Very nicely packaged for its trip from California. There was a big fluffy moving blanket under all that cardboard and plastic.
A new arrival
- Thread starter bajaespuma
- Start date
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Cool!
I had that same exact machine in yellow! You'll love it!
I had that same exact machine in yellow! You'll love it!
My 6th 1961 GE laundry appliance!!!!!!!
She's a bit of a rare bird. In 1961, and only in '61, GE simplified its TOL dryers by putting all the controls, temp, time, and safety start on the dial; you can read "PULL TO START" right around the edge of the knob. Unfortunately, she has no buttons, but a few whistles:
And then there's the 1961 "metal fatigue" door pedal that was scrapped after one year:
I do so love being right
The rating plate tells us...
The rating plate tells us...
Let's try that again
The rating plate, had the photographer's hand been steadier, would tell us that this is indeed a DA-820V, almost identical to a DA-920V, mate to the "Rotary Fabric Dial" model. This model lacks the fluorescent light in the panel and has gold, instead of blue, trim on the panel and a control dial with different colors.
The rating plate, had the photographer's hand been steadier, would tell us that this is indeed a DA-820V, almost identical to a DA-920V, mate to the "Rotary Fabric Dial" model. This model lacks the fluorescent light in the panel and has gold, instead of blue, trim on the panel and a control dial with different colors.
The interior is in great condition; no rust spots at all and it has a drum light. The seller was kind enough to put the pigtail in the drum and left some lint in the filter:
The Operating Instruction decal, alas, has seen better days, but that is easily remedied:
I haven't plugged it in yet so we'll see if the rollers are worn or not and whether the nichrome coils are all operational. I'd like to use this machine as my daily driver; I'm getting tired of stooping low to fish laundry from the niggardly porthole of my Maytag HOH and then fumbling for the lint filter at the back of the drum. It has given me good service but it's time for a change. I suspect that if it's in good working order this dryer will be much faster.
We had one
almost the identical dryer growing up Ken, but it had the big push on switch on the left side. I guess that would have been a '62??
It was a HOT dryer.
almost the identical dryer growing up Ken, but it had the big push on switch on the left side. I guess that would have been a '62??
It was a HOT dryer.
Congratulations!
The GE will dry faster if for no other reason than the higher wattage heating element and it has a larger capacity. Unlike the Maytag's electronic dry control, the GE's time-temperature auto dry did tend to overdry, but it was more successful at fully drying mixed fabric loads instead of shutting off while the heavier items were not fully dry. You will enjoy this dryer. Unless it is severely overloaded, the axial airflow is very efficient with full loads. Smaller loads tend to circle the drum more, so for those, a WP-made dryer is the better alternate.
The GE will dry faster if for no other reason than the higher wattage heating element and it has a larger capacity. Unlike the Maytag's electronic dry control, the GE's time-temperature auto dry did tend to overdry, but it was more successful at fully drying mixed fabric loads instead of shutting off while the heavier items were not fully dry. You will enjoy this dryer. Unless it is severely overloaded, the axial airflow is very efficient with full loads. Smaller loads tend to circle the drum more, so for those, a WP-made dryer is the better alternate.
turquoisedude
Well-known member
Wow, Ken, that is a very cool dryer indeed (no pun intended!).
The 'all-in-one' dial reminds me of the later designs (used on Whirlpools and other brands) with a dial section for the automatic cycles and another with the timed drying. That pull to start dial is something else, too - I am sure this will be a fine daily driver!
If you have any roller issues, I have some NOS ones but from a 1959 model. I had tried to adapt them to the 63 but wound up using a new set of glides instead.
The 'all-in-one' dial reminds me of the later designs (used on Whirlpools and other brands) with a dial section for the automatic cycles and another with the timed drying. That pull to start dial is something else, too - I am sure this will be a fine daily driver!
If you have any roller issues, I have some NOS ones but from a 1959 model. I had tried to adapt them to the 63 but wound up using a new set of glides instead.
Temps?
Congrats on your new dryer! I love it's style & clean lines. I see that it has two thermostats, but do not see a temperature selector. What are the temps, and how is it selected?
Have fun!
Congrats on your new dryer! I love it's style & clean lines. I see that it has two thermostats, but do not see a temperature selector. What are the temps, and how is it selected?
Have fun!
Phantom buttons
The temperatures are selected on the dial. As I understand it, in the "Automatic Cycle" section, the high-limit temperatures are on a sliding scale control from HEAVY down to DELICATE; the sturdier the fabric selected, the hotter the heaters are allowed to get before they are cycled off. If the load isn't yet dry, the moisture coming off of the laundry cools the interior drum temperature which is sensed by one of the thermostats. This on/off heating cycle continues until the pre-set temperature is reached and held for several minutes (meaning the load is dry) so drying time is dependent on those pre-set temperatures. I have a chart on one of the dryer manuals that I will indicate when it gets to the Ephemera library.
In the "TIMED" section of the dial, which was originally labeled "DAMP DRY" in earlier iterations, the temperature preset is always high until it reaches the 10-minute "FLUFF" section where they're turned off and left off until the end of the cycle. This dryer is very similar to our first GE dryer except that it was a 1962 MOL that had a separate Safety Start switch.
I think the buttons were added as placebos to customers who (like yours truly) equate lots of buttons with more value for the money. As far as I can tell, the buttons do the same thing that the settings on the dial do; they're just more fun. Sort of what I've suspected my whole life about the PUSH TO CROSS buttons on the crosswalk signals for pedestrians.
The temperatures are selected on the dial. As I understand it, in the "Automatic Cycle" section, the high-limit temperatures are on a sliding scale control from HEAVY down to DELICATE; the sturdier the fabric selected, the hotter the heaters are allowed to get before they are cycled off. If the load isn't yet dry, the moisture coming off of the laundry cools the interior drum temperature which is sensed by one of the thermostats. This on/off heating cycle continues until the pre-set temperature is reached and held for several minutes (meaning the load is dry) so drying time is dependent on those pre-set temperatures. I have a chart on one of the dryer manuals that I will indicate when it gets to the Ephemera library.
In the "TIMED" section of the dial, which was originally labeled "DAMP DRY" in earlier iterations, the temperature preset is always high until it reaches the 10-minute "FLUFF" section where they're turned off and left off until the end of the cycle. This dryer is very similar to our first GE dryer except that it was a 1962 MOL that had a separate Safety Start switch.
I think the buttons were added as placebos to customers who (like yours truly) equate lots of buttons with more value for the money. As far as I can tell, the buttons do the same thing that the settings on the dial do; they're just more fun. Sort of what I've suspected my whole life about the PUSH TO CROSS buttons on the crosswalk signals for pedestrians.
