Gothichome wrote:Gothichome wrote:On re reading this, this comment sounds a bit glib, and I must apologize. I often forget that many folks do not have the skills, experience or inclination to do thier own repairs on these sort of things. Phill, myself, and quite a few others could have this stove tore apart, repaired (or made to work) and reassembled in short order. But for many, it’ll take money and finding some one to do the work, making even getting it free a burden.
Mechanical/electrical skills aside, 75% of the misery is sourcing the replacement components. This is particularly trying if you are not in the trade, and do not have the specific lingo. Also if you do not have the original manual with the schematic drawing and labelled parts. As far as I know you can't 3-D print a switch or do some fancy stuff on a lathe to make one. You just need that darn part.
In my experience, finding a basic part like a switch was a nightmare, including being sold the wrong part from an appliance repair component place that insisted it was the right part. Add to this scenario over confident appliance repair dude # 2 who claims he can fix it but doesn't even know how to open the panel and starts to bend the front of the stove with misplaced force while attempting to undo rivets. (Meanwhile the access panel can just be popped off by a gentle lift and push - as demonstrated by MIA appliance repair dude # 1). Appliance dude # 3 is # 2's superior, who has no clue about sourcing older parts. Like this is a completely foreign concept. He tells me that he just tells people the stove can't be fixed and to get a new stove.
In certain parts of the US there are ENTHUSIASTIC vintage appliance repair places. This is great if you are in proximity to them and/or can afford to ship your stove/fridge/etc. to them.
It's not great if you have a fantastic vintage appliance but discover that while you estimate/hope the basic part and repair might cost about $ 10.00 (ie blown fuse) that the reality is that the repair might cost more than 100x that amount plus an excess of time and energy chasing around parts and service people. It feels horrible to love that stove but discover it is actually a 200 lb paperweight.
It especially maddens me as I know that old appliances CAN be fixed. Well, with the right part and a competent person to fix it.
Vintage appliances are like a more frustrating version of a classic car. There are more mechanics and body shops who are willing/able to deal with a 60 year old car than a 60 year old stove.
I spotted an even more excellent vintage stove for sale, while pondering the fate of the one that needed help that I already owned. Before I went to look at it, I called one of the major vintage appliance places in the US, that sells parts and service. The dude on the phone was pretty rude, but this is what he told me:
- don't buy an appliance that you cannot test before you buy(ie disconnected gas stove)
- he wasn't familiar with the Canadian brand of the stove that needed help, so he could not reliably sell me parts for that stove without seeing the actual part.
- he had no clue about the excellent stove for sale, as it was a less common US brand (Odin) from the other side of the country. He deals with vintage stoves all day, so if he wasn't familiar, the parts hassles could be much greater. The parts might be universal or they might be specific to that manufacturer.
Lots of people get lucky and score an excellent vintage appliance in perfect working condition for free or cheap. The caveat is that if you don't - or it works for three months then dies - then what ?