1980s Whirlpool Imperial Seventy - Creaky noise during spin when hot

[andy_70imperial]

Hello again belt-drive fans! Andy here from central NJ.

As I reminder I did a rebuild on my old Imperial 70 washer a few months back - https://automaticwasher.org/threads/1980s-whirlpool-imperial-seventy-oil-on-floor.96580/ My 40-year old machine needed to be rebuilt because water was getting down the agitator shaft so I replaced all the recommended parts except for the agitator shaft itself which had some pitting and buildup on it but nothing too crazy.

An update on my machine. It has been working great for the past few months but will start making a creaking noise during spin after the machine has been in continuous use for several hours and all the parts are hot. The first time it starting doing this it got to the point where it almost would not spin in the gentle cycle. With the machine off and the parts hot the noise is there when I turn the agitator by hand. See attached videos. The video with me turning the agitator shaft with a pair of locking pliers is the worst it has been. After the machine cools down for 24 hours the noise is not there.

I thought the noise was due to the pitted agitator shaft getting fouled during use and binding in the new spin tube bearings. After pulling the gearcase I could see some material accumulating in that area and would clean it and re-install. The last time I did this (only 3 weeks ago) I cleaned it as thoroughly as I possibly could (see before and after photos) but the noise still showed up after about 20 or 30 loads. Am I chasing down the wrong issue??? I am hoping one of you recognizes the noise and if it is definitely due to me re-using the original agitator shaft I guess I will track down a new one. That means time to re-build the gearcase again, fun!







Thanks in advance. Hopefully the videos upload and you can watch them....

-Andy

 

[combo52]

Hi, that noise is related to the heavy spring that holds the agitator gear down on the pin in the agitator shaft inside the transmission, the shaft should also turn more easily than it does on your machine. You should be able to turn it with your fingers even without the agitator in place.

Something is worn or possibly missing. They’re supposed to be a steel washer at the top of the spring and a rubber oil seal above that steel washer.

It shouldn’t be too hard to find a new agitator shaft, but I don’t think that’s the main problem. We have lots of them. If you can’t find one I can sell you one.

John L

 

[andy_70imperial]

Hi, that noise is related to the heavy spring that holds the agitator gear down on the pin in the agitator shaft inside the transmission, the shaft should also turn more easily than it does on your machine. You should be able to turn it with your fingers even without the agitator in place.

Something is worn or possibly missing. They’re supposed to be a steel washer at the top of the spring and a rubber oil seal above that steel washer.

It shouldn’t be too hard to find a new agitator shaft, but I don’t think that’s the main problem. We have lots of them. If you can’t find one I can sell you one.

John L

Damn I must have done something wrong when I rebuilt the case. I replaced a spring, seal, and washer because the original one was completely rusted away. Part number was 285672 (92814) Agitator Spring/Seal Kit. It was difficult to install. I was pretty sure I put the washer just below the rubber seal. Oh this is a bummer....

Thanks for the info John! Send me a pm with info about price for a new agitator shaft. If I am going to tear the gearbox open again I will replace it. I am also open to just swapping out the entire gearbox for an off-the-shelf rebuilt one if the price is right.

-Andy

 

[andy_70imperial]

John, could the noise actually be from the disc / ball bearing area at the bottom of the agitator shaft? I know I carried my rebuilt gearcase around by the agitator shaft more than a few times before it started making this noise and I read afterwards that this could dislodge those parts.