Bringing my 1955 UNIMATIC back to life...

[gyrafoam]

A great tutorial!

I'm sure there are a lot of people who have never seen the insides of a Unimatic mechanism and this is a great way to see it. Fortunately that mechanism was not in bad shape at all compared to some of the ones I've seen! Very kool to make a video record on You-Tube available.

Did ya'll take the oil pump apart as well?

 

[tlee618]

Jed and Robert that was fascinating!!! Thank you for taking the time to take all the pictures and videos to share. That was quite a process but the end results were more than worth the work!!

 

[hooverwheelaway]

Fascinating!

It's really neat seeing that all come apart, and all of the progress!

What a weekend! You both must be exhausted!

~Fred

 

[volvoguy87]

Wonderful.

Another great machine saved thanks to some dedication, hard work, a willing student, and a capable teacher.

Congratulations on a job well done,
Dave

 

[peterh770]

Nothing like a restored Unimatic! Congrats! Thanks for posting all the pics and vids!

 

[Unimatic1140]

Great thread Jed!

Yes his Unimatic transmission was actually in pretty bad shape, when we removed the oil plug a thin mixture of water and oil came pouring out of the oil pan, ugh that's not pretty. The mechanism housing bell was extremely difficult to remove because the spin shaft was completely frozen to the spin shaft bearing and spacer. We had to heat it then pound on the spin shaft really hard to get the housing off. The pulsator shaft was frozen inside the spin shaft so bad that I couldn't get the two to separate until we soaked the parts overnight in mineral spirits and then poured fresh oil over the two parts and used LOTS of force before they would come apart.

The oil pump was in relatively good shape and was able to be reused after a thorough disassembly and cleaning/soaking. We installed the new spin bearing and for what ever reason the new bearing was bad (it was also rough and noisy), so we had to try a second new bearing which worked perfectly.

It took a minimum of ten hours to do what we did with two people, this was much faster with two people. There are some minor bugs to iron out yet but the machine is well on its way to being totally restored to like new condition. YAY Jed, you'll have a wonderful dramatic and efficient vintage machine that will wash for years to come.

 

[autowasherfreak]

A Job Well Done!

Congratulations on a job well done! Did you guys swear like a sailor during the repairs, oh wait that's me when I'm working on my computers and typewriters, LOL. Thanks for sharing the pictures and the videos.

James

 

[tuthill]

Did you guys swear like a sailor during the repairs?

O god yes

 

[swestoyz]

Woo Hoo Jed - this is a great presentation! You and Robert certainly looked like you had been put through the wringer (hehe) on Saturday night, but the first wash was SO worth it. One of the nicest sounding Unimatics that I've heard.

Congrats to you - and Robert, you are a great guy for taking the time to help Jed out.

Look forward to more years of Unimatic fun Jed,

Ben

 

[rickr]

Great job guys!! That would piss me off to install a NOS bearing that was defective!! I guess that is part of "the game" though. That will be such a nice set, for so many years to come when they are finished.

I just finished restoring a Wards by Norge, and had to retrofit a Speed Queen pump into it. (The Norge pump was NLA) Wouldn't you know, of all the brand new Speed Queen pumps out there, I had to get the one that leaked!lol!! Just took it back and changed the pump again Friday night, and the second pump does not leak a drop. It does make success so much sweeter the second time around... <:

Great pixs and videos guys!

 

[mielabor]

Great!

A wonderful repair job. I love these restoration stories, particularly when they are so well illustrated as this one.

 

[Unimatic1140]

That would piss me off to install a NOS bearing that was defective!!

Ugh, I know Rick, it took us another 1.5 hours of work to get the mechansim pulled out again and reinstall a second new bearing. These weren't even NOS (new old stock) parts, these were brand new bearings, only manufactured a few years ago!

 

[rickr]

You know what Robert? I'll bet if it had been a NOS bearing you guys installed, it would not have been defective! Just like if I had been lucky enough to find a NOS Norge pump, it would not have leaked. The quality of parts are NOT what they used to be, just as the quality of most of what new items being manufactured are not what they used to be.

Sad.... Can we say, "Made in China" anyone???

 

[a440]

Very cool videos!
You and Robert really worked hard!
It sounded great! (the second round)
Just curious, will the slight tilt of the tub work it's way out on it's own? There was a part of one the videos that Robert said that it was tilting because it sat on its side for awhile. The tilt does not seem to affect the performance.
Thanks for the step by step videos!
Brent

 

[tuthill]

The tilt

When I picked the machine up from NY, it had a tilt. The machine then laid on its back for 4 days, which only made matters worse. Robert made sure that whenever the machine wasn't in use, that we pulled it the opposite way.

Gyrafoam - yes, the oil pump was taken apart and thoroughly cleaned and soaked.

Fred- Yes, both of us were extremely tired by the end of the weekend, but it was A TON of fun!

Dave - "some dedication, hard work, a willing student, and a capable teacher." I couldn't have said it better my self.

Ben - It was really great when you and Don came over and got to see the machine (and the KA too!) it was good to see you guys again. And yes, a big thanks goes out to the ever gracious Robert, I certainly couldn't have done this alone.

 

[joelippard]

Nice Work Guys!

Thanks for sharing with everyone. I'm pondering a Unimatic myself and this is a helpful resource. It's always great to see another fine Frigidaire back in service. Congratulations Jed! and thanks to Robert for providing this site and being so kind to help all who ask.

 

[whirlaway]

A Credit to the young

You are certainly an inspiration to the youth of today.Good Luck on your future mechanical projects.Bobby

 

[golittlesport]

Thanks for sharing the great photos of your Unimatic rebuild. It certainly is amazing what Robert can do. He and other members of this club are very generous with their patience and sharing their knowledge. I'll always remember the weekend in Omaha when he and Greg rebuilt the Unimatic that I now have. I actually got to get my hands dirty and hand them wrenches and screws. Don, Jimmy and Peter were also there. It was a great time and learning experience.

It sure feels good when you hear that Unimatic purring. How does your Filtrator dryer run?

Here is picture taken of the staff in Omaha during my Unimatic's "open heart surgery."

 

[volvoguy87]

Made in China...

About a week and a half ago I was working on a friend's bicycle and I had to cut some new cables to length (just the cable, not the sheath). The only cutting pliers they had were "Made in China." I was able to cut one with some difficulty even though they were nearly new pliers. On the second, I SNAPPED THE HEAD OFF THE PLIERS! I did it with only my right hand and one side of the head just snapped clean off! I am not a strong person. I can barely move my Maytag A208, but I broke the Chinese pliers without even breaking a sweat. We had to go and buy a new pair of cutting pliers and we made sure they were "Made in USA." They cut perfectly on the remaining cables and they are still intact, sharp, and usable.

Tools "Made in USA" for machinery "Made in USA."

If Chinese tools are this bad, it might explain why all the new Chinese washers appear to be of snap-together construction. Could you imagine what a Chinese car would be like? I would be afraid of the seats breaking off and falling out on the highway.

You Minnesotans have all the fun, maybe I should expand my job search to Minneapolis/St. Paul.
Dave