1950 Kenmore Dryer

[Unimatic1140]

"Just bought a house that came with a 1950's kenmore dryer in working condition . The exterior is average to good. The lady used it up until the day we moved in. I hate to throw it out or donate. The unit is in Sacramento , Ca.. Best Offer!"

Andy
[email protected]

 

[retromom]

How can you resist?

Ok Steve (SactoTeddyBear)

This bud's for you!

Venus

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: 1950 Kenmore Dryer:

"SOLD" to the "Lucky" SactoTeddyBear, with great timing, because it is considered an early Birthday Present, "To Me, From Me."

"BTW" the Dryer is a 1950 Model, also being the year that I was Born, on May 3rd and it is the one with the Controls on the sloped Front, with the Temp Dial on the Left and the Timer on the Right, with the Little Pilot-Light, just above the Door Opening. It has the Left-to-Right opening Door. It is actually in pretty good shape, considering it's age and it has only had 1-Owner, since it was bought new in 1950.

Interestingly, Andy lives in the same Neighborhood that my Parent's lived, before I was even thought of, actually only about 4 or 5 houses apart "Kitty-Corner." Now, since Payday is just around the corner, I was able to pay 1/2 today and the rest on Payday, "but" I was able to bring it with me today. I will be doing a little cleaning out and checking the Heating Element, Belt's and Pulley's and the Motor, even before attempting to operate it, as well as having to get another Pig-Tail, because it has a Smaller {Silver Dollar Size} Round Plug, with curved Prongs, even though it is 220-Volts. Andy was going to plug it in, but I stopped him, because he thought that it ran on 110-Volt, but he was looking at the "110" as part of the Model Number, thinking that meant it operated on 110-Volts. I asked him to write a Brief Contract/Note, especially since I asked if I could make a couple of Payment's, besides "FYI" for my Records of where and when I got the Dryer. I will try to see about Posting a Pix when I'm able to get some space figured out for temporary Storage of the Dryer, until I'm able to use my Garage to it's ability as my Repair Shop. Thank You, Venus for the "PUSH" towards checking it out and for Robert, for Posting the info for Andy, about the availability of the Dryer. "YES" it is about time that at least one of these "GEMS" comes our way, I was getting real Jealous Feeling, thinking that everyone else was being so Lucky, so why weren't these Machines showing up more on the West Coast!!!

Peace and Happy "1950" Kenmore Drying, Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[retromom]

Yay Steve!

I'm ecstatic that you're getting the dryer! You two seem to have a lot in common! Don't you just love serendipity! Post some pics when you get her home!

Enjoy

Venus

 

[DADoES]

Yay!

 

[rickr]

Kenmore dryer

Way to go Steve!! The "bug" has bitten again! LOL!
Have fun with that. I just got a 56 WP dryer to go with my 56 WP washer last week from KennyG. It is torn down now,and the cabinet went to the body shop for a repaint this morning. Those really old ones are built like a tank!

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: Hey! Venus:

"OK" which way are you talking about "You Two having something in Common?" Are you referring about the fact that the Dryer and I were "Manufactured" and Introduced in the 1950's, or that we are both getting quite "OLD" with hopes that we both have some kind of life in us!!! {LOL}

Peace and Happy 1950 Kenmore Dryer "DAZE" Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[kenmore1978]

siilver dollar plug

Now you've got me intrigued, I wonder what kind of plug is on teh cord to the dryer? Those plugs have been "standard" for quite a while, can't imagine what it would be besides the usual 3 or 4 prong dryer cord. UNLESS it could actually be wired for 110 volts as some dryers could (example, Westinghouse) in those days.

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: Dryer Plug:

The Plug and Cord looks like it would be more like used on an Air Conditioner, with the shape of the Plug. It is about a 2-foot {most} long Cord, Black Color and quite thick, like 220-Volt Wiring is, rather than being thinner like 110-Volt Wiring. I certainly know that difference looking at the types of Wiring by thickness. It has the 3-Prongs but they are curved rather than being aligned like normal 2 or 3 prong 110-Plug's would look like, or even the normal 220-Volt 3 or 4 Prong Plugs. I'm doing an approximate size of the roundness of the Plug, but I'm fairly accurate about the similarity as being in equal size of a Silver Dollar, but maybe more like a 1/2 Dollar in size, but around those approximate sizes.

What made me think about it looking like an Air Conditioner Plug, is because I can think of some Friend's in particular who had an Air Conditioner with a similar Cord/Plug, except their "AC" Cord was either a Light Brown/Tan or Light Gray Color and Receptacle, for using a Round Plug.

When I'm able to look into some Pix's, I will try to remember to take a Pix of the old Cord, maybe it will "JOG" some memories!!!

Peace and Fun Laundry Days, Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: Cord/Pig-Tail:

"BTW" the Cord/Pig-Tail outer Black Casing, with the Wiring inside is round in shape, rather than being more Flat, like the newer Pig-Tail's are now.

