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Thread Number: 80770
/ Tag: Vintage Automatic Washers
BASED on POD 10/13/2019 |
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| Post# 1047611 , Reply# 1 10/13/2019 at 14:46 (1,650 days old) by Repairguy (Danbury, Texas) | ||
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Post# 1047620 , Reply# 2 10/13/2019 at 16:57 (1,650 days old) by appnut  (TX) |
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 Lawrence, some 40 years ago when I was newly professionally employed, there was a secretary that sat next to mine. She had a LK set like the POD. I course of conversation, she told me she pretty much used the normal cycle and adjusted the agitator to suit the washing intensity or gentleness. She thought it was a terrific feature. She loved her washer and dryer. | ||
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Post# 1047630 , Reply# 3 10/13/2019 at 19:12 (1,650 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Post# 1047638 , Reply# 4 10/13/2019 at 20:31 (1,650 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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 One of granny's friends years ago had a Kenmore 900 (not an LK so may have been 2-speed, I now don't recall) with VariFlex. They left town to Singapore for an extended period (job-related) and she asked that granny use their washer once in a while to "keep it from getting stuck" so I had opportunity to play with the VariFlex. It worked as intended. | ||
| Post# 1047651 , Reply# 5 10/13/2019 at 22:32 (1,650 days old) by Maytagbear (N.E. Ohio) | ||
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Well................. If the Variflex was all that, how long was it available, and was there ever a Whirlpool version? This has puzzled me for many years. Lawrence/Maytagbear | ||
| Post# 1047652 , Reply# 6 10/13/2019 at 23:27 (1,650 days old) by Repairguy (Danbury, Texas) | ||
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The vari-flex agitator debuted around 1969 and was only installed in standard tub high end Kenmores. Production ran through 1973. In 1974 and 1975 the pentaswirl was used in the large capacity LKs as they started to shift to large capacity only in LKs. To my knowledge WP did not have a version of the vari-flex agitator. When the LKs went to large capacity only in 1976 the dual action agitator was the only one used in the LK. You could still get a pentaswirl or pentavane in the mid to lower line KMs through 1981 until a new line was introduced in 1982. From then on it was dual action and the standard capacity was dropped for the KM line but WP kept the standard capacity close to the end of belt drive production in 1986.
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Post# 1047653 , Reply# 7 10/13/2019 at 23:29 (1,650 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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Whirlpool vintage belt-drive washers had (early) straight-vane, Surgilator, Super Surgilator (which had the three larger lower fins extended a little beyond the base), and the Double-Duty Super Surgilator (exclusive to 18# models from the LFA series to the end) which had the curved "wings" added to the base. They never had auger dual-action on vintage belt-drives (or on direct-drives until the exclusivity of Dual-Action to Kenmore expired). Kenmore classic belt-drives had straight vane, Roto Swirl, Super Roto Swirl, Roto Flex, Vari Flex, Penta Vane and Penta Swirl (both exclusive to 18#), then Dual-Action. | ||
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Post# 1047656 , Reply# 8 10/13/2019 at 23:57 (1,650 days old) by MattL (Flushing, MI) |
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We had the '73 LK with the vari-flex and it did exactly what it claimed to do. The wash action could be very easily changed in all three speeds. I used it often, but mostly used the vigorous and one step down setting on a full loads.
I do miss that machine, wish I still had it, but did get a good 20 years out of it. | ||
| Post# 1047745 , Reply# 10 10/15/2019 at 03:19 (1,648 days old) by StrongEnough78 (California) | ||
Maytagbear
Here are a couple of videos demonstrating the Vari Flex on a Kenmore. You can see the difference it makes. Very flexible machine.
CLICK HERE TO GO TO StrongEnough78's LINK | ||
| Post# 1047746 , Reply# 11 10/15/2019 at 03:20 (1,648 days old) by StrongEnough78 (California) | ||
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