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Thread Number: 28395
A near-missfor the Westy L5 |
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Post# 434264 5/10/2010 at 06:27 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude  (.) |
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As I mentioned in a post last week, I had a BIG scare with my treasured Westy L5 Laundromat.
Picture this - it's the day after a road trip where you not only finally got to meet another AWO washer fan but you picked up not one, but two 'dream machines'. Life is good. You then sling a load of sheets into a favourite washer and let it do its thing while you inspect the new treasures. Imagine the horror you would feel upon seeing something like this: 
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Post# 434265 , Reply# 1 5/10/2010 at 06:28 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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EEK! | ||
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Post# 434267 , Reply# 2 5/10/2010 at 06:31 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Clues as to what went wrong | ||
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Post# 434268 , Reply# 3 5/10/2010 at 06:32 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Post# 434269 , Reply# 4 5/10/2010 at 06:33 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Post# 434270 , Reply# 5 5/10/2010 at 06:38 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Now it all made sense
I had obviously lost the cast-iron counterweight from the left side of the tub. I was almost not surprised, either... I had taken that one off and replaced it no fewer than 3 times AFTER reassembling the washer in order to fix a leak on the tub water inlet. The plate is mounted on a set of three brackets on the tub; a ferrule is clipped to each bracket, and the weight plate is bolted to the brackets. I did have issues with two of the ferrules when I put the tub back together for the first time - they appeared to be in two parts, but I ASSUMED (we all know what happens then...) that the clip would hold them together tightly. Nope...
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Post# 434271 , Reply# 6 5/10/2010 at 06:41 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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It is a happy coincidence indeed that I just happened to have a Westy in the shop! I took one of the ferrules from the CLB-6 tub into the city and went parts hunting. Hubby actually found a near-perfect replacement part a larger hardware store near his workplace. However, I decided to 'rob Peter to pay Paul' (very true in this case, but the former owner of the CLB-6 was not named Peter... LOL). I took the ferrules and clips from the CLB-6 to use on the L5. So, guess what I did this past Saturday???
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Post# 434272 , Reply# 7 5/10/2010 at 06:45 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Re-installing the ferrules and clips on the tub proved to be something of a challenge. Two pairs of hands were needed and it took several tries to get the beasts back onto the tub... Here's a trick for anyone who may have to do this while the tub is still installed: put a piece of styrofoam under the ferrule, then clip into place. The foam will hold the ferrule tightly and make bolting the plate a lot easier.
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Post# 434273 , Reply# 8 5/10/2010 at 06:46 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Back in place | ||
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Post# 434274 , Reply# 9 5/10/2010 at 06:49 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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And....
I had to test the washer after all this... I was happy to find that the door boot was still flexible enough to tolerate the rough twisting it got when the plate came off. I folded it into the tub to protect it and just pulled it back out, sans problemes! I inspected the motor, changer and all wiring - everything looked good, so I gave it a run...
You can imagine my relief as I watched it.... 
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Post# 434275 , Reply# 10 5/10/2010 at 06:51 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Collateral damage | ||
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Post# 434276 , Reply# 11 5/10/2010 at 06:55 (5,090 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Lessons to be learned from this...
1-Balanced loads are your friends... I am pretty sure that I caused this whole mess washing some pillows that made the washer rock around while spinng two weeks ago...
2-Stay close to your vintage washers; they ARE fun to watch anyway, but quick intervention here may have prevented some of the damage here 3-Don't think you can't fix a mess like this - observe the situation, check manuals and ask questions. It CAN be done!! | ||
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Post# 434279 , Reply# 12 5/10/2010 at 07:11 (5,090 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
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Westinghouse FL washer weights
Good save and clever repair idea Paul when the three belt WHs were more poplar I used to get complaints from customers that the machine was very noisy in the spin cycle. I would put the machine in the final spin and it would sound just fine, but put some clothes in it and it would sound like a rock crusher, usually the top cement weight was coming loose. I even saw one WH FLer where the installer thought the cement blocks were for shipping and removed the top and bottom weights they always wondered why the machine shock so much until I discovered the reason and found some weights and installed them.We also used to see GE FF washers where the installers removed the cement motor counter balance weight which led to a crocked inner tub which would almost always crash into the outer tub in spin.
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Post# 434282 , Reply# 13 5/10/2010 at 07:25 (5,090 days old) by RevvinKevin (Tinseltown - Shakey Town - La-La Land) |
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Wow Paul... that SUCKS! | ||
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Post# 434941 , Reply# 16 5/12/2010 at 19:30 (5,087 days old) by Jetcone (Schenectady-Home of Calrods,Monitor Tops,Toroid Transformers) |
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I hate it when | ||
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Post# 435438 , Reply# 17 5/15/2010 at 09:32 (5,085 days old) by syndets2000 (Nanjemoy, MD) |
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...leaks? I see some splatters of something inside the cabinet- hope you are not experiencing some kind of seal failure- I think the pump seals are still available- I know the seal & Bearing kits are, I just got one- | ||
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Post# 435678 , Reply# 18 5/16/2010 at 22:14 (5,083 days old) by turquoisedude (.) |
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Splatter | ||
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Comes to the Rescue!
