Please note I'm an amateur electrician. Seek professional guidance when working with electrical systems!
The really good news for my stove is that there is electricity flowing. When I plug in the single 3-prong plug in the back of the stove, I get power from the two 2-prong outlets in the clock assembly (but the clocks/timers don't work); one of my oven lights worked immediately, as does its door switch (I suspect the other one will work once the door switch is unstuck); the fluorescent light under the folding shelf which lights the stove top when the shelf is up does *not* work, but I do get power to one of the "tombstones" (I tested this using a multimeter).
After much searching, I was able to find momentary switches, normally closed, which were easy enough for my oven doors to push. I couldn't remove the old switches from their metal brackets, but I was was able to fashion a short length of strap into the right shape.
My first switch however didn't work. I worried that the wire, which was old and somewhat crumbly, has lost enough integrity that I would need to replace it, so I purchased silicone-sheathed high-temperature 18 gauge wire online. While I waited for it to to arrive I investigated the wires and fixtures.
Like I said, both of the oven lights had worked, just not reliably. I had a look at the fixtures that hold the bulbs, and it turns out they are readily available for a couple dollars each: Leviton 8101 Keyless Incandescent Porcelain Lampholder - Single Circuit. One of them unscrewed, and I was able to clean the contacts with very fine sand paper and wash the portion of the fixture that is inside the oven. The other fixture wouldn't budge so I had to reach in and try to clean the contacts as best I could. It was good news though: if need be, I could replace the fixtures if they seemed to be the problem.
But while I was back there, I noticed something else odd. The oven light wiring did not complete a circuit. Someone previous to me had wrapped the end of the very last portion of wire on either side, the portion after the switch, with electrical tape. I took the cover When those ends were cleaned off and reattached, the switch worked perfectly.
Which gives us a mystery: electrical current doesn't flow through an incomplete circuit. The only thing I can guess is that some portion of the wiring's sheathing is old enough that it is bare, and touched the metal chassis, and somehow made the current flow.
In any case, in the end all I had to do was replace the switches and reattach the existing wires, and voila, I have beautiful oven lights that turn off when the oven door is closed and turn on when the oven door opens!
The really good news for my stove is that there is electricity flowing. When I plug in the single 3-prong plug in the back of the stove, I get power from the two 2-prong outlets in the clock assembly (but the clocks/timers don't work); one of my oven lights worked immediately, as does its door switch (I suspect the other one will work once the door switch is unstuck); the fluorescent light under the folding shelf which lights the stove top when the shelf is up does *not* work, but I do get power to one of the "tombstones" (I tested this using a multimeter).
Clock assembly
Although they work, I don't intend to use the outlets on top of the stove. I hear that restoring the clock and timers is very difficult so I'll skip that as well.Oven lights
The oven lights worked sporadically. Once I figured out how to get the side panels off, I could see that the switches were very old and seemed loose; also the wires attached to the switches fell off pretty much as soon as I looked at them.After much searching, I was able to find momentary switches, normally closed, which were easy enough for my oven doors to push. I couldn't remove the old switches from their metal brackets, but I was was able to fashion a short length of strap into the right shape.
My first switch however didn't work. I worried that the wire, which was old and somewhat crumbly, has lost enough integrity that I would need to replace it, so I purchased silicone-sheathed high-temperature 18 gauge wire online. While I waited for it to to arrive I investigated the wires and fixtures.
Like I said, both of the oven lights had worked, just not reliably. I had a look at the fixtures that hold the bulbs, and it turns out they are readily available for a couple dollars each: Leviton 8101 Keyless Incandescent Porcelain Lampholder - Single Circuit. One of them unscrewed, and I was able to clean the contacts with very fine sand paper and wash the portion of the fixture that is inside the oven. The other fixture wouldn't budge so I had to reach in and try to clean the contacts as best I could. It was good news though: if need be, I could replace the fixtures if they seemed to be the problem.
But while I was back there, I noticed something else odd. The oven light wiring did not complete a circuit. Someone previous to me had wrapped the end of the very last portion of wire on either side, the portion after the switch, with electrical tape. I took the cover When those ends were cleaned off and reattached, the switch worked perfectly.
