Local museum show

[steved]

We took our grand kids to the Schenectady Museum "miSci" on Sunday to see the planetarium. While we waited for the program to start, I wandered around and discovered this exhibit. Mostly GE/Hotpoint Appliances (GE was a sponsor) but interesting to see in our area!

 

[steved]

Mostly concentrated on cooking

They showed several methods of cooking, from firepits to induction, including details on cooking utensils. One display had a 50's GE 40" range, a 60's Hotpoint range, also 40" and a 2019 Frigidaire induction range. Around the corner, I found this:

 

[steved]

Appeared to be in pretty good shape

After the Americana, I discovered a Wonder Kitchen!

 

[steved]

Hahaha!

I laughed out loud, when I saw their version of a roll-out GE Dishwasher!

 

[steved]

It was fake!

It was a photo of an early 60's drop door GE dishwasher! A photo! That they didn't even make an attempt to have it close to actual size! Typical of Schenectady; have a great idea and skimp on the details. It was a nice exhibit, though. Not many appliance museums in the home of General Electric.

 

[steved]

better suited...

found this in a different museum (mine) that would look better

 

[steved]

new GE technology

I suppose I could have the holy grail using this technology.....

 

[gansky1]

What a fun unexpected find.  The photographed dishwasher is perfect, at least they made that effort.  A painted-to-match more modern machine would have been more disappointing.

 

Now we'll need more pics of your collection...  I see turquoise and 1-18 peeking around the edges of that beautiful dishwasher.  

 

[turquoisedude]

I'm surprised that the museum didn't contact you for a consult, Steve!

And your holy grail control panel looks great!  I will have to compare it to the real thing soon.....

 

[repairguy]

That is a neat exhibit. I like to see manufacturers showing exhibits like that with their history even though GE sold out to overseas.

 

[steved]

my collection: 1

Here are a few pics of my collection. It's small, but I am satisfied. Thanks go out to PhilR, Turquoisedude (Paul) and Roto204 (Nate) for helping me get to this point.
Here is my 1965 Flair. I found it behind an appliance store and dragged it home. Still has a few quirks but it does work. The GE dishwasher was purchased from a young guy renovating a 1950's home. According to a neighbor who grew up here, our house (built 1962) had a funny dishwasher that opened like a drawer. It's noisier than hell but it's unique.
On the wall is a collection of dish and dishwasher detergents.

 

[steved]

my collection: 2

my 1/18. Also found that behind an appliance store, wish I was able to grab the matching dryer. Looked like someone just wanted "modern". Phil was able to find me a nicer lens for the light and I added the windowed lid sent to me by GregM.

 

[steved]

#3

my '67 washer and dryer. I've had this washer for 32 years. Still use it occasionally. The dryer was from PhilR, and I changed the control panel to match the washer. It's not a "no-vent" model. I need to re-paint the dryer now that I've found a better Rustoleum spray match .

 

[steved]

and #4

my parts stash. I basically only have parts to the machines I currently have[this post was last edited: 1/2/2020-16:31]

 

[steved]

5..

my pride and joy. A 1963 Custom Imperial Dishmobile, with disposer. I first saw this dishwasher on a camping trip, in a small town appliance store window. I was 10 years old. And I loved it! Fast forward, I found a Deluxe model in a house that was being demolished. Nate kindly send me the door assy so I could recreate the Custom Imperial. It runs beautifully. I added a relay to eliminate the purge as I have recirculating hot water. The disposer was on eBay for $20, NIB.

 

[steved]

6, the dishwashers

Had a bunch of salvaged dishwasher control panels that I displayed. Also, the Viking dishwasher from Paul that I put into an international witness program and rebadged it as a Westinghouse (its Canadian-Westinghouse built).

 

[steved]

7, an old friend

The KitchenAid dishwasher was found in a garage at a sale. They said it didn't work and would be glad if I got it out of their way! Replaced the broken wire in the lid and it's run ever since we got it in 1989. Noisy as the GE! But great as a second unit for large parties.

 

[steved]

daily drivers

Frigidaire Gallery pair. They have been trouble-free with the exception of the dryer control. 7 years old next week.

 

[steved]

detergents

its not as extensive as some of you guys have. But I enjoy the unique items.

 

[steved]

finally, the library.

my first piece of literature was from 1961, when I went washer shopping with my grandparents. Thanks to the internet, I've been able to expand it

 

[pdub]

Wow!

Great collection Steve.

I love that it's all so organized and displayed well. You've got some great machines.

 

[steved]

Oops

I forgot to post the overview pics

 

[tomturbomatic]

Leave it to you to go to a museum and start wandering around and find appliances. You are as bad as I was when I was in--well let's just say all my life--and was taken to a store. If the store didn't have an appliance department, or even if it did, the pet and garden departments were the other place I could be found. I learned that when I walked into a dime store to look up for greenery because near the house plants would be the tropical fish tanks generally toward the rear of the store. Housewares with the glass coffee makers were sometimes a little harder to find. All of this started in the primary grades. Sears catalogs were the ultimate dream factories when I was stuck at home or visiting a friend. When we were traveling, the local yellow pages in the motel rooms would have ads for Aquariums almost next to Appliances as well as Washing Machines to give me cheap thrills when room-bound.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

Same goes for me, reading the newspaper ads and finding Sears, Ward's and Penny's to be quite different from stores selling major brands and even the electronics and entertainment departments to be just as important and entertaining as the appliances, in visiting and looking at, in those red-carpeted rooms, especially in the way of television and stereo/audio equipment being where I'd made my first major purchase...

-- Dave