Hey Gang ~

Thought I would share a bit of weekend warrior progress with all of you. Due to the cold winter temps and a crazy arrangement of family gatherings and lack of tools needed for house work - I thought I'd spend a few minutes on the late 60's GE washer.

In the fall of 2004 a friend asked if I'd like to visit an antique shop on the west side of Waterloo. She had mentioned that he had some old wringers (a few model N's) and old appliances. What was found later on in the storage garage of the now defunct antique dealer in Waterloo was a cool looking GE. It had a price tag of $150 dollars on it. Knowing he was closing up shop that day - I asked what I would have to give him to haul it out that day. 15 bucks later and the GE was now saved.

I would have felt very bad for a needy family if they would have bought this GE. While the machine is in great cosmetic shape - the crazy 3 speed clutch was totally toast. After hearing how bad it was I decided to leave this machine for another day knowing this was only the 2nd vintage washer I had picked up.

Fast forward 3 years to earlier this fall - a nice late 70's parts GE shows up at Menards. Bring it home and it works perfect. After parting it out I discovered that it did not have the 2 speed clutch that I was hoping for but instead a 1 speed clutch. I figured any speed was better than none in the classic GE!

Over the last few weeks I've taken parts from the donor GE and brought the old 60's GE back to life. A few years ago I stumbled upon one of those mid-sixties timeline GE's behind an appliance store. I grabbed the ramp activator out of it but was foolish to leave the washer behind. It was sent to the crusher the next day - but thankfully part of it was kept for future use.

I've included a link here to a short video that was put together to show the difference between the straight vane activator and the ramp activator. Enjoy the video and the photos ~

Here is the late 70's GE that was used for parts. It is okay - it would have been crusher fodder if I had not brought it home.

Oh - it didn't look this good behind Menards. If it did - they would have slapped a 29 dollar price tag on it.

A side by side comparison of the motor assemblies from both machines. The 3 speed mechanism is fascinating ~

More 3 speed. How do you get 3 speeds with 2 solenoids?

Easy - each solenoid (upper and lower half of the clutch) controls an individual speed. Engage both and, IIRC, you obtain the slow speed.

There are supposed to be fingers that are attached to each of the solenoid arms - but that is just one of the reasons why this thing did not work. A weak point on these machines.

Inside the outer clutch drum.

Looks like a drum brake assembly to me. How does it work? Not sure - each section (upper and lower) had little swinging arms that would move if the solenoids were tripped. Guessing that each half had a different affect on this inner drum.

Inner clutch drum - TOAST.

Notice that the shoes were dragging enough on the drum to cause a ridge to be cut into the drum. The outer clutch drum would have engaged the outer surface of this (similar to a two speed GE clutch).

Bad shoes. Not much to say here - besides I can't imagine these being able to spin out a tub full of water.

For some reason - they threw out a machine that was serviced recently. The shoes on the 1 speed mechanism from Menards were practically new! (notice how much more clutch material is present on these shoes compared to those above).

If you are taking a GE clutch assembly down this far - make sure you get the screws on the U-Bolt very tight! (unlike me)

Add a new coat of grease to the shafts the clutch shoes pivot on and you've got yourself a nice clutch!

A complete assembly - waiting for installation

I decided to take the water valve assembly from the donor machine and install it on the 60's GE. Now the hoses are assessable from outside the machine - instead of being behind the cardboard backing.

It does! The machine runs beautifully now - SO much more quiet compared to the toasted 3 speed assembly.

I love the wire clothes guard on these machines - too bad GE went to the much cheaper-to-produce plastic guards.

Of course, the speeds don't do anything at the present time. If I found a good 2 speed assembly I might install it.

love the 2nd rinse. But do you really need it with the crazy-long spray rinse on this thing?

Watch the video to see the comparison!

close up on the V14 activator. This would not have shown up in the video - so I figured I'd show it here. Way too cool.

In the middle of the repairs - my brother Robert decided to take the battle against lint to the next level!

I haven't decided what I need more - a tan, or some Rogaine?


Maybe an elliptical machine...

Ben

Ben, what a fun video, thanks so much for sharing that. Is that a full console lite I see on that machine??? You need to get yourself down here boy, we'll work on that tan!!!!

Ben,
What a beautiful GE. The video reminded me of a 1970 GE I had years ago with the turquoise agitator.....sorry I got rid of that one. You did a great job with that machine.
Roger

Our 72 near-BOL washer had that same straight-vane Activator and it could spank the dirt away for sure... That's a very nice GE, Ben. Worth the save.

