Frigidaire RCI-39-57 help needed

[kenmorelover]

Hello,

I bought this stove for my mother. She was wanting a 2nd stove for her basement. It has a few things that need to be fixed or replaced.

1. The broiler element is missing
2. The oven element is bad
3. The speed heat doesn't work.

Otherwise it is in good shape and clean. I'm looking to find a broiler element and oven element for it. Not to worried about the speed heat right now.

Would anybody know the part numbers for these or know of anyone who might have the parts to sell.

Thanks in advance

Oren

 

[philr]

That's a nice-looking range. My advice would be to replace the speed heat with a regular element and switch. Depending of what's the problem with yours, you may end up with other solutions too.

Please have a picture that shows us what kind of switch is at back, if it's original and it's bad, you might want to check the burner for continuity with an ohmmeter. Tell us what's the resistance if there's any. The original Speed Heat switch is hard to find but you might get a newer one and keep some parts from yours to fit it back.

Unlike the newer ranges like the 1961 in your avatar, the 1957 models use a different type of switch which start on high but keeping the cover and cam from the original 1957 switch will make the newer switches working just like the original.

 

[philr]

As for the part numbers, I don't have my books with me at the moment but I have them at home. Again, you should test the bake element with your ohmmeter for continuity and inspect the terminal blades to see if they're OK. The element could be bad but a fee other things might be the cause for it's non-working condition...

 

[kenmore71]

I have the Deluxe version of this range for that year.

Here's what I can tell you about these parts:

1. Speed Heat switch, almost impossible to find. I can post the part numbers later when I have time.
Speed Heat elements, not as hard to find since the same was used from 1955-1970s.
Sometimes the switches failed without taking out the element. Usually if the element went bad, it took the switch with it.

2. I have been in search of a broil element for about 6 months to have a replacement on hand. So far no luck for me. I'll post the part number in a bit. Game on!

3. I found an oven element on ebay last winter. There were several available at the time. Again, I will post the part number when I have time.

 

[kenmore71]

OK, here you are:
Speed-Heat Switch - #6560806
Speed-Heat Element - #6591863
Broil Element - #7524680
Bake Element - #5432223

These were the part numbers as published by GM/Frigidaire in 1978
Later, Frigidaire/WCI/Gem/etc added the prefix "530" to the older Frigidaire part numbers.
So, you want to search for the parts under both the original number and with the prefix.

 

[rp2813]

Besides its good looks, is there something special about this range?  I don't understand why bake and broil elements should be so difficult to find.

 

It wasn't so very long ago that I walked into our neighborhood appliance parts shop with the bake element from my mom's '49 Westinghouse (it had been replaced once before, sometime in the '70s) and the guy recognized it as being out of a Westinghouse without me even having to tell him, and placed an order to have a new one made. 

 

No model or part number required.  Turnaround time was one business day.

 

[kenmore71]

They are so difficult to find because Frigidaire was re-engineering their ranges on a yearly basis in the late 1950s and 1960s.

The bake element on this 1957 range is a 2200 watt radianttube. It was used only on the 30" models in 1956 & 1957.
The broil element was around a little longer, it was introduced on the upper-end 30" ranges in 1957 and used on SOME of the 30" ranges (varied by year) until 1961.

I suspect that the 1949 Westinghouse you speak of had an open-coil element. If you know the wattage, you can still re-create those to this day from stock nichrome coil with some skill and patience.