Vintage stoves and refridgerators

[oldhouseman]

You guys may already know about this place in north Georgia, but just in case it has not shown up yet on AW......

Great stoves and ice boxes but a expensive. I wonder if any shop like this exists for washers/dryers/dishwashers?

Antique Appliance restoration

Antique Appliance restoration, sales and appraisals of antique gas and electric stoves and refrigerators in Clayton Georgia. Antique appliance classifieds.

www.antiqueappliances.com

 

[rp2813]

Oh yeah, I've been to that site and left just about as soon as I got there when I saw what they charge for stuff. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the sellers on ebay that think an old beater wringer washer is worth $3K have taken their cues from the Antique Appliances site.

 

[goatfarmer]

I needed some crisper drawers for a 1940 Gibson. They had one that I needed. I was able to trade them some early Frigidaire ones I had, for the Gibson one I needed. Nice people to deal with!

 

[rp2813]

Ken, it's good to know that the people there are willing to make deals like they did with you. I presumed they were strictly about sales of restored or re-engineered merchandise and not a parts resource.

 

[danemodsandy]

They're Great!

Antique Appliances has a lot of beautifully restored merchandise for folks who want instant gratification and don't mind paying for it, but they try to help however possible. They're a very good resource for parts, both original vintage parts, and new parts. They can supply door gasket material for a lot of vintage fridges, for instance.

They also know a lot about how to work around non-availability of original parts. For instance, if the cold control for your 1947 Frigidaire is bad, and no parts are available, they can often help with a new universal part that will work. They even have a cold control that has adapters that will let you re-use your original knob, so that your vintage fridge will still LOOK totally original, even with a replacement control.

Nice people.

 

[oldhouseman]

"Good People" as we say in the South.

This shop is located at the foothills of the Blueridge Mtns in Raebun County Georgia, city of Clayton.

The area is a mix of traditional mountian folk and transplants from Atlanta and elsewhere that are building million dollar homes around the local lake community. This is pretty much the same mix as I have in my now home county of Hancock, city of Sparta.

This shop is in business to help a wide range of people I believe. The shop is really very plain on the store-front. And they carry new appliances priced for everybody in the community from the humble home with basic appliances to the multimillion dollar homes that can spend big bucks on anything they want. The store front looks like an average small town appliance store with mostly new things in the window front and a few restored things in the back.

It's always good to know about resources.

 

[jamiel]

amen to that oldhouseman...they're nice people...I've been in their shop a couple times and they're gracious and pleasant. WalMart opened a Supercenter on the edge of town (took out the Winn-Dixie but left the Bi-Lo) but they will probably survive.

 

[rp2813]

In that case . . .

I may have to hit them up for parts help with my '39 Westinghouse fridge which seems to again be having issues with the cold control and just goes dead once in a while.

 

[sdlee]

thier nice....

....but i agree with rep2813....thier price says something else
They are surley price gouging. There no way they need the money they are able to get. I wonder how educated thier costomers are. Thanks to ebay a lot of items i used to think was rare are not rare at all

 

[lederstiefel1]

far too expensive for me!!

Ralf

 

[rp2813]

It does appear from the remarks above that they are much more reasonable when it comes to parts. But no matter how meticulous their restorations may be, with a little searching I could likely find myself a very deluxe stove in great shape for a fraction of what they would charge.

 

[danemodsandy]

sdlee:

" They are surley price gouging. There no way they need the money they are able to get."

sdlee:

They cater to people who want vintage appliances, but who don't have the time or expertise to go through the adventure of finding and restoring them themselves. They also warrant their restorations.

So far as what they charge, they often do very extensive and expensive work on appliances, like replating and reporcelainising, as well as repair of NLA plastic parts like liners and jamb strips found on late '50s/ early '60s refrigerators. They have expenses for proper, legal disposal of refrigerants, etc. And most of all, they have overhead due to the length of time that units can sit there awaiting a buyer. Money invested in a restoration that hasn't sold is money that cannot earn more money until a sale does happen.

These people do charge a lot of money, but then they're not catering to you and me. They're catering to people who have that kind of money and are willing to spend it. Who can blame a businessman for that, so long as they're offering a good product for the price charged?

 

[goatfarmer]

Amen, Sandy!

 

[launderess]

What He Said

While not meaing to gang up on anyone, have to agree with Sandy, and was going to post along the same lines.

Those of you here know the work that goes into restoring a vintage applinace to cosmetic beauty and working condition, know the hard work involved. However doing something for the joy of it, versus putting meat on the table is are two different things. Again as Sandy stated, as a public business they have costs and expenses the priviate restoration person does not. Think of the insurance expenses alone for reselling vintage appliances, including ranges, stoves, and ovens. Sourcing applinaces and parts can't be easy or cheap eiter. While there is a market for their work, it's not like these things are rolling off the production floor and selling in the hundreds per month. One or two sales/restoration jobs might be all the money coming in for a month or even a quarter.

