Heads up - Rare Thor built-in oven and range - Hamilton, ON

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turquoisedude

turquoisedude

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This is most unusual! I never knew that Thor even MADE ranges and ovens... These are extremely rare as they were in production only for a couple of years in the early 60s (possibly 1962 and 1963). The seller is renovating and would like to find a good home for them! The appliances are in excellent condition and were in use by the original owner from 1963 until she sold the house in 2009.
They are located in Hamilton, Ontario - easy driving distance from Detroit or Buffalo... (or Montreal for that matter!!)
If interested, please contact the seller at:
[email protected]
Hope someone can save these rare beauties!!

turquoisedude++2-2-2010-10-03-46.jpg
 
Hi Paul!

Why would anyone in their right mind replace these perfect appliances with some new piece of junk?

Got your email, been over both ears drowning in family affairs, would love to respond soon.
 
Perhaps they are putting a Frigidaire Flair range... LOL
Hope to hear from you soon, Keven! I have found several parts from a 1959 GE combo that may help bring the 56 back to life!!
 
Thor

There were a lot of these in Lenoir where Im from,the earlier ones were almost identical to Thermador, fine quality product Ill bet the dummies put down a new floor and cover up that pretty pink tile too, some people have NO SENSE WHATSOEVER!!!
 
~some people have NO SENSE WHATSOEVER!!!

Well, there are two sides to every coin.

Now now now, let's not be narrow-minded! That above statement is what most of the world thinks of collecters, hoarders and gatherers. After all "I have" doesn't bring emotional stability, fulfillment or happiness.

Judge not lest ye be judged.

What I want to know is why the cooktop is so deep, and what that compartment is beneath what appears to be a single electric oven. As the son of an architect (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree) I can see that the cooktop's location is awkward and confining, and the wall-oven appears to visiualy break-up the room also making it appear to be confining.

Old does not equal fabulous in all cases. :-)

Actually, even a simple and resaonable pryophobia (fear of fire) can cause one to get rid of 45+ year old electricals that may have brittle wires.

Perhaps they want a nice-looking full-sized 30"/75cm one-piece pyrolytic self-cleaning oven with a smoothtop.

:-)

why is that cooktop so deep?
 
Wondered that myself...

I have seen deep cooktops, but they have usually been gas units. The only other thing I could think of was maybe there was a deep-well cooker... Doesn't seem to have one on this one, though...
 
Is there a great deal of gas cooking in homes in Canada?
I'm guessing "NOT" due ot heavy insulation and fewer passive air-changes ("drafts") overall. I'd guess the home would fill up with pollutants being the byproducts of combustion. and that would not be "to code".
 
Gas is definitely less popular here

I'm not sure if it was due to air quality concerns more than availability. It seems as if it was easier to string up high-tension lines than gas pipelines; this is especially true in the more rural areas. Geez, I remember the suburban subdivision where I grew up actually circulated petitions against having gas lines run into the area!!
 
Some older cooktops had a deep box. Some of the reason was the carry over of the deeper area under electric surface units to allow for the deep well which was included or available in older Thermador builtin cooktops. Part of the reason also was heat dispersion, wanting to have plenty of area below the cooktop for ventilation so that any wood cabinets or items in them were not damaged by the heat from the surface units.

That is related to the posting about the Modern Maid range-KA dishwasher unit. If you replaced the porcelain tub dishwasher that was right under the cooktop with a plastic tub unit, the dishwasher tub would soften and distort from the heat beneath the cooktop to the point that the door could not be opened. In cases where the large element was used with non-flat bottom pans on high heat for extended periods (or Woks with those rings that never should have been used on electric stoves)it was possible to melt a hole in the top of the plastic tank.
 
I grew up actually circulated petitions against having gas l

Gas, as much as I love it, can be explosive.

