Late 60's Kelvinator and Canadian Viking Washers

[roto204]

And...

...so?

These were awesome machines. Very cheaply made and rust-prone, but kick-butt washers that held a ton (and circulated the load). A very far cry from the apathetic plastic kin that came after.

 

[roto204]

Control panel

Full:

 

[roto204]

Timer

Cycles...temp controlled by cycle time. BOL. Cool pointer. And push-to-start!

 

[roto204]

Insignia

Very groovy font. The tiny text above the red insignia says "Honesty without fear." Heh.

 

[cfz2882]

agitator

Yep,other than color that is the same agitator that is in mine
-rest of the machine is pretty close too..
Looks like your "kelvinator"franklin is from around 1975-80?
when i get my camera figured out i'll try to get some pics
of my '89 wards up-still in nice cosmetic shape,it's a nice
looking machine.

 

[scrubflex]

Thanks for the pics Roto204, did you save any parts of your Kelvinator? What cause the final break down...weren't able to replace or repair the part? What washer that you own with the largest capacity could you compare the Kelvinator to in similar tub size (TALL and WIDE)? Do you remember the agitation OPM and spin RPM speeds?

Cfz2882, I'm looking forward to those pics. So, is your 89' Franklin control panel similar in style? Is it a TOL, MOL or BOL model? What about you, do know the washer's wash OPM and spin RPM speeds? Does your 89' Frankln washer hold alot of clothes also? Can you PLEASE tell me how tall and wide is you angel wing fin agitator and agitator base size? I have an idea that will increase the angel wing fin agitator TURNOVER power.

 

[scrubflex]

During what time did Kelvinator Franklin washers use non-indexing washtubs? When were the porcelain enamel steel tubs switched to plastic? And, they ever use white, porecelain enamel tubs?

 

[cfz2882]

opm and rpm

timed and tached my franklin today;
-OPM 67-68
-RPM: 520,about the same as a WP/KM BD or a westinghouse
-the BDs do have a larger diameter tub,westys might too,
increasing the centrifugal force exerted on the clothes..
actually load did seem spun out fairly well despite the
low spin rpm-kinda tempted to take a spun load out of the
franklin and respin them in my little splendide combomatic
(1200rpm,IIRC)and see if it spins out any more water...
Could increase the rpm by putting on a larger motor pulley
but during agitation the tub might build up enough speed
indexing with a light load to hold the load outward,
away from the agitator...
more info coming up when i get the chance to take measurements

 

[scrubflex]

AWESOME!!!

I often wondered how large were the Kelvinator plastic tub diameter...And, I'll tell you about my idea to help increase the turnover power of the angel-wing fin agitator.

 

[petek]

Here's some Eatons Viking machines
1976

 

[petek]

twin tubs

 

[petek]

dishwasher

 

[petek]

More dishwasher

 

[circlew]

GE products

It's obvious the full size washer and dryer are GE-Hotpoint, and it looks like the compact range may be also. Are the dishwashers GE also?

 

[ingliscanada]

Viking Through the Years

Viking was a product of Eaton's, a now defunct Canadian department store chain. Through the 60's, Viking was make by Franklin, then switched to GE for the 70's.

Gary

 

[scrubflex]

I like the Franklin Viking washer from the late 60's...Gibson/Kelvinator style...one thing very wrong was it's extra deep and narrow washtub did not have a strong enough 'angel wing fin' agitator to pull the clothes down from the top of the tub...the agitator base was too small in diameter and the lower vanes were very narrow.

Does anyone know how big the early 70's porcelain enamel steel tubs were (capacity cu.ft)?

Too bad there aren't any Franklin non-indexing transmission around that can be swapped into the current washers.

 

[scrubflex]

Thanks for the great scans Petek.

 

[mixfinder]

Local

For sale in my town. I used one of these washer in a house I cleaned. It was called Gibson there but it was just a Westy at heart.[this post was last edited: 10/7/2010-12:02]

Loading…

yakima.craigslist.org

 

[vacbear58]

Twin tubs

Great scans Pete.

The Supertwin is obviously a Speed Queen, but am who manufactured the "Imperial"? And a 30 MINUTE spin timer??????
According to the ad it would spin clothes to bone dry. Can you imagine what the creasing would have been like? Would not like to face a load like that no matter how good the iron!
Al

 

[ingliscanada]

Non-Indexing Franklins?

What's this I hear about non-indexing Franklins with a tub brake. Never knew there was such a thing.

Gary