Repair 1952 Toaster Sunbeam T-20B

[@guerguaa]

Thank you for taking it apart for us ...my nonworking t35 model from goodwill has been sitting for 4 years in a closet . Adjusted the tension like everyone was saying but still didn't work , until I found out with the help of your video that a tiny piece of crumb was lodge between the 2 magnets preventing contact . Cleaned it and it fired right up . Thanks again .

[@mistyblue6396]

I still have the exact toaster that was my parents, it still works great, still shiny and is a conversation piece for my daughters' sleepovers, they have never seen a toaster without a pushdown handle, these kids have all the technology at their fingertips and are amazed at a 1950's Sunbeam Toaster. They made things to last for sure.

[@demandred1957]

That's because they ARE a marvel. Pure elegance. I just had the first pieces of toast from the T-20A that I bought off ebay..

[@TheLawrenceWade]

My grandmother had one of these when I was a child. I didn't remember the noise of motors or anything, just silently the toast went up and down. Over 30 years and a stint in Electrical Engineering school later, now I know how it worked. What a genius piece of design. Thank you for posting this and preserving this beautiful machine.

[@christopherjon1245]

Have this as well. I retired it 5-7 yrs ago when I replaced some appliances and the cord was feeling a bit frail. Well today my “new” Sunbeam seems to have went into real estate and bought the farm! I am thinking about putting the old one back to service.

[@RinoaL]

Replacing the cord should be easy enough

[@ddavid3825]

Thanks for this video! Although I didn't have the same problems with my T-20, your explanations helped me figure out what was wrong and fix a toaster that has been in my family for 60+ years. I know WAY more about how these things work than I ever expected to.

[@RinoaL]

well cool, wish i could get this thing to work reliably, have to bump it any time i want it to work hahaha.

[@tspriggsabq]

Rinoa Super-Genius Try giving the knob 1/4 turn CW. I think that shd do it. Your toaster may be just at the borderline of activating is why. If that doesnt work, and I'm guessing it wont, then try ohming it out to check for continuity until you isolate where the open is.

[@tspriggsabq]

Rinoa Super-Genius looked at your video again and I do think the contacts were wayyy too far apart when you stuck the magnet on. Definitely need to get them closer together. Turning the screw CW will do that, with the knob off. Then put the knob on. It's anyone's guess where that should be but if you do the calibration routine, that's a good place to start. You can skip to the CW steps. I feel confident that is it.

[@RinoaL]

Tim Spriggs no the magnets just arent magnetic much, thats the issue. today i just got a 2nd t-20b so shall make a video looking at it.

[@tspriggsabq]

Rinoa Super-Genius Really? Did you even try the Cal routine?

[@nemo227]

My T-20 is an April 1951 toaster. I'm in the process of putting it back together this week. It's actually in excellent condition. My wife says her mother bought it at a thrift store for 25 cents. Yeah, really. And my wife used it while at college in the early nineteen sixties. I just hope I put it back together correctly on the first try.

[@013maynard]

Hello. On that toaster there are no magnets. The bimetal spring "snaps in or out" like the overtemp shut off on a hot water heater, except that they are a round disc. When the spring snaps out it opens the breakers. When the toast pushes the bar down the arm with the small spring hits the lever with the big swiveling top and that snaps the bimetal spring back out. Also I found that furniture paint stripper will bubble that cheap spray paint off in about 5 mins and won't harm the chrome at all. Steel wool or even a scotchbrite pad will ruin a mirror finish. Only sharing my experience because I rebuilt my grandparents toaster I inherited . Saw one on Ebay for 225.00$. It was beautiful and not a scratch. Excellent video and thanks. Love your work shop.

[@RinoaL]

i got a 2nd toaster this week and it's pads are magnetic, where do you get your information about them not having magnets? the relay is not directly connected to the bimetalic strip but instead connected in a way that the strip only puts force on it at certain times.

