|
Thread Number: 56441
GE Double wall oven opinions... calling all range & oven mavens -Sandy, Hans, others? |
[Down to Last] |  |
| Post# 787455 10/5/2014 at 14:43 (3,489 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
These look like the ones that my folks had (in Avocado - yuk!) ca. 1968. All around they were very nice to use. I'm in contact about possibly buying these as we need eye-level cooking and want Coppertone. Are there opinions as to which GEs or Frigidaires or? that might be a best choice for built-in double wall ovens for use as DDs? Parts for these GEs seem fairly plentiful. Can anyone tell if these are P-7 units? Self cleaning is mandatory at this point, but it's hard to see any details here, and my knowledge of these is less-than-great. Don't know how to transfer pics from CL but here's the link:
detroit.craigslist.org/okl/app/46... | ||
|
| Post# 787471 , Reply# 1 10/5/2014 at 16:23 (3,489 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
PS does anyone.... | ||
| Post# 787477 , Reply# 2 10/5/2014 at 16:44 (3,489 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
just guessing here: | ||
Post# 787483 , Reply# 3 10/5/2014 at 17:12 (3,489 days old) by appnut  (TX) |
||
 | ||
| Post# 787505 , Reply# 4 10/5/2014 at 19:08 (3,489 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
Whatcha Want....
Is a GE JK-29, the late-'60s/early '70s TOL double oven. In this model (and no other GE of the time) both ovens are P*7 self-cleaning. Both are controlled by the same timer.
This model was the "gold standard" for serious cooks of the time; they were heavily insulated, beautifully engineered and fantastically even bakers. Christina hippiedoll has the Coppertone version you're hoping for; perhaps she can post a photo or two for drooling purposes. Below is a photo of an Avocado JK-29 originally posted here with a CL ad by Phil ovrphil. As you look for GE double ovens, here are the details unique to a JK-29: 1) Chrome trim around the doors. 2) Heavy chrome trim around the windows (other GEs had just a thin strip) 3) TWO oven door latches - one for each P*7 oven door. 4) Electric meat thermometer and rotisserie (both features depend on parts that are often missing from surviving units, i.e., a temperature probe for the meat thermometer and a bracket and skewer that are used with the broiling pan for rotissing). You will not be sorry you got a JK-29, even if it has some "teething troubles" and you have to do some repairs before everything's hunky-dory. If you should have problems, remember that John combo52 is The Source for GE parts and service tips. Bonne chance! 
| ||
| Post# 787512 , Reply# 5 10/5/2014 at 19:39 (3,489 days old) by norgeway (mocksville n c ) | ||
|
GE Vs Frigidaire... Both will bake wonderfully...but the Frigidaire ovens are smaller than the GE...by that I mean narrower... | ||
| Post# 787524 , Reply# 6 10/5/2014 at 20:16 (3,489 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Hans: | ||
| Post# 787550 , Reply# 8 10/5/2014 at 22:22 (3,489 days old) by norgeway (mocksville n c ) | ||
|
Re Frigidaire.. I never saw one with a window, only non self clean...not to say they didnt make them,I dont think they made a double self clean oven,the Frigidaires self cleaners do a good job though.they are all made for a 24 inch cabinet...not the wider style of the GE. | ||
|
Post# 787623 , Reply# 9 10/6/2014 at 08:33 (3,488 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
||
GE Double Self-Cleaning Ovens
These are excellent ovens these is is no argument about that. The first versions [ 1966-68 ] had more oven control problems than the next generation control systems did, so they are more difficult to keep working today. Around 1969 they started using a little solid state circuit board in the oven temperature control system and while we did not see a lot of problems with this system the CB is NLA so you should grab some spares if you are building this into your kitchen.
The FDs and GEs are about the same size overall in oven capacity, the FD is much deeper and taller inside, the GE a little wider. Both clean and bake great, the control system on the GEs is more versatile and the GEs are much easier to keep working if you are going to use these much. Allen it sounds like you are describing a Thermador wall oven when you are talking about yours being vented as only TD ever vented an electric SC wall oven. On TD the vent system is turned on as soon as you start a SC cycle [ 90% of all the smoke and odor is created in the first 30-45 minutes of a SC cycle not near the end ] GE never made wall ovens that vented outdoors. Both GE and FD [ and most other companies ] recommended that you clean the ovens racks in the oven during the cleaning process. The other wall ovens that should not be overlooked are the SC TD ovens, even though TD ovens had a few more service issues than GE I still think they are about the best built and PREFORMING ovens ever, when you consider the wonderful built-in exhaust system and the gasket-less doors and the 6 pass broilers with reflectors you can not beat their performance. | ||
| Post# 787641 , Reply# 10 10/6/2014 at 11:06 (3,488 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
Thanks for that info, all...
am talking to the CL seller about them at this point, we shall see. Another very kind AW.o member has even offered to pick them up for me.
