"Is that for sale too?" we asked.
"Yeah, but it's pretty rough."
We almost passed it up, but then he made an offer we couldn't refuse, both for the price of one basically.
Larry, for some reason, was enthralled by the Maytag. He couldn't wait to get to work on it. The wringer was froze up, the power cord had been cut, the whole thing was rusty and filthy. We discussed removing the motor because it probably didn't run and it made the machine really heavy.
But Larry went to work, and in a few days had it pretty well cleaned up. He'd fixed the broken leg, freed the wringer, scrubbed the whole thing, plugged up a couple small holes in the tub, and finally replaced the power cord.
And it ran! Wonder of wonders. He washed rugs in it and put them through the wringer--which has both a forward and a reverse, something I'd forgotten about from those long-ago days when my mother had a wringer washer.
So this one is just about ready to go to our Marietta booth, although I think Larry's going to feel a twinge in his heart at letting it go.
Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
I tried really hard to find a wringer washer when I bought my first washing machine about 15 years ago! Everyone laughed at me, but I would have bought one happily. Good work, Larry! And now of course I'm waiting for pictures of the cookstove ;)
ReplyDeleteWell done, Larry. I hope Sue won't be disappointed when she unwraps it on Christmas day!
ReplyDeleteWe had a wringer washer when I was quite small (late 50s) and I remember watching Mom use it every week. It was a later model than yours, though. I'm glad people are finding these things and restoring them rather than letting them go to junk. But if it were me I'd sure hate to sell it after going to all that work.
ReplyDeleteWell, Steve, we do this fairly often. We put a lot of time and energy, and sometimes money, int restoring old things. It makes us happy to see these things have new life, and to see people who love them take them home. We have all we need at home and then some, so parting with things is not too hard. Our contribution to recycling and the environment, LOL!
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