Early Maytag 806 Question

[danemodsandy]

Well, le jour de gloire est arrivé!

I am now the proud new owner of an early Maytag 806 pair, both washer and dryer, in White. Cory (cadman) was the former owner of the washer, Mark (kenmore71) the former owner of the dryer. Both of them came tonight to bring these beauties over, with Ben (swestoyz) working like a Trojan to help get them down to my basement. I am pretty overwhelmed with the generosity and helpfulness of all three guys in helping me achieve a dream pair! These are almost certainly the closest I will ever get to a 906 pair, and I think I'd better just count my blessings, right?

I do have one question, which only occurred to me after everyone left:

These machines are 1968 or later, with Permanent Press markings instead of Wash 'n Wear. Did washers of that vintage originally come with the early turquoise Power-Fin agitator - the one with the lumps on the skirt? Or was the later agitator (the turquoise one used for so many years) out by then?

The intention here (over time; Rome was not built in a day) is to do a completely correct resto on both machines, which are already in very, very nice shape. Mark has already done the front seal and the capacitor repair on the dryer, which is phenomenal. Cory took great care of the washer and maintained it well. I don't think there's going to be a lot of problem with getting them looking brand-new besides the fact that there are some HTF parts (a chrome-top filter, for one) involved.

Anyway, I'd love to know the scoop on the agitator - it has the later one on it now. Any help would be welcome! [this post was last edited: 1/18/2013-20:38]

 

[danemodsandy]

Found the Answer!

Super Searchalator to the rescue!

I found some photos that rickr had posted a long time ago - of the second-edition "New Generation" full-line brochure (the first edition is on Automatic Ephemera, of course).

That brochure clearly shows the Permanent Press cycle button on the washer console, and the later agitator.

So, the agitator that's on the machine is correct - one less bell to answer.[this post was last edited: 1/19/2013-06:19]

 

[danemodsandy]

P.S.:

The back cover of the brochure shows the color choices as Castilian Yellow, Cordoba Copper or Spanish Avocado.

I think this puts it at 1967, with the Castilian Yellow probably on the verge of being phased out. Clearly, the color names show that the dread Mediterranean-influenced years had begun. I have another, earlier edition showing Yellow (just named Yellow - no "Castilian"), Turquoise, and Shaded Coppertone (not "Cordoba Copper") as the choices. [this post was last edited: 1/19/2013-07:41]

 

[bajaespuma]

It seems to me that the original turquoise Power-fin agitator (with the lumps) went with the first generation of Washpowers that had only one wash cycle on the dial. Am I wrong? And why did they change that design? That first agitator with the downflow cone underneath it was more powerful. They also had that version of the lint filter with the waffle-cone collector:

 

[danemodsandy]

Ken:

Based on the 3 "New Generation" brochures I have, it appears you're correct.

I'm mindful that brochures sometimes don't tell the whole story, and that there are running changes that don't necessarily get documented as soon as they happen, but the second generation of "New Generation" machines is pictured in the brochure as not having the "humpy" agitator. And as you can see from the pic above, the second turquoise chrome-top lint filter (anybody got one FS?) was used.

What's not apparent is why the change was made. There must have been a very good reason for it, because the tooling charge for the revised agitator would have been expensive, and the tooling for the "humpy" agitator wasn't anywhere near fully amortized yet, I should think.

P.S.: I should correct myself here - the photo I posted above is from a third edition of the "New Generation" brochure. The first one I have is from Automatic Ephemera, and it does not show color choices (though it lists them in the copy, as White, Yellow, Turquoise and "Shaded Copper"). That one shows the "humpy" agitator and the stainless lint filter like Ken pictures above. The second, from Mark (kenmore71) shows the same info, but shows the yellow, turquoise and copper color choices on the back cover, dating it to 1966. The third, rickr's scans, shows the revised Power-Fin and the plastic-bodied, chrome-top lint filter seen above, and the Spanish Avocado, Castilian Yellow and Cordoba Copper choices for color, which puts it at 1967 or so.

Anyone have the "humpy" agitator? Does it wash well? Or does it have bad habits, like tangling or shredding?

 

[tomturbomatic]

Congratulations!

John found one of the turquoise double skirt agitators and I tried it out in my 806. I did not find it an improvement over the Power-Fin. The double skirt in the old Bakelite agitator did greatly improve the pumping action over the single skirt Bakelite Gyrator as well as give the chamber for dispensing detergent. I not only watched the water and load movement in the tub for circulation and roll over, I also removed the lint filter to watch the difference between the water level outside the barrel and inside it and it was the same in both agitators. The Power-Fin agitator with the higher position of the fins at their point of attachment and then their tapering down as they move out toward the edge of the skirt creates great water movement and good suction through the barrel.

My guess is that Maytag was ready to go with the flexible fins when the WP patent allowed it and made the switch as soon as possible. They discovered that they did not need the double skirt with the flexible fins and so they dropped it.

 

[danemodsandy]

Tom:

"My guess is that Maytag was ready to go with the flexible fins when the WP patent allowed it and made the switch as soon as possible."

This is the first turquoise Power-Fin agitator I'm talking about. The pic is from the first edition of the "New Generation" brochure, 1965.