The ones in the CL ad that I linked to look to have the heavy chrome and the non-woodlook handles, so I'm guessing it is an earlier version. Seller says both ovens are P-7 so it's a JK-29 of some ilk. My folks had the '68 version in Avocado exactly as Sandy has shown, as mentioned, and even 30 yrs. after they sold that house I remember how nicely it baked, cooked and cleaned... even a horribly filthy post-Thanksgiving oven would leave just a wisp of ash in the bottom after the P-7s cleaning cycle. I liked it enough that I bought a new Coppertone GE 30" drop-in range for our 1st house around the time that they moved from NC to PA in '75. Due to the inherent goodness and parts availability, a JK-29 looks like the right double oven for our retirement (and last?) house, and well worth the effort to deal with any problems that crop up due to age. If only GE still made stuff like this... IMO, they don't, but at least we still have the originals. | ||
| Post# 787652 , Reply# 12 10/6/2014 at 12:48 (3,488 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Allen:
I wonder if what you could be remembering is an oven vent hood? Some manufacturers made them for wall ovens. They were installed directly over the oven (or upper oven for double-oven units), necessitating a somewhat taller cut-out for the installation.
My 1971 and 1972 GE catalogues do not show such a unit, but then these catalogues were not complete - no 40-inch ranges were shown in them at all, for instance. I also have a photo of an early JK-29 from 1966, installed in the Fairfield, CT home of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Rodgers (The Sound of Music, etc.). That unit is like the Avocado one shown above, but is too early to have windowed doors. Above it is an oven vent hood. It is somewhat box-like, in stainless to match the oven doors. It might - or might not - be a GE accessory; the Rodgers kitchen was a mind-bogglingly extravagant St. Charles installation with many, many custom features seldom seen even in very high-end designs of the time. Oven vent hoods were very useful for venting heat, humidity and cooking smells out of the kitchen. They generally had a front that you tilted out and up for use, forming a "hood," then pushed back in when done. | ||
| Post# 787675 , Reply# 13 10/6/2014 at 15:43 (3,488 days old) by whirlcool (Just North Of Houston, Texas) | ||
|
No vent hood, our installation looked exactly like the one I have shown here with the coppertone P7's with a cabinet above and below. The only difference was that our oven doors were Avocado. The cabinets we had were similar to the ones in the photo, but a little more upscale than the ones shown. | ||
|
Post# 787731 , Reply# 15 10/6/2014 at 21:37 (3,488 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
||
|
GE Double Self-Cleaning Ovens
Hi Allen, my only guess as to why your home had a GE P-7 wall oven with a vent pipe in the cabinet above was that the kitchen was built with a Thermador oven in mind, so the builder of these high-end homes was just planning ahead, but I guess we will never know.
GE NEVER built a SC Wall Oven that could be connected to a vent system and even the vent hoods that Sandy talked about were not very useful with GEs SC WOs because the cooling fan that runs during the SC cycle blows the heat and smoke straight out into the room so the exhaust vent system doesn't capture much heat or smoke. | ||
| Post# 787732 , Reply# 16 10/6/2014 at 21:40 (3,488 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Oh, Jo-ohn! | ||
| Post# 787827 , Reply# 18 10/7/2014 at 13:00 (3,487 days old) by Davey7 (Chicago) | ||
|
Rodgers of Fairfield What, no pictures? I'd love to see their kitchen! | ||
| Post# 787829 , Reply# 19 10/7/2014 at 13:22 (3,487 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Buy the Book:
I don't have digital versions of the photos, only printed, BUT -
Mrs. Rodgers, who commissioned and designed much of the Fairfield house in 1965, wrote a best-selling book about the process of creating it, titled The House in My Head (Atheneum, New York, 1967). House Beautiful did a major spread on it, as well. Used copies of the book abound on eBay, cheap. Since Dorothy Rodgers was a very accomplished cook, there is a recipe section in back with some damn fine eating in it. The house is still there, but the kitchen is gone, and much has been changed, none of it for the better. It's on Congress Street. | ||
| Post# 787980 , Reply# 20 10/8/2014 at 11:26 (3,486 days old) by Davey7 (Chicago) | ||
|
Will have to look it up. | ||
| Post# 788001 , Reply# 21 10/8/2014 at 13:12 (3,486 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Davey:
Here is one photo I do have in digital form, showing part of the Rodgers house.