As a young teen I witnessed an apartment building blow up. It was early in the morning, about 8:45 am. We just sat down in class to start our geography lesson, when suddenly there was this huge explosion. This happened in the middle of winter and day light was just beginning to break. Of course we all sat there like stunned mice, with that wtf expression on our faces. The first thing that we all noticed were the cracked window panes in all the of the windows overlooking the school yard. Of course everyone immediately rushed to look out and all we could make out at first was this huge cloud of dust on the other side of the school yard where there was supposed to be a four storey apartment building.

From memory, 5 people died that morning. Anyway, as daylight started to break and the dust settled, we could clearly see the pile of rubble that had been a building. We were stuck in our class room all day and the teacher had a hard time keeping us away from the cracked windows. Not much learning was taking place and the school yard was off limits until the fire brigade gave it the all clear, which was quite late in the afternoon for us to go home.

Only a few days ago an apartment building in Holland(?) was reduced to rubble due to a gas leak. It still happens, if very seldomly.

At home I do the olfactory check around our gas appliances ever so often. We also get someone out every couple of years for a check and service.

It pays to be careful.

rapunzel
 
Deep Cooktops

Westinghouses are that deep also, why I dont know, as for my earlier statement,if you cook on electric...have you tried to really cook or can on a new stove, its a joke,the coil units will break down in less than a year under heavy canners and such, you cant even can on a smoothtop, as for a new gas stove, no center simmer burners like you used to get, so you burn or scortch things very easily,and most new ovens have racks so flimsy they bend under a turkey or big roaster...I stand on what I said, older is ALWAYS better!
 
The "oil man" was demonstrating the safety of fuel-oil when my parents bought their first home that was heated with fuel-oil. He dropped a lit match in a bucket of oil, NADA, NOTHING, ZILCH, TIPOTA!

Apparently it is physically impossible to burn a liquid, which must be vaporized to a gas.

A candle's wick converts a solid to a liquid and then to a gas. An oil-burner head also atomizes oil to turn it into a gas for burning.

I've seen a few buildings that use propane go up. To me that stuff is nasty.
 
explosions!!!

About 15 years ago a large cafeteria exploded in Winston Salem,luckily it happened in the very early morning,the building was leveled as well as part of a nearby motel,it was caused by a natural gas leak,pieces and parts were found almost a mile away,im not afraid of natural or propane, but I have a very healthy respect for both as well as oil or electricity, I used to work for a heating company,I did a lot of oil burner servicing as well as gas furnaces,ive seen all kinds of dangerous stuff,some you just cant imagine!
 
I'd love to know how common gas explosions were pre elec

In those days most urban middle-class homes had gas lighting as well as heating and cooking, plus the stuff used to be odorless and toxic. Since there was no official and legislated system for consumer safety, life in a gas-powered home must have been pretty hazardous. Is gas cooking and heating common in Manhattan? My grandparents never had gas anything. Not in their Astoria Park apartment, nor in their Brentwood, LI home. Unlike my mid-western relos, who did everything with gas.

cheers

rapunzel
 
Let Julia show you the way to gas cooking

Saw this video and thought of Toggles. Here are a series of videos from Julia Meade regarding gas cooking as well as other gas appliances. Currently I have an electric GE glass top at home, however I'm playing "caregiver" at house with gas. Last night darned near burned everything for dinner as I hadn't cooked with gas in over 10 years.

 
I don't know if gas cooking is any less popular in Canada than the US. I'd hazard a guess that the ratios are pretty much the same and vary by region/city etc. Plenty of the older apartment buildings, those built in the early and mid 20th century etc had gas stoves. I think electricity started gaining favor more in the 50's. But there's definitely a gas cooking revival going on in the higher priced market. One thing I do notice,, you don't see very many gas ranges at Sears and Home Depots in Canada compared the same stores across the bridge in Michigan. Our Sears may have 4-6 different gas ranges on the floor,, there's has 10 or more.
 
Wow! That is creepy music that starts each of those commercials. Pretty neat demo of the air flow in a Hamilton dryer at the end even though she is standing next to a Duomatic. Gas is clean and cool compared with a wood, oil or coal stove so she was not telling outright lies. Not quite as exciting as the John Edwards tape is supposed to be but good. Thanks.
 

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