Lookie here .....1964 MAYTAG WASHER AND DRYER for sale in FORT COLLINS CO

[e2l-arry]

I think I remember ours did,

You set the dial to Suds Return, the agitator started and the pump started pulling the wash water from the laundry tub/sink back into the washer. You could do it with nothing in the washer and the agitator would kick up lots of suds with the splashing action. But I might be thinking of the old Kenmore we had before the Maytag.

 

[mickeyd]

I agree with John, Larry.

Both Kenmores and Maytags returned suds the same way. Somewhere in the manuals, they tell you to return the sudsy water before adding the clothes. In Maytags you would have to close the lid, as you say, but the KM's allowed you to watch all the fun. At some point, maybe in the late 70's KM engineered the low speed suds-return, thus creating less stress mainly on the clothing, for anyone loading before sudsing.

 

[appnut]

maybe in the late 70's KM engineered the low speed suds

Actually our 1970/1971 Kenmore 800 the dead space on the timer dial that was intended for suds return was gentle agition. 

 

[gansky1]

Looks like a 202S as it has the center lid switch and bump in the heavier lid to actuate it. Earlier Highlanders had the switch to the left of center and strike lip on a thinner lid. My grandmother's had the exposed-button switch of the earlier model and my thumbs would nearly be bruised from holding it in cycle after cycle.

 

[e2l-arry]

BUT

On the Maytag, if it won't operate with the lid open, how would you put clothes in after the water was returned to the washer? Assuming most users didn't know about bypassing the safety switch. You'd have to do that a few clothes at a time, agitate to pull them under, lift the lid stopping the machine, add a few more clothes, repeat the process until the entire load was in the washer. It's been a long time but I don't remember doing it like that. I think we loaded up the machine then set it to suds return. THEN, after all the water was back in, you moved the timer to how long you wanted it to wash. At that point it would go back into fill mode to replace water lost from the previous load. The temperature would depend on what the machine was set at.

 

[alr2903]

Bajaspuma,  are you referring to the no centerpost agitator like in a "bluebell"?  I do remember such a machine that was on clearance in the 1960's.  IIRC,  this was a machine with the 2 dials on the center panel, no pushbuttons.  Please know this sighting was in the mid 1960's.  and it had to be discontinued or used because the folks ended up buying the 1 cycle center dial with gray paint instead of chrome.  alr