[@nofmxc]

@@RinoaL no mention of magnets in the patent patents.google.com/patent/US2459169A/en

[@kirkjohnson6638]

It may seem silly to respond to a 9 year old comment, but I wanted to thank you for your explanation of the workings of the Sunbeam automatic toaster. I bought a couple if them about 22 years ago and rewired them and got them both working but one started acting up recently. I took it apart and, as I typically do, I started playing with it to clean the contacts and ended up turning the light - dark knob many turns and was having a tough time getting the adjustment back in balance. I think I finally got it right, but I need some more bread to toast so I can be sure. Anyway, thanks once again!

[@kirkjohnson6638]

​@@RinoaLI've not noticed the contacts being magnetic, but I suppose they could be. I'll have to check the next time I take one apart.

[@Harey0407]

My parents found one of these toasters in my grandparents basement, and I did some minor repairs on it, what it would do was the minute you plugged it in it would turn on the heating coils. Found it to be the contact on the thermostat sticking, works great now. Amazing really the auto-drop feature didn't catch on though.

[@RinoaL]

yeah, i guess even if your product is better people will buy the cheeper piece of crap instead.

[@1jtolvey]

PRICE -- DIDN'T CATCH ON 3 TO 4 TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE !!

[@joeshahan5042]

My parents received the same exact model when they got married in the '50s. Many years later my Mom gave it to me as she wanted one that worked better with bagels, but ended up lamenting that as the toasters she got kept failing. So I was in a thrift store one day and spotted what I assumed was a modern knock-off of that old toaster, for $2. I knocked on the side and it went BONK BONK instead of tink tink, so I knew it was original. And it was brand new old stock-had never been used-even had the original tie on the cord. It was 50% off so paid my $1 for it and gave it to my Mom. In the meantime, the one I had started getting really hot and I regretfully caved when my wife at the time asked me to trash it. (I knew I could have fixed it, but there you are.) When my Mom passed away two years ago, I inherited the one I gave her, and it's going strong. However, it often doesn't lower so I Googled how to adjust it and found this video. Thanks!

[@RinoaL]

sorry, i had to repost this due to the background music being too high.

[@tomservo5347]

I read in the service manual about 'tempering' the thermostat by running current through it for 5 minutes. I'm currently trying to get my grandparents' T20B going and having the same problem.

[@trenthawkins]

Thank you for this video! My Grandpa wanted me to see if I could fix his (1953 model), and I was flummoxed on how it even works! With the help of your video, it seems it was a combination of the tension bar at the bottom (without anything inside the spring kept the bar at around half-height. Too low to trigger anything when the bread hits the lever) and possibly the calibration knob (although I'm unsure if this was my doing while trying to get the knob off). but it seems to work now, just have to put the covers back on after it cools a bit. Thanks again!

[@jeffkinzer5774]

Nice video. I own an identical toaster but mine was made in 1950. It just stopped taking toast but I was able to get it working by turning the adjustment screw, which is actually quite different from your model. Mine is a 1/4" hex nut that turns to increase or decrease the tension on the bottom plates. Thanks for the info on the bimetal plate, That may come in handy some day.

[@Steve63115]

Thanks for the info about the required magnet on the contacts... That helped me as to why mechanically everything worked yet mechanically it didn’t. I did NOT even think that a magnetic contact’s was part of the design for this toaster. Now it makes sense why it starts to go down and then back up. I took it apart to see this happening… Thanks again…

[@invisio]

Did you end up leaving a magnet inside or did you get the contacts magnetized?

[@timjones2750]

The music adds an ambiance to the repair. I saw one of these years ago. Neat idea!

[@gavinlo4785]

thanks for sharing this video! Any tips on replacing the elements?

