It was a Frigidaire day, and a clamshell day to be exact!

[whirlcool]

Ben:

You are exactly correct about the color differences. The set my parents had was the blue & gray. I always thought the clamshell design was a one year only thing, but I guess not. Thanks for letting me know the differences. I don't think there are many sets like this left out there.

Any idea who got Trainguy's set?

 

[bluejay]

That's a beautiful set!  God, Frigidaire made some sexy appliances back then!

 

[jetaction]

Nice to see!

The rare finds are getting fewer and far between, congrats on this. How fun to find something like this!

 

[philr]

The real clamshell was on the 1961 models. That year, the lighted panel could be folded on the controls. In 1962-63, it was fixed. In 1963, some knobs were also changed so they would extend more, the Custom Imperial washers and dryers kept the 1962-style knobs for a while and then changed to the new style during production. Some economy 1964 models were made with the 1963 looks. 

 

Ben, are your new machines 1963 models or 1964? The WIA-63 and 1964 WIAS-2 are quite similar but your washer looks more like a 1964 WIAS-2.

 

EDIT: I had completely missed your post #12! It's a 1964 model indeed and those scans I have attached show the same pages as yours!  Being a 1964 "special" model probably explains the painted side panels on the washer. 

 

[swestoyz]

Hey there Phil, the machine I found is a WIAS-1, not a WIAS-2. The '63 models are the "-1" and the '64 models are the "-2". Confusing, I know! These are somewhat rare outside of the standard models.

I wish I had docterine that talked specifically about the WIAS-1, but alas I do not. The owners manual is also dated from the fall of 1962.

Thanks again everyone! I ended up spending several hours fiddling with the '63 washer tonight. I figured out what is wrong with the timer, and I need to stop by the hardware store tomorrow to pick up a new set of belts. If isn't going to take much to get this old girl up and running (thankfully I've been gathering multimatic parts for quite some time.)

Ben

 

[pdub]

YAY Ben!

Cool machines you found there. All of them. I have the exact same gas dryer with the WIA-63 matching washer. They are both 1963 models. You will have so much fun with these machines and others are always drawn to them.

I found belts at Ace Hardware for them. The replacement belt numbers I bought were 3L280 and 3L320 and they fit perfectly.

Patrick

 

[philr]

WIAS-1?!

I also miss that document! And I don't think we had anything like that in Canada! 

 

 

 

[toploader55]

Great Finds Ben

Glad they're in good hands.

 

[jetcone]

My first restored washer 30 years ago

was a WCD-63. Loved that machine, it had the three ring agitator in the 12 pound tub. Nothing before or since in Frigidaire moved clothes like that combination!! Holla !

 

 

[maytagmike]

Frigidaire set

Hey Ben, congrats on a great find, beautiful pair.

Mike

 

[goatfarmer]

Ben, you are living right! Great find!

 

[yogitunes]

what a great find...congrats Ben....absolutely beautiful

 

[bajaespuma]

Aferim!

What a great story.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

There was one friend I had in school who lived near me (had such a crush on his older sister and she & I were fairly close, at least as friends ) and I remember a discarded Frigidaire clam-shell washer on the front lawn...

 

I can't remember what model it was or how much capacity...  It didn't have buttons and the console had no lights--probably just the timer dial and one or two knobs...

 

 

-- Dave

 

[gansky1]

That's amazing, Ben! These appliance treasures are getting rarer all the time - good saves, all three!

 

[kenmore71]

So…let me see if I can get this correct.

 

The WIAS-1 appears to be similarly featured as the WIA-63 with the exception of using the 8lb. tub instead of the 12 lb. tub, cutting some corners on trim finishing, slightly different panel styling for the 6-position switch, and the lack of a separate cold-water control?

 

Here is the console of the 1963 WIA:

 

[kenmore71]

The WIA cycle selections and their effects are below.

 

If I understand correctly, the WIAS-1 would function exactly the same way but without a cold water option (short of turning the hot water faucet valve off).

 

[whirlcool]

So I take it that the 8lb version of this washer came with the agitator shown in the photos and the 12lb version of this washer came with the 3 ring agitator?

This thread is the biggest discussion I have seen on these clamshell designed Frigidaire's since I've been a member(2006) Happy to see it.

 

[swestoyz]

Tough to see it, but the WIAS-1 would have come from the factory with the 1963 3 ring agitator, rather than the common Jet Action agitator. The -1 models would have been the only models with the green ring agitator and an 8 pound tub. I would love to see the turn over action with that combo!

Ben

 

[whirlcool]

The one he one we had there were three distinctively different colored rings. I know one of them said "Lint Chaser" on it. The turn over action was fantastic. You could really load that thing up and still get great turnover and cleaning.

But remember it was a 62' Custom Imperial model clamshell. So maybe things were changed in 63'.

 

[philr]

This is a 1961 clamshell dryer. The 1961 Custom Imperial washers and dryers had no pushbuttons and they were the only ones that had light panels that folded over the controls.  

 

[jons1077]

So glad you got these! They are beautiful!

 

[swestoyz]

Does anyone have photos of an actual WCI-61 clamshell, or better yet, have one?  I can't say that I've seen one pop up besides the dryer that Phil showed above. 

 

A dream machine, for certain.

 

Ben

 

[whirlcool]

These washers are now 52-53 years old by now. I would imagine that they now are rarer than hens teeth. In the past 10 years or so I have only heard of five or six of them being found. Are the parts very unobtainium? The people who find these are very, very lucky indeed!

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

I wonder if the 1963 Frigidaire washer and/or dryer brochure(s) in the Manuals & Brochures Page would feature these Clam-shell models?

 

If so, it might be worth purchasing...

 

 

 

-- Dave

 

[kenmore71]

It does not. I already own this brochure and the merchandising models are not in that brochure.

Also, as much of my Frigidaire literature came from Ben, I don't have any service manuals either.

 

Does anyone out there have the 1963 Washer Tech-Talk and it's supplements?

 

[revvinkevin]

YAY BEN!!

 

 

Wow Ben what an awesome find!   Very cool indeed, CONGRATS!!!

 

** Jealous in So. Cal **  

 

[philr]

I have the 1963 Tech Talk and I think Ben has it too.

 

[turquoisedude]

Wow, Ben, what a find!!  It just goes to show there are still plenty of hidden treasures out there and that it pays to ask about these things at estate sales. 

 

Is rust inside the dryer a concern if the pilot light had been burning for years?  I don't know, well, anything, about gas dryers (Hubby barely trusts me with electric ones...).

 

Have fun with them!!  Can't wait to see how the washer progresses.

 

[mitch]

What a great story--and haul!

Congrats!

Mitch