Phillips Electra "Spin Drain" 1980`s Washing Machine

[chestermikeuk]

Finally gotten around to filming the Phillips "Electra" washing machine in "Spin Drain" action, this machine was made by Phillips UK, in their factory in Hipperholme, near Halifax in UK. The "Electra" model was made exclusively for the local Electricity Boards, sold here in late 70`s early 80`s, these machines had unique features, one being the first to have a polypropylene outer tub and the other having a permanant magnet motor or Permag Motor as it was known, this was about half the size of a conventional motor of the time and relied on magnets, so good where these new features that Phillips gave them a 10yr parts guarantee, which was a first at that time.

This machine starts to spin with the tub full of water, it was marketed as enabling the clothes to be spread evenly around the drum and also the water cushioned the clothes as well, produces quite a lot of water drama when it starts to spin!!!

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[hotpoint95622]

hotpoint 95622

Great machine, fantastic video.

Can’t beat the design and look of the 70’s and 80’s machines, nice chrome door and square features.

Can I ask what software you are using to edit the recording and how to embed it into the website? It so professional.

Lee

 

[mickeyd]

WOW

Loved how when you shifted from Warp 5 MAX to Warp 2, she became a Kenmore. Smiling. At 5, she's a Hoover. That variable spin speed is awesome, a jet turbine! Haven't seen that one before! And the page turning, then shattering, in the graphics, is fabulous. Then the last shot of the blue/silver tub full of water is the quintessential front-loader's dream--a machine with WATER, lots and lots of water. Wonderful! Can I buy stock in your company?

Thank you, Mikey, for a magnificent transatlantic Concord Sunday Morn.

 

[jetcone]

wow Mike

thats a slosher for sure! Now do you think that spin drain actually works? does this machine spin more balanced more often than a tumble drain model?? I have always wondered about this and now here you go a find a machine that actually does it!

jon & artey

 

[jetcone]

isnt that a noisey little motor

compared to today's motors! Grindy Id' say! It grinds away the dirt!

 

[electron1100]

Philips simply years ahead

Stunning looking and sounding machine Mike, yeah the spin rinse feature, well it is different, does it not suds lock though?

The motor sounds like a real motor to me not like todays quiet limp jobs that can barely turn the drum, a real machine!

 

[chestermikeuk]

Philllips.....Form & Function

Lee, yes the styling really was ahead of its time, when you see all the Phillips appliances at the time they really where streets ahead in styling and functionality.....thanks for the vid comments, its deffo more luck than design..I use windows Movie Maker, its basic but easy to use and does the job!!! no fancy camera just my sony compact that takes short movie clips as well.

Mikey, just knew you`d love the Splashdrama, and theres plenty of it, there was always plenty of water in the older machines, this is the rinse level, on wash its about up to the boot, it actually films better without clothes as there is more water in the tub!!! Heres you water drama pic!!!

 

[chestermikeuk]

Phillips Spin Slosher...LOl

Hi Jon, the spin drain was unique to Phillips at the time for Domestic machines, if you watch Jeffs Dexter spin drain that has a larger induction type motor...I`ll get a pic of the motor this week its a dinky little thing, but powerful to keep spin draining, it does work, have never seen one go OOB (well unless you bring home a 30yr old machine and forget to take out the transit bracket, which was fixed under the lid..Lol that had 5 of us perplexed until we figured it out, the previous owner really did look after this machine)

It does have a Jet screamer sound to it, slighly higher pitched than say a hoover/hotpoint/servis..BUT look how controlled it is and sounds when I turn down the power!!!

 

[matchboxpaul]

We agreed we werent ever to mention THE transit bracket inci

Hiya Mike

I think we were all in shock and dumbfoundedment as to the original owner (a) still having the bracket and (b) having taken the trouble to refit it!

As you say, obviously well cared for.

Even the transit bracket was pristine too!

Wonderful machine and the spin drain really is a sight to behold.

Great vid - really shows the feature well.
Paul

 

[chestermikeuk]

Real Machines

Evening Gary, yeh this is a real machine at its best, very sturdy as well, but has the look, wait till Al posts his kitchen pics with the dryer & dishwasher...looks and rugged power!!!