There are people out there selling beat up an untested cheap tat for huge sums on eBay or Craigslist, with no warranty or even promise the thing will even work properly.

 

[rp2813]

I totally agree with what's been stated regarding the time spent doing a complete restoration. You see it all the time with collector cars; somebody states they put in $20K worth of work but are letting the car go for maybe $15K because the car just won't bring in more than that. This sort of thing is much more a labor of love than anything else.

For the folks at Antique Appliance, one key sale can probably cover the rent for several months, and I doubt their merchandise is flying out the door. They are catering to a niche market with plenty of disposable income. I don't fall into that category (contrary to what many may believe, not all of us who live in Silicon Valley got wildly rich on stock options) so what they have to offer is of no interest to me. And I'd much rather own an old appliance that's original and in respectable condition, that has its own character, than a sterilized version of same. But that's just my preference.

 

[travis]

I don't have a problem with anyone putting a high price tag on something. I just won't be the buyer. GE monitor tops of the mid to late 1930's are seldom dead. They all need to be rewired and possibly a new relay. I don't have much fear about the old refrigerants since it's sealed inside the unit and won't come out unless I stab the evaporator with a knife. If I do that, I deserve the consequence.

Antique appliances can warrant their stuff because they replace the compressors. All that's left to their fridges is a beautiful old cabinet with some piece of crap beneath it. Part of the beauty of an old appliance are the noises that it makes. Those of you that use a monitor top know what I mean. I can identify the five fridges in my house my the sound of their relays.

rp2813,

If you would email me a picture of your Westinghouse, I will be happy to help you with it. I need to see what you're working on to help.

 

[sdlee]

in my own defense........

sorry guys I wasnt meaning to indicate that antique appliances
was trying to get the old mighty dollar out of us poor folk, I simply think that the product they offer is no where worth the price. I do not beleieve that its fair ( to the poor or the rich) and thus my comment about price gouging

now let me say this. I love thier work. I look at it occasionally and think its awesome. If I had lots of diposable income I might even waste the money on something I saw if I liked it.

As a contradiction I sold jewlery for 8 years,Diamonds, a dime a dozen....Black Hills Gold Jewlery ...mark up about 80 percent
WE too were selling to a niche market with plenty of money. I know about business, rent, insurance and all that overhead stuff but we were offering what our competitors were offering and stayed close in the accepted price range. Looks to me like Antiques Appliances are taking advantage of the fact that they have NO Compition.

Also I am a miniature artist and if you want to talk about an expensive pursuance this is one. As stated in a posting above I dont have the expense of being in business with it because its a hobby for me. Still I get commisioned to do houses and buildings once in a while and I go out of my way to clarify that what they want is going to cost them anywhere from 500 to 800 dollars and thats without me making a lot of money for my time and effort.I know it takes time to restore an appliance or restore a car. Even a dummy with no knowledge needs only to look at the pictures of Roberts lady Kenmore restoration to get an idea. BUt I still hold fast to my plea.....they're charging way too much for what they do.

I do appologize tho for implying that they are not nice people. I didnt mean that at all.Im sorry it came across that way. I get riled up coz I live in a town famous for its price Gouging,and frankly it has ruined what was once a wonderful place to live, please forgive me for that one.

Lastly, let me just repeat things other members have said coz they say it better than me......been to thier site,left as fast as I got there when I saw thier prices;....Far too expensive for me;....I have no problem with someone putting a high price tag on something, the buyer just wont be me

I still dont think I am out of line with my opinion.

 

[runematic]

I never fault a business owner for what they charge for their product. If I do not see the value in the price, I do not purchase said item. These days, things are expensive for businesses: electricity, heating, cooling, rent/mortgage, inventory, parts, etc etc etc. There are also UNPLANNED expenses. For an example: I just special ordered an Amana bottom freezer for a lady. It's a model I do not stock, but she insisted that's the one she wants. I asked her if it would fit in her opening. I was assured no problem, claims she measured. Well, 8:00am this morning we take this thing apart to get it into her house. Guess what, it misses by almost a full inch, not an 1/8, 1/4, but a full frickin' inch. What did I get? Sorry about that, bring me a 19 cuft model instead. Quote "I do not want to go through the hassle of a carpenter to shave down the opening". It would have been simple. Now I have an unplanned bill of $900 to pay next week. Neato. but I digress....

As someone who has some of the stoves pictured on that site, I'd love to get 1/4 of what they are charging. Of course, mine are unrestored. The problem with a site like that is people get a wild idea about what their old POS stove is worth when in actuality most taint worth jack squat. It's easy to buy an unrestored range for under $50. Anyway, just my $0.04 worth.

 

[launderess]

You're A Very Nice Businessman

Here custom and or contract spells out that special order items must be paid for in full up front and it is the customer's deal. If the item does not fit, or "work" with what they had in mind, tough chedder.

L.