Peace and Fun Laundry Days, Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[yaktx]

Curved Blades...

SactoTeddyBear...

By curved blades, do you mean something like this? This is commonly referred to as a "twist-lock". The photo is of a modern 125v 15a version, but they come in many different ratings and are used in industrial settings.

Your dryer probably is 240v, but don't ever judge voltage by the thickness of the cord. That is indicative of current, not voltage. If it is not 240v and 10 guage wire, it is probably a condensing dryer.

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: Dryer Plug:

Hi! Yaktx, that looks similar to the Plug on the Dryer, except for being a Black Covered Plug and Cord. It is a Vented Drying System, not Condensor Drying, besides the Model Number Plate says 220-Volt, 30-Amp 60-Cycle A/C. The Dryer has a Vent opening on the Back with a Box-Like Lint Screen Holder. The Lint Screen is pulled out from the Top of the Box, to clean it. There isn't any means for Venting Outside, unless you take the Lint Screen and the Holder Box off the back of the Dryer and Vent it directly, without the Lint Screen.

Peace and Happy Laundry Drying, Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[yaktx]

Looked at the nameplate, that's the way. I figured it was a 240v model anyway. No way to vent it? That's strange.

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: Venting Dryers:

When Dryer's were first coming around for doing their Job, the Manufacture's didn't necessarily think about the need to Vent the Exhausted Air outside, they just figured that the Air could Re-Circulate behind/around the Dryer. They I'm guessing found out by the Consumer's complaining about excess Moisture and Lint, getting all over their Garage, Basement or Laundry Porch/Room, or Shed where the Dryer was located to be Drying the Laundry. The older Lint Screens, like the one in this 1950 Kenmore Dryer, was more like the old Window Screen Material, of harder large mesh, that doesn't catch as much of the Lint as the newer Nylon Fine Mesh Lint Filter's are made of these days.

Peace and Happy Laundry Times, Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[rickr]

Lint screen/venting outside

Hi Steve, What way are you planning to use the dryer? Venting outside,or inside with the filter? If it were me I would go with an outside vent and no filter. I have a friend who is too lazy to put a dryer vent in his basement. He has a mel of a hess down there now! Everything in his basement is covered with lint cobwebs,and it is just gross!

 

[SactoTeddyBear]

Re: To Vent, -or- Not To Vent, that is the Question:

Hi! Rick, thanks for you concern, but as I mentioned in my prior Thread Post, I know that a Non-Vented Dryer can create quite a lot of Lint all over the place. When I'm able to complete my "Check-Up" and get the Dryer operating, it will initally be checked out, without Venting and with the Lint Screen in place, without any Laundry in it, until I'm sure everything is working correctly. I will have to place an Elbow on the opening where the Lint Screen is located, after removing the Screen Box Holder, since the opening on the back of the Dryer has a smooth surface, instead of the edge that they have now to attach the Vent Tubing. I had a Portable Kenmore Dryer in my Garage that I was using for quite a while and I wasn't really feeling like I was being lazy, but I didn't catch the excess Lint into a Nylon Stocking, as I normally would {I know almost every Guy on this Club Site has them avilable, just for that purpose} "LOL" so when I checked behind my Neptune Washer and Dryer as well as seeing on their Console's, it looked like we had a Moderate Snow Fall...

Peace and Happy Laundrying, Steve
SactoTeddyBear...

 

[golittlesport]

Congrats, Steve! That is a very cool dryer! I like those early Kenmores

 

[toggleswitch]

Humidity alert

Is this machine 110 /220 convertible as many early ones were?
It may explain why your pig-tail and plug are off-beat. The cord may have been user-installed. Early 220v stuff was hard-wired (no plug-and-cord)in my neck of the woods.

I think 110/220 convertibility helped get dryers popular here early on.. you could have one even without a dedicated 220V 30 amp line or even gas service...

a two-hour-to-dry load on 110V was still better than line-drying in winter!!!

Anyone out there know if today's 220v dryers can be used on 110v.? It is just a matter of switching one hot (to the heater) to the neutral terminal in the terminal block. Numbers wise I think the amps go down from 30 to less than 20a.... so in theory it should work.

VENTING:
To heck with lint.. IMHO the humidity is havoc-wreaking and unhealthy... leads to mold growth.And PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE vent a gas-fired unit everyone. Although some states allow unvented gas-appliances they are SO unhealthy even if you do open a window every time. (Damn I'm so preachy.. LOL)

Studies in England have shown that families that cook with gas have children with around twice the respiratory ailments that electic-cooking families do...(including permanent asthma) Gas stoves are not directly vented.

 

[kenmore1978]

110/220

I have a 1972 portable compact Wards Signature dryer that is 110/220V convertible. Wards also had a line of compact washers and dryers that were miniture versions of the full sized machines. The portable versions looked like these machines with the controls mounted on the front insteaad of in consoles on the top. Maybe someone has a WArds catalog showing these miniture machines as well as the portable versions?