[@013maynard]

The little pin in the top of the outside contact leaf pushes it open when the bi-metal spring snaps from the heat. The adjustment screw as you set to lighter it puts a preload on the bi-metal spring therefore causing it to snap with less heat. That is why the adjustment screw has a left handed thread. When the trigger bar is depressed it hits the long lever parallel to the thermostat with the arm that goes out in front of that pin. It then pushes the pin in turn snapping the bi-metal spring back out. The contact breakers should be in the closed position with the bi-metal spring snapped out. out being towards the elements. The bi-metal spring and the contact breaker leafs get warped from overheating and that is usually the problem. Now go back and take your toaster apart and have a look at it. I'm thinking if the breaker was connected to the bi-metal spring you would be cooking along with the bread. Look and you will see that the pin is insulated from the leaf. Also the frame of the thermostat is 3/16" thick. That is to control warping. If the whole thing gets warped then the bi-metal spring wont click back and forth. Just my thoughts. I'm not a genius. Not saying anyone is right or wrong. Also for the record the toaster is a Oct. 29 1952 Sunbeam model T 20 B that I was talking about.

[@RinoaL]

i'm not sure why you went through the trouble to type that all out. i thought the video explained it ok....

[@markhamilton9483]

Hey thanks for all the info, I just fixed a T35 thermostat with help from both of you. My (aluminum?) housing around the bimetallic strip was bent and not allowing the strip to snap back, fixed that and tightened screw at top of thermostat holding the strip. Works like a Champ now!

[@Jakeornot]

You have a problem with knowledge? I think it's great that Maynard wrote this out.

[@tspriggsabq]

As a retired electronic technician, I really enjoyed watching this guy at work. (I think he's better than me too) I have a bid on one of these Sunbeams on eBay which is why I was interested. I was curious to see how the Radiant Control worked. If I have issues with it like he did I'll try using the magnet from my Philips elite toothbrush. It's small but quite strong. Great video. Thanks!

[@tspriggsabq]

I won the bid so I will have one. I hope it works.

[@outlaw6313]

@@tspriggsabq congrats

[@tylerlondon5052]

Thanks for posting this. I just picked one of these up from a thrift store for $10 but its filthy inside. Im very good at tinkering with things like this but having someone make a video to go off of is so much better. Ill definately be cheating off of your video! And now if I can repay the favor in a small way, one of my tricks for cleaning up old appliances likethis is a product from the tool store called barkeepers friend. Cleans stainless steel to as like new as your going to get it wihout leaving any scratches.

[@salamancablue]

Too bad you didn’t;t live in the area-Mine has to be looked at

[@ducklandwikeno]

I use to own two of these toasters but only own one now . They work great I also got them very cheap too . Very well built too good American made products from the 1950's .

[@sparra3819]

I have an old Sunbeam, from a church sale, it worked nicely for a few years but no longer does. It's inspiring to see repair is possible but not sure I'll find the time to sit with mine for so long to figure out how.... sighs.....

[@LesAventuresDeTigRRe]

Awesome! I love my vintage sunbeam, now I know how to make it work

[@kenmolinkiewicz5230]

Nice video. And yes, you should've opened a window or gone outside to use the acetone.

[@coreyriggle]

I got one today at a church garage sale for $1. whooo!

[@HabsGeorge]

I recently inherited one of these from my grandfather's house. It's works good and is it good shape. Except for the powercord, Wondering where I could get another cord?

[@Jakeornot]

I bought a cord at Lowes.

[@c300g]

i just inherited my grandmothers sunbeam t-20b and i agree, its damn cool. i want to take it apart and clean it but when i opened the cover on the bottom, the one visible wire was wrapped in a white material that i'm sure is asbestos so i closed it back up. until i come up with a game plan. although mine is in excellent condition, the screws on the bottom are all mismatched and i'm trying to find out what they would have been originally. are yours all slot screws?

[@MazzoccoPhotography]

Oh. Asbestos. Well. This Sunbeam has been in my family 67 years. It's now my responsibility to repair. I guess I better take care of the asbestos, too. But, dang, when it's working it makes the best toast - EVER. Thanks for the reminder about asbestos.

[@sixtyfiveford]

Looks great.

