1945 GE Roaster Oven

[rp2813]

I picked this up for $10 today.  I've never seen a GE roaster before and liked the art deco look of the heat control trim panel.

 

Pictures show as-found condition.  I think there was originally white paint behind the GE logo and perhaps on the grooved areas of the ribbing.

 

It will take some elbow grease, but I think the exterior will clean up fairly well.

 

 

 

[rp2813]

Interior

The booklet is dated 9-45.

 

 

 

[paulg]

Use it and love it..

My Westinghouse comes out several times a year but I've clearly grown to like using it.
I've done pies, turkeys and beef sandwiches for a crowd. It's sort-of my extra oven for a crowd.
Your ten dollar + elbow grease investment will pay back in the first use.

 

[rp2813]

Close-Up

The control panel.  There is no indicator lamp.  Instead, there is a metallic strip that conducts current and glows red when power is on.  It's very discreet and is viewable through the small round sight glass, ideally under lower light conditions.

 

[rp2813]

Now, a Question

The receptacle for the cord is on the right side at the rear.  When powered up, the heat seems to emanate from that corner of the cooking well.  It's definitely the hot zone, and makes me think the heat would be very uneven for roasting or baking.  I removed the bottom cover and encountered a mass of fiberglass stuck to an asbestos panel, so there was no way to examine the heating element(s).

 

Is this normal behavior or should the bottom of the well heat up more uniformly?  Is there a safe way to open things up and examine the heating system?

 

[gansky1]

That's very interesting, I've never seen a GE roaster before. Lots of Westinghouse, Nesco, etc. That's a great looking knob.

We used a Westinghouse at Robert & Fred's over Thanksgiving to do the Turkey and it worked beautifully. It had been years since I'd been around one in use and then it was only at church dinners for large amounts of spaghetti sauce, etc.

Oddly, that was one kitchen gadget my grandmother didn't have.

 

[polkanut]

Ralph,

It should have uniform heat throughout the unit.  It works on the same principle that a regular oven would.  Can you remove the section where the pan sits in and get inside that way?

 

[rp2813]

Tim, I think I would have to remove the white surround, if that's possible.  I didn't go very far with my investigating yesterday but will also check the connections behind the temperature control.

 

I like this GE because it seems more solid and heavier than the Westinghouse and Nesco roasters I've owned in the past, as well as being relatively unusual.  However it doesn't have the pegs that allow the insert to be inverted and used as a lid for large items like the Westinghouses do.  I can't imagine I'd use that option much.  If I can get it working properly, this roaster will be used for additional oven space for things like casseroles and other side dishes when the main oven is occupied by a large item, or baking/roasting outside on hot days.

 

I have an old appliance repair book that may address roasters from this era, so will be looking into this further.

 

It's blurred, but here's a shot of the heating element indicator glowing.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I would be very wary about going into that. It is full of asbestos and there is no sense losing your life that way. It should not be doing the spot heating. The "on" indicator is probaby just a window to view the ribbon heating element.

 

[cadman]

Is there a wattage indicated somewhere on the unit? You could always measure current draw and compare to see if an element is open. -Cory

 

[rp2813]

Oh, trust me.  I'm not going to be messing with asbestos over a $10 purchase.  If I can't identify and fix the problem without disturbing the insulation material, it's not happening.

 

I'll look into measuring current draw.

 

The "ribbon" element behind the window is perhaps an inch long and attaches to a pair of screws that, on the back side of the assembly have wires running to the actual heating elements.

 

[gredmondson]

I had a GE roaster (not quite the same style as this one--really, fancier) from 1940 that my father won for selling cars. We used to roast the Thanksgiving turkey in it. My kids loved that roaster, and I regret getting rid of it.

 

[Ultramatic]

Very nice find Ralph...

<span style="font-size: medium;">And for 10 bucks! Congratulations!</span>

 

[whirlcool]

My Grandmother has a Westinghouse roaster back in the 50's. That thing could only be called "solid". Even the lid was heavy. It was darned heavy, not like the ones being sold today.

 

[turquoisedude]

Congratulations!! I have the very same one! May you have many years of roasting pleasure with it.

 

[rp2813]

It Appears To Be Fixed!

My hands (even though I wore gloves) and forearms are a little itchy, but I found the problem.

 

I had to deal with some asbestos, but did so outside and wore a mask.  The repair I had to make didn't require doing anything to the asbestos sheet that would create dust.  There was a break in the heating wire.  My trusty 1950 Electrical Appliance Repair text book advised that if an element has a break, the whole thing should be replaced.  I suppose a replacement "heat sheet" for a modern HB or Nesco roaster could be retrofitted, but I decided to mend the break by twisting the wires together.  It may not last very long, but I don't intend to put this roaster to daily use. 

 

The result is that it heats more evenly now, although the hot spot is still there at right rear by the power supply, and the mended spot diagonal from it warms up the slowest, but now at least the entire bottom surface is heating.  I'm thinking this is just the nature of the circuitry, but it's possible the mended area isn't as efficient as it should be.  I'll have to try it out and see how it does.  It may only be an issue during pre-heat and not once it hits the set temperature.

 

Geez, that fiberglass is really a mess to deal with.  If I have to remove the surround again in the future, I think I'll use a length of foil tape to keep the fiberglass under control.

 

Now it's time to shine it up and bring it inside.  Yay!

 

So Paul, is there supposed to be any white paint on the front control panel trim piece?

 

[whirlcool]

Could you have soldered or welded the two pieces of the heating wire together?

 

[rp2813]

Allen, I think solder would just melt.  Here is my experience:

 

On my mom's '49 Westinghouse stove, the deep well unit had an old school coiled element with ceramic insulation.  One of the coils broke.  I couldn't find anyone to repair it.  Finally I got a hold of an old timer repair guy who said if it didn't get used much, I could twist the wires back together and that would fix it.  Sure enough, it did the trick and without causing a more intense red glow at the mend.

 

If the elements on this roaster were the modern crock-pot ribbon type that resemble metallic tape, the repair I made today wouldn't have been possible.  As stated above, we'll have to see how long it lasts.  The wires are fairly thick, so I might get lucky.  I tested it out again and the heat was fairly even, except for the warmer spot near the electrical connection.  I think it's as good as it gets.

 

 

 

[rp2813]

I got out my aim & shoot thermometer gun, cranked up the thermostat, waited a couple of minutes and checked the temperatures in all four quadrants.  Hottest bottom surface area at right rear was about 50 degrees warmer than the hottest at left front.  The difference between left front, left rear and right front wasn't so pronounced.  I don't think I can expect much more precision than that, even if the element hadn't needed mending.