Which gives us a mystery: electrical current doesn't flow through an incomplete circuit. The only thing I can guess is that some portion of the wiring's sheathing is old enough that it is bare, and touched the metal chassis, and somehow made the current flow.
In any case, in the end all I had to do was replace the switches and reattach the existing wires, and voila, I have beautiful oven lights that turn off when the oven door is closed and turn on when the oven door opens!
Stove light
My goal was to put in place a nearly T8-style LED light which will look nearly identical to the original fluorescent tube bulb but will be more efficient and does not need a ballast. I hoped to be able to use as much of the original parts (tombstones, wires) as possible. The toggle switch would need to be replaced, since the cover for the toggle was missing.
I took photos of the wiring, and confirmed that the tombstones that are on the stove now are shunted.
I marked all the existing wires with a masking tape flag which said where the wire appeared to come from and go to, and I sorted out how it is currently working:
The light involves two wires come from the wall plug, through a heat-protected conduit (with other wires that feed the clock assembly and oven lights) and then into the light assembly. One (I'm guessing neutral) goes directly to the right end of the bulb (via shunted tombstone). The other (I'm assuming hot) goes into a switch. The switch connects to the ballast with one wire, plus there is one wire that attaches to the right end of the bulb, and one wire that attaches to the left end of the bulb. Finally, one wire comes out of the ballast and attaches to the remaining spot at the left end of the bulb.
Given that the replacement fluorescent bulb I bought light didn't work, and that the ballast is the original one, I'm guessing the ballast is dead. I am also guessing from this setup that perhaps the switch on this old stove is acting also as a starter?
I ordered an 18" long T8-style LED light: Fulight® Rotatable LED F15T8 Tube Light "(17-3/4" Actual Length) 1.5FT 7W (15W Equivalent), Cool 4000K, Double-End Powered, Frosted Cover, Works from 85-265VAC - Fluorescent Replacement Bulbs for Under Cabinets Lighting Fixtures". It is very easy to wire: you have to bypass the ballast and starter, but after that you just attach hot wires to one end of the tube and neutral to the other. You can use either shunted or non-shunted tombstones.
I mis-ordered $3 Gardner Bender Toggle Switch (GSW-125) and only realized when it arrived that it was too large (standard 1/2" diameter but the stove hole/original switch is 3/8"). Then I found a $3 push-button switch of the correct diameter at a local electric supply, the last of its kind in stock. Both are SPST - the hot wire comes in, and the hot wire goes out. Very simple.
I marked all the existing wires with a masking tape flag which said where the wire appeared to come from and go to, and I sorted out how it is currently working:
The light involves two wires come from the wall plug, through a heat-protected conduit (with other wires that feed the clock assembly and oven lights) and then into the light assembly. One (I'm guessing neutral) goes directly to the right end of the bulb (via shunted tombstone). The other (I'm assuming hot) goes into a switch. The switch connects to the ballast with one wire, plus there is one wire that attaches to the right end of the bulb, and one wire that attaches to the left end of the bulb. Finally, one wire comes out of the ballast and attaches to the remaining spot at the left end of the bulb.
Given that the replacement fluorescent bulb I bought light didn't work, and that the ballast is the original one, I'm guessing the ballast is dead. I am also guessing from this setup that perhaps the switch on this old stove is acting also as a starter?
I ordered an 18" long T8-style LED light: Fulight® Rotatable LED F15T8 Tube Light "(17-3/4" Actual Length) 1.5FT 7W (15W Equivalent), Cool 4000K, Double-End Powered, Frosted Cover, Works from 85-265VAC - Fluorescent Replacement Bulbs for Under Cabinets Lighting Fixtures". It is very easy to wire: you have to bypass the ballast and starter, but after that you just attach hot wires to one end of the tube and neutral to the other. You can use either shunted or non-shunted tombstones.
I mis-ordered $3 Gardner Bender Toggle Switch (GSW-125) and only realized when it arrived that it was too large (standard 1/2" diameter but the stove hole/original switch is 3/8"). Then I found a $3 push-button switch of the correct diameter at a local electric supply, the last of its kind in stock. Both are SPST - the hot wire comes in, and the hot wire goes out. Very simple.