Thread Number: 61919  /  Tag: Vintage Dryers
I Found This Setting in the Junk Pile...
[Down to Last]

automaticwasher.org's exclusive eBay Watch:
scroll >>> for more items --- [As an eBay Partner, eBay may compensate automaticwasher.org if you make a purchase using any link to eBay on this page]
Post# 845558   10/13/2015 at 02:06 (3,090 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture

At Direct Maytag. The guy inside said let's go take a look. He said $10.00 and I said sold. He helped me load it, I brought it home, took the back off, blew out some dirt, did a little oiling, plugged it in and it took off.

The Air Fluff works, runs for about 10 to 12 minutes or so and shuts off with the "ding". It doesn't heat though. I'll find out what's wrong when I take the cabinet off. QS would make it August 1972 I believe.

I'm going to get the DE806 out and work on them both together. I have a new lint filter and cover. I'm going to swap the chrome knob for an acrylic one. I want the chrome one on my 806. It will still be historically accurate. I believe they were putting on both types around this time. The insert in the knob will be there too. It will get the complete cleaning, oiling, new front seal and whatever else it needs treatment. If no one I know wants the 606 I'm going to sell it, so keep and eye out if you're interested. smile


  Photos...       <              >      Photo 1 of 8         View Full Size



Post# 845565 , Reply# 1   10/13/2015 at 03:38 (3,090 days old) by Ultramatic (New York City)        
Score!

ultramatic's profile picture

 

 

I wonder if that is the matching dryer for my '74 A-107?


Post# 845579 , Reply# 2   10/13/2015 at 07:44 (3,089 days old) by delaneymeegan (Midwest)        
Super find

delaneymeegan's profile picture
$10 for work horse like that? What a steal for an HOH dryer.

It probably needs a new element strung in, which is easy enough. Then it will be ready for another 40 years.


Post# 845585 , Reply# 3   10/13/2015 at 09:08 (3,089 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        

Set it for Damp Dry with an empty drum and see how many seconds it takes to shut off. It should shut off almost instantly. 10 minutes is the normal time for Air Fluff.

Restringing a new heating element requires removing the entire cabinet from the base plate of the dryer because the element is mounted to the front of the dryer around the door opening.


Post# 845618 , Reply# 4   10/13/2015 at 13:05 (3,089 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture
I don't know, Louie. I think the 606 was considered second from the top of the line at the time but I think it would definitely work. It seems like people kind of mixed and matched back then. I've seen some odd looking combinations.

Post# 845622 , Reply# 5   10/13/2015 at 13:12 (3,089 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture
Yes, Tom. I've done it before. Remember the set from Reno? They're the ones in my avatar. Thank you anyway.

Post# 845624 , Reply# 6   10/13/2015 at 14:24 (3,089 days old) by Ultramatic (New York City)        

ultramatic's profile picture

 

 

Ah OK. Thanks Brian!


Post# 845643 , Reply# 7   10/13/2015 at 16:22 (3,089 days old) by PhilR (Quebec Canada)        

philr's profile picture

My 1972 A-806 was originally matched with a DE-606. The dryer was gone when I got the washer but I got the original sales literature and operating manuals. I found a 1973 DE-806 to match mine.

 

A friend of mine just got a pair of Maytags for free (he doesn't collect appliances!), the washer is a small capacity A-606 from October of 1967 and it looks like a 206 from the 1970s with no chrome around the control panel. I don't remember the model number of the dryer but it's a time-dry only model.


Post# 845655 , Reply# 8   10/13/2015 at 18:14 (3,089 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture
That's funny, Phil. I thought A606s were all large capacity. Here we go wrangeling around these model numbers and what they mean again. LOL. Kenmore71 (Mark) will straighten things out for us. He always does. :)

Post# 845659 , Reply# 9   10/13/2015 at 18:26 (3,089 days old) by appnut (TX)        

appnut's profile picture

206 is std. capacity and 606 is large capacity--both 2 sped washers. 


Post# 845719 , Reply# 10   10/13/2015 at 21:42 (3,089 days old) by PhilR (Quebec Canada)        
I was probably wrong on that!

philr's profile picture

The washer my friend got is an A-606 but it looks very basic, it has no chrome on it's control panel (silver paint), no chrome ring on the timer dial around the knob (the dryer has one), 3 water levels and a dark-colored tub.

