Childhood washers

[matchboxpaul]

Hiya!

High standard equating to longevity really.
15 years use with only simple, general repairs, (prefersbably none at all) kind of thing.

I am going to jinx the WF740 now - they havent had any issues to date. It will be interesting for me to see how long it does last, in comparison with the others, when bearing in mind the perception of a reduction in build quality over the last 10 years or so.

a piccy of my parents current machine attached below - wasnt going to post a piccy of it, as it doesnt qualify as one of my childhood machines, but anyway...
cheers
paul

 

[jamman_98]

No one said it had to be full size

Someone in the group (I think KenmoreGuy64) has the Kenmore washer I remember as a child. Meanwhile I had a battery opperated one.

Joe
jamman_98

 

[dynaflow]

hey joe

the thrift store for helping pets near brookside? bapt church has a 50's Frigidaire dryer and a matching dishwasher for 30 buks each fdigured since u were in columbia u mightg be interested saw them tues with my partner
Ron

 

[bajaespuma]

History:

The machines that started it all:
First, a BOL 24" Whirlpool with no safety switch, a cerulean-blue plastic dial, one toggleswitch for water temp, a dark blue speckled tub and a black 3 straight-vane agitator that I have yet to see again (even on this site):

 

[bajaespuma]

and then came the Filter-Flo's:

first and foremost, the 1962 WA-750W, a classy classic:

 

[bajaespuma]

Why 60, 61, 62 and 63 are my years:

I guess we liked this machine so much, we bought a used version of it for our house at the beach that I got to pick out from the gorgeous collection of GE's at Bombaci's appliance store in Centerbrook, CT : the WA632T. I think this was my favorite machine of all time: it had a turquoise-blue plastic filter pan, a turquoise blue wire tub guard, a solid tub, it paused in the middle of the first spin( I now know why), a button called "WATER SAVER" that allowed the user or the curious kid to start the agitation(excuse me, activation) at any time during the fill, and, best of all, a lame prototype safety switch that allowed the lid to be opened almost to a 50-degree angle for optimal spin viewing.

 

[bajaespuma]

She liked her GE's so much she got her Mother, my Grandmother Esther to buy the 1963 version of her WA-750W(the dryer is an imagined but likely extrapolation):

 

[bajaespuma]

The mismatched pair

Our downstairs neighbors bought their machines at the same time and from the same store as my Parents. They, however, decided to save a little money by puchasing two Close-Out Filter-Flo's from the previous year, 1961. It is this machine that I have coveted since (and, I believe is visible is a scene in the Robert Redford film "Downhill Racer"). This is actually a depiction of Marian's laundry alcove:

 

[bajaespuma]

In 1965, my Uncle bought a house in the Hudson Valley

...and this machine(along with a filthy Norge dryer whose paint was peeling from inside the drum) was left in the basement. I remember thinking at the time how the agitator reminded me of a coffee percolator basket:

 

[bajaespuma]

It was running perfectly when my Uncle and his Partner decided to replace it with two stupid, oversized BOL whirlpools that only lasted 9 years.I will not bother to picture these, even though I've seen them in the club.

Meanwhile, years later, my family moved into an old farmhouse in the same general area, and what did we find in the mud room next to the kitchen? I'm still kicking myself:

 

[bajaespuma]

and next to it was an impossibly old dryer that made the clothes so hot you couldn't touch them:

 

[bajaespuma]

So, of course, at my bratty insistence

...we got rid of them after a couple of years(still kicking myself)and replaced them with:

 

[bajaespuma]

So, now do you understand why I love this club?

Actually, the 1973 GE Versatronic dryer was the best I've ever used. The washer, even though it had cool timed dispensers for both bleach and softener and a cool, weird plastic dispenser that sat on the filter pan for dispensing dry detergent into the wash after the pre-wash(this was the predecessor, I think to the Dispensall), had a sucky straight-vaned activator that was disappointingly ineffective, and made a loud "squawking" noise during agitation(excuse me, I mean activation) and had a weak spin compared to that old Frigidaire. Still I wish I had it today so I could retro-fit it with a ramped activator and use those timed dispensers.

