Actually, Pete, Ben explained it in the initial post.
"A big surprise came when I took the rear panel off. Investigating to see how the water level was metered - it was a pleasant surprise to see that an infinite water level pressure switch had been hiding behind the BOL panel for decades! So to save some water a little flick of the dial can turn the level down as needed. "
It was installed on the assembly line but only available to use on higher end models. No match for savvy Ben's skills who tweaked that baby in seconds to get a low water level. And now I have two stories for my fellow Aworgers about that machine.
Home for good after college in the late seventies, a friend lived in one of those huge dwellings where sets of four units share a common basement, meaning there were four washers per basement. All main entries were open then, so I could romp from basement to basement ogling all the awesome now-vintage machines. And the first time I saw that Norge/Wards, etc. OH MY GOD. Nervously, I opened the lid, terrified that the owner might catch me with my head inside of her machine--like Robert's gym video. The white version of the identical agitator in Ben's machine was in full operation, at the lowest water level I had ever seen. It was a small load of socks. And they were flying. Of course this was an adrenalized experience, but I had never seen a machine agitate with such force and speed, and was blown away by a washer with a genuine extra-low water level, very rare then. In that moment, I knew I had to have a Norge. A few months later; I had never been more automatic washer happy: lowest water levels available, insane agiatation, long spray rinse flying off the blades and column--my God, what a washer! It was the first automatic I bought. Up until then I had my blessed Easy--25 bucks in an antique store in 1978, and still spirilating away today. How many loads had that Easy washed?
Second story later,