Note the KitchenAid KDS-15 Superba VariCycle dishwasher. Note the double drainboard Elkay sink. Note the Sub-Zero refrigerator. Note all the St. Charles C-Line cabinets. Now - note that this is NOT the actual kitchen. This is the butler's pantry off the dining area. That should give you an idea how elaborate the house was. 
| ||
| Post# 788034 , Reply# 22 10/8/2014 at 17:08 (3,486 days old) by Davey7 (Chicago) | ||
|
I saw a few pictures online, very east coast Hollywood Regency, tasteful modern mansard. Reminded me of a popularized version of Saarinen's house for the head of Cummins in Columbus Indiana. | ||
| Post# 788115 , Reply# 23 10/9/2014 at 07:10 (3,485 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Davey:
Not as popularized as all that. Dorothy was a world-class art collector, and so the Fairfield house contained some pretty eye-popping stuff. The chimney breast of the living room sported a major Picasso; the one in her bedroom bore a very nice Dufy. Outdoors on a wall by the pool, a cast of one of Giocomo Manzu's door handles for St. Paul's made a terrific wall sculpture. Other works by Victor Passmore, Judy Brown, Zao-Wou-Ki and Graham Sutherland ware also present.
That was just the Fairfield place; the Rodgerses' New York apartment had a Rembrandt, a Renoir, a Toulouse-Lautrec, a Degas, a Jackson Pollock and a whole lot more. You could not re-assemble the Rodgers art collection today if you were Bill Gates. Maybe the Sultan of Brunei. This post was last edited 10/09/2014 at 07:35 | ||
| Post# 788164 , Reply# 24 10/9/2014 at 14:01 (3,485 days old) by Davey7 (Chicago) | ||
|
I was talking about the general decor and aesthetic rather than the specific provenance of the items themselves. | ||
|
Post# 788183 , Reply# 25 10/9/2014 at 17:55 (3,485 days old) by CircleW (NE Cincinnati OH area) |
||
|
That's a pretty snazzy pantry. I noticed the sink faucet is the same as the Elkay faucets that were on the sinks in my high school art room; I always liked those. | ||
| Post# 788511 , Reply# 26 10/11/2014 at 18:20 (3,483 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
actually... | ||
| Post# 788515 , Reply# 27 10/11/2014 at 18:46 (3,483 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Roger: | ||
| Post# 788643 , Reply# 28 10/12/2014 at 12:18 (3,482 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
and.... | ||
| Post# 788993 , Reply# 29 10/14/2014 at 13:11 (3,480 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
Well the above JK-29 Coppetone GE double oven... | ||
| Post# 789052 , Reply# 30 10/14/2014 at 21:41 (3,480 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
I've Often Said.... | ||
| Post# 789171 , Reply# 31 10/15/2014 at 18:12 (3,479 days old) by moparguy (Virginia) | ||
|
Wow, good luck getting that oven, it is really awesome! Love the double chrome trimmed windows, it really sets off well with the coppertone! | ||
| Post# 789198 , Reply# 32 10/15/2014 at 20:16 (3,479 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
thanks Sandy & Jeff... | ||
| Post# 789321 , Reply# 33 10/16/2014 at 14:10 (3,478 days old) by moparguy (Virginia) | ||
|
The coppertone AND the double windows with the earlier wider chrome trim around the windows... a really great look. Here's my set that I recently found and rescued, in sunny yellow, but unfortunately without the windows. Keep us posted on your new ovens, you will really enjoy them!
View Full Size
| ||
| Post# 789327 , Reply# 34 10/16/2014 at 14:43 (3,478 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Holy CRAP!
Jeff - those are from 1965 or 1966. The JK 29 didn't get windows until '67. Do you have any idea how rare yours is? Congratulations!
I'd stop worrying about those windows, LOL! You have something very, very few people will ever see, let alone own. In all my years of interest in GE ranges and ovens, I have only seen one other like yours. | ||
| Post# 789364 , Reply# 36 10/16/2014 at 17:39 (3,478 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Jeff:
I think these are rare survivals, because the control system on the early years of this style was more prone to problems than the little solid-state control board used on later versions. John combo52 has mentioned this characteristic in the past. Also, I mentioned upthread that your version was installed in the Rodgers House in Fairfield, CT. In her book about the house (The House in My Head, Atheneum, New York, 1967) Dorothy Rodgers has something to say about her JK 29:
"The first time I tried the self-cleaning oven, it didn't; but my second try produced sensational results. (As time passed, we discovered serious cooking problems, and though the manufacturers were as eager as we to solve them, it took a long time.)" Dorothy's book was a huge best-seller, excerpted (with lots of photos) in House Beautiful, with a clear photo of the JK 29 (in brushed chrome) she was talking about. I've long wondered if that bit of bad press was part of the reason GE redesigned the control system. Obviously, some of these ovens worked perfectly well - yours is proof positive of that. But getting dinged by a best-selling author whose husband just happened to have co-written The Sound of Music might have been the impetus GE needed to make the control system as bullet-proof as it became later. | ||
| Post# 789369 , Reply# 38 10/16/2014 at 18:15 (3,478 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Jeff:
If your JK 29 has any "teething troubles," I would contact John combo52. He has a lot of parts (new and used), and he knows stuff about these units that not even GE remembers any more.