One thing I always thought was a weak link was the door boot, its made of very thin butyl rubber but this one is still the original one and no problems, and I dont remember them wearing out any quicker than other models...here she is in situ with matching Electra dryer!!!

 

[matchboxpaul]

Lesson 1

Always obey instructions.

Could have invalidated 'your right to free service during the guarantee period'.

paul

 

[matchboxpaul]

We wont tell Philips or Manweb what happened.

What they dont know wont hurt them!

 

[matchboxpaul]

NO one would know to look at it...

 

[matchboxpaul]

'Down at your local Electricity Board Shop'

circa 1983.

Great machines Mike!
Those bearings for the 11500 been ordered yet?

Paul

 

[chestermikeuk]

Oh Paul

I forgot you had that pic...Lol ...it looks silly to have it under the hood but when new there was always a piece of paper attached to the bracket that came out of the back of the machine telling you to remove it...LOl , it does look very neat even inside as well...even the dispenser was ahead of its time, it had a smooth box inside and out and even had "Flushing Slots" at the front of the drawer which flushed water under the dispenser drawer with every fill... left to right....Capped is bleach/additives - not used in UK, then main wash, fabric conditioner, pre-wash

 

[foraloysius]

Mike

Fabulous video!! The sounds are so familiar but I had never seen a frontloader doing this, only am familiar with my toploader. I can't get enough of this.

BTW mr Jetcone. The motor might be noisy, but it certainly isn't small. It's a Permanent Magnet motor that IIRC is 950 Watts (at least my toploader's motor is).

 

[mickeyd]

"Mikey, Heres you water drama pic!!!"

GOOD LORD ~ it looks like a view from an escaped diving bell hurling down into the abyss.

GORGEOUS. THANK YOU SO MUCH. I LOVE IT. Now about that stock in your Water Wonderworks Company!

 

[l86810]

Thanks for uploading that vid!
It brings back so many memories.

Ours was hardly ever OOB and rinsed so well it almost never sudslocked!

Great to see a spin drain like that again

 

[mickeyd]

PS: If ever there was an Oscar pic

that's it! Been lost in it, mesmerized, for the last ten minutes.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Thanks Mr. Mike! Did this machine spin after every drain or only at the end? That revving sound reminded me of a song from the Sgt. Pepper Album, "A Day in the Life," I believe. I did not see a max spin speed on the front of the machine. Would you please tell us?
Thanks again, Tom

 

[chestermikeuk]

Spin Rinsing

Hi Adam, glad you enjoyed it, I`ll film a wash in it this week, which model was your family machine?? did it have the 1000 or 12000rpm spin??

Mickey, "it looks like a view from an escaped diving bell hurling down into the abyss". yes on steroids...Lol it even beats the Hoovermatic I think...

Hello Tom, this model is only 800rpm which was the norm for the time, although there where 1000rpm /1100rpm & 1200rpm spin machines around as well!!! This model doesnt spin after the wash & every rinse, it washes, does 2 rinses then spin drains before the last rinse, then fabric conditioner rinse & final spin drain...could you imagine the new duets trying this...!!!

This was the golden era of Phillips Washing Machines before being swallowed up by Whirlpool...the rest is history...the subsequent machines where to us, like what you guys felt when WCI changed the Frigidaire`s!!!

 

[lavamat_jon]

Great video Mike, one of my mums friends had this machine but I never saw it on, great to see one working after all these years of wondering

Aren't these the ones that were made in the present White Knight factory?

Jon

 

[favorit]

congrats : nice vid ... and nice washer too !!

Can't imagine your faces when you realized the previous owner had put the shipping bracket back .... LOL

Also commercial old Zanussi washer-extractors spin drain. the odd thing is the spin speed doesn't engage while these machine are tumbling but when the drum is quiet. Very odd, you hear the dump valve click and it's a water drama !

Mike what's that hidden beauty right of this Philips with the open drawer and left of the Servis dept ?

