Picked up a Kenmore Twin Tub...

[bellalaundry]

I picked up this twinnie from the thrift shop the other day. Boy does it swirl the water around! The spinner is really well balanced and soooo quiet.

The tag at the back tells me that it is made in Japan.

Is there a way to get rid of the "pitting" of the aluminium near the impeller?

Guy

 

[bellalaundry]

the tub

 

[bellalaundry]

the spinner

 

[bellalaundry]

Controls to the left...

 

[bellalaundry]

and the right

 

[jocks54]

so jealous!!!!

What a wonderful find!!

 

[DADoES]

 
Like!

 

[tecnopolis]

Man, That is KA-UTE! Congrats! I think these were made by Sanyo or is it Hitachi?

 

[wayupnorth]

Some CLR or Iron Out should shine that wash tub up nicely. Use a mildly abrasive sponge and that residue should come off with a little soaking.

 

[mrb627]

Kenmore?

I never knew that Kenmore branded a twin tube machine. Very cooll!

Malcolm

 

[launderess]

Sears Branded Almost Anything That Was Hot

Or even lukewarm! *LOL*

Not having to actually produce the stuff cut down on some costs so all Sears had to do was worry about was mainly sales and service.

Those Japanese built twin tub units like Hoover's and Maytag's were decent enough sellers in their day to make "Kenmore" interested.

 

[mrb627]

Makes you wonder...

If Sears ever branded the little GE impeller automatic portable machine as a Kenmore version. I guess at this point, nothing should surprise us.

Malcolm

 

[arbilab]

The offset-bottom swirlator was more effective IMO than the Hoover side mount.

The dual-hinge spin cover and metal tub rules out Panasonic TTBOMK.

 

[launderess]

"The offset-bottom swirlator was more effective IMO than

Probably one of the reasons one rarely hauls the old girl out. I mean side from cleaning surface soils cannot see any serious stain/deep cleaning action going on within the four minutes (Heavy Cycle) alloted on a Hoover TT. Yes, one can repeat the cycle as often as one wishes but that increases the risk of tangles and or textile damage.

However one could see if a textiles "hit" the side of wash tub as they go round as some sort of scrubbing board.

 

[gansky1]

This is a cutie. Penny's and others had a version of this machine - didn't we decide once that Hitachi made some of these for Sears, etc.?

IIRC, this impeller reverses? I never thought the Hoover, when not overloaded, was all that hard on clothes. I was always satisfied with the cleaning after two wash "cycles" for normally soiled clothes. Tangling, yes, but that is true with most of these impeller washers I've used.

 

[arbilab]

Should one see asymmetrical bottom impeller operation one could appreciate the distinction among that and symmetrical bottom or side swirlation. It results in great turnover and less tangling than might be expected.

Twintubs of this era were unidirectional. The better ones had two wash/spin speeds.

 

[revvinkevin]

 

 

While the control panel design varies, it looks to be the same machine "underneath" as the Frigette Tim found last November.   He's saying it's made by Hitachi.  

 

This link is the thread he posted, which include videos.

 

It doesn't look like it reverses when washing.

 

Kevin

http://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?37588

 

[alr2903]

I think this is the same machine that was sold branded "Bradford", (W.T. Grant), they were much quieter than the screech of the "Hoover".   alr

 

[stainfighter]

Have identical model...

We have the "twin" to Tim's...the impeller rotates in clockwise direction only. The metal tub retains heat for a good length of time. Great for soaking, when we get a stain on something can just drop it right in, and when we want to wear something before we have a full load/a water saver. Figured out that one can lift the spinner lid slightly and slip the hose in to create a spin rinse, soap residue is NEVER a problem! Ours is badged Fridgette; there were several labels of these made apparently by Hitachi. Pitting - you could try to smooth it out by scrubbing with a little Bon Ami but wouldn't mess with it too much, as long as you use enough water (up to about the 5 gallon line) it shouldn't harm your wash. Ours had been around the block MANY times before we purchased it 5 years ago.

 

[bellalaundry]

The impeller does reverse direction. I need to think of a lint bag to to attach to the drain hose. The hole in the upper right of the wash section is cut out for the drain hose. When the impeller whirls in one direction, the pump recirculates the water. Any ideas?

Guy

 

[bradross]

Nice find!

That's a cute little twin-tub! Of course, I'm partial to twin-tubs and wringer washers!

 

[unclejohn]

Twin tub

A rare find... Congratulations!

 

[arbilab]

I'd LOVE to have a working 70s-80s Japanese twinny.

Panasonic will still sell you one if you live in Kuwait. Really.

 

[tecnopolis]

> I just found this little oddity in the archives.

 

[tecnopolis]

> I just found this little oddity in the archives.

 

[tecnopolis]

.

 

[tecnopolis]

.

 

[chestermikeuk]

"Oddity"

Hi Alex, they are the UK Hotpoint Twintubs, first produced in 1960 using the agitator principle from their wringer machines...One of the UK`s top 3 laundry brands, they switched to the Spiralator agitator in the mid 60`s, great machines and where also exported to Australia etc,

The Impeller style twinies here where mainly Hoover, although we had Rolls models with the impeller in the base, the best base action machine I find is the Servis Powerglide, which uses a large angled impeller in the corner of a dipped tub - the vortex it creates is such you can stick your hand in it!!

 

[chestermikeuk]

Twinnys

Another great find there Guy, the controls remind me of the 50`s GE Filter Flows, big and angular, the pitting should remove with a bit of scouring cream and a light sponge pad.

For a lint bag what about the fishing nets used for catching fish in house tanks, should be able to retro fit one with hooks onto the plastic grill, does the water gush out or a smooth trickle?

Happy washing