Hi folks. I've got an older Kenmore belt-drive washer which I inherited (so to speak). It had been sitting for a long time before I acquired it.  The pump was replaced just before it was put in storage. I don't know if this problem was existing when the previous owner last used the washer.

The problem is, the transmission will "pop" or "jump out of gear" and make a constant clacking noise, with little agitation; when run at full speed agitate mode with any significant load of clothes in the machine. Originally, if I loaded a moderate load in it, at gentle wash speed, it did well, with only an occasional pop.

To try and fix it, I drilled drain and fill plugs for the transmission oil. The old oil had some water contamination. I refilled it with gear oil, which I found out later is too high in viscosity. It's what I had and at the time I didn't know about this forum.

After running it several months, it got much better. It never pops, even with a full load of clothes, on gentle wash cycle. On full speed, it does still pop, with a full load. It only does it occasionally now; whereas it originally did it severely (unusable).

I've been using it 3 years now without other problems.  After finding out that the gear oil was too high in viscosity, I recently drained that out and replaced it with SAE50 engine oil. It made no noticeable difference in the agitate or spin speeds, nor any difference in the popping issue.

Any ideas as to what could cause it to pop out of gear like this? I expect some worn parts but would like a second opinion. The reason I have some doubt about worn parts is, the fact that it got so much better with use. I wonder if something is rusted or sticking so that it won't fully engage; and therefore pops out?

Thanks in advance for reading my somewhat "noob" question about this.

David

Hi John, thanks.  It did get water in it from being stored improperly. It was outdoors in a dirt area, which could have very well been flooded.

The heavy weight oil I ran for about 3 years. It came out looking brand-new without any additional water, even though this is my primary washer and gets used quite a lot. So I think the basket drive is probably OK.

I'll have to research what it takes to get the transmission apart, and determine my path forward. This washer has sentimental value to me, so I want to repair it.

Will read up on it, as I have the opportunity.

I had sort of thought it sounded like a broken spring issue, the way it would hold light torque but not full torque; and after it ran and the parts were polished free of rust by use, it worked better since the parts would engage more freely.

Thanks again for the info!