Hi Ben,

What a great washer and I love the pics of the clutch assembly. I have a Versatronic pair I got in a round-about way from Jimmy (Filter Flo). The versatronic clutch had been replaced with a one speed unit like you have. I hope someday to find a versatronic clutch to install and make it like it left the factory. They only used this clutch for a couple years and I think, like yours, it was problematic.

I also have a V-14 agitator I swap out for the straight vane type to keep things interesting.

Glad you saved this washer. Enjoy!

Mike

those GE Spiral Activators dont beat around the bush, do they? very impressive. cool vids.

and you look good in that picture holding that assembly thing.

Wow I never realized the difference in wash actions to be so dramatic. That Straight Vane activator really moved the load well and I did notice that the machine was quieter...or so it seemed to me. That Ramp Activator seems like it caused more drag on the transmission and made the machine louder. On the 90's GE that I had with the slant panel...the last series they made of this design with the Hotpoint self clean ring...man that washer was loud. She would growl during wash. Didnt hold much as far as capacity goes. Didnt last either...the tub rusted out at the pump support bracket...nice hole was created. Got rid of the washer not knowing it could have been fixed.
Great job!

Nice pics!

That was a great video Ben, the GE agitators work very well and so dramatic! I worked on a couple of those three speed clutches in the past and boy are they complicated.

Yes Mike is right. The Versatronic clutch was a problem too. Never expected Mike to end up with the Versatronic set, but it worked out well since I know you will appreciate it and put it to good use. Still working on getting you the clutch......located 2 guys that claim to have one, just have to get them off their butts and search thru their parts for them! Sooner or later I hope!..
Thanks Ben for posting the GE video, you did a great job on it! Jimmy

Ben,
Very nice looking machine and interesting information! I think I have the matching dryer.....and would be willing to part with it if you were interested. Also - great looking 57/58 GE 40" range in the background!

Lawrence

Nice tutorial Ben! Thanks for the insight. Great photos.
Who needs speeds with such a nice machine! Those were really good machines, and I'll take the spiral Activator over the straight-vane anyday!

Thanks, Ben, for sharing that video. Now if somebody won't mind grabbing me a converted copy for download, that would be o so fitting in my private collection. Many Thanks and Merry Christmas!--Laundry Shark

Wonderful video and pictures! That machine is spotless! I am so very glad that I found that matching pair in Oregon and the pictures of the clutch assembly should help me quite a bit when I get around to mine. Mine is surprisingly VERY quiet with the two speeds that work so, who knows, it might be fixable. I think I'm a bigger fan of the straight-vain activator. Maybe because it's the purist in me? Either way, I filled it up full of pants one night and it can turn over very well. I love how these older GE's fill up very full too so you can get a good sized load in them with no wasted space in the tub. Thanks again for the VERY helpful and enjoyable video!

Jon

I like the spiral activator better, that wash action amazes me! Maybe its because I have so little experience with that type?
Excellent job on the restoration too!

Great restoration on the Filter-Flo Ben! You will get that basement filled up yet!! <:

Thanks for the comments guys - it really is appreciated.

From the little I have been able to wash with in this machine - I have a feeling that the straight activator would best wash small, loose loads - while the ramp (or spiral) activator would probably handle a well loaded wash with ease. The noise difference seems to be mostly the nature of each agitator depending on water level and load size. With a full load and the filterflo atop and the lid closed, both are pretty close for noise.

All in all - it is great to have both available and a nice reference video for future enthusiasts!

Ben

Love how you said you were out of tools for housework. That's awesome, and it's the best and funniest excuse I've ever heard for playing with the washers.

Great video and pics. You did a lot of work. What a generous and satisfying gift to all of us.

I hear ya. After getting a spiral, the straight one just collects dust. With large loads, the difference is striking.

I have another white spiral, a smaller one. Would you like to have it?

I'll take a wild guess and say that the trip fingers normally hold in a weight segment, but when tripped, the weight pulls out and pulls on the outer shoes. Kinda like a 2 speed clutch but with the ability to select the amount of weight involved...

Pull it apart with more pics. That might reveal it.

There may be a patent out there. I've been googling. GE patents just about everything, it seems :)

Great video, Ben. The '69 you have is my favorite GE washer---three cycles, three speeds. Given the choice, I'll take the ramped agitator. I like how it whirls the clothing in a circle, much like an indexing-tub machine does. Thanks for the comparison---exactly the sort of thing we washerheads love to see.

See if those guys have any 3-speed clutches too!!! hehe...doubt it but was worth a shot. I'm hoping my 3-speed clutch just has a bad solenoid or something. I'm not sure when I'll have the time to look at it though. I know you said yours was making a lot of noise Ben and surprisingly my machine is the quitest GE I've ever come across. Maybe that's a good sign?

Jon