Gauging Interest in a Parts Reproduction service.

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

D

Dubis7

Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2017
Messages
10
Hi there. I'm a student at George Mason University, and have recently partnered with the maker lab on campus to try and find a method of raising funds. I've been pitching a vintage parts reproduction service, something where people could send in examples of hard to find parts they need reproduced and have us recreate them for a fee, all while building an archive to recover the parts for future reproduction. We have 3D printing and scanning, access to an injection molder, and I've had success with small rubber part reproduction with plans to expand to both increased size and color matching for external parts.

If anyone wants to submit anything for reproduction, please let me know and I'll look into whether our setup is ready for it.
 
An answer to our prayers

Hello Josh, and a warm welcome to Automatic Washer.

As soon as the 3D printer was launched, many of us here were so relieved that finally, at long last, we would have access to the out-of-stock parts for our beloved washing machines that we have yearned for,
for years, never thinking we'd find them again. The promise of what 3D printing could provide was literally miraculous, and a dream come true. We waxed ecstatic for days wondering when. Now you have arrived to bring it home. Thank you. How did you find us?

In addition to the rings Rich mentions, the agitator caps would be on my list, the black ones of the early 50's and the green ones atop the coral and yellow ringed modeis of 58-62.

Let us know if you can make them, as well as what other members request, and the orders will be immediate!
 
Glad to hear I can help out. As a vintage appliance enthusiast myself, I was relieved when I was able to make the connection to this lab and gain access to the equipment.

I cannot make anything without examples to work from. This is all very early in experimentation, so color matching and larger parts are going to take some time to figure out, but I'm confident that it will happen very soon. If there's a part you would like to offer for reproduction, or you can work with someone who has the part and is willing to lend it as an example, please email me and we can discuss getting this going.

The key to making this work is to get a lot of people on board using the service. If we can do that, the expense can be distributed among multiple buyers and the costs can be kept very low.
 
YES!

If you could repro the '58-'62 rings in the 6th picture above, I would be in to buy a couple of sets. You would have to match the light yellow and coral colors as well and I have never seen the 3D printer filament come in those colors. Could you start by looking for printer filament in those colors first and show us a sample if you find something close? BTW, the original material along with the blue/green cap was neoprene. But if the 2 rings were made of hard plastic, that would work just fine. Here is a better shot with good color to view the 2 rings.

Bud

sfh074-2017031118410609750_1.jpg
 
Would you please explain the raising funds procedure??Also ,Are there any copyright issues?
 
No real procedure on raising funds, we'd just like to bring some in by selling reproduction parts.

I'm not aware of any copyright issues, considering none of these parts have been produced in decades. If we get a cease and desist, we'll look more into that, but I think it'd take some real nerve for a company to call foul when they haven't cared in so long.
 
Wow!  This sounds wonderful!!  For years, several collectors have been hoping someone could do this.

The elusive Westinghouse door boot would be a great candidate for this process. The trouble is finding a boot to use as the model.  Would a damaged one be a good source?

I would also be interested in the cap and coloured rings for Frigidaire washers (the 1958 to 1960) style.

Can't wait to hear more about this!  I am already imagining GE transmission boots and filter- flo flumes!!

Good luck with your venture!
 
I would endorse Paul's request for a Westinghouse door boot - although in the UK we had machines based on the Westinghouse Spaemates and I am sure we could use at least a dozen units. Like wise with the Hoover Keymatic, not a machine you had, but there are a number of these needing boots. have you any idea what would make an economic quantity for production?

Al
 
I can echo those who have expressed interest in the lint chaser and cirulator rings for the 3 ring Frigidaires.  I'd also add that the caps are also drying up and can be difficult to find.

 

While I cannot speak for everyone, at this point just having fresh, good rubber for the caps and the rings is probably weighs in a bit higher than the actual colors. I wish I had good examples of the rings to use as examples, but without good examples that are pliable and a the agitator column to do test fitting, it will be difficult to recreate these.

 

Bellows still turn up for Frigidaires, while these rings have been almost impossible to find for decades.

 

Ben
 
Hobart made KitchenAid detergent compartments? Upper 'yibble' spinner? The lower wash arm support (I'm sure someone could reproduce the metal shaft pretty easily, but could that be made of a very hard plastic or a nylon hybrid?).

Ideally, the detergent compartment could be designed in a way that there could be a channel for a liquid gasket of some sort to be used to seal the unit against the door.

Anyways, just my random thoughts for this Monday morning.
 
I'd certainly be interested in this too.  The possibilities are great!  I'd like to see the oil and water bellows reproduced for the pre 1-18 Frigidaire line.  They were all the same part from Unimatic up through the Solid Stub Rollermatic and you don't see those for sale as often as you used to.  I have a 1-18 bellows around here but I've never heard tell of one failing because the rubber is so thick.  Please chime in on this guys...
 
Hello Hello Joe Joel!

Nice to hear from you. Still have those two Energy Rings you so generously donated, one in use, one in storage. They are a bit smaller than the originals, but they fit perfectly AND,"No more tangles!" (That's only if you don't know how to load a Frigidaire properly, LOL.)

Think you said these are for the Rollermatics, even though they work in both Unimatics and Multimatics. How thoughtful of General Motors. How we miss their Appliance Division.

JOSH~ Are these too big to make at this time?

mickeyd++3-13-2017-12-18-51.jpg
 
You can't copyright physical parts, only patent them, however patents only last 17 years so they would be long expired. So that's a non-issue.

These parts being shown are mostly made out of neoprene rubber, I'm not sure that the technology for 3-D printing can print in rubber yet, however I could be wrong.

But if the 2 rings were made of hard plastic, that would work just fine.
That would not work fine unfortunately as you wouldn't be able to get the rings to fit onto the gray detergent column without them being able to stretch.
 
With the old Frigidaire's you are dead in the water without numerous parts.
I think the Energy Rings are important for the Unimatics and Multimatics. You can go without the Circulator and Lint Chaser rings but not without Energy Rings! They are very hard to find and the Energy Rings from Rollermatics are NOT a good substitute. I would buy whatever I could get. So count me in.

Of course, all the rubber parts in the world won't help a bit if you need a Torque Spring!
 
Hard plastic rings on detergent column

3D printing is still limited to hard plastic. No soft rubber. The 2 rings could be reproduced in hard plastic and made with a split which would allow you to spread it open enough to get it over the detergent column. Then simply glue them in place and place the split around the back so it is out of view. I am currently restoring both a 61 and 62 multimatic and in need of the 2 rings big time, they are totally dried out and cracking. The 2 caps are still pliable and should clean up pretty well with brake fluid. I say that since I have had pretty good success in the past. So yeah, could we start with reproducing the 2 rings in hard plastic since soft rubber isn't an option in 3D printing?

sfh074++3-13-2017-19-54-20.jpg
 

Latest posts

Back
Top