I am in absolute AWE that you found one of these! If you ever get rid of it, please put me on your list to contact. | ||
| Post# 789447 , Reply# 39 10/17/2014 at 08:42 (3,477 days old) by moparguy (Virginia) | ||
|
Double Oven with Vent Hood Sandy, would this be the type of vent hood that was in the Rodgers home? No, this is not mine, but a photo that I found in my appliance photo "archives".
View Full Size
| ||
| Post# 789452 , Reply# 40 10/17/2014 at 09:33 (3,477 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Jeff: | ||
| Post# 789808 , Reply# 41 10/20/2014 at 14:46 (3,474 days old) by moparguy (Virginia) | ||
|
Sandy, what would be the difference between a JK-29 and a JK-28? | ||
| Post# 789849 , Reply# 42 10/20/2014 at 21:44 (3,474 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Is This Some Kinda Trick Question, LOL?
"Sandy, what would be the difference between a JK-29 and a JK-28?"
Jeff, Your question makes me wonder if you have found the model number JK 28 on that yellow double oven of yours. If you have, it gives me some info I had not had before. If yours is a JK 28, that means that JK 28 is the number of the TOL double oven with two P*7 ovens, but without oven door windows. That configuration was sold in 1966, because GE hadn't yet begun putting windowed doors on the entire P*7 lineup yet. A JK 29 is the exact same oven you have, but with windowed oven doors. The white unit you posted above is a JK 29. So, it's looking to me like GE used JK 28 on the 1966 model, but changed it to JK 29 in 1967, when they began putting the windowed doors on the TOL double ovem. I have always referred to the 1966 version without the doors as a JK 29, for lack of any other model number; I do not have catalogs for every year. Dammit. A check of my 1971 and 1972 catalogs shows that the model number JK 28 was not used for any of their wall ovens in either of those years. So - are you telling me that your yellow oven is a JK 28? | ||
| Post# 789911 , Reply# 44 10/21/2014 at 10:41 (3,473 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Jeff:
Thanks for clearing that up - the non-windowed version is JK 28, the windowed one is JK 29. Got it.
Now for the window trim. That's not a yearly change, it's a model feature. GE did this on its TOL ranges and ovens - everything through upper-MOL units got the narrow stainless trim. TOL units got the heavy, wider die-cast trim. My J 370 30-inch free-standing range (upper-MOL) has the narrow trim, but my J 757 (TOL) has the wide trim. If you see a self-cleaning GE double wall oven with the narrow trim on its oven windows, you're looking at an upper-MOL unit, where only one of the ovens has the P*7 feature. For a long time, that unit was the JK 25, seen in the shot below. As you can see, it strongly resembles a JK 29, which was entirely intentional. But the window frames, the lack of a P*7 lock lever on the lower oven, the lack of chrome trim around the doors and the lack of a meat thermometer dial give it away. 
This post was last edited 10/21/2014 at 12:16 | ||
| Post# 789917 , Reply# 45 10/21/2014 at 12:33 (3,473 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
and just to further complicate things...lol | ||
| Post# 789920 , Reply# 46 10/21/2014 at 12:58 (3,473 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
|
Roger: | ||
| Post# 789951 , Reply# 47 10/21/2014 at 16:50 (3,473 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
could well be a Builder Special (BS? LOL)
here's the descrip from the promo piece:
"The perfect option - economically priced!' "GE's Double Oven model JK22 features P-7 self-cleaning upper oven and conventional lower oven. Also shown - JP76 Cooktop and JV61 Hood" The control panel looks identical to the JK-29, but is pictured small enough that actual details aren't visible. Doors are shown open and hard to see in the horizontal plane, but both appear to be windowless. It's kind of a cool piece of lit in that it's directed strictly towards the construction industry. | ||
| Post# 905715 , Reply# 50 11/6/2016 at 16:35 (2,726 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
well worth repair... | ||
| Post# 905716 , Reply# 51 11/6/2016 at 16:48 (2,726 days old) by firedome (Binghamton NY & Lake Champlain VT) | ||
|
and here's ours,
| ||
| Post# 905867 , Reply# 52 11/7/2016 at 15:44 (2,725 days old) by mercury6768 (Daly City) | ||
|
Nice! Almost identical to ours...but I notice that the handles are slightly different. Ours has faux wood inserts, yours have brushed metallic inserts. Probably manufactured different years. | ||
|
Post# 1016470 , Reply# 54 12/1/2018 at 17:50 (1,971 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
||
|
Non Working HP Wall Oven | ||
| Forum Index: |
| Other Forums: |
|
|
|
|
|
Comes to the Rescue!
;){kind=link}
;){kind=link}