Which Waring Blendor Is Older?

[rp2813]

I always thought the "beehive" or "Xmas tree" style base was the earliest type, but recently saw a NIB one for sale on ebay and it had a late '50s date on the box. 

 

I have a Waring Blendor recipe book with the "rocket ship" style base pictured on the front, and it has copyright dates of 1940 through 1947.

 

I know the "beehive" type was produced prior to the '50s, but now I'm not sure which type is older.

 

I have a "beehive" model 700B and I always thought it was produced on either side of WWII.

 

The "rocket ship" style models are "FC" followed by a one- or two-digit number.

 

I can't find any information on line.

 

Does anybody know approximate manufacturing dates for these two styles?  Based on the copyright dates in the recipe booklet, I'm thinking the "rocket ship" type is older than the model 700 "beehive" type.

 

I've attached pictures of both models.

 

[toploader55]

I don't know for sure but...

I'm going to guess the Bee Hive is older.

 

[rp2813]

Yeah Eddie, I thought so too, until I saw that one with a late '50s date on the box. 

 

From what I've found on line, the originals looked like taller versions of the beehive.  It's certainly the older style if not the older machine.

 

I'm really surprised there's no information on line and apparently no knowledge among the membership here.

 

[Ultramatic]

 

 

I have a beehive base. It's has sort of like a rough, stone grey finish. I guess it's from the 1990's.

 

[petek]

Here's the 1938 patent  showing it as a beehive shape 

http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=...TO%252Fsrchnum.htm%26r=1%26f=G%26l=50%26s1=2,

 

[rp2813]

Thanks Pete.

 

Here's another image of an early beehive.  As can be seen, the early ones were taller with four distinct tiers, and appeared narrower than the beehives that came later.

 

So I guess the question is,  when did the shorter beehives go into production, and whether it was before or after the rocket ship type.

 

 

 

[toploader55]

Here are the 2 Beehives I have.

The one with the Carafe on it is a 702B and the other motor is a 702A

If that Helps.

 

[toploader55]

Flea Bay

Just saw this on Flea Bay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-193...240?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item234e845ed8

 

[jetcone]

That Osius patent has confounded me for years

Osius invented the most widely used version of the  modern blender hands down but somehow- and I'm not sure how, Osius was connected to Fred Waring the band leader who put his name on the Waring Blendor for marketing reasons. However Osius also somehow morphed into the Osterizer Blender at about the same time 1938. The two being different companies. If you look at the patent Osius is not connected with any company, he is the sole inventor. What could have happened, and I think this is correct based on the patents and all the citations that follow, was he sold rights to two different marketers. However just to totally to confuse things further there was a John Oster who owned a large shearing company that made clippers for hair, sheep, hedges. He used a patent by a Stephen Poplawski 1,997,873 - 1933 for a "drink mixer which has a self contained blender blades carried in the cup". 

Then there is Vita Mix- originally the "Natural Foods Institute who came along in the 1930's as well with their own design of which I can't see any patent but the first model was made by the same company that made Eski-Mix. The vita mix with the black base label is the 1938-9 earliest machine, the red base label is a 1949 and is called "Papa Barnard's" vita mix and was the first product ever used in the very first infomercial made.  Papa Barnard invented the infomercial. 

The green based Osterizer is their very first model and dates from the 1930's and it is solid cast iron with - of course- the cutting blades mounted in the base of the cup.

I believe the two beehives date from the 1930's the Rocket ship was a '40's redesign. They made several versions of the Rocket ship, the common gold cheaper model, the white with chrome legs more expensive and the rare today Bar blendor which was all black bakelite with red trim up the center of the legs and the glass for the bar blendor was a 4 leaf clover but was clear not ribbed. I gave Jeff & Cal this model as it goes so well with their decor. 

 

 

[rp2813]

Jon, I did some of the same research you did and still find myself trying to sort out the sketchy history of not only Waring, but blenders in general.

 

Interestingly, the rocket ship type that Eddie provided the link to on ebay has the clear carafe instead of the ribbed/reeded type.  I've seen a lot of blenders of all makes with carafes that were not originals to the base, so maybe the ebay one falls into that category.

 

At this point, I'm inclined to think that the shorter beehive base on Warings had a very long run, perhaps into the '60s, whereas the rocket ship was produced for only a few years if you take into account the gap created by WWII.  In fact, if I'm not mistaken you can still buy a reproduction beehive type at Sur La Table and other such retailers, and in decorator colors.

 

With that in mind, I'd say there's a good chance that any rocket ship type one might come across is likely going to be older than almost any beehive out there. 

