Admiral range 1958 questions

[paulg]

This is probably the first of a series of questions. Perhaps you experts can guide me!
In this case we have a 1958 Admiral range that resides in my late MIL’s basement. I learned to can on this range, but for the last twenty years it has been unplugged. This puppy is pretty rough after a long life on a farm.
We plan on using it for canning again, so rather than scrap the thing I am going to try to save it.
Try…
First problem. The oven hinges on both the main oven and the “thrift oven” are malfunctioning pretty badly. They are stiff and the doors don’t close evenly. It appears that there may be a spring broken on both sides. Not sure.
Q: How do you get to the hinges to repair them? I kinda doubt that removal of the screws would allow removal of the hinges from the front. Am I wrong about that?
Q: Do you have to use a special grease to lubricate them? I don’t know if the heat of the oven causes some greases to run, separate or smoke.

I found some glaring faults upon quick examination. There is evidence of old wiring repairs and a connecting lug completely came off a Calrod burner. The Calrod lug and its wiring landed on the metal frame. This is why one checks these units before applying power…. I’ll forward pix of the burner later. I do not know if Admiral burners are universal or not.
All comments welcome.

 

[norgeway]

What a rare range

Ive only ever seen a picture of one, thats worth any effort to restore.

 

[norgeway]

The hinges

If anything like some other ranges , might be removed thru the bottom of the range,

 

[paulg]

Thank you for the responses

Since you mentioned pictures, I’ve enclosed a picture of the original brochure. Here’s what it looked like in its glory days.
Pix of the range elements also follow. I only get to the house erratically so this is going to be a slow project.
Can anyone identify the vendor of the range elements?

 

[circlew]

I'm thinking the elements may have been made by Chromalox.

 

[paulg]

Interesting you would say that.

When I looked in the oven, the broil element said Chromalox. However, I thought that perhaps it was simply a replacement element. Perhaps these are all Chromalox.
Thanks for the info.

 

[circlew]

I think that GE/Hotpoint, Westinghouse, and Frigidaire were the only ones that manufactured their own elements. The rest were usually Chromalox or T-K.

 

[combo52]

1958 Admiral 40 inch electric range

It doesn’t look to be in too bad shape, the door hinges you just have to take apart and try to lubricate to see if any springs are broken, etc. parts would be hard to find for an admiral that’s for sure.

Since the only 8 inch element in the front of the range has the sensor on it. These elements were not the best for canning. It’s very hard to get large canners or pressure cookers that are flat enough to work well with the sensors.

It looks like it has some missing knobs also should have more controls, sometimes knobs are hard to find too for something like this.

Keep us posted on the progress

John L

 

[paulg]

Thanks for the info.

I am surprised by others who view this project as…. Doable. I also believe just about anything is restorable if you have the time and the money. I’m a bit skittish about this one…
The missing knobs aren’t missing but were removed by me for cleaning and potential replacement. The two knobs on the left seem to have warped due to the heat of the burner beneath it.
I’ll keep y’all posted on what happens. I’m not gonna cry if the thing takes a dump, but why not try? At least it is good practice for my very overdue service on my pink Custom Trend.
And yes, all the burners are Chromalox. Thanks gang for the tip.
Thanks for the input!