Thoughts on this vintage Magic Chef?

[weed30]

I'm still looking for a vintage gas range, but I've moved on to "newer vintage" since I can't find someone in St. Louis who can service the older ones. (If anyone in St. Louis knows of someone, please let me know!)

 

I found this one which I like and it seems clean but I haven't gone to see it yet. My thought is that I'd have better luck with a still vintage but newer one since parts could be easier to find as well as regular appliance repair people willing to work on it if needed. 

 

Model number is 316W 5LW if anyone knows anything about it.


 

Thanks!

 

 

[pulltostart]

Nice-looking stove

It appears to be clean.  On the plus side, this one should have electronic ignition (I think) so no worry about standing pilots.  On the negative side, it appears to have a 'continuous clean' oven (which means it's never clean and it can't be cleaned).  There are two push button switches on top of the backsplash, one is probably for the oven light, might the other be a light in the backsplash?

 

lawrence

 

[weed30]

Thank you!

I have never heard of a continuous clean oven. I looked it up and dang...so weird that this was a thing. I don't understand why an oven that couldn't be cleaned was made?!

 

What's good in my case is that I do 95% of my cooking on the cooktop so this won't be a big issue for me. My current range's oven hasn't worked in 6ish years and it's not been a problem. On the rare occasions where I need an oven I have an electric range in my basement and a toaster oven.

 

[DADoES]

 
Continuous(ly never) clean ovens have a special porous finish that absorbs, spreads, and oxidizes soils at normal baking/broiling temperatures.  Chemical oven cleaners will damage it, but soap-and-water can be used.  Running the oven empty at 400°F for an hour or two or whatever can have some effect to assist the "cleaning" process.

 

[weed30]

@dadoes - Thank you, this is good to know.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I am not knocking this range, but the stamped metal burners look small. There was a time, and I don't know if this range falls into that manufacturing period, when gas stoves with these stamped burners had only one size burner head on them and they were slow because they did not offer a 12,000 BTU burner like older drilled port burners or the Tappan-style burners. Maybe it would not be a factor in your surface cooking, but you might want to get some information regarding the specs on the stove since you have a model number.

 

[weed30]

<h2><span style="font-size: 12pt;">@Tomturbomatic - and this is why I appreciate this forum so much! I see what you mean about the burners. I haven't had any luck finding a manual or even any vintage ads for it online, which sometimes provides valuable details.
</span></h2>
<h2><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Here is another one I'm looking at - I'm not in love with the black front, but it meets the main requirement of manual controls. It looks like the burner heads are different sizes like the Hotpoint I use now. I've messaged the seller asking for the model number.</span></h2>
 

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[coldspot66]

Made by Tappan.

 

[DADoES]

 
That Whirlpool looks similiar, if not identical, to the one my grandmother had.  She baked a lot of pastries but not much else so didn't get the oven significantly dirty.  It was years until I decided to run self-clean, at which time the oven thermostat went kablooey (tip of the capillary ruptured).  I didn't stay onsite while the cleaning cycle ran.  Granny reported the next day that it go so hot as to scare her so she shut it off.  The temp markings on the knob also deteriorated and wiped-off over time as to be unreadable so I replaced the knob, which was outrageously expensive ... as knobs often are so.

ETA:  Granny's model was SF367PEYW1 (serial July 1992).

 

[weed30]

@dadoes - thanks for that information! I don't plan on using the self clean feature - I'm not a fan of them. I rarely use the oven and when I do I put my pot or pan on a sheet pan so any drips are contained.

 

[helicaldrive]

Agree with Tomturbomatic

The burners are not sealed, so you will not have any problem with the flames wanting to spread too much and go up the sides of the pot.

However, those burners are very weak. I’d want two high speed burners.

Some of the new, residential, non-restaurant style gas ranges have very high BTU burners now and deliver really impressive performance without the excessive flame spreading that plagued the earlier sealed burners.

If new is not your thing, then probably you need a vintage range from the 1940s or 1950s to get decent performance. I don’t know why those weak, thin aluminum stamped burners in the model above were ubiquitous in every brand during the 1970s and 1980s, but they were useless.

 

[jamiel]

probably the American Gas Association's research showing that they "were just as good" as the old-style ones which were far more $$$ to make. Shoulda had Jinx Falkenburg selling them!

 

[weed30]

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My current range is a Hotpoint that came with the house I bought in 201</span>0.

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica;">Model: RGB745GEV3AD
Serial: GS237728P</span></span></span>

<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica;">Manufactured: April of 1985 or 1997 or 2009</span></span></span>

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I am guessing it is the 1997 model. It has a large and medium burner in the front and 2 small burners in the back and electronic controls for the oven instead of a knob. </span>

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I've attached a photo of one of the burners which seems well made to me, but as evidenced by this and previous posts I don't know a lot   There's a flat disc that fits on top to spread the flame (?)
</span>

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It has (had) electronic ignition but I unplugged the range due to a near fire when the oven thermostat malfunctioned. The oven would not stop heating and got up to dangerous temps - long story.  Now I just light the burners myself and used the electric range in my basement if I have to bake anything.
</span>

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This range has served me well except the oven thermostat problem and replacing it doesn't seem a good use of money. I've never liked that it was bisque color and boring looking in general.</span>

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I would prefer a vintage range but for reasons mentioned in my original post I'm now looking for "newer vintage."</span>

 

<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I really appreciate the input I have gotten here - y'all have saved me from several mistakes already!</span>

 

 

[weed30]

@dadoes - it turns out that the range was the same model as your granny's. It was nice but all 4 burners are 9000 BTU so I passed on it. I need at least one 12000, so I continue my hunt.

 

[tomturbomatic]

You know that you could get a 120 volt induction cooker to give larger pans a boost before putting them over the 9K BTU burners, like a pot pf water for pasta which you could cook from start to finish on the induction cooker.

 

[weed30]

I would love a full induction cooktop! But having just one burner to move about won't work in my very tiny kitchen. I'm sure something that meets my needs will come up on FB Mkt or CList eventually.

 

I've also considered running 220 to my kitchen but not sure how expensive that is, including taking the gas pipe out. Or maybe they could leave it and just cap it? I have a smoothtop Maytag Gemini in my basement that I love because of the double oven. The small oven on top is just so handy!

 

Ha, I'm really all over the road here - from very vintage to somewhat vintage to a 2006 Maytag.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Have you seen this?

It might give you some idea on sizes.

The Best Portable Induction Cooktop

We cooked for months with portable induction burners and found that the Duxtop 9600LS has the best features and performance for everyday cooking.

www.nytimes.com

 

[weed30]

@tomturbomatic - good info, thanks!

 

[tomturbomatic]

I was worried that you thought I was suggesting something the size of a casket.