g.e. mobile maid top loader- restoring pics.

[rollermatic]

picked this one up over 2 years ago in buffalo and am just now getting to it! it's a top loader with power shower, pretty dirty all over! but it cleaned up well and does not leak!

model is sm 290d2 it looks like.

 

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tub really dirty

but overall in great shape for it's age!

 

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bottom looks

good! no sign of water leakage.

 

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pump and motor

removed easily.

 

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hoses were

not brittle at all. seemed like new.

 

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now, will the impeller come off

without a struggle? my first one was a bear to get apart! i restored it 2 years ago and to make a special puller to get impeller off.

my 3rd one i picked up 2 weeks ago came off easily and the 4th one i worked on this week (frontloader in coppertone) also slid easily off tonite when i tore into it. will post those pics later seperately. both the impellers that slid easily off were black plastic, this one as well as my first mobile maid have the white impellers. and both would not budge without force!

 

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so i got out my puller

that i made 2 years ago. took motor apart and slapped it all together just like i did successfully on the first one.

 

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better pic of how

it works.

 

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it did not want to budge!

rather than risk breaking the impeller (which there are none available that i am aware of) i backed off and simply soaked it all good in wd-40 to hopefully put some new life in the seal!

 

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i cleaned the tub well

and put it all back together. tub looks almost like new now!

 

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there are only 2 small

spots of rust that i knew i had to address. one is to the left of the impeller at about the 10 oclock position and one is about an inch to the left of the calrod left side port. both are very small, less that 1/4 inch in diam. that black speck on the right side of the impeller is just dirt.

 

[rollermatic]

always did love

those g.e. spray arms in stainless steel with those huge water jets! used to look at em when i was a kid when i would go to the dept. stores. i always thought it was amazing that the little pump could pump all that water thru all those holes and the power shower too! the motor does spin at 3450 rpm which helps. my 2 hotpoints from the same era use 1750 rpm motors.

 

[rollermatic]

painted those 2 rust spots

with about 10 coats of appliance touch up paint in white. can't see it from this pic but i think it will hold fine. don't intend to use this machine more than several times a year for fun. gonna get some blue model paint and tint the appliance paint lite blue and give it another coat. also used the white paint on the bottom raxck where rust was evident. will tint it too.

 

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here's a pic of the

front with the access panel removed.

 

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fill solonoid.

screen was pretty dirty, i always remove them and put in a new washer on any machine i work on.

 

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close up of

push button switches and door lock switch.

 

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outside cleaned up pretty good

also. top is in very good shape unlike the mobile maid #3 i picked up several weeks ago. it's top had to be replaced.

gotta get that sticker off the front with some goo gone or whatever. other than that i don't mid if the cabinet has a few dings and scratches and have talked with several other members who agree! it is almost 50 years old, it should have a few imperfections!

 

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good pic of the

top and control area. cleaned up rather nicely!

 

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this one has

2 cycles, daily and pots pans. my first one has 3 cycles, daily, pots/pans, and china/crystal plus the rinse glow button to set the rinse agent dispensor. my third mobile maid top loader that i just got recently also has daily, pots/pans and china cycles. the front loader only has a control dial. i am in the process of restoring both the front loader and the third top loader at the present time.
will probably post pics of them sometime here when i get em done.

 

[toploader55]

Peter...

So good to see you back... Nice restoration going on.... Love that MM.

 

[rollermatic]

faucet coupler is in very

good shape, no leaks when i hook it up!

and, more importantly when i got it all back together and hooked it up it did not leak!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! that is the moment of truth for any dishwasher collector! will it leak???

ran it thru several cycles and it performed great, noisy as hell but they all are! those machines were not built for quiet but i like it like that! a big noisy machine that can really throw some water around inside!

so, even tho i didn't get the impeller off i feel this restoration was a success!

i love these old mobile maids, love the verticle pump and motor style much better than the later versions that used the horizontal motor. i will keep buying these whenever i find them!

hope you enjoyed the pics!

 

[rollermatic]

thank you "toploader"

had to take about a year off from working on anything, was completely burned out on appliances. this winter i got back in the swing and have 4 machines in restoration right now. another g.e. mobile maid top loader, a front loader in coppertone i got 2 years ago in columbus, a kelvinator (d&M) front loader, and i just put the finsihing touches on an old g.e. impeller (not a bowtie) top loader i got in cleveland 2 years ago.

next on the list is to put the speed queen solid tub washer back together that i got in indy over a year ago. then tackle another rollermatic washer that has been patiently waiting for me! at least thats my goal for this year!

 

[MaytagA710]

Hey Peter!

Excellent thread!

I really enjoyed watching the whole restoration! Thanks for sharing with us. These are some of my favourite threads to view. I hope it brings you many years of service!

