Agitator shaft worn down on my Imperial--now what??

[pacifica66]

First off, hope everyone had a merry X-mas.

I have a belt drive 1984 Whirlpool imperial, LAX7000MNO, that does not agitate. Through the help of the members of this board, i was able to take off the agitator and try to assess the problem. It seems the splines at the top of the agitator shaft are worn down-- they're basically nubs now and it's clear that they weren't always that way. Now it seems the shaft can no longer grip the agitator the way it should. i haven't been able to see inside the agitator top but i bet it's not beautiful looking, either. So, it seems i have a dead agitator shaft and maybe a dead agitator too. My questions are:

1) should i try to obtain a new agitator shaft? if i can get one i assume i competent repairperson can install it for me;
2) am i better off jerryrigging some homemade solution? one thing i thought of, and maybe i'm insane to contemplate this, would be to drill a small hole through the agitator and agitator shaft (near the top) and fit a nut-and-bolt through them both to marry them together. it's a primitive solution, sure, but isn't it better than buying a new machine?

ok, washing machine gurus, what do you think? i value your opinion! thanks!!

 

[pacifica66]

on the other hand...

i guess i should also through out there that maybe the splines on the agitator shaft are just fairly shallow to begin with, and the problem is all in the agitator. i don't know, i've never seen an agitator shaft before! but, is that a possibility?

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Can you post a pic of the splines? The only way I have ever seen them degrade is through rust, which usually doesn't happen in 1978 and later Whirlpools like it did in earlier models, but I guess anything is possible. If the splines are rusted, it's a good bet they are bad and have stripped the agitator.

If you're lucky, it's just your agitator. But, with a picture I could tell you instantly.

Gordon

 

[austinado16]

I'd look inside the agitator and see if there's a metal spline hub in there, or if it's just plastic splines. If it's a metal splined hub, then I can see where those splines could have eaten the splines on the end of the agitator shaft. If it's just plastic splines, then I'd say, no, the agitator has failed and that plastic couldn't have worn out the hardened shaft.

Let us know what you find!

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Austinado16 / Todd - there are no metal spline hubs in Whirlpool & Kenmore belt-drive agitators.

In the very early belt-drive machines, they used a single groove metal hexagonal drive lug, which was later replaced by a splined plastic drive block of similar dimension, both for use with bakelite agitators only.

When the the polypropylene agitators came into use between 1965 and 1968, they always used plastic molded splines in the agitators which mated directly to the agitator shaft.

I know your idea was used by other manufacturers, but not by Whirlpool.

Gordon

 

[austinado16]

Hi Gordon,
I actually used to rebuild the Ken/Pools of the 60's/70's/80's in a local appliance shop here in town......and yeah, I don't remember there being a metal spline in the agitators. But I wasn't sure about his machine, so thought I'd err on the side of caution.

 

[pacifica66]

Here's a close-up photo of the top of the agitator shaft

ok experts, here's a close-up photo of the top of the agitator shaft. it looks quite worn down to me, but note that i've made no attempt to clean it or wipe any of the dirt/grease away. I thought, for the purposes of your analysis, i'd leave it exactly the way that i found it. If needed, i can always clean it up as much as possible and take another photo.

As for the agitator itself, i can't see what's going on in there, honestly. there seems to be metal at the very top, where the agitator bolt threads into it. But if we're talking about the contact point between agitator shaft and agitator, i just can't say if that's metal-on-metal contact, or metal-on-plastic. Unless, of course, i take a hatchet and lop off the top 2 inches or so of the agitator So, based on this picture, do you still think i just need a new agitator? (that's obviously what i'm hoping for)

 

[mrfixit]

That sure looks like its a build up on top of the spline and not wear.

I'd soak it with PB Blaster and go at it with a wire brush to see if it comes off.

I don't think you have much to loose.

You might want to fit a plastice garbage bag to the bottom of the drum to catch the residue.

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Thanks for the picture.

Unfortunately, the agitator shaft appears really bad. I have never seen that much rust/goop. I am not sure if it wiped-out the agitator with it or not, but it could have. The back and fourth stripping very well may have worn the plastic splines beyond use. In the very least if the agitator is good, it needs to be thoroughly cleaned inside and dry before you install it on a nice agitator shaft.

Your agitator doesn't have any molded-in metal, when new or clean it's just molded splines that mesh onto the metal shaft. Yours has deteriorated A LOT. Your best bet is to try to find a replacement transmission, used or new, but you would be well advised to find out why moisture made it's way that far up. Either you have a bad seal failure in the spin-tube and bearing seals which by now may have allowed water to get into the transmission or soon will, or someone pours a lot of water on the top of the agitator and it eventually worked it's way in. With the Whirlpool cap I would be surprised of this, but if your cap is missing, loose, or one of those with a snap-on top, make sure a replacement is properly sealed and keep it as dry as possible.

Check eBay for transmissions - the replacement part number was 362901 when they were last available. There have been some new ones on eBay lately, and some used ones a while back, but new ones have ranged in price around $150. Some of the used appliance shops in your area may have a used replacement, as back in the heyday of this machine type rebuilders used to keep a good stock of working transmissions for easy swaps in cases just like this. Expect some work to change the gearcase.

I rebuilt 50-some of these machines in the 1990s as a side hobby, and another dozen or so in the last couple years. I have seen many had rusted splines, but they were never the short centerpost models like yours is. Interesting...

Good luck - when I lived in Denver there was several appliance shops that specialized in used parts over by Bear Valley Shopping center. Is it even still there? That was the mid 1980s.

Gordon

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Here's pic of a clean transmission with good splines. Too bad I wasn't focusing on them or I'd have a better pic.

Look at the very top....

 

[kenmoreguy64]

You can also see Robert's 1957 Lady K restoration on the RESTORATIONS tab, pic number 35, for another view of unspoiled splines.

Again, good luck in correcting the problem!

 

[pacifica66]

well, off i go looking for transmissions. i hate to give up on this machine, i think it's a good one. thanks for all of your expertise, it's a blessing that this community is here. i'll let you know if i get 'er up and running again!