 

[dnastrau]

Here are the machines that sparked my interest:

Mom & Dad:

Late '60's Kenmores with lighted controls. They had to be from between '67-'69. I wish I could remember more about these. Model 800 perhaps?
'75 GE Filter Flo set with mini wash. The dryer was the kind with the huge round opening.
'84 Hotpoint Filter Flo set with the non-removable filter at the top edge of the tub. These are sill being used by them today (!)

Aunt and Uncle:

'65 Kenmore set with lighted controls. I believe this was a Model 70 set. A member has the same washer in their collection, but has it listed as a '63. Perhaps the control panel design hung around for a few years (?)

Andrew S.

 

[dnastrau]

Gyrafoam has the same Kenmore

The Kenmore "Model 70" set that my Aunt and Uncle had looks just like the '63 Kenmore that Gyrafoam has.

I am fairly certain that they bought the set new at Sears in early '65. Either Sears carried this style for a couple of years or maybe it was a leftover (?)

I always loved the lighted controls, the clear plastic control dial with the cycles imprinted on it and the great belt drive woo-woo-woo sounds!

I'd like to find one of these some day...

Andrew S.

 

[swestoyz]

Great machines guys!

Grew up with an A806 paired with a BOL Kenmore dryer. Mom and Dad bought the Maytag used. I don't know how I remember this, but it had a rebuilt transmission and they were given a 1 year warranty on it.

I remember mom hanging clothes out in the summer and down in the basement before they got the Kenmore dryer.

Years ago I found a picture of the set, but for now, all I have is a picture of the identical machine I found almost 5 years ago.

Ben

 

[ronhic]

I'll never forget the lovely 'gurgling' sound that my mothers Simpson Fluid drive made. She had this washer from August 1968 until May 1989. It was still going when she replaced it with her ASEA.

She has only just replaced the ASEA (which has now been fixed and is going at someone elses house). Not bad to have just bought your 3rd washing machine and then only after 40yrs from the first 2.

The pic below is the same Simpson. This is Leon's

 

[jamiel]

the KM 70 series, in coppertone, in thread 327452 was my mom's. I remember most helping (!) her by taking my brother's diaper pail downstairs (I was 4 when he was born) and having my mom dump it in to this washing machine. I got to jump up and hold down the lid switch (reading the words on the control panel...INFINITE water level was a phrase that always caught my attention... as they were spun out before washing. My mom always used Sterox (I think it was called), a commercial detergent from Robins Chemicals in St. Louis (http://www.gsrobins.com/) which my dad had a line on (he was purchasing manager for a nearby plant in downtown St. Louis which bought other stuff from Robins, and he was able to get them to sell a 50 pound bag or 2 separately...actually I remember going down with him a time or two and helping load the detergent into the trunk of the car...my mom would take orders from the neighbors for a bagful)

 

[pierreandreply4]

washer and dryer that i grew up with

hello everyone here is a picture of the washer and dryer set that i grew up with they where bought before my birth so that means if my mother and me still add them they would be my age today.

Pierre

inglis superb washer and dryer set and my grand mother was an inglis libarator the classic push to start model that she no longer have but still have her vintage inglis libarator dryer.

Pierre

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Andrew -

Sears does indeed keep some models in production for several years, while others don't last a full season. I would love to know how those decisions are made. Gyrafoam's washer is a true 1963 model, but I've seen models last in production as long as four years, so you may very well have had a 1965 produced '63 model. There could also have been a batch of leftovers in stock as well so either of your theories are very possible.

When we went to buy our 1974 Kenmore, there was a matching washer to our early 1972 Kenmore dryer on the floor, however it didn't match in color and was available as a floor-model only, so Mom went with something of the same color and mis-matched consoles. By that though I'm pretty sure our '72 design lasted in production a couple years as well!

Gyrafoam's machine is an absolute GEM. It is gorgeous. I was lucky enough to see two '63 model 70s including that one when I went to Roanoke a couple months ago.