Chrome on the Range

Just before we closed escrow on our house in north Pasadena, we discovered that the ancient electric stove didn’t work.

Not a big problem, we thought. We’d already planned to replace the refrigerator (which was encrusted with several generations of foul-smelling black fungus) and the 1949 Kitchenaid dishwasher (which ran with a dull grinding sound).

We’d just have to spend more in the major appliance department, we figured.

Wrong.

When the stove was carted off, a gaping 42-inch-wide space remained. After several abortive shopping excursions, we realized that most modern stoves--except for expensive stainless-steel restaurant models--are about 30 inches wide. This meant redoing the kitchen cabinets--a costly endeavor--or finding a stove that fit.

We set about finding a suitably aged but usable gas stove. A quest for the owner of Cinderella’s slipper? Not in Los Angeles, not with shops such as Antique Stove Heaven, A-1 Stove Hospital and Somewhere in Time.

There you can find big, gleaming porcelain-and-chrome stoves, with fat, round caste-iron elegance. These reconditioned mega-stoves are anywhere from 30 to 53 inches wide, with four, six or even eight burners, and features such as double ovens/double broilers, warming shelves or pancake griddles.

And these are no ordinary appliances--they pack a powerful punch of style.

“They are built like a 1957 Chevy--lot of steel, lot of chrome, lot of curves,” said Winsor Williams, owner of Antique Stove Heaven at 5414 S. Western Ave., Los Angeles. “You can cook up a storm with one of these.”

Williams, who rebuilds old stoves at his shop, can even customize the heat of the burners to accommodate each chef. For those who do wok cooking, for example, Williams will amp up a burner so it’s “as hot as a blow torch.”

Many cooks swear by old stoves. Modern ovens will heat to the temperature on the dial and then shut off, heating up again as the temperature begins to drop--causing slight fluctuations. Temperatures in old stoves fluctuate much less.

While white porcelain is de rigueur, some shops can color your stove to match your kitchen tile. These days, cobalt blue stoves are hot. So is soft green and cotton-candy pink.

We bought a white 1949 Wedgewood double-oven and double-broiler stove with six burners, figuring that the extra oven and burners would be handy on holidays. Envisioning stacks of steaming buttermilk pancakes heaped on platters, we got a chrome griddle that fits over two burners.

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The griddle, however, required more expertise than we realized. It got too hot the first time we used it and when we tried to scrub off the scalded oil, we ended up removing the finish. The result: a tarnished and no-longer-so-pretty griddle that is perfectly functional. We have since learned that you shouldn’t let the griddle get piping hot, and never to use abrasive cleaners on chrome.

We also sprang for an old-style mechanical timer. But it ticks so loudly you can practically hear it throughout the house. So we use the silent digital timer on the microwave oven.

The stove itself has been a delight. The three back burners are each covered with old-fashioned solid metal trivets, which allow for a controlled slow simmer of chicken soups and dishes such as corned beef.

The broilers heat up rapidly and cook fish, for instance, without parching. The oven quickly reaches the temperatures set on the dials and steadily holds it--without heating the stove’s exterior. The stove, the centerpiece of the kitchen, elicits ohs and ahs from visitors.

If you plan to purchase an old stove, there are several ways to go, including specialized shops or antique dealers. Shops that restore stoves will usually offer some kind of warranty and they will provide service. They also strip the stoves, completely refurbishing them when necessary--removing rust, redoing the porcelain and chrome finish, and making sure that they are mechanically sound.

The prices range tremendously, from about $500 to $10,000 for a 10-burner chrome-plated stove. Most popular brand names include O’Keefe & Merritt, Wedgewood, Roper and Magic Chef.

But you can also get a stove from a swap meet or antique dealer. Before you close a deal, bring along a technician who can tell you whether that hulking 300 pounds of steel can actually breath fire once again. When looking at old stoves, examine them carefully:

--Check to see if the oven, broiler and burners are riddled with rust.

--Make sure the dials turn easily and the doors open freely.

--A thermostat is a handy asset that not all stoves--for instance, those built in the ‘20s--will have.

--A safety system that allows the oven to light automatically is well worth having--saving you from lighting it with a match.

--The true aficionado will also want to check that the parts--such as dials and grates--are not mismatched, having been cannibalized from another brand of stove.