[@biodot88]

I tried to repair the same toaster and it was very difficult and I ended up dumping the unit. It is an engineering marvel for its time and when it worked it was awesome.

[@RinoaL]

thats a shame you threw it away, could have sold it for parts at 60$ on ebay.

[@PowerCompanyClimbing]

Thanks for the help!

[@tspriggsabq]

My T-20A Sunbeam was burning toast and setting off the smoke alarm when I got it. Using Rino's video I did take it apart and examined it. Eventually, I calibrated it. And you can too , without taking it apart. So here is how you calibrate your vintage Sunbeam toaster without taking it apart.... So if yours is burning toast and not releasing, just turn the black knob (you can remove the knob) CCW until it releases. Now you want to turn the knob CCW, in 1/8 turn increments, until it does not go down at all. THEN, turn the knob CW in 1/8 increments until it goes down. When it does go down, give the knob a 1/4 inch turn CW. Then put the knob back on so it is on the lightest setting, cuz it will be very light. You have now calibrated your toaster. I ended up turning the knob to the midpoint and a little bit into "Darker." No more burnt toast. I hope this helps others to enjoy their vintage toaster. Also, I tried the magnet idea and it didnt work for me. My toaster magnets were fine.

[@RinoaL]

yeah i'm thinking about building a coil to re-magnetize my magnets. btw if the knob doesnt work you might want to try the screw on the bottom of the toaster too.

[@tspriggsabq]

Rinoa Super-Genius Thanks, Rino. Mine's working great since the recal tho. I used car polish on the chrome while the thing was apart. So it looks great too. This is the only antique I own but it's quite a phenomenon in itself.

[@zx8401ztv]

Ha ha i just loved the way the toaster slowly lowers the bread into its pit of heat :-)) You must love old fashoned equipment, that was a wee bit before your time :-))

[@RinoaL]

yeah i like older equpment. but it wasnt before my time. all times are now. we are still living with the remnants of every past year and adding more as we go :D

[@SachiWI]

We had a toaster like that when I was growing up and it stopped working. So it seems as though the magnets wear out over time - had I known that at the time I would have fixed it. A simple fix really. Next time I see one I will have to pick one up because no matter what brand you get today they just don't work like they used to. It takes so dam long to toast a bagel - not sure why the bagel setting on my toaster would only have 2 small resistive wires (not even coils) to toast a bagel. Can we say CHEAP China crap!? LOL

[@MikeMayeran]

awesome video man you do good work. also gotta love that 8 in 1 screwdriver. you could probably get a fortune for that on eBay. cool find for $2

[@RinoaL]

thanks for enjoying it :D

[@ClamHammer-rn3rg]

I grew up with one of these. I never realized it was different untill my friends would come over and trip out the the toast goes down on its own. My mom was all about this toaster because it's what she grew up with (same one). Would always be yelling about not breaking the toaster (not that we cared at the time). Now I'm 37 and saw one for $2 and am all about it! So stories aside I do have a problem. Ultimately my bread does not come back up. It just burns up and who knows what if I didn't unplug it....total meltdown?? At first it was working albeit a little dark. So I adjusted the knob and it just stopped coming back up. If there is no toast in there it will come back up but even with the knob off and the lil guy turned all the way to the right it won't come up if there is bread in there. Any suggestions?

[@Jakeornot]

No answer for you, but a bit of a laugh. I bought my toaster in 1991 at a yard sale, and it cost $25.00. Got it home saw that there were no levers. It took far too long to figure out that all I had to do was put the bread in the side marked one-slice. Embarrassing. Ah. My toaster is a VT 40-1. It stopped working. I can hear what sounds like a screw rolling around in the bottom. I won't try to fix it myself, but I know a guy.

[@Wisdomdragon42069]

I have one but it does not turn off do you know what could be the cause?

[@ThousandShakes]

Good info. I have a similar vintage Sunbeam, it used to work, but now when I push it down it starts smoking. I took it apart, but don't see any obvious issues. I'm afraid to plug it in while it is apart. Does anyone have any ideas? I hate to junk it.