 

I just picked up a rocket ship type and intend to use it at my bar.  It takes up less room than the trusty old single speed thrift store Waring beehive I've had for over 35 years, and its carafe has Waring's version of an ice crusher blade design, which I've discovered works just as well as the supposedly revolutionary type that Oster offers.

 

The beehive will shift to the patio bar, as I recently dug up another carafe with the ice crusher type blade for it in my stash of direct drive spares.

 

 

 

[appliguy]

I'm not sure how, Osius was connected to Fred Waring

According to my research Fred Waring offered to back Osius’ invention with the needed capital to make it a reality…PAT COFFEY

 

[midcentnurse]

Saw this at GW today but it was pretty light weight. Idk which stand mixer I want but I know it's got to be heavy duty quality. The but in nutone is cool but the beater mechanism is locked up and the usable space in the bowl due to the tower, like a bundt pan, is really small. Hmmm, sunbeam?

 

[turquoisedude]

Run like hell!

If you're looking for a heavy-duty mixer,  don't go for a GE like this one.  They don't have the guts a Sunbeam or older Dormeyer have, trust me.  I'll bet dollars to donuts that if you plugged it in, you'll get nothing but High speed, too.  The speed controls of this style of GE mixers were, well, awful and not easy (if even possible) to repair.  

 

[jetcone]

Ralph

did you buy a new Rocket Ship or a vintage one?

 

Pics??

 

Pat I think you got it, Waring backed Osius and his famous name was to be the maidenhead to launch the Blendor.

WHOA !! Stunning new Blendor from Waring - Inverted and 1-3/4 horsepower  !!!   Made in U.S.A.

 

 

 

 

[this post was last edited: 4/8/2015-16:20]

http://www.waringpro.com/catalog.php?pcID=131_134&product_id=573

 

[petek]

The inverted jar above:

Isn't the first time for this from Waring.. My "tabletop" Waring from the 70's came with two glass jars, the regular cloverleaf jar with handle and that near identical inverted jar for cocktails etc.. but without a handle.   

 

[rp2813]

That new inverted model is an interesting design.  They even went back to the original four-tiered taller beehive for the base.

 

Jon, I bought a vintage rocket ship.  I haven't yet taken possession of it, though.  I'll provide pix once I start the process of making it presentable. 

 

I think the rocket ship has more art deco elements in its design than the beehive.  Like if Elsa Lanchester had a blender in the Frankensteins' kitchen, it would be that one.

 

 

 

 

 

[petek]

Here's the  Waring tabletop I mentioned above with its inverted cocktail jar. 

 

[petek]

My newer model rocketship with newish Waring Kitchen Classics model with ss jar. 

 

[midcentnurse]

petek that tabletop blender is fantastic!!

 

[midcentnurse]

turquoisedude, yea it was an immediate turnoff. ive seen a few sunbeams around i may contact the guy who refurbs them and find just the right one. i hate to make the nutone jealous, esp since he has to live in the same spot all his life but, even as a blender, pretty pathetic

 

[rp2813]

So

It appears the answer to this thread's title question is . . . both?

 

Here's a shot of a Waring magazine ad from 1952.  If you look closely at the lineup of blendors at the bottom (select the "view full size" option), you'll see from left to right the subject blender, the beehive one-speed, the beehive two-speed, and the rocket ship.   This suggests to me that all of these styles and models were available in 1952.

 

Without a serial number database, I don't think there's any way to determine how old a Waring blendor is.

 

[rp2813]

Pictures For Jon

The FC2 Blendor arrived on Monday.  Unfortunately, the seller is entirely ignorant about how the USPS treats packages, used a box that the base and carafe barely fit in and couldn't possibly accomodate enough cushioning material, the contents were not packed tight enough to prevent shifting, and of course the carafe was in pieces when it arrived.  Probably with the first toss of the package after the USPS got its hands on it.  Not even marked "fragile" or "glass" anywhere on the box.

 

Not to worry too much, since I have spares, but the ice crusher blade assembly on the broken carafe was a selling point.  I'll salvage it and use it on another carafe.

 

The cleaning process involved three steps:  1) Hitting the base with "Totally Awesome" spray and going over the whole thing with a soft toothbrush to remove grease and grime, 2) Applying white appliance touch-up to the nicks and scrapes (most noticeable on the tops of the legs in the picture but not so much in ambient lighting), and 3) Polishing with Meguiars Car Cleaner/Wax to restore a nice shine to the finish. 

