Mixmaster Jr Cord Replacement

[d-jones]

Some time ago I mentioned that I had a Sunbeam Mixmaster Jr that seemed underpowered and needed a new cord. At the time the advice I got from the board was basically to leave it alone, as reassembling the mixer after opening it up would prove very difficult. Well, the cord was so darned ugly that I couldn’t help myself. I had to do something about it. Here’s the original cord with all of its obnoxious cracks. If the cord is pulled out straight they open up more and look much worse.

 

[d-jones]

It took me a bit of searching around but I finally found a suitable replacement cord with a nice round profile that was a very good match to the original, so with the replacement cord standing by I threw caution to the wind and disassembled the mixer. Here you can see the new cord already run through the hole in the motor housing, and what is essentially the complete motor assembly laying in front of it. Originally, the cord was connected to the stator wires using crimped on connectors. I don’t have a crimper for this type of work, so I went ahead and soldered the wires together and covered them with heat shrinkable tubing. It takes a bit longer than crimping (assuming you have the tools and fittings for crimping) but the result is a lower profile connection that can make reassembly a bit easier.

 

[d-jones]

Here the stator with its new cord is pressed into place in the motor housing. I had to do this twice. The first time it went in I took note of which numbers printed on the cord were visible at the top of the hole. Then I pulled it back out and cinched a small zip tie around the cord just a hair below that spot. This assures that if the cord is pulled on it won’t yank on the wires going into the stator. The original cord had a metal collar clamped around it for this purpose, and that collar can be reused if you take the time to remove it from the old cord. The stator assembly and motor housing fit together very closely, so it may tend to bind as it’s being pushed into place. Even so, once it was seated I was able to rotate it without much difficulty until the holes for the very long threaded shafts were properly lined up. You should be able to run them in by hand for the most part, but they’ll need to be tightened down properly before moving on to the next step, which is installing the armature and the phenolic plate that the brush assemblies are mounted on. If you look closely you can see the raised bosses on the inside of the motor housing that the phenolic plate will sit on.

 

[d-jones]

After applying fresh lube to the bearing surface, the armature was lowered into position in the motor housing. Make sure that the two black wires for the brushes are out of the way and then put the phenolic plate back in. To do this easily you’ll need to compress the brushes with tape or string as it’s going on. Then the two flat sheet metal nuts go back on. There’s a name for these little guys but I can’t think of it at the moment. Make sure they’re nice and tight, but don’t get carried away. Then reattach the leads to the brushes as shown.

 

[d-jones]

Now the little metal fan can be pressed back on. It will sit snuggly against a shoulder on the armature shaft. Finally, two metal washers go on the end. One is wavy, the other is flat. The wavy one is a spring and it goes on first. You can see them in this photo if you look closely. By the way, I took this opportunity to clean the commutator and it made a huge difference in the way this little mixer performed. I used to be able to grip the rotating shaft of the beater in my fingers and pinch it tightly until it stopped. Now if I do that I can barely slow it down.

 

[d-jones]

Now after lubing the bearing surface, the end plate of the motor housing goes back on.

 

[d-jones]

The last step is the installation of the end piece that holds the drive gears for the beaters. It may take a couple of tries to get things lined up properly so that the beaters don’t beat each other, but this is really no big deal to do. Make sure you don’t forget to install the cork gasket. I did, and I had to open it back up again to put it in place.

 

[d-jones]

Here it is working like a champ. With its fresh lube it spools up very quickly and the cleaned up commutator has given it a lot more torque than it had before. For the first time since I've owned it it's now a very usable little mixer. Having gone through this process I can't imagine why I was told not to try it. It was a very straightforward project from start to finish and well within the abilities of many, if not most people on this blog.

 

[pdub]

Thank You David!

Great write up and pictures of your cord replacement. I have one just like yours with the old cracked cord. Your "how to" will make replacement a lot easier.

Patrick

 

[d-jones]

You're welcome Patrick!

I'm glad to hear that you liked the write up. As you can imagine, by reversing the order it can be used as a disassembly guide as well. And for all those folks with Mixmaster Jr's that seem a bit sluggish but don't need a new cord, disassembling just far enough to get the armature out so the commutator can be cleaned is a cinch, and at that point both bearings can be lubed as well. So don’t let those little Mixmaster Jr’s languish in drawers and cupboards because they don’t seem up to snuff any longer, get them out and fix them!

By the way, here’s a link to the replacement cord that I bought. I just cut the molded end off and stripped the insulation back a bit. I looked everywhere for a small appliance cord with the correct round profile and this is all I could find.

http://www.abtecparts.com/commerce/search/products/?product_id=11AXCO82698&merchant_id=1933

 

[hooverwheelaway]

Awesome post!  I the Mixmaster Junior is one of my favorite mixers.  I may have to do a rebuild on mine now that I see how it's done!

 

[danemodsandy]

David:

Like a lot of people with exceptional skills, I'm not sure you realize how few people could figure all that out. Your instructions and photo set are awesome. Now that you've posted them, you've made it much easier for the rest of us!

Thanks.

Oh, and if you ever do this to a Dormeyer "Dormey," I wanna see! ;-)

 

[kqkenmore]

Thank You so much for posting this I think that I have one of these mixers that i was going to throw away I hope that I have not because you have inspired me. I feel that I can do it with your instructions.Thank You again. Carl

 

[d-jones]

Thanks for the kind words guys!

It really was a fun little project. Now I'm just a little annoyed with myself for waiting so long to tackle it. The Mixmaster Junior is such a classic example of 1950's industrial design that it's a shame to not be able to use them for want of a cord. As you can see in the photos, cosmetically this mixer is in great shape. I was really pleased with it when it arrived, but the first time my wife tried to use it was such a disappointment. She was mixing up some frosting and that was enough to seriously bog it down. That's when I discovered that I could pinch the beaters to a stand still with my fingers. So it went back into its little box and stayed there for a few years. The next time I took it out the cord was cracked up so badly I decided to put it right back. Now with its new cord and added torque, it really is like having a new mixer. And for those of you that don't need a new cord, but would like to try cleaning the commutator and applying fresh lube to the bearings to see if it helps your mixers performance, if you have the proper tools available(very basic hand tools)it's about a thirty minute project. Don't be afraid to take it on.

 

[westingman123]

Second those thanks!

I have my Mama's that she received as a wedding gift. The cord has worn out, much worse than yours was, and I was afraid to take it apart. I printed your guide, and it will be the next "spa" project at my house. Thanks again.

 

[sarahperdue]

beautiful job!

Thanks for sharing. Mine is at a consignment store. I just may have to go get it back and try this.