[@paulmaddams3951]

Use Extra strength Easy Off Oven cleaner on painted metal surface such as appliances. Then polish it.

[@richharrisonline]

When i worked in spray paintin.. and somethin wasnt painted right (and the paint was cured).. my prescribed method would be to lightly scuff the paint with scotch brite.. then use paint remover to let it all bubble up.. then re-apply paint remover as needed with a brush.. this would hopefully preserve any surface finnish that would be there...Maybe you can use 2000 grit sand paper and polish and buff it to make er SHINE! :D Or even a coat of clear.. But i like the brushed look anyway. great job.. 5 star :)

[@RinoaL]

Unfortunately when they brushed it the chrome was scratched off. And most of it wasn't from my steel wool. The brush strokes where going the opposite way from mine. Looks like they used a big bench grinder. But yeah I plan to recoat the toaster with aluminium or something whenever I get my vacuum chamber built.

[@tspriggsabq]

Here's a question: Why didn't Sunbeam use a ground for the highly conductive metal casing?

[@MazzoccoPhotography]

This model and I came into the world at the same time (early 50s). My wife and I inherited it in the 70s. Yes, we both got mildly zapped a couple times! Returned it to my father for warranty repair ;-) but HE KEPT IT! (Actually, we needed a four-slice.) He fixed the electrical short and it worked another 40 years. Now it's on my shoulders to fix the mechanics. Keeping my fingers crossed.

[@xtophr]

Actually, it’s a common modification to change the plug wire to a thicker gauge and with a ground. This also polarizes the toaster.

[@invisio]

I can't believe someone would spray paint an art deco automatic toaster.

[@RinoaL]

i can believe it, stupidity is an unlimited resource

[@raphaeltzinho]

I have a question which has the two red buckets of Kentucky?

[@RinoaL]

you mean what is inside them? i keep circuit components in there. like resistors and capacitors and transistors.

[@ronbrundies6806]

Nice video, but you neglected to show how to remove the thermostat

[@NateWilson99]

Was that a 5/16 end wrench on your windowsill?

[@RinoaL]

idk, why?

[@NateWilson99]

Im curious!

[@RinoaL]

just checked and its 1/2 inch :P

[@NateWilson99]

Awww. I second guessed too!!!! Grrrr! Thanks though!

[@mottbone]

My guess was 1/2 or 9/16. Thanks for clearing that up. Haha

[@7eis]

Have you ever had any battery 'explode' ie. due to a short or something similarly dramatic? I try out all sorts of things on a spare 12v car battery I have, and people always go crazy about safety, ie fire hazard, battery acid IN MY FACE, the amps will kill me if I accidentally short something etc etc..

[@RinoaL]

Ive only splashed acid on myself. acid starts to itch after a few minutes then starts to get worse. but plenty of time to just wash your hands off.

[@7eis]

Rinoa Super-Genius That's what I thought. I've actively been trying to find videos of lead acid car batteries failing from short circuits, but all I could find was this one AIT4BYJ2jCg.

[@zeusvalentine]

they don't cost two bucks anymore....they have exploded in popularity and price.

[@RinoaL]

in thrift shops they still do because most dont know what they have. keep a look out for hidden gems. theyve always been 60$ or more on ebay

[@tspriggsabq]

Rinoa, don't electrocute yourself with that knife switch. LOL

[@Cimone90]

Where is the darkness setting on this thing

[@CowSaysMooMoo]

under the handle

[@buddyyates4647]

I want to warn anyone who needs to clean polished chrome, stainless, copper, brass or glass that steel wool is absolutely the wrong method. Even the finest steel wool will leave scratches in polished chrome as seen at the end of this video. Brass wool is soft enough to not scratch chrome and Scotch-Brite would be even better. Save the steel wool for finished that are not polished.

[@RinoaL]

you can put more chrome on, it took hours to get it off with steel whool. couldnt stand taking any longer.