It appears to be very similar to the later, more familiar version, with the exception of the "humps" on the skirt. The fins appear to be as flexible as the ones on the later version.

Am I missing a nuance here?

 

[danemodsandy]

For Comparison:

Here's the later agitator we know so well.

Both this design and the one in the previous pic are branded "Power-Fin" in the brochures' ad copy:

 

[tomturbomatic]

Yes, but in the later version the barrel has openings at the base where in the double skirt, they continue down through the upper skirt. There was not enough benefit to the performance to justify the more expensive agitator so they went with the cheaper design without the double skirt when they had to cut costs. The double skirt Power-Fin did not last very long which is why they are so rare. It is sorta typical of Maytag's engineering in the field and reducing costs like with the way the bleach dispenser on the 806 was cheapened to the point of being a funnel and a hose.

 

[danemodsandy]

Aha!

So, I was missing something.

Thanks - once again, it goes to show how photos sometimes don't tell the whole story, and how we can fail to notice something important.

 

[bajaespuma]

Unless I'm mistaken, the inside barrel of every Power-fin agitator can be used as a detergent dispenser/chute. Not that a detergent dispenser is or was ever necessary (the "Fish Knife" of the vintage appliance world); just another fun thing to fool around with.

 

Growing up with a Filter-Flo I always thought the user was supposed to put the detergent powder in the lint filter for dilution and dispensing or it would damage the load like chlorine bleach. The first Maytag with the "pop-up float" inside the agitator I ever saw in use was owned by my Aunt Dusty in a big beautiful old house in Lexington Mass.  who explained to me, very nicely and patiently when I asked where the lint filter was and how she'd be able to add the detergent, that the powder could just be added with the clothes before turning the machine on. She used to open the lid and press the float button/safety switch on the underside of that uniquely thick and wired lid in to add stuff while the machine was on.

 

Aunt Dusty was one of those incredibly professional housewives; whenever you came for dinner you thought you had the wrong night because there wasn't a speck of food or preparation anywhere to be seen in her kitchen. Then, 5 minutes before dinner, the meal would appear out of nowhere and find its way to the table. For an Armenian, that's a feat. Nowadays she'd be lableled OCD.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Ken, I was referring to the barrel of the first Bakelite Lint Filter agitators because the narrow post Gyrators did not have the barrel to use as a detergent dispenser or very good pumping action. You are right, all of the Power-Fins had the barrel to use as a dispenser, even the ones in laundromats with the agitator cap with the funnel-shaped opening, but only the double skirt style held the detergent until agitation began. The simpler style Power-Fin just dumped the detergent on the skirt. I was in a coin laundry in Arlington, VA that had once been a Frigidaire coin laundry. The instructions on the wall were left over from the Frigidaire days, but still made sense when they said to pour the detergent into the center of the agitator because the tall agitators in the tall tubs had the cap with the funnel-shaped opening for pouring in detergent or whatever.

 

[danemodsandy]

I Wonder.....

....Why none of the "New Generation" brochures I have mention the dispenser feature, for either agitator. God knows they mention everything else - Maytag's copywriters could make a BOL machine sound like a piece of technology so wonderful and new and advanced that Jane Jetson would sleep with Mr. Spacely to get her hands on it.

I also see no mention of the feature in any instruction manuals I have, though I admit I've got only two.

But it makes me wonder if this is maybe a Maytag legend. Does anyone have ad copy or instructional material actually touting the feature?

 

[appnut]

I don't think any of the "New Generation" manuals instructed the user to place the detergent inside the agitator--removing the filter to do so.  But, I ALWAYS did it that way because of the earlier generation with lint filter, that as what you were supposed to do and if it was good enough for "back then" (being not that many years earlier), then it was good enough to do with the "New Generatoin" models.  SO THERE!!!!   Even with the commercial Fabric-Matic machines located in the laundry room of my 1973 college dorm, I always put the dtergent in the middle of the agitator, even though there was no lint filter.  to me, that's how you did that with a Maytag. 

 

I think I already raised this issue in a post quite a while back and I think Tom addressed the issue then. 

 

[tomturbomatic]

Sandy is absolutely right. The instructions for my 806 say to pull the load away from the agitator and to pour the detergent evenly around the barrel. This would let it land on the agitator skirt just as it would if poured down the barrel. Interestingly, the instructions for the A500 say that the agitator can be used as a detergent dispenser but state that "This procedure is not advisable when using less than a full tub of water." Remember some other brands of washers saying that their lint filters worked at any water level? This is Maytag's way of admitting that their lint filter only worked on a full tub of water.

 

[danemodsandy]

I Like,,,,

,,,,To live dangerously, so I completely, totally disregard Maytag's instructions about pulling the laundry away from the agitator. What I do is to - are you sitting down? - actually put the detergent in first. Heresy, I know!

I've been doing this for years, even before getting Maytags, and putting OxyClean in at that time, as well. I feel that the little bit of extra dissolving time as the washer fills helps a bit, though everyone has their own opinion about such things. I will say that I get dazzling whites.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread - there will soon be a "shopping list" thread about the things I need to make my new babies like new again.