On a side note, interesting cycle title "Daily Loads", a lot different than "Normal Wash" or what not. Neat machine though, especially those huge caverness spray arm jets.

 

[steved]

remove that label

by soaking it with WD-40. It disolves the glue without hurting the paint. If that's too risky for you, use Pam cooking spray or vegetable oil.

 

[dishwasherfan]

Peter,

Thank's for taking the time to restore such a beatiful machine. What year was it made, early 60's?

 

[rollermatic]

thanks

maytag a710, glad you enjoyed it! on my other machine the only difference between daily loads and pots pans is a shorter heated drying cycle. i imagine this one is the same, have not run all cycles yet but will.

steved, thanks for the tip on wd-40. will try it!

dishwasherfan, i would say around 1967 but i am not 100% sure. i know they went to the horizontal pump and motor by the 70's. actually since this one has the white impeller like my first it may be an earlier model, maybe early to mid sixties. my other 2 have the black impellers and the front loader at least is definately from the late sixties to 1970ish.

anyone here know for sure?

 

[dishwashercrazy]

Great Restoration



Nice to see you back in action, Pete! I am with you - the GE Dishwashers are so fun, and fairly easy to work on. And most vintage dishwashers that I have worked on, the tanks have cleaned up very nicely thanks to the excellent porcelain processes. Even the worst of scratches and marks clean up with BarKeepers Friend, or Zud on a scrub pad.

How many whole dishwashers do you have in your collection now?

Mike

 

[rollermatic]

hi mike

hope ur havin a good winter, least it is a very mild one, at least here in ohio.

how many? let's see, i pretty much stopped collecting them except for 2 i bought recently, that mobile maid and a hotpoint portable i got right before christmas.

ge- 3 mobile maid top loaders, a bowtie impeller, a reg impeller machine, a front load mobile maid, a hotpoint portable, a hotpoint built in (both with the big black ufo looking pumps. and my daily machine is a later model ge with plastic tub.

frigidaire- a slant top, a later model front loader with plastic tub (which cleans great!) and an earlier model front loader with the metal tub plastic coated.

sears- the top load roto rack (which i love) and a front load roto rack

d&m - a kelvinator front loader, a modern maid impeller machine.

kitchenaid- kd2p top loader (which i just tried out after almost 2 years of having it). 3 kd-12's, a kd14, 3 kd-15's, 3 kd-16's, a kd-15 top loader (forget the name it is called) kdss 17a stainless tub, 9 or 10 kd-17's lost count, and 3 portable kd-57's, 2 kd-18, 2 kd-19, a kd-21, a kd-23.

i am definately going to start getting rid of some stuff here, the later model kitchanaids 18, 19, 21, 23 need to go. i don't like anything after a 17 series. when the added that upper spray arm they lost me! the 21 and 23 run great, the 2 19's are torn down (will part out) and the one kd-18 is torn down (will part out).
most probably will let one of the 57's go also. i really only need one. and maybe i can be talked into parting with a 17 (maybe). i do love those 17's.

i also have a speed queen wringer that leaks that can go as well. i will be posting all of this later in the spring once i take inventory to see exactly what i have that i want to get rid of. some of the stuff i will gladly give away, some i will only ask what i paid for it (it won't be much).

thanks pete

 

[turquoisedude]

Hey Pete,  great job on the latest Mobile Maid!   I love these machines,  too,  noisy or not...    The racks look in fantastic shape.  I hope you have lots of fun with it!!

 

What year would this one be??   On the cycles,  does the Pots and Pans cycle run longer than the Daily Loads or is it a shorter cycle (no prewash) with an unheated dry cycle?

 

Glad to see this one was saved!!

 

[rollermatic]

hi paul

aren't these machines fun!!! i have been using this one for over a week now on a daily basis just to give it some "running time". no leaks at all from the pump area. i do have a small problem in the fill solonoid, it doesn't complelely shut the water supply off in between fills but that will be easily fixed when i pull the solonoid off and take it apart for a cleaning.

to answer your question on the cycles, both cycles are the same except the drying portion is about half as long. the rest of the drying cycle is just air dry. on this one you turn the timer knob to "on" and you get a

3 min rinse (or wash)
1 min rinse
9 min main wash
1 min rinse
2 min rinse
24 min dry cycle (heated portion varies with cycle).

(fills are about 1 min 15 sec. drains are about 1 min.)

gonna hook up a test light to the calrod unit when i get time and see exactly what the diff between the shorter dry on the pots pans cycle and the full dry of the daily loads cycle is really is. i do know by 16 min. into the drying cycle the calrod is off on the pots pans cycle.

also, going to pick up another machine today, will do a thread on it when i get it home! this one is a little different! have a good day paul!