GE P7 electric range - J356 model - coppertone! Keep or sell?

[aump945]

Hi all,

I recently purchased a home from the original owner (80-year-old widow). The home came with some very nice vintage appliances.

The kitchen was equipped with matching GE coppertone appliances - range and fridge. Both in beautiful coppertone color! I love the "sunburst" effect that they did around the oven window, where the color is slightly lighter at the edges. The range is a P7 J356 model. It works great and is in amazing condition! The owner even kept the original manual!

I'm looking for advice from you, the appliance experts: keep the vintage P7 range, or buy a new range? I know most of y'all prefer the vintage machines (that's why we're all here!), but there are a couple of considerations for me.

First, I'm doing light renovation at the home. One task is to remove the dark finish that the original owners put on the original kitchen cabinets and restore them to their original, light birch glory. The kitchen was too dark with all that dark brown cabinetry. I'm guessing that they put the dark brown finish on the cabinets when they purchased the new coppertone appliances in the late 1960s/early 1970s. Anyway, the coppertone appliances just don't work well with the lighter color scheme.

Second, my spouse loves to cook and has frequently wished we had two ovens. I think the 30" double ovens now available would fill this desire very well.

Third, I know I'm going to be kept insanely busy with a major project for the next ~3 years and need to try to organize my life so as to have a minimum of disruptions - like appliance failures. I like to fix and maintain my own appliances, but I shouldn't plan on it for the next 3 years. A new range, with a 2-year extended warranty, would get me though this rough patch well.

What would y'all do? What's the value of the range if I wanted to sell it? If I do sell it, I'm thinking about a Whirlpool double oven...thoughts?

Thanks for reading!

Here's a photo of the range:

 

[appnut]

Keep it.  Very well insulated.  Wonderful baker.  No electronics to unexpectedly quit.  I cannot wait to see the rest of the appliances--including the washer & dryer.

 

[norgeway]

I wouldnt trade that!

For ALL the new ranges on the market, it will bake better, clean better and heat much faster!Do this, Try it...you will see the difference.

 

[supersuds]

I was surprised how much longer new electric ranges take to preheat compared to yours. If you haven't experienced it, well, it's frustrating.

There are no guarantees in life, but personally I wouldn't be concerned about reliability.

Don't know what to tell you about the color mismatch and the desire for a second oven. You'll just have to decide what's more important.

 

[ilovewindex]

keep it! SOO worth keeping it

 

[gansky1]

Keep the GE.  It's far better built than anything on the market, critical parts are still reasonably available should you need them and repairs are straightforward for yourself or a professional if need be.   This link is a GE repair manual for do-it-yourselfers that is well done and illustrated step-by-step.  I've used these GE books many times over the years.

 

A countertop oven may solve the need for more baking space and give you some very useful functions you'll pay thousands for in a new range.  Convection, thermal, slow cooking, proofing, etc.  The Breville is well reviewed and the Wolf is also very nice.

 

Pardon Our Interruption...

 

[mattl]

I would keep it. I'd add a convection microwave and use it as a second oven. I have an OTR convection microwave and it works great as a small second oven when needed. Great for baking smaller amounts of things and as a second oven for the holidays. The one true downside of the new double oven ranges is that fact that the lower oven is almost on the floor. Lots of deep bending to use it. Samsung does make a convertible oven that will function as two ovens when needed, you insert a metal plate. The door also can be a single or double door. Pretty interesting concept, but you still have two smaller ovens.

 

[rp2813]

That's a super clean looking range, but I'm in the minority here. 

 

First, it's coppertone, which is a difficult shade to work with unless you're going for a rustic/country cabin look.  Coppertone is a deal-breaker for me on any vintage appliance.

 

Second, the range itself does nothing for me.  In August of 1990 we bought a house with a similar looking but later model GE range and it was gone by Thanksgiving (we didn't junk it; we sold it).   We replaced it with a dual fuel JennAir, and the oven on that range was the best, most even-heating for baking and roasting I've ever used.   That is by no means a recommendation for a new JennAir, though.  It's been 26 years.

 

If you decide to replace with a brand new range, be sure to do plenty of research on performance, and I strongly recommend you don't just buy something off the floor at Lowes or Home Depot.  It's worth the extra money to purchase from a reputable retailer that deals strictly in home appliances and employs a knowledgeable sales staff.  Don't be afraid to bring some cookware with you to see how it behaves on the various range tops.  We laughed when we saw someone doing that as we shopped for our new range, and then realized the wisdom in doing so once we were dealing with the noisy, flimsy burner grates on the JennAir.

 

[firedome]

I'd keep it!

Fab range, and the contrast of shaded Coppertone looks great with lighter birch cabs, imo, we had that exact combo for 15 yrs!

Or get one of these, P7 in both ovens! The folks had one, best oven I've ever used, and have had many many since, made mid '60s to early '80s, and came in many colors! Not hard to find these days with the 'net.

 

[aump945]

Selling, I guess...

Thanks for all the advice here. But after discussing it with the other half, it looks like this range will be leaving us.

I took some photos for Craigslist and thought I'd also post them here. Enjoy! And thanks again for the advice!

 

[sudsmaster]

Too bad you decided to sell it. The GE P-7 is excellent. True, it's an older design, but a very good one. I don't know about the cooktop coils, but they look in good shape as well. I doubt that range would break down any time soon, certainly not in the next two years.

 

Also, while coppertone is no longer a fad, I'm a fan of mixing dark and light wood tones in a decor. So I think that range would work well in a kitchen with light wood tone cabinetry. And, after all, coppertone is actually lighter in hue than the now ubiquitous black appliance tone found so frequently.  And it's warmer than the stainless look that has also been popular. And lastly, it's not that disgusting mustard yellow of the "Harvest" and "Harvest Gold" ilk.

 

Just my opinion. But if it were me, I'd wait until the rest of the kitchen is done before ditching the range. Plus, if you need a second oven, and you're doing a remodel anyway, a wall cabinet installation might work best.

 

[mattl]

My  suggestion would be to hold on to it until you've used the new stove for a week or two.  You may like the new, but you may prefer the old in use.