And as for american frontloaders with clean tub cycle, guess they spin with water inside to clean the tub, don't they ?

 

[chestermikeuk]

Phillips Vario

Morning Louis, glad you can see the spin drain rather than hearing it, although with the top loaders you still get the sounds, In 1993 I had the 1100 Phillips Whirlpool toploader, (one with the lift up panel and time/temp/spin vario..and that was fun listening to it!!! Yes, you tell Jetcone nothing wimpy about those motors...LOL

Hi Jon, yes the very factory that White Knight dryers are still made in, the early spin drain machines & Top Loaders where made in the France factories, then Hipperholme was built around the time of the AWB082 / 098 models...

Carlo, yes there is a vid but that wont be shown..it was like the cameraman filming an avalanche, so engrossed in watching the action that you didnt realise you where in it..it worked fine a few times without clothes then on the first wash we couldnt understand why it was so OOB, all you see is 4 hands lurching in camera shot to switch it off!!!

The hidden machine is the ACME Sun Breeze Tumble Dryer, it weighs a ton, all enamel inside & out so doesnt get stacked..LOL

 

[paulinroyton]

Servis MK72

Hi Mike

What a fantastic video and machine. My Mums friend had the Philips version.

I noticed in background the Servis MK72. My Mum had this machine and loved the deed rinses. Any chance on posting a video of the Servis MK72.

Regards

Paul

 

[foraloysius]

Mike

IIRC, those 1100 models work a bit different, isn't it? IIRC they get to a certain speed and stay on that speed for a while until the drum is totally empty and then ramp up. I prefer the older ones like this.

 

[l86810]

Hi Mike,

Mine was the Auto Elite Series 90 with vari Temp and Spin,
It distributed about 200rpm, the rev'd up after about a minute or so. A minute wasn't usually enough to drain out, for a full load, so it used to almost always shoot up to 800rpm full of water.

Mine used to continuously tumble clockwise (for about 2 mins) for the drain after the wash and rinses.

It would complete 2 "long" rinses (only about 5mins) then the 3rd rinse would literally fill and then begin spin-draining. A long spin at 800rpm then fill for the final rinse.

It was the 1000rpm model.

Such amazing machines!

 

[paulinroyton]

Unbalanced Load

Hi Mike.

How does the machine cope with an unbalanced load. By looking at the video, it seems to cope very well, and I don,t think machines from the period had out of balance sensors.

Once again, fantastic video.

Paul

 

[robm]

Hi Mike

Many thanks for posting. That is a fantastic machine. It takes me back to my childhood as my mum had the toploader version (just like Louis's video). It's great to finally see what happened in the drum.

As per my youtube comment I wondered how it copes with suds? I noticed the old Indesits used to get quite sudsy when they spin drained. Do you think the spin drain enhanced or hindered the rinsing process?

Rob

 

[chestermikeuk]

Unbalanced

Hi Paul, it seems fine with most loads I`ve done in it, the older heavier machines seem to cope better with OOB situations as you say, The Servis MK72 is awaiting a cold water valve change then I`ll do a vid, now thats another strong sturdy machines with all that vitreous enamel inn & outer tub as well as the cast iron counterweights,

Louis, you had me thinking about the toploader, will have to find one now to check, from what I remember I`m sure it did the spin drain up to 800, then it went to 1100 for the last two mins of spin etc...was a great machine, I had it installed in a broom cupboard in the hall and above was a shelf with the small Phillips D153 dryer...the bathroom was next door so I used to pull the vent pipe over the doors and hook it to the ventaxia ceiling bathroom extractor..worked a treat!!!

Hi Rob, apologies if I didnt recognise your utube addy,I`ve had no probs with sudz lock in the Phillips, , but I do watch the amount I use, that might be the next test, an OD of powder to make it OOB, I still advocate no spin after the wash drain, the depth between newer machine drums just makes it act like a Mr whippy machine!!!

Hi Adam, interesting programmes, I think the Phillips where well ahead of their time for interesting features & programmes, and I seen so many machines of the same model with very different programmes, I like that they where constantly upgrading as they produced them!!