Sunbeam C30A Help Needed

[tomturbomatic]

Allen, I just told you how to attach the funnel to the top bowl. Nobody uses a Coffeemaster your way. Trust me on this, it never would have been color-check rated and later check rated by Consumer Reports if what you are doing is standard operating procedure. Every diagram for these coffeemakers shows the tube attached to the upper bowl. The picture you sent is proof that the person you bought it from did not have it put together right. See, no blame on you. You have to unscrew the tube or funnel from that plate in the bottom of the gasket. Then the gasket and plate go against the bottom bulge on the upper bowl. Then the tube is inserted (narrow end first) through the big wide opening at the top of the upper bowl and the threads on the tube screw onto the threads on the plate on the bottom of the gasket. That is what holds the gasket to the upper bowl. If you have trouble twisting the tube loose, take about one foot of washing machine drain hose, the old black kind, and jam it on the narrow end of the tube to give a better grip.

Honestly you would think that nobody here has ever had one of these apart. How do you clean these thoroughly when you buy a used one? Has no one replaced the o ring between the bowl and plate or ever replaced a gasket? Can somebody explain this more clearly? Does anyone understand what I am trying to say? I am not getting through to Allen on this. It looks to me like I am typing English left to right.

 

[launderess]

Ok Boys, Simmer Down

Or I'm going to send both of you into corners for "time outs". *LOL*

Now then, here is a snap of a C30 on fleaBay showing how the gasket is put on. Sadly this unit's gasket is bad, but the unit does look rather nice in total. IIRC from rec.coffee bad gaskets are the bain of the Sunbeam Coffee Master series (except the C50). In fact there was talk of having getting
together and trying to have a bunch of gaskets custom made.

Launderess

 

[ironrite]

C50 Pot

With a bit of help from Google, hopefully this link will come through showing the C50 for you.

I'm not sure about the glass part as shown in that photo. The C50 I had just used a very fine metal filter element. It was a great pot, until a guest was too helpful and washed the bottom under running water! It shorted it out after that.

http://baharris.org/coffee/Vintage/SunbeamC50.jpg

 

[retromom]

Guilty!

I have to admit, the only Coffeemasters that I have taken apart are the C-50's. Heaven knows what I've been drinking out the C-30's! I guess ignorance is bliss! LOL

Tom - I will save your instructions for future reference!

Laundress - I remember when Jetcone and Jaune were discussing the gasket manufacturing, just can't place the thread.

Venus

 

[whirlcool]

How Many Ways Can You Say....

Dumb-Ass?

Tom & All:

I'm out on a trip now, but as soon as I get home I will do as you say..
So, the gasket is held to the upper vessel as the metal center of the gasket acts like a "washer" between the screw threads of the water cone and the bottom of the top vessel. I get it now! The cone is what actually holds the gasket to the top vessel! But I don't see an "O" ring between the water cone and the top plate. Is there susposed to be one there? It looks like the seal between the top of vessel and the gasket assembly is so tight, one would not be needed.
I feel rather stupid too..... It all makes perfectly good sense...now!
I usually pick up on these things, and now that I have re-read your thread, I was just not understanding what you were trying to tell me. I honestly didn't know where my mind was when I was reading your posts.....
Actually the person who I bought it from sent it totally disassembled with no instructions for assembly, so I had to guess on my own. At least I know my unit is clean and I really wonder if the unit was ever used, it's so clean. I can see too that if you don't disassemble it periodically you could get who knows what growing in the seams between the gasket and the vessels.....

I really had a good laugh when you said "Nobody uses a Coffeemaster your way". How true! I can see how my procedure is NOT RECOMMENDED! Those Coffeemasters get so darned hot! I am sure that they couldn't be made again today as I think the exterior of the unit gets way too hot compared to today's coffeemakers. But the heat is probably the key as to why it makes such good coffee!
We used it again this morning and we just use 4 layers of cheesecloth with each layer 90 degrees to the other. It makes for a perfect filter. We don't reuse it, we just toss it and cut out a new one from the roll of kitchen use cheesecloth. There are absolutely no grounds in the bottom pot when done. But I did buy the optional metal screen on Ebay the other day, so I don't think I'll have to get the cloth filters.

 

[whirlcool]

It Works!

I assembled the Coffeemaster correctly this time and now have the cone and gasket connected to the upper bowl. We made coffee this morning with the C30A and it came out even better than before! I think it makes better coffee than our Braun coffee maker.
The seal is a little tough to get into the bottom bowl when reassembling the unit after loading the water into it. But after the coffee is made, it comes out quite easily. Heat helps.
I wonder if there is still a market for replacement seals for these units? They shouldn't be that expensive to make up?

 

[tomturbomatic]

Allen, I'm glad that you are having good results. You are wetting the gasket and then tipping the edge of the gasket into the neck of the lower bowl and then twisting the upper bowl sideways and down not just straight down when inserting it, right? The gasket is a very complex piece of molded "rubber." It contains a stainless steel spring to force it into the shape that seals best. If you take care of it, it will last a very long time. Make sure that it is washed with clean dishwater so that you do not run the risk of depositing oils on it that will turn it hard.

 

[whirlcool]

Yes, that is exactly how I am installing the upper vessel. Thanks for the insight into how the gasket/seal is made. I had no idea that there was an internal spring in there. I wonder if it is really required? If you made the gasket out of some material that was soft enough it could be self sealing?
As we stated earlier in this thread, there are tons of these coffeepots available and a lot of them don't work anymore due to hardened gaskets. Since vacuum brewing pots are now in high demand, I wonder if there would be an business opportunity making replacements for these?
What do you all think?

 

[jetcone]

Replacement seals would cost

$3000.00 for 200 seals! Thats the mold making and molding.

Jet

 

[jetcone]

EXCUSE ME

Thats $3000.00 for 20 TWENTY gaskets not 200!!

Jet

 

[launderess]

IIRC much noise was raised in several forums about the possibility of making a series of new Sunbeam Coffeemaster gaskets, but the cost was just too dear. Would probably be eaiser and less expensive if one could have saved the original molds from the plant, but they are long gone.

This problem is wide spread in that small runs of most anything are near impossible as the "little guys" have either gone out of business or had to grow in the face of competition. Did you know paper and plastic bags pretty much all come from the same several plants in Asia? Friend of ours wanted a custom paper bag for his business that didn't fit any of the current standard shapes and sizes. Found out he would have to order some where along the lines of 10,000 bags in order for a plant to make the necessary plates.

Launderess

 

[tolivac]

I would think even more plastics will come from Asian areas since most of the plastics mills in the US are in the LA area that Katrina hit.I bought a roll of plastic a while back and the mill it came from was in Monroe,La.Since plastics are a petrolium product-many plastics mills were located in the area near New Orleans.I wonder what happened to these mills-were they destroyed?or abandoned becuase the staff evacuated,lost their homes and couldn't return?Maybe someone who lives there can clear up the mystery-just wondered if those factories were still operating.