 

The first four "before" shots are from the ebay listing.  I'm happy with how it turned out.  The nicks and scrapes disappeared with prudent application of the touch-up.  It's entirely presentable and I think I prefer the older look of the painted legs to the chrome ones found on some models.  I paired it up with a very early carafe that has four sections marked off up the sides.  I presume each section indicates one cup's worth of liquid.

 

[ea56]

You did a beautiful job cleaning and restoring this blender! I had one just like this that I bought at the Salvation Army for $5.00 in 1972. I used this blender fro many years and I regret that I eventually got rid of it and replaced it with a new blender in about 1986. The new one was a POS compared to this classic Waring. Hope you get many years of use from this beautiful blender.

 

[jetcone]

Nice job

and the waterfall glass carafe looks stellar. That is the first white bodied version I have seen, that has white legs not chrome.

 

 

 

[rp2813]

Thanks Jon. 

 

It wasn't until I started pulling up pictures of FC models that I realized painted legs are unusual.  After seeing them up close, I prefer the painted legs.  The base is more of a cream than white, and combined with the black grooves on the legs, it makes for a classic and elegant art deco color combination.  The grooves on the painted legs are a detail not found on chrome legs.

 

The blender runs like a dream and takes up less space than the average blender on the small wet bar in the den.  Its small footprint was the primary motivation for getting myself an FC model.  Regardless of whether it's newer or older than my trusty old beehive, I love its styling and it fits perfectly on the bar.

 

I bought margarita and pina colada mix today since we're having daytime temps around 80.  The spiffed up blender will be rendering slushy cocktails before the weekend is over.

 

 

 

[jetcone]

Ralph

Just scored this beauty, and in the intervening 10 years I learned Fred Osius hooked up with Fred Waring for promotion and Fred Waring put in $25,000 in 1938ish.  Fred Waring was a band leader of the Pennsylvanians, and they performed at "El Rancho Adolphus" which was a dude health food ranch owned by Adolphus Honhensee who was a health food promoter in the late 1930s ! So Osius could not develop a seal for the blades so, Waring really owning the company turned that over to an Ed Lee who came through! And there was Oster making a blender so Waring changed the name to "Blendor"! Waring named the early Rocket blendor and called it "The Adolphus" . Adolphus got sued later for false credentials, its very incestuous all this. LOL 

 

[jetcone]

Just scored the original blades that are in the 1938 Patent

I could not believe my find initially! Copper is my favorite !  See the two scimitar blades, later models they were replaced. 

 

[rp2813]

WOW Jon Charles!  Just WOW!

 

They are both beauties but the Adolphus paired with your research suggests that the rocket type preceded the "waterfall" or what I call the Christmas tree style.  I suspect both types were manufactured simultaneously for a certain period of time during the '40s, but that specific information has eluded me.

 

The Adolphus has to be super rare, and yours seems to have seen little use, or was very well maintained.  It's a true showcase example of Waring's earliest offering.   The copper one, which I think is a model 435 or 735 (there may be an alphabetical suffix) is it's own version of rare, as I've never seen one before, not even among the reproduction Warings that are made today in that same retro style.  And this reminds me of Waring's 50th anniversary contest to find the oldest Blendor still in use.  This was pre-internet and I never saw a picture of the Blendor that won.  Now I'm curious and will try to hunt down this information.

 

As for the blades, that you got two of the superior original type is equally amazing.  The carafe for my rocket model has that same blade and it makes short work of crushing ice crescents.  Why they ever abandoned that blade design is beyond me. 

 

For the past couple of months I've been making a home version of Orange Julius with my rocket blender on the bar and they turn out smooth as silk with no ice chunks in only about 30 seconds or less  of blending time.  Normally, my '60s Lady Kenmore (Osterizer) with sliding speed control and "Fusion" type blade sits on the kitchen counter, but starting usually in February it gets replaced by my Breville Citrus Press for the duration of orange season.  The LK is great at crushing ice, but it requires Oster's crazily configured 3-bladed Fusion design to accomplish it.  My rocket Waring is close to 30 years older and can render as good or better results with just two blades in a simple crisscross configuration.

 

Oh, and by the way, I seem to have discovered the secret ingredient for the Orange Julius drinks we used to get from those franchises:  around 1/3 can of sweetened condensed milk.  How they ever managed that in a powdered form, I don't know, but it sure did capture the unique flavor I remember.

 

[qsd-dan]

Toploader55

Damn, I really miss that guy. RIP Ed

 

[tolivac]

The famous Waring “rocket” blender-at one time these were sold as “bar” blenders