Vintage Sunbeam Control Panel

None of my toasters (have three), toaster-ovens (two), oven broiler, convection ovens (two), Westbend Ovenette, nor Sunbeam C50 coffeemaker have grounded plugs.

Neither does my Sunbeam electric fry pan, Sunbeam rotisserie, Bamix mixer, Kenwood mixer, GE hand mixer, nor Oster blender, so that's me for you.

Don't iron in the kitchen, but most of my irons don't have grounded plugs either. Well the newer commercial/professional ones like the Sussman probably do....

Have a small power strip picked up from thrift store ages ago that sits on shelf behind toaster, coffee grinder, etc..., and can be reached from the stovetop. It has several ungrounded outlets and have had the Sunbeam C50 going along with making toast and nothing has gone wrong.

In any event we're discussing an appliance by Sunbeam made > 40 years ago when electrical codes and or other safety were likely different. That Sunbeam "automatic" control box likely was a godsend to any housewife who found herself with plenty of new electric small appliances, but no where to plug them all in to get breakfast or whatever going. Those with gas ranges and or otherwise didn't have that control panel often found on electric ranges, and or anyone else with space constraints likely welcomed those extra outlets.


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Post# 1029707 4/12/2019 at 21:05 (1,840 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)
Checkrate/Likes What an interesting item! https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Mid-Cen...

Post# 1029711 , Reply# 1 4/12/2019 at 21:21 (1,840 days old) by TrainGuy (Key West, FL)
Checkrate/Likes *Neat Find!* Launderess, You find the most unique items! Thank you!

Post# 1029725 , Reply# 2 4/12/2019 at 23:33 (1,840 days old) by norgeway (mocksville n c )
Checkrate/Likes 2 *I have* One of these.

Post# 1029737 , Reply# 3 4/13/2019 at 06:54 (1,839 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)
Checkrate/Likes *Sunbeam Control Panel* Cool looking but how is it automatic with no clock ?, and with the older non grounded outlets it is not useful for many appliances we would use today. John

Post# 1029738 , Reply# 4 4/13/2019 at 07:28 (1,839 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)
Checkrate/Likes 1 None of my toasters (have three), toaster-ovens (two), oven broiler, convection ovens (two), Westbend Ovenette, nor Sunbeam C50 coffeemaker have grounded plugs. Neither does my Sunbeam electric fry pan, Sunbeam rotisserie, Bamix mixer, Kenwood mixer, GE hand mixer, nor Oster blender, so that's me for you. Don't iron in the kitchen, but most of my irons don't have grounded plugs either. Well the newer commercial/professional ones like the Sussman probably do.... Have a small power strip picked up from thrift store ages ago that sits on shelf behind toaster, coffee grinder, etc..., and can be reached from the stovetop. It has several ungrounded outlets and have had the Sunbeam C50 going along with making toast and nothing has gone wrong. In any event we're discussing an appliance by Sunbeam made > 40 years ago when electrical codes and or other safety were likely different. That Sunbeam "automatic" control box likely was a godsend to any housewife who found herself with plenty of new electric small appliances, but no where to plug them all in to get breakfast or whatever going. Those with gas ranges and or otherwise didn't have that control panel often found on electric ranges, and or anyone else with space constraints likely welcomed those extra outlets.

Post# 1029739 , Reply# 5 4/13/2019 at 07:54 (1,839 days old) by gansky1 (Omaha, The Home of the TV Dinner!)
Checkrate/Likes 1 I found one of these (truly automatic-- with a clock :-) at a sale years ago, Don (jetaction) has it installed in his basement kitchen.

Post# 1029740 , Reply# 6 4/13/2019 at 07:58 (1,839 days old) by fan-of-fans (Florida)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Very nice! In regard to grounded plugs on appliances, there must have been a change in the standards at some point. None of the vintage appliances I own or have seen have grounded plugs. But it seems more commonly that the newer ones made of metal do. I have a Kenmore Elite toaster, KitchenAid blender, "GE" waffle iron, and Farberware hot plate made in the last 10-15 years. And these all have grounded cords. Although, I have seen some newer metal appliances being sold without them. Maybe it is because they are double insulated.

Post# 1029747 , Reply# 7 4/13/2019 at 11:09 (1,839 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)
Checkrate/Likes 1 If this does not have the box that goes behind it with the breakers and wiring, it is like a Potempkin village, although maybe the cardboard enclosed rear part of it is the wiring box since it looks like it would fit between 16 inch on center wall studs. There is no way that it is worth the asking price even if it is complete. As has been mentioned in previous discussions of these centers, they were a handy solution for older homes to provide what was known as "full housepower" in that kitchens could have several separate 15 or 20 amp outlets by running one 30 amp 240 volt circuit from the fuse box instead of 6 120 volt lines to various places in an old kitchen. I did just check the plug on the cord of my Farber Turbo Oven and it has two prongs. Since it is a high wattage appliance, it would be a good candidate for a kitchen appliance center such as this. Unfortunately, many older homes did not have the kitchen counterspace to allow the use of that many small appliances at once. As for the term "automatic," the Westinghouse brand of these came in two sizes and with and without clock/timers. Maybe this is the clockless version of Sunbeam's version of this appliance. Maybe "Automatic" refers to the onboard circuit breakers that were easily reset from the front of the panel. The more restrictive style of these has retractable cords that had the female blocks that were used to connect coffee makers and other small heating appliances like electric skillets before the advent of cords with the thermostats used on immersible appliances.

Post# 1029814 , Reply# 8 4/13/2019 at 23:21 (1,839 days old) by norgeway (mocksville n c )
Checkrate/Likes *Im going to install mine* Someday I don't own any appliances new enough to have a 3 wire plug..