1951 E2L Maytag Wringer Washer

[e2lgirl]

Yesterday I purchased my first wringer washer. 1951 E2L serial number 131919 I had to travel 12 hours to get it. 12 hours to get home with it. ( in a snow storm to boot)
I think I made a mistake by laying it down in the bed of my pick up, (I put the canopy on because of the weather) the machine was secured down onto a heavy rubber mat, so nothing slid around.
When I got home to unload. I noticed some oil pooled on the inside of the leg of the machine. I also noticed the wringer part had worked its way off the machine. Nothing was broken, no parts laying around. When we unloaded the machine into the house we kept it in the laying position until I figured where the oil was coming from, we also put it in the house this way to give the washer a chance to warm up, (as temp hit-9*C) before doing anything to it.
Once in the house I realized the oil had come from the wringer attachment part.
Before standing the machine upright, I took a spatula and scooped the oil off the inside of the machine where it had pooled. I did this because I have no idea what kind of oil it is, so i figured putting it in a container and saving it was a good idea. Once I stood the washer up on to its castors, the mystery oil was running down the leg below where the wringer attaches. Not lots, just a couple table spoons. When I went to re attach the wringer, the wringer didn't seem to want to slide back on very easy so rather than force it. I stopped. I did noticed teeth around the edges and in the very centre where I was going to slide the wringer back into it was hard to see casue it was oily , but it seemed like the wringer part should be put in a certain way. I need to know is there a certain way the wringer gets lined when going back onto the washer part? Also if the oil came out of where the wringer attaches shouldn't I put some kind of oil back in?
When inspecting the electrical chord and plug in, I noticed the plug in is a three prong plug, but the thickest round middle piece has been sawed off. Im new to all of this, but I am pretty sure a person could see an electrition on the chord and plug subject, and get a new chord with a 3 prong (cause no one wants to be electrocuted doing laundry) plug and take out the old one and re wire the new one. But the question is: on what part of the engine or machine does a person do this, and don't say it cant be done. The chord has to wire into something. I would like to know where so I can replace it.
So in a nutshell.
-Where does the plug & chord wire into for replacement purposes?
-What type of oil do I replace the spilled oil with?
-How do I get the oil back in where it leaked from?
-Once I replace the oil, is there a trick to getting the wringer piece back on?
When I have all of this done, is there anything else I need to know before I fire this bad boy up to use it?
One more thought. I need a manual so I can identify what all the parts are and what they do, right down to the last nut bolt and seal. Where do I find one of these? I don't want the prissy housewife version. I want the down and dirty picture and lable version with all the trouble shooting stuff. I also need to know what kind of tools to go any buy.
Thank you in advance to whomever answers this thread, your help will be most appreciated.

 

[hippiedoll]

Hi there Gayle!

First off:
welcome to the group...
I'm surprised nobody has replied to your message yet? Be patient, members will read your post and start to reply soon.

I am not very mechanically gifted, so I couldn't help you much with your questions. But as for the wringer, I think you just have to try to line up the little teeth gears and it should drop in place? But this is just my thinking, you may want to wait for someone who knows for sure how to put the wringer back on the post, to reply and give you better instructions.

Once again, HI & WELCOME to the group.
And also, CONGRATULATIONS on your first Maytag wringer washer. I look forward to reading your progress with your wringer washer.
)

 

[smokeythecat]

That oil is from the breakdown of the grease inside the wringer post and the drive parts. At some point you should open up those parts and clean out the old grease and replace it and the gaskets sealing it in. I haven’t done that yet with mine. This is a different model but same problem: old grease , replacement grease and gasket

 

[stan]

Hi Gayle

The service manual you seek can be purchased and downloaded here in the manuals and literature section.
The oil you see is most likely from the power unit (transmission) located under the agitator.
It's common for the oil to leak out when the machine is laid on its side. It's recommended that the machine not be laid on its side during transport, but if you have no choice.. lay it on its front in order to prevent leakage.
The oil probably leaked out of the vent (weep hole) on top of the cross bar that comes from the power unit and travels over to the wringer post. If you feel the top of the crossbar with your hand, youl feel the weep hole. It's not visable from the bottom.
This is a gear oil that was put in during manufacturing and cannot be replaced unless you are doing a rebuild.
Since it was so cold during your transport.. hopefully the oil thickend and didn't leak enough to hurt much. The amount your describing dose not sound fatal.
The wringer is a bit difficult to get back on..(cuz it's heavy) You have to keep lifting and turning to get it to drop back into place.
So if it were me.. I'd clean up the oil and wipe of the area I mentioned, and move on.
The first thing you could check is to see if your agitator comes off (like it suppose to) Often time these get stuck. You need to be able to remove the agitator to lube the post after each use.
This is mentioned IN the housewifes version of the the manual.
If it come off, then you can inspect for holes or rot under the agitator and see if ther is a blockage in the drain hole.
Check you drain hose for cracks or holes.
Next would be to fill with water to see if it holds water with no leak.
If all that goes well, the you can move on to powering it up and checking for mechanical functions.
The housewifes manual shows how to operate the machine, including how to seperate the wringer rollers when machine is not in use. (Preventing flat spots) Also running times for loads of laundry that are short by today's standards. (And there's a reason)
As far as the cord.. They were originally two prog plugs, with no ground. So yours may have been replaced, then later someone pulled the ground pin off? Photo might help us to help you with that.
The cord can be replaced with a new three prog plug and the motor can be grounded.
Mine is still original but others here can show you (pics) how they grounded the motor and replaced the cord.
HTH

 

[redcarpetdrew]

An awesome machine!

You will be surprised how resilient these machines are. My 57 E2LP sat in a barn for several decades and yet fired up the first time after a little loving preflight. The manual in the download section is indeed a great resource for you. I also have a fair amount of service bulletins, parts breakdowns, etc as I used to work at a family run HAC and they were getting rid of the original binders that the factory sent out to the service centers...