My 1930s Maytag washing machine. It’s the only one I have!
v.redd.it/y3ab3r7nxiz81
v.redd.itPosted May 14, 2022, 11:13 PM UTC
1.5K102
v.redd.itThat is an “aluminum square tub”. I worked in a Maytag dealership in high school in the mid 1960’s. We would overhaul and rebuild these machines. They are built like tanks. Only points of failure were the water pump bearings, which just wore out, and the transmission seal under the agitator. water would leak into the transmission and create an oil/water mousse. Some of them had gasoline engines for places without electricity. Maytag also made cars for a short period of time.
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Wow, how do you remember that shit? I can't remember anythimg from my high school jobs and I'm only in my 40's.
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I worked there for two years on weekends, then summers during college so had plenty of time to learn the ropes. I think I could still overhaul one, just don’t ask me what I had for dinner two nights ago, ha.
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The bigger question is how a dude pushing 80 is on Reddit.
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My neighbor is nearly 80 years old and he is on Reddit too :-)
You never know who lurks among you.
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Yeah my dad is pushing 70 and it wouldn’t surprise me.
But I deal with a lot of old people through work and the majority of them it definitely would surprise me.
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My dad was sending me reddit links up until he died last year at 86. Usually stuff about bee keeping and WW2.
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I’m sorry for your loss, he sounds like a total gem 🖤
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Same
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I'm in my 40s as well and have vivid memories going back to 2.5 years old, including what I was thinking at the time. I definitely remember a lot from high school jobs and that period of time.
Maybe you just have a lousy memory? Mentally I'm way sharper in periods where I've been in good shape so that definitely helps.
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This is the kind of stuff I try to buy for my cabin.
The build quality of prewar mechanical objects can be I-N-S-A-N-E-L-Y high. Electric fans, don't even get me started on sewing machines... They had oil ports and were meant to be serviced, maintained, repaired and last to eternity.
I'm now on a quest for a washing machine like this.
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Maytag made enameled wringer washers brand new in the 70’s, doubt that they still do. But if you can find those made in the ‘60’s or so they were better designed and may last even longer. One thing that happens with wringers is that the rollers get smooth and eventually won’t pull the wet clothes through. So you remove the roller and get a burly wood rasp and just go to town on them, pretty soon they grip like new.
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My 95 year old aunt just replaced a deep freeze she and her husband bought in the mid 1950's.
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My Mom had a Maytag washer bought shortly after her wedding in 1953. The wringer release was red, the rest white with the tub aluminum. There were two very large rectangular tubs with steel legs for the rinse tubs. I would stand on a bench playing with these really cute plastic ducks and swans I had while Mom worked. She’d use a stick made from an old broom handle to move the clothes into the wringer. There is technique to follow otherwise you break zippers and buttons.
When I was a teen I caught my hand in the wringer. I reacted so quickly I hit the release and was okay. My fingers didn’t break but it hurt like hell. I was so upset I sat on my bed until my heartbeat went back to normal. Too funny. When I later told my family my sister joked, “Better your fingers than your tit!” Which became a phrase in our family meaning ‘to be careful’. “Don’t get your tit caught in the wringer!”
Sometime in the 1980s the motor died and Mom became almost unlivable she was in such deep mourning over her washer. We finally got it repaired by a guy who was astonished that she’d prefer one over a modern washer. But, in many ways she was right.
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That is a fantastic story, so glad it was your finger! The rollers create an incredible amount of pressure. There is very little to go wrong on one of those machines, no digital nonesense to go haywire. They are much more labor intensive however, as you well know. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are still a few new parts around lurking in old shops. Maytag was still making a new Model E round tub and a square tub like you describe in the mid 1960’s when I was working on them.
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This is fascinating information, thank you for taking time to write that out.
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Oh sure, I never miss an opportunity to add my two cents when it comes to Maytags. It was my first “real” job and taught me a lot about working with ppl and building my self confidence, great experience for a wobbly teenager.
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And those little hit and miss engines are really quite collectable, too. easy to store, easy to move to a show, and unusual enough that they'll get interest, while being common enough that finding parts isn't too hard.
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It really surprised me the day we went out to a ranch on a service call for one of these washers and were confronted with a gas engine! The washer had been used on the ranch before they had electricity run. Fortunately my boss was an older guy who had worked on them. It was an interesting job.
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Bet it works great. Can you get a lot of clothes in there?
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Probably better than anything made within the last 20+ years.
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40 +
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I was originally going to use 40+ but I'm not really old enough to judge that
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I’m 40+ and I probably creak more than this machine! Lols
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[deleted]
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Yeah it fits a decent amount!
