'62 Frigidaire agitator cap

[sfh074]

Here's my first attempt at the '62 Frigidaire agitator cap that I talked about in another thread a few weeks ago.

I got the density or firmness of the rubber mix right but getting the color and sheen is going to be a challenge.

This one turned out too shiny and needs more matte additive in my next try. But the addition of the pressure pot eliminated the random bubble issue I was having with the rubber resin I'm working with. Degassing the resin using a tank and vacuum pump worked great for the clear high density resin I used for the control knob, but not enough for this rubber resin. Takes both vacuum degassing and pressure tank to eliminate all bubbles.

Wish I had an original cap with better color to work from. Having to use images obtained from the web and an acid etched area on the underside of my old cab to judge the original color. But at least the cap I have still has very crisp detail of the logo and lettering.

Not sure why the color of my pics vary greatly but the 3rd pic looks closer to actual. 2nd pic looks way too blue and still has gooey mold release agent on it. Must be due to differences in lighting in the basement vs in laundry room of 3rd pic.

Would love to hear y'alls feedback. This urethane rubber product is very challenging to work with.

Bud - Atlanta, GA

Frigidaire washer knob

I am in the process of restoring a '62 Frigidaire WDA-62 washing machine and am in need of a better timer knob than the only one I have (pics included). Mine is pretty rough .... multiple cracks and pitted chrome. This clear knob was used on all of the '62 models, both washers and dryers ...

www.automaticwasher.org

 

[tomturbomatic]

Your work is amazing. The cap is beautiful. How did you learn to do this work?

 

[pulltostart]

Amazing work!

It sounds like you're striving for perfection - nothing wrong with that as long as you're having fun with the process and learning.  But from a practical side I don't see anything wrong with what you've produced.  Pop that lid on the agitator/pulsator and after a few washes no one (including you) would know it's not original.

 

Your ability to reproduce these parts is just amazing.  Here's my own High Five!

 

lawrence

 

[toploader55]

Good Lord...

THAT IS AMAZING !!!

 

[combo52]

Looks Great

I would love to buy one of these caps for my WCI-62 Frigidaire washer, I have this washer and the matching Filtrater dryer, these are my favorite vintage FD pair.

 

Good Luck and let me know if you want to sell a cap, I also may have some parts for FD washers and dryers from this time period.

 

John L.

 

[speedqueen]

Not that I own one, but is there any possibility that the energy ring could be produced? I'm thinking about how the energy ring on that eBay FD from 1963 was quite worn, a while back. Begs the question, could a new one be fashioned?

 

[bajaespuma]

Bravo!

You could make a living fabricating parts just for us club members. I can already think of dozens of parts I'd love to have recreated.

 

If there's another big Wash-In I'd pay to participate in a seminar/in house demonstration of your techniques. It looks similar to what we pastry chefs do with silicon molds and using tempered chocolate or poured sugar instead of urethane.

[this post was last edited: 1/14/2018-15:34]

 

[ken]

Bud

Awesome work IMO. I think you're really on to something taking on the project of learning to produce these parts. Im sure there would be a big demand here for your services if you expand the list of parts you reproduce after perfecting the process. And I don't think the cap is too shiny.

 

[gyrafoam]

Even the color of one new out of old stock is going to be somewhat different just from the passage of time. I think you have done a beautiful job. Do you not feel as though the shine will not dull any over time? In any event, the third image shows a cap that looks great. I would join the line to buy a few.

 

[sfh074]

Thanks for the kind words

My link at the start of this thread pointed back to an older discussion where I mentioned I was going to try and reproduce the cap and the lower 2 rings. And yes the '63 that was on ebay a few weeks ago, the cap and rings were in terrible shape. And the bottom energy ring .... OMG! But then again seems to be the norm these days for these neoprene parts. I have 3 original sets and they all have seen better days. All discolored, hard as a brick and full of surface cracks. The bottom energy ring gets the most abuse and normally deflates and starts banging on the bottom of the tub. If I can reproduce the cap and rings to my liking, and finish my '62 washer restoration project, I'll take on the bottom energy ring as a separate repro project. But the size of that part and the embedded steel washer will have its own set of challenges. Instead I think that part is a better candidate being reproduced in hard plastic and 3D printed. Then no chance of it deforming over time like the original does and no need for the steel washer for mounting.

Bud - Atlanta, GA

 

[diesirae7]

Very cool indeed! We have to make the parts we need sometimes, this is excellent work!

 

[potatochips]

Excellent job! This will be heavily helpful to us all. Im excited to see what other things we can recreate.

 

[hippiedoll]

WOWZERS!!

You did an amazing job!
That cap you recreated looks GREAT!
I'm no expert, but to me it looks perfect!

OUTTA SIGHT job on your recreation Bud!
Me likes it
)

 

[swestoyz]

Wow, even if this is a 'test', the result looks fantastic. And to be honest the shine looks really good on the cap. I'll shoot you a PM.

Ben

 

[turquoisedude]

Oh my!  You've done a great job with your 'new' cap, congratulations!   If you're taking orders for more, I'm in - my '59 WCI cap is looking a bit faded.

 

 

 

[Unimatic1140]

I'm totally impressed Bud, when you have extras let me know as I would love to buy a few from you. I agree with what has been stated about the color, even if we find some brand new old stock agitator parts, for sure the color would be slightly changed due to aging neoprene. I think the color you used is perfect.

 

[rberryiii3]

Talent

I’m always amazed at the talent here. You’re an artist .

 

[sfh074]

Cap Follow-up

I kinda touched on this cap in another thread, but here's a follow-up on this specific topic of my '62 Frigidaire cap repro efforts.

After a lot of trial and error and a ton of reading to figure out how to make urethane "look and feel" just like old-school neoprene, I finally found the "magic" ingredients that are considered additives to the mix. Neoprene is denser, therefore heavier than urethane lending to not only how urethane doesn't look right, but also not feeling right. Neoprene has a heavy bending feel when flexed, whereas urethane has a lighter and more pliable feel .... even though both have the same measured density (ShoreA) value of 70. Even though I made a couple of caps that kinda looked close, I didn't like the look and feel. They just weren't the same!

Well, I finally got it. A custom urethane mix that has the same weight, density and opacity as neoprene. Not to mention a few tries to get the correct dye combinations to repro the original color.

Below are a few of the attempts before landing on the final product (bottom cap). Top right 3 are wrong colors and sheen, not to mention weighing less than the original. The bottom cap now looks and feels like the real thing and the correct color when it was new. In my book the money shot has to be just right!

To contrast, the bottom cap is leaning against an original Customline bojack reproduction cap made out of neoprene (my guess, mid 70's). It is still really close to being like an original Frigidaire cap in weight, rubber density and color, although it too has darkened a tad over time.

Cheers,

Bud - Atlanta

[this post was last edited: 8/6/2018-15:05]

 

[norgeway]

If I could do that!

I would start reproducing all sorts of unobtainable parts for not only washers, but vintage cars etc, you could make a small fortune! You sir are a true artist and a perfectionist!