BD Rebuild

[114jwh]

So with all the posts over the last few months detailing the rebuilding of various machines I decided I was inspired enough to try my first rebuild.

I got my hands on an old Inglis belt drive last year and although it seemed like it had very little wear from the outside, as I've now learned looks can be deceiving!

Everything seemed to work really well however the spin was a bit loud. It was sort of a rattling sound that seemed to echo if that makes any sense. In any event I used that as an excuse to tear the thing apart and give it a going over with some new parts.

 

[114jwh]

So I got my hands on some parts to make the mechanicals like new again and started the process of taking the thing apart.

First up was removing the top, getting the agitator off and then removing the inner basket. The inner basket is pretty worn out and I'm still on the hunt for a replacement but the outer tub didn't seem too bad. I've seen far worse in various posts so I was encouraged.

So far so good....

 

[114jwh]

The block seemed to come out fairly easily too and I didn't have any trouble with the tub bolts either. Corbin clamps are not my friend however and I think they were designed to make life difficult and challenge ones patience (if you don't have those special pliers that is). If I manage to get this machine back together none of them will be making the return trip

Once all was disconnected the outer tub didn't want to budge. Strange I thought but the transmission was coming out anyway so I decided to move onto that for the time being. Maybe putting it on it's side for a bit would help the cause.....[this post was last edited: 7/17/2014-02:31]

 

[114jwh]

Now it was time to play a game the machine thought....lets see if I can push this person over the deep end.

Once all the brace and transmission bolts were removed I proceeded to pull the gearcase/basket drive out.....no dice. It moved about 4 inches and wasn't going anywhere. I wasn't thrilled about the drops of oil dripping out of the transmission so decided to separate it from the basket drive and pull it out on it's own.....no problem there. With just the basket drive remaining I pulled and pulled and pulled and it just laughed at me

So I sat it upright, stuck a socket in the centerpost and gave it a few whacks with the hammer thinking it would just pop out.......still laughing at me.

I continued on this journey for over an hour and I'm now hard of hearing. I thought it must be binding on the upper bearing somehow so if I could just push it past it would just fall out. Well that happened and it still didn't fall out....still laughing at me.

I kept going with this pounding process for at least another hour and then FINALLY it gave up and fell out. I tipped the machine over and this is what it looked like....

 

[114jwh]

That spin tube was in such terrible shape it took the bearing with it! Although I have no experience with this kind of thing I've read may posts about this process and haven't ever read that this happens very often!

In addition, when I took the pump off (original I think) it looks like Kujo chewed on it at some point....

Based on all this I don't know how it even ran!

 

[114jwh]

In any event I thought that by now the tub would just lift off.....no dice on that still.

Upon closer inspection it seems like there is a significant amount of rust near the bottom and it looked like the tub seal had moulded itself to the centerpost. I chipped away at it the best I could and ended up having to cut out the seal and pry it away to get the thing out. Finally victory once again however I did end up bending the lip on the tub a bit and it's corroded so badly at the base of the centerpost I'm hoping it's not too far gone to be saved.

That's it for today....tomorrow I need to get my hands on some kind of rust paint to paint over the spots in the tub & centerpost. Then I need to figure out how to use the bearing tool to put in new bearings....it nor the bearings themselves came with any instructions.

Wish me luck!

 

[gansky1]

Great start on a big job, but that pretty Inglis is worth the effort.

 

[philr]

That's a really nice machine! Keep us updated! And thanks for the links for the parts manuals!

 

 

 

[hippiedoll]

GOOD LUCK !!!

on rebuilding this inglis washer!!!

GREAT pictures. and i love how you gave the washer an "impish" kind of personality, like playing tug of war with you.
hm hm hm......

i'll be checking this thread on your progress!!
thanks for sharing the rebuilding of your inglis washer...

)

 

[eddy1210]

Way to go James! You really dove in head first LOL. All those same issues I've had too on my BD's. This will be a wonderful machine when you finish. Can't wait to see this in person.

 

[swestoyz]

Way to dig into a project!  Ultimately, most belt drive Whirlpools need this type of attention these days if they are going to be put into any regular use.  Thankfully most parts are still relatively easy to procure, some easier than others.  If you need help looking for parts, let me know.

 

Ben

 

[114jwh]

So yesterday was another joyful day of washing machine repair. First off I went to the store and bought some clear POR 15 to paint the centerpost and outer tub. I also had to return the new pump I bought because it didn't seem like the pulley was turning very smoothly. The guy told me they are just like that when they are new but he exchanged it anyway. Anyone heard of that before?

Anyway, while the paint was drying I took apart the motor and oiled the wicks on the bearings on either end and greased the start winding shaft. Easy easy!

Next was to replace the agitator shaft. Haven't seen much on that process here but upon inspection it appears that the whole transmission needed to be taken apart......as you'll see in a sec, good thing I did!

 

[114jwh]

Wasn't too thrilled about taking a transmission apart but I did it anyway because I had nothing to do while the paint was drying.

First off, remove the basket support on the agitator shaft (?)(set screw on the side), wig wag (set screw on the side), pulley (set screw on the side), cam guide (?)(screw on top), spin & agitate cams (they just pull out) and then remove the screws holding the top and bottom down. I kept these screws in order as I took them out as some are different sizes......the less thinking when putting it back together the better

Had to pry apart the two halves as they haven't seen the light of day since 1966.....here is what it looks like....pretty cool to see!

 

[114jwh]

Turns out it was good I did this as the agitator shaft spring was busted (no I didn' pick up the transmission by the shaft). Kit 285672 comes with a new spring and a new seal. Always a good idea to replace when you are replacing the agitator shaft apparently.

Anyway, to replace the shaft itself just lift off the gear and fork from the shaft, pull the old shaft out (bit of twisting necessary) and put the new one back on. Replace the seal (probably sitting underneath the agitator shaft hole on the top cover) and spring after the fork/gear are still in place and you're golden!

The gasket and oil looked fine so I left them as is. I could not find SAE60 non-detergent oil for the life of me or I probably would have replaced it anyway. WP sells it but it's $33 for 15 ounces - highway robbery!

I did add about a tablespoon of oil as a bit had probably leaked out hear and there over the years. I had some SAE30 non-detergent oil in the garage and didn't think it would matter in the grand scheme of things for that little amount (at least in my lifetime anyway). Please don't tell anyone though

Cleaned it up a bit afterwards (don't know why) and it looks like new again!

 

[114jwh]

Put a second coat of POR 15 now as it had dried to the touch and then came back to the transmission as I had to put back the top pieces. The pulleys were fine but when it came to the agitate cam bar I almost thought I would never get it back on! Apparently there is a special tool for this but of course I didn't have it. Screwdrivers didn't work and so I ended up using the hook from a bungee cord and pulling it up while a helper pushed the cam in. It did work after about 8 tries but of course the hook was now stuck underneath too. Ended up just hammering that out.

Let me tell you the whole transmission almost want flying

Now what to do about the basket drive?

 

[114jwh]

Here I have to choices. I do have a brand new 383923 basket drive I could use or I could rebuild the old one with a brand new spin tube. There is a difference between the two as safety regulations that came into effect after this machine was built required that the spin stopped quicker than it did before when the lid was opened.

So should I be a purist and rebuild the old one or make life easy and not have to worry about it and use the new one. What's everyone's vote?

I'm leaning towards the new one but the parts from the old one seem like they are still in good shape (after I sawed off that old spin tube) so I'll have to think on it.....

 

[kenmore70]

James,

I'm actually doing a gearcase overhall too, for the first time on a 1971 Kenmore, so it was good to see your pictures. I was wondering how you got the retainer ring back on the agitator shaft after you installed the new spring and seal. With the new spring it's very hard to push it down to get that ring on, I think I will need another set of hands. Just wondering if you had a 'technique' or if anyone else has any ideas. Thanks

 

[114jwh]

I didn't do anything special Tom. I just stacked everything on the agitator shaft in the order it was supposed to go, put the lid on top and held it closed while I hand screwed a couple of the screws in.

One word of advice, make sure the gearcase screws go back in the same spot they came from. Some of them are longer and function to attach the transmission braces from the other side when you put the machine back together.

Good luck and hope it goes well!

 

[114jwh]

One thing I noticed during this process....

...and not sure if this is just an Inglis thing or this occurred with WP in the US too. I've noticed a couple of different manufacturer stamps on some of the parts as I've been disassembling things, namely the agitator (stamped GE) and the gearcase cover (Hoover). Not something you would necessarily expect.