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They don’t make em like they used to!
Of course it’s a Maytag!
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Yeah they used to use 3-10x the amount of water and 2-4x the amount of energy the do today. They are incredibly inefficient compared to modern machines
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My mom used one of these when I was growing up and hers actually used far less water than today's models because she never emptied the water between washes. She started with whites and worked the washer and wringer up through pants and work clothes before starting the same procession over again with a clean water rinse/wring/hang
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survivorship bias.
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Why is the video so short I need to watch this for an hour at LEAST please! Sound included!
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Yes, can we please get a longer video 😂
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My grandma got her fingers rolled through there. Not fun. Thanks for the demo!
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That’s awesome! Thank you!
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I’d like to see it from the beginning, loading the clothes and detergent and starting it
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There's a lady on YouTube with a few videos! I don't know how I came across them..lol...I think she has her Gramdmothers machine and another- she shows the whole process! It was so satisfying 😆
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Thanks, I’ll look them up!
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I do believe this is called Survivorship Bias.
Ignore the fact that there are so few of these in existence and this one example seems like a beacon of hope and "they don't make them like they used to."
Accept the fact that there are so few of these in existence and you understand that seeing one working example doesn't mean the entire product line was indestructible, and that the vast majority are no longer functional.
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Well they were originally made so that you could repair them, but they stopped making them like that and now you just have to replace them when they break. I bet if they continued making parts for them there would be a lot left.
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Exactly at some point it became more cost effective to buy a new one then repairing the old one.
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Or it became more profitable to make them irreparable.
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Or more profitable for the makers
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Do I use wifi bullshit on my clothes washing machine? No. Do I use gentle, permanent press, normal, deep wash, and sanitize cycles? Hell yes I do.
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Anecdotally, i'd like to say I consider myself not even in the realm of being a weekend warrior when it comes to fixing things around the house, but golly gosh darn it, your comment made me turn a shade in the face, because washers are STILL built to be serviceable, you just have to read.
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I doubt many people would have multiple 1930s Maytag washing machines.
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I mean it’s my only washing machine and I use it regularly
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Lol I know just trying to be cute
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Oh, I love it. Nearly a century old and perfect. It's beautiful!
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Unlike a lot of modern machinese, these things really work. Lots of water, not like these modern things that make all the clothes rub against each other.
ofc you need to use a wringer, which is a chore.
I know a guy, died about 10 years ago, used to have a neighbor who used hers to wash collards.
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Old 1920's Maytag catalog.
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I remember seeing a washing machine from the early/late 1910s and it's crazy how far we've come in technology. Very nice though, looks wonderful.
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I want this! Our washer is a bs high efficiency low water washer....aka the water doesn't cover the clothes and I'm not even sure they are getting clean. I get wanting to save water but i want fucking clean clothes...
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Is it gasoline powered? I remember seeing a kick start gasoline clothes washer in my parents garage in the 60’s. I put the motor on a foot peddle go cart!😃👍
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Obligatory Maytag Man Commercial
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That's awesome! I assume it cleans your clothes fairly well?
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I used to go with my Grandmother to do the laundry on Saturday morning. The laundromat had these in a square layout with three other tubs for starch/bluing and rinsing. the ringer rotates so clothes went thru it between tubs. Good memories.
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This is absolutely wonderful. I would love to have an older washing machine because they work. Thank you for sharing.
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How much wattage does this pull I wonder?
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Probably works better than the one I bought 2 years ago...
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Have you reached out to Maytag and offered to partner with them for a commercial/ad campaign?
If I was on their DM team I would definitely be pitching this idea! So cool, and reinforces those old Maytag Man commercials I remember, ol' reliable
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Great idea!
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This is is awesome!
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My grandparents met because my grandmother was in her front yard using a washboard to wash her clothes (southern Appalachia) and apparently my grandfather drove by and stricken by her beauty stopped and invited her to bring her laundry to his house to finish because he had a washing machine. They were together up until she passed a couple years ago and she never worked a day in her life. I'd like to think the washing machine looked just like this.
What you mean is that she wasn't in paid employment. I'd say she worked her arse off if she was doing laundry in one of these things and undoubtedly taking care of hearth and home (so to speak), which obviously involved the raising and care of one of your parents and most likely several other siblings. We should never overlook the work involved in being (usually) a housewife and all that was expected of her.
Never-the-less, what a sweet story. Thanks for sharing.
Such a cute story! Sounds like they had many years of love.
Well, this will be the cutest and sweetest thing I’ll read all day.
Wonderful story, thank you for sharing!