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Thread Number: 65491
/ Tag: Vintage Automatic Washers
Welcome To The Wonderful World Of Wash and Wear |
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Post# 880861 5/15/2016 at 09:14 (2,902 days old) by Launderess  (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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| Post# 880866 , Reply# 1 5/15/2016 at 09:27 (2,902 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan) | ||
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They sure don't Laundress! They completely explain the reason for the cool down for synthetics and perma press blended fabrics. What better sales tool? | ||
| Post# 880912 , Reply# 2 5/15/2016 at 14:29 (2,902 days old) by twintubdexter (Palm Springs) | ||
Things were very different in 1958... If the water company here in the Desert knew you were using one of those cool-down, H2O-guzzling machines they'd come out and burn your house down...similar to that movie "Fahrenheit 451" only it wouldn't be a pile of books that went up in smoke. Those Whirlpools were very attractive well-built machines though.
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| Post# 880918 , Reply# 3 5/15/2016 at 15:19 (2,902 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room) | ||
Thanks for sharing this video!
One thing that interests me... We get the impression of new, wonder fabrics so much better than what we used since leaving that cold, drafty cave in prehistoric times. And yet, it's interesting how those old fabrics seem to hang on... I, for one, prefer 100% cotton to blends simply because it seems more comfortable to wear. I also sort of view that washer as being a bit primitive compared to what was to follow. All those settings, even with that handy guide. So much easier to merely twist the timer to right cycle, and let the timer get the speeds right, the rinse temperature right, etc. Other thing I noted: the agitation speed was stated to be slow. It seems to me that by the end of 60s, Kenmores used a normal agitation speed. Of course, that was on what was then probably called "Permanent Press". If so, at what point did they change their minds about agitation speed? | ||
| Post# 880920 , Reply# 4 5/15/2016 at 15:21 (2,902 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room) | ||
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>If the water company here in the Desert knew you were using one of those cool-down, H2O-guzzling machines they'd come out and burn your house down...similar to that movie "Fahrenheit 451" only it wouldn't be a pile of books that went up in smoke.
Ha! Actually, my vision is that they'd have the equipment to take that water guzzlin' ol' washer and melt it down into convenient blocks of steel to ship to Kia plant in Korea. A Maytag lid alone would be enough for a complete Kia. LOL | ||
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Post# 880926 , Reply# 5 5/15/2016 at 17:31 (2,902 days old) by appnut (TX) |
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 It looked like the Mark 12 in the video had separate water and rinse temp setting availability as well as wash & spin speed temps. That was the one thing I hated about WP & KM washers, except for the rare renditions that had wash & spin speed settings independent of the timer/cycles. I thought it was far classier to have independent speed selections of the timer/cycle. There were times I want4ed different than what was "norm". | ||
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Post# 880927 , Reply# 6 5/15/2016 at 17:39 (2,902 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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Man Made Fabrics
Since nylon replaced silk for hosiery there was a steady interest and or demand if you will for "modern miracle" fabrics. Their selling points were outlined in the piece; easy care...
Remember women or whomever had over one thousand years of having to launder and iron or press various natural fibers, with various levels of success. Wool and silk pretty much could not be cleaned at all until dry cleaning came along. Maybe some weaves and garments depending upon color or other factors; but a wool suit? No, not going to happen. Fully automatics had nailed most natural fibers, but now the new man-made were creeping into people's homes. In Europe post WWII people took to nylon bed sheets though I cannot imagine why... It was the "easy care" I suppose. | ||
| Post# 880931 , Reply# 7 5/15/2016 at 17:55 (2,902 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room) | ||
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one thing I hated about WP & KM washers
I have mixed feelings. I, personally, tend to be a control freak in the laundry room, and rather like having controls apart from the timer that allow me to control what happens.
That said... There is some appeal to the WP/KM approach as for simplicity. There are times when that seems appealing to even me. Past me, it seems like a good match for the average user. I suppose, like most things in life, there are pros and cons to both approaches... I sort of like the Lady Kenmore of the 60s approach where things were nicely programmed BUT there were option buttons that allowed the programming to get an override of some sort. | ||
| Post# 880935 , Reply# 8 5/15/2016 at 18:02 (2,902 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room) | ||
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>In Europe post WWII people took to nylon bed sheets though I cannot imagine why... It was the "easy care" I suppose.
Past easy care--and yes, I see how that is a huge selling point!--there might also have been the "new" factor. New things in general seem so exciting, and worth having, particularly when they solve a long running problem. Then...as time goes by, one often learns that the New Thing may solve problems...but it has problems of its own, sometimes problems that the older approach didn't have. | ||
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Post# 880938 , Reply# 9 5/15/2016 at 18:23 (2,902 days old) by bajaespuma (Connecticut) |
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1958 and in color! What a beautiful pair of machines. I guess now I know where GE stole the idea for the 1961/62 "Rotary Fabric Dial" feature.
It's sobering and funny to realize that I was crawling around on the floor when this "film" was released. I can't imagine anybody putting a man's suit in a washing machine but I guess stranger things have happened. Thank you for posting this. Was this a training film for appliance store people or was it shown publicly? | ||
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Post# 880942 , Reply# 10 5/15/2016 at 18:48 (2,902 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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Piece was produced for Whirlpool by "Handy Jam Producti
They made tons of training and promotional films in the 1950's for everyone from Chevy to Whirlpool.
This particular film is too long for a commercial, and is not directly aimed at Whirlpool employees or sales persons so am guessing it was a promotional type thing. Then again it could have been used for both; I mean giving sales persons knowledge on how to sell these new Whirlpool automatics.... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jam_Handy... archive.org/search.phpQUESTIONMA... You can watch and download this film and others here: archive.org/details/Wonderfu1958... | ||
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Post# 880944 , Reply# 11 5/15/2016 at 18:54 (2,902 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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On another note:
Looked up the actor in the piece, Jeffrey Lynn and it does seem despite his good looks and early career success (A Letter To Three Wives, BUtterfield 8) never really made it huge. By the 1950's acting was secondary to his career in real estate.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Ly... | ||
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Post# 881084 , Reply# 12 5/16/2016 at 22:54 (2,901 days old) by neptunebob (Pittsburgh, PA) |
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Well then, why didn't this dream of modern fabrics come 
If it had, all the dry cleaners would be out of business! I could not imagine placing a $600 suit into a washer and dryer, and with a less expensive suit, how would it hold up with repeated washing? Leisure suits could be washed, but they were constructed without the padding a "real" man's suit has. So Laundress, what happened to the wash and wear dream?
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Post# 881092 , Reply# 13 5/16/2016 at 23:38 (2,901 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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That was it wasn't it?
Those man made fiber (polyester, Dacron, etc...) suits often were el cheapo.... Most persons purchasing "easy care" or "wash and wear" apparel wanted just that.
Most offerings then tended to look cheesy (remember all those polyester leisure suits?), and not something everyone would want to wear. Besides all man made fiber garments are often hot, scratchy, cannot be properly cleaned in water (they are hydrophobic) and thus after a while look rather suspect. Again cheap... For men's suits and finely tailored women's garments there is no such thing as "easy care". The linings and interfacings won't have it and need to be "finished" (ironed or pressed) for the garment to look its best. Fast forward to today you see plenty of polyester, Lycra and other man made fibers blended with natural. | ||
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Post# 881131 , Reply# 14 5/17/2016 at 07:09 (2,900 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Post# 881140 , Reply# 15 5/17/2016 at 07:52 (2,900 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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Who loves ya baby?
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Post# 881381 , Reply# 17 5/18/2016 at 20:06 (2,899 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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AV room | ||
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