[@blidderbla]

Rinoa Super-Genius Soak it in paint thinner and leave it over night, just rinse it of. Its really hard to get a paint stick to chrome in a good way.

[@xtophr]

The OP stated that the chrome pieces were already roughed up for the paint, showing the copper. I think the only way to salvage these panels is powder coating.

[@conniemerikor]

Where are you? do you do repairs for a fee? I LOVE my toaster- but it needs something- keeps burning the toast!!

[@safetyharborartandmusiccen8363]

i need to replace my cord can you advise me

[@RinoaL]

no

[@kenciolek843]

Sam son has that toaster but there's no date stamp in that spot and I don't see one on this one ...my son Sam found it at a yard sale I think , I've got the bottom and one end cap off revealing the switches , it won't turn on the heating elements , it's prophetic I bet. I'm a believer in Jesus Christ of the AV Bible

[@WalterKnox]

lol nes game "this isn't real toast"

[@1jtolvey]

REAL TOAST NOT GRAY PLASTIC -- WHAT HAS MOM BEEN FEEDING ME !!!!!!

[@Hot80s]

you killed the 50's classic chrome by scrubbing it, brake cleaner would have stripped that camo crap off & left you with the beautiful original finsh

[@RinoaL]

ah well i can reapply it with electroplating and polishing. live and learn eh

[@TheMoneypresident]

Jimmy Neutron always tore into toasters.

[@cashewsinc.5647]

i think your toaster got shot my precursor gun *from subnautica*

[@TheShadowfexx]

see the saying. its better than sliced bread is stupid in my opinion i think the saying should be thats the best thing from toasted bread :)

[@raphaeltzinho]

this video gave me hunger

[@lewisdoherty7621]

1952: Welcome to the kitchen of the future where this toaster built today will be a relic of a bygone era. This is the world 61 years from now - the amazing world of 2013 where food is prepared by automated food proscessing equipment upon voice command by the consumer. There is no clean up. Everything is self cleaning automatically. If a piece of equipment has a problem, an automatic signal is sent to the repair center. And you can enjoy your breakfast of toast, bacon and eggs while being flown to work in your automated flying car while watching a color TV and talking to your brother on an inter-planetary telephone who is working on Mars.

[@RinoaL]

Your good with your corporate/official sounding texts. And yeah its interesting how the future has progressed. We expected more of what we knew and didn't,t really think computers would become so big as to become inseprible from human kind. I was thinking about time today and tbh its interesting to think about now being the present past and future all at once. We are the remnants of days past and the starting of days new. Idk though oh well.

[@lewisdoherty7621]

Rinoa Super-Genius It's always good to attempt to rebuild things. We throw too much stuff away. The engraving work on that toaster was hidden by the paint. There is a video on KZbin of a Czeck kitchen of the future produced the year I was born, 1957, that says there are no cookbooks, recipes are on punch cards. Punch cards aren't used anymore and we still don't have automated cooking.

[@WalterMelones]

BATS!!!

[@conniemerikor]

Where are you? do you do repairs for a fee? I LOVE my toaster- but it needs something- keeps burning the toast!!

[@eloisahood1171]

Just do a yahoo search for antique toaster repair. First thing that pops up is a guy in upstate NY. He has toasters for sale at reasonable price (e.g. similar in price to a new high end toaster today).

[@conniemerikor]

@@eloisahood1171 Thank you!!

[@conniemerikor]

Where are you? do you do repairs for a fee? I LOVE my toaster- but it needs something- keeps burning the toast!!

[@invisio]

Do you have the knob under the handle or the lever out front? If its the knob under the handle then just pry the knob off and turn the screw in the lighter direction a half turn or so, and try again.

[@conniemerikor]

@@invisio thank you for your reply- t has the knob under the handle. I did remove and turn it to adjust. in the end it will either burn or not toast at all with the tiniest adjust in either direction. I thinking is there a way to clean the reflection strip? But I dont know where that is??