1950s Frigidaire Imperial

[sarahperdue]

I'm in love. It's gorgeous! Is it a good stove? What's a reasonable price?

For those of you who have followed my old house threads, wouldn't it be perfect in my kitchen?

 

[sarahperdue]

And more

The first picture is from an estate sale site. I just found this stove listed on Craigslist. They are asking $800. Out of my reach.

http://bham.craigslist.org/atd/5393031031.html

 

[pulltostart]

Sarah

What are/were the dates of the estate sale?  Just looking at the information you've posted, it appears that the sale has already occurred and the range did not sell and now it's being posted on CL.  Seems to me that asking that price for an item like this in a location like Gadsden is not likely to result in a sale.  You might make an official inquiry and establish a connection with the seller so you can check back in a few weeks and if the range is still unsold - make an offer.  If you like the range (and I agree, it is sweet) you have nothing to lose.

 

lawrence

 

[sarahperdue]

sale dates and estate sale company policies

Thanks Lawrence,

The stove is listed both at the sale and on craigslist simultaneously. The sale starts Friday.
I was thinking the same thing about the odds of it selling for that price in Decatur, AL. I'm going to contact the seller via craigslist.

I usually do not attend estate sales held by companies that sell items early. I don't think its an ethical practice to show pictures of items that will be at the sale and allow early sales and family members to continue to take items from the estate. I resell vintage items on eBay part time and attend many estate sales. I do not think it is fair to buyers--resellers and individuals alike--to advertise items that may not be at the sale when one gets there. I've never gone to north Alabama for sales, but I've been considering going up for this one and checked out several others in the area. Two companies in this area offer early sales. I found the ad for this stove on craigslist by chance because I wanted to see if there was a similar stove with more pictures...

S

 

[pulltostart]

The seller knows his odds - the ad is also posted on the Chattanooga CL and the Atlanta CL.

 

And yes, I misspoke, it is in Decatur, not Gadsden.

 

lawrence

 

[firedome]

Just fyi these are great ranges...

and imo this early to mid-late '50s period produced some of the best build-quality ranges, better porcelain, heavier gauge steel &c. My mid-70s FD 30" rnage is not quite the same construction quality but still a pleasure to cook or bake with. FD was a cut above most ranges until about 1980 when sold to WCI. Be aware the Frigidaire RadianTube burner coils tend to heat up and cool down somewhat slower than thinner coils such as GE Calrod, but you'll quickly adapt, and they do put out prodigious heat once they get going! No self-cleaning of course, that didn't come along until the mid-60s, I'm sure PhilR will know the exact year. Good Luck and hope you can be it's new owner!

 

[norgeway]

Its a

55.

 

[sel8207]

first year

Was that the first year for the heat minder, and first year for the speed heat unit? Also,is that an oven on the left side or just extra storage? Beautiful range. les.

 

[sarahperdue]

Elements

Thanks Firedome.

Are these elements easy to replace? My grandmother had 40" ranges until the last few years of her life, and the ones in my earliest memories were Frigidaire with the big elements.

I contacted the seller via Craigslist last night and have not received a reply.

Lawrence, how's life in Mobile?

 

[pulltostart]

Sarah

Life in Mobile is fine - thanks for asking.  I've been in this house for about 16 months and so far the exterior is finished and I'm maybe halfway through the interior.  The mild winters are nice, but I do miss opportunities to wear my flannel shirts and corduroy pants!

 

lawrence

 

[mattl]

Sarah..

Long time no post- how is the house coming?

 

[sarahperdue]

house...

Thanks for asking. I'll check my old threads to see where I left off and catch you up. The broad answer is very slowly. I wasted a lot of time--years trying to figure out how to do it perfectly. Now my boys are 11 and 13 and don't much like going down there. I'm going for "good enough." I'm spray painting the exterior without scraping, prepping or anything. I figure every drop of paint makes it look better and preserves it better than no paint. I'm ripping off rotten siding and covering the gaps with felt paper...which I am also painting. It looks odd, but I'm slowing down the rot.

I'll post some pictures from this summer.

It's good to be back here on AW. I enjoy hanging out here but spend long stretches of time not engaging in much social media at all. I'm selling on eBay. I enjoy it a lot, but I'm not exactly paying for the renovations...

The pictures below are in quasi chronological order by room. The blue kitchen is very similar to the way it was when I inherited the house. The next three are very close to the way the kitchen looks now. The exterior pictures are of the front of the house as it has progressed through the last several years. The rooms with the knotty pine panelling are upstairs. The three following the upstairs are of my grandparent's bedroom which has gone through many different incarnations in the last few years (the door with the fan light opens onto a quarry tile porch. The final picture is of the room that was my grandmother's dining room. We used it as a living room/den from the time I received the house until about three years ago when we ripped out all of the sheetrock in order to rewire the house. It is now down to the studs as is all of the ground floor except the kitchen and my grandmother's bedroom. We can't sheetrock until we stabilize the foundation. The four kittens were born under the upstairs bathtub, and we have no idea how their mother got into the house. We found homes for all four and they are thriving.

Sarah