 

I thought the tub was the small one as I saw the 3 water levels (which most early washers had) and it seemed smaller than the white ones in my two A-806 washers but it was probably a large capacity (I guess the 206 would have Small/Medium/Normal while the early 606 would have Small/Medium/Large settings?) . Because of the lack of chrome trim, I thought it was a basic A 206 model but the tag did say A-606 (and I thought only the A-106 had silver trim?). Unless it has been repainted? Both machines look very clean but I didn't look closely at the dryer. Maybe the dryer is a newer/cheaper model with the silver-painted panel and the washer was matched to it!

 

Was there any noticeable difference on the control panels of the early 206 and 606 models?  As for the dryer, it has timed-dry only and it was too dark for me to see the model number when we unloaded it from the truck. 

 

I'll have to take pictures the next time I visit my friend.


Post# 845720 , Reply# 11   10/13/2015 at 21:54 (3,089 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture
Yeah, all those little changes over the years in retrospect can be very confusing. Like I just noticed yesterday when I was working on that 606. It doesn't have the chrome strip along the top of the cabinet and it doesn't have a drum light. I knew it wasn't supposed to but until you start working on one you don't think about the differences.

Post# 845722 , Reply# 12   10/13/2015 at 22:16 (3,089 days old) by PhilR (Quebec Canada)        

philr's profile picture

When I got my 806 dryer, it was Harvest Gold, and since my washers were white, I decided to convert the dryer to white as it was easier to find a donor dryer for the correct white panels. The next day I got parts from a white 1975 DE407 that was already parted out and they fitted perfectly. That chrome strip was easy to add, I didn't have to drill holes or anything.


Post# 845724 , Reply# 13   10/13/2015 at 22:24 (3,089 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture
Yeah, that's true the holes are already there. They made all the parts so most any machine could be made into any model they wanted. For instance, those oblong horizontal slots on the back of the late 60's and 70's cabinets are for the out of balance shut off switch for a 906. Only model they're used on.

Post# 845939 , Reply# 14   10/15/2015 at 12:14 (3,087 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        

My reply #3 was directed at reply #2.

Post# 846524 , Reply# 15   10/18/2015 at 22:41 (3,084 days old) by PhilR (Quebec Canada)        

philr's profile picture

Here's the 1967 Maytag set that my friend got recently, I took a few pictures of the machines tonight.

 

 Is the washer really a large capacity model? The water level selector doesn't show "large"...  I see that the agitator has 4 holes next to the lint filter (like my A806 does), I'm not sure if the small capacity models also had 4 holes or just 3 (I know older models had 3). 

 

Also, was the DE406 the base model? 

 

I'm missing some information on these early 06 models.

 

I took a few pictures. Note that the washer doesn't have the chrome ring around the timer dial and the dryer (which has been made a few months earlier according to the serial number) does. 

 

 


  Photos...       <              >      Photo 1 of 6         View Full Size
Post# 846555 , Reply# 16   10/19/2015 at 08:01 (3,083 days old) by warmsecondrinse (Fort Lee, NJ)        

The control panel close-up reminds me of another reason I prefer vintage:

The labels for the controls tell you what the machine physically does when you activate it. There's much less ambiguity compared with today's machines that have labels such as "active wear" or "sports".

Am I the only one who sees such labels and thinks, "OK, so that means the machine does ... what?"

Jim


Post# 846732 , Reply# 17   10/20/2015 at 12:20 (3,082 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

beekeyknee's profile picture
I agree, Jim. Those stupid words they put on every kind of appliance don't mean a damn thing. And those little pictures they put around dials in cars that point to where the air is supposed to come out. Infuriating!

Post# 846742 , Reply# 18   10/20/2015 at 13:44 (3,082 days old) by bajaespuma (Connecticut)        
Can't argue with the rating plate, but...

bajaespuma's profile picture

 I would have guessed it to be an A206 from the first generation of "Washpower Automatics" which is consistent with the panel, the no-chrome ring around the cycle dial, the cycle dial itself and the color of the washbasket. Both the large capacity and regular capacity machines had only 3 water level selections for that year. The agitator, however is wrong. It should be a  three-hole, black old-style flow-thru the bottom, not a power fin. The dryer was styled to go with either the 206 or the 606.


  Photos...       <              >      Photo 1 of 3         View Full Size
Post# 846762 , Reply# 19   10/20/2015 at 15:26 (3,082 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.)        

dadoes's profile picture
 
That A606 in Reply #15 seems to be a mongrel-mix.  Wouldn't a 606 have a white basket, and a 206 have a gray basket?


Post# 846771 , Reply# 20   10/20/2015 at 16:36 (3,082 days old) by gansky1 (Omaha, The Home of the TV Dinner!)        

gansky1's profile picture
Maytag made a lot of "oddball" models for different markets. This one doesn't surprise me with the dark tub and no chrome details. The trim level step-down may have been offered as a promotional special for a short time as well - "Hurry in now for special values on top-rated washers during Maytag Month." I saw lots of these Plain Jane panels over the years, my aunt in Kansas City had an A606 but with a white tub and same panel.

Even into the 90's, Maytag made similar but slightly different feature-sets for retailers. Our Nebraska Furniture Mart sold one model exactly like the Circuit City model across the street, the only difference being the soak cycle placed in a different position on the timer, one with soak & hold and one with a drain/spin after the soak.

(*Some features and specifications subject to change without notice.)


Post# 846780 , Reply# 21   10/20/2015 at 17:18 (3,082 days old) by goatfarmer (South Bend, home of Champions)        

goatfarmer's profile picture

It's like going to Lowes, or similar, and trying to compare with the local guy. There are models that are exclusive to Lowes, so you can't compare model numbers.


Post# 846828 , Reply# 22   10/20/2015 at 21:40 (3,082 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.)        

dadoes's profile picture
 
Interesting.  Would not have expected Maytag to do marketing like that.


Post# 846916 , Reply# 23   10/21/2015 at 09:07 (3,081 days old) by kenwashesmonday (Carlstadt, NJ)        

The early A606 has only 3 water levels, but is a large capacity machine. They must have added a 4th water level sometime before mine was built in 1972.

Ken D.


Post# 846920 , Reply# 24   10/21/2015 at 09:55 (3,081 days old) by PhilR (Quebec Canada)        

philr's profile picture

But I was wondering about the pushbuttons for the water level, this one says "small-medium-normal". You can see the early 806 in the ad posted above "small-normal-large", I would have expected the 606, being a large capacity machine to have the same pushbuttons as the early 806?


Post# 847054 , Reply# 25   10/22/2015 at 09:50 (3,080 days old) by mrb627 (Buford, GA)        
No Perm-Press?

mrb627's profile picture
Seems to be lacking a Permanent Press cycle. Kinda like an A106.

Malcolm


Post# 847056 , Reply# 26   10/22/2015 at 10:04 (3,080 days old) by kenwashesmonday (Carlstadt, NJ)        

Maytag called my 1972 model "A606 with Permanent Press". I don't know if it was an option, or simply added later.

Post# 847062 , Reply# 27   10/22/2015 at 10:41 (3,080 days old) by PhilR (Quebec Canada)        

philr's profile picture

I don't think any Maytag had a Permanent Press cycle in 1967 (I could be wrong but I'm sure none did!)...  I'm wondering why they kept the same model numbers on machines that had so many changes over the years!

 

 


Post# 847088 , Reply# 28   10/22/2015 at 14:48 (3,080 days old) by johnb300m (Chicago)        

johnb300m's profile picture
With an inflation calculator....DAAAAAAAMMMMM those were expensive back then.
I know everyone complains about crap appliances today, but arguably...today's units cost nearly half the price as those did in the 60s and 70s.
They did last longer though.
In today's environment, those Maytags were going for Meile prices! Same quality though.
It's true, you get what you pay for.


Post# 847154 , Reply# 29   10/23/2015 at 05:13 (3,080 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN)        

askolover's profile picture

You ALWAYS pay for what you get....SOMETIMES you get what you pay for!



Forum Index:       Other Forums:                      



Comes to the Rescue!

The Discuss-o-Mat has stopped, buzzer is sounding!!!
If you would like to reply to this thread please log-in...

Discuss-O-MAT Log-In



New Members
Click Here To Sign Up.



                     


automaticwasher.org home
Discuss-o-Mat Forums
Vintage Brochures, Service and Owners Manuals
Fun Vintage Washer Ephemera
See It Wash!
Video Downloads
Audio Downloads
Picture of the Day
Patent of the Day
Photos of our Collections
The Old Aberdeen Farm
Vintage Service Manuals
Vintage washer/dryer/dishwasher to sell?
Technical/service questions?
Looking for Parts?
Website related questions?
Digital Millennium Copyright Act Policy
Our Privacy Policy