Universal Coffeematic

[cycluxe]

A while back I started a thread about my Farberware Superfast percolator. Sadly, it is no more, and after mourning the loss I've acquired a Universal Coffeematic. It's gorgeous, circa 1955, and makes awesome coffee. I know little about Universal except that they also made a toaster called the Toastamagic. Are they related to the Universal gas range company? Any info would be appreciated.

 

[turquoisedude]

If it helps, (and I'm not 100% sure), it seems the small Universal appliances were made by Landers, Frary, and Clark for quite some time.  Then there were a series of Universal smalls that seemed to be Dormeyer clones (mostly mixers and blenders).    The Universal coffeemakers I have in my own collection all seem to be LFC-made.

 

I've seen ads where Universal ranges and washers were featured along with Universal small appliances - I can't help but wonder if the brand Universal was simply used to offer a uniform brand option to consumers; ranges and larger appliances may possibly have been made by other manufacturers and rebadged, but again I can't say for sure.    GE and Westinghouse sure seemed to offer the all-one-brand solution, especially in the late 40s and early 50s.  

 

 

 

[ea56]

When I first moved out on my own at the age of 19 I bought a Universal Coffeematic at the Salvation Army Thrift store for $3.00. I believe that it was a 1959 model, it had an ivory colored handle and base. This perc made the very best coffee! The old time electric percs had a much more sophisticated basket that almost completly prevented any grounds from getting into the finished brew. The one weak spot of the old chrome percs is that they are usually copper that is chrome plated. You need to be very careful not to use any abrasive to clean the inside, because once the copper shows through, the coffee won't taste good anymore and probably isn't healthy to drink either. I found through trial and error that putting a tbs. or two of powdered dishwasher detergent into the basket, filling the perc to max fill and running the pot through a complete cycle, unpluging the pot and letting it sit for 20 to 30 mins. cleans very well. Pour out detergent and water, you'll be amazed at how the inside will sparkle, like new. Now fill again to max fill, run through anothercycle, pour out water and rinse.
This pretty much replicates using Dip It, which I haven't been able to find for over 10 years. I've found that the dishwasher paks will also work for this, just use one pak.[this post was last edited: 3/19/2015-13:38]

 

[lordkenmore]

Dip-It is still apparently available, but I've seen it at a grand total of only one store--a local Ace Hardware, which carries a lot of unusual things. They also have universal fit glass percolator knobs.

That said, the dishwasher detergent idea has a plus in that it's something most people have around, anyway.

 

[lordkenmore]

I don't know much about Universal, but I think they might have been owned by GE at some point. Don't quote me, but for some reason I'm THINKING it was "later on." I've got a Universal Coffeematic, and it says "Universal by General Electric" on the bottom.

 

[easy]

Dip-It

I have found Dip-It in Boston supermarkets, but not in the cleaning aisle. I have found it in the coffee section next to the filters.