Today: Inspection, cleaning and storing Fairweather June's appliances.
Fairweather June came from the factory with an apartment sized floor standing stove/oven range - made by Preway.
Where does this term "range" come from? I have no definitive answers. But here's what I think - and YOU can Google it.
Back in the day, the full "range" of cooking chores around the residential area, be it: the cookhouse, the kitchen, the cave, the community gathering area of the village - consisted of many multiple versions of heat source used in food prep.
When what we call a range was "invented", it covered the entire "range" of cooking chores in one sweet package: broiling, baking, warming (the oven) and frying, boiling, poaching (the stove-top). The "cooking range" was born, shortened to "cook range", and finally to just "range". That's what I think.
Three generations ago it wasn't uncommon for families to have between 16 and 20 kids. These large families were generally seen as necessary, because the older kids would become the caregivers, and workers, for the family as more came along. Our agricultural society more or less required it. Post WWII we moved into the cities and got spoiled. We had fewer children, but we lost fewer to illness or accident, that had previously kept our numbers in check!
Our proliferation remained however, even while we enlightened sorts (two generations previous), that is to say this group of us who had off-spring, but without a high mortality rate, because the cities came with Pediatricians, and by the time Fairweather June came along, average family size was closer to 7 kids. Over time (last generation) we had even fewer (we had two) because kids came to help out less, and because video games got too expensive.
So thank goodness we compiled all those family domestic chores into one object that could do a range of jobs. Laundry day was affected similarly. And any of those other "days" in which 16 kids could be kept busy with cooking, cleaning, ironing, baby-sitting, etc. while Mom and Grandma got fixed up.
Cereal! All you have to do is watch 1950s reruns. Woman had all KINDS of time to get fixed up. I mean they wore dresses to scrub the floor - I never noticed a scuffed knee on these ladies or a run in their hose! Perfect lips - even in black and white! Fingernails to die for!
But then, when the 16 kids became only seven (and we used to brag on that measly little number), and later only two - Moms could finally wear jeans, because now they were expected to do the work earlier generations sluffed off on the kids!
And I'm here to tell you, when it gets hot in the summer (for me that's above 70) I have to get out of the jeans, and put on the shorts, because I get too hot. And then my knees look AWFUL all summer long! Can you imagine if I had to wear a dress with bare knees, restore and modify old stuff, AND look presentable when DW came home from the office, coworker women in tow expecting drinks and stuff with MY knees! You're just lucky you've never SEEN them!
So at least we've got a range. That should control the workload. And this one is a floor model, did I tell you?
It wasn't abnormally dirty, but it was dirty. The whole time I was cleaning this bad-boy I was thinking, "you really have to like this sort of hobby to be willing to clean up somebody else's mess like this". Well - I was thinking that, and wishing I had 16 kids to do all these chores.
But it's cool. Most RV ranges are a 17" or 22" inch model, which is the height. They all seem to have kind of a standard width and depth. But there was a time before this base standard (depth/width) that had a little less depth. I've seen some of these kind of "set on a shelf", rather than surface mounted to a cabinet face. In fact, we have one similar that has less depth - a "Princess" Range - came with Ta-ton-ka.
Ta-ton-ka? Oh, that's our other truck camper. It's really weird. We bought it on a lark, and on the way home named it Ta-ton-ka, because the terribly thought out "Cab-Over Bunk Previous Owner Modification" (COB-POM) looks like a cartoon caricature of a charging Buffalo!
That's the bunk with mouse damage. We're harvesting parts and then we'll dispose of this one - or cut off the cab-over and make a "Cowboy Camper". But it has this brown (called bronze on Wikipedia so probably a late 50's early 60's) Princess Range planned for a special camper some day. The camper itself is a 70's.
Not Fairweather June! No sir! Fairweather June is bringing her floor standing model from home for her "on the road" independence activities. The 50's era home-maker liked to eat too! It wasn't just to provide sustenance for the family, or for the husband, even though she'd always sacrifice the best portions for others - and eat hers cold half the time.
I didn't know much about this sort of range - so as I cleaned, I disassembled and inspected and learned. It's pretty basic. But unlike electrical appliances (which will generally only electrocute you), gas ranges use a fuel type that explodes! So you have to be careful. Wise even.
It seems these days, people have lost their ability to think. So if you're going to use one of these from yesteryear, and be around their explosive nature, you have to swim against the tide and think. You know, like for instance, get the flame (match, lighter, flint and steel) all ready AND burning in gas nozzle proximity, BEFORE turning on the gas! And if it doesn't light right away - turn off the gas!
Ummmm, maybe you should just get those new and improved attorney designed models if that lighting instruction seems overly complicated to you.
So here's what I found.
Grates, burner covers, burners and pilot light tubes.
One front burner MUCH bigger than the other three.
Those three (I think a fourth is missing) pilot light tubes fit into these three in a central gas source bowl thingy. That's the range control manifold in the background.
Close-up of stove top burner valves and manifold.
And a stepped back view.
The presenting surfaces cleaned up pretty good!
At the bottom is the broiler - set right below the oven burner.
Note three height choices - for the broiler alone! You slide a broiler pan in here. I guess.
And below that is simply a crumb tray and the range base.
In the oven, TWO, count them, TWO shelves - on THREE height settings! Oh - that June knows how to live!
This is at the bottom front of the oven, back when the word "light" was spelled "lite".
This is NOT a finger hole to open a door where the lite beer is kept. Everyone SHOULD know, the beer is in the fridge, which we don't have yet, so don't even ask. Or better yet, YOU bring some cold beer next time - for crying out loud!
But even so, it IS a door that you can lift. Pull these latches back away from the walls with a screwdriver...
Revealing the oven burner and heat deflector.
Which simply lifts out.
Upside down.
Note the air shutter is sealed at a position. I didn't attempt to improve upon it.
This end of the burner slides over the oven valve oriface.
Seen in the lower back there.
Here's how it goes back.
So I moved on to the sink. Cleaned, inspected, taped the chrome band and reassembled the installation ring and clamps...
And got that and the range...
Stored out of the way on a high shelf.
So now we can go back out and harvest some final parts (fixtures, cabinets, etc.) and set Fairweather June up in the field for winter. Until next summer, when we take her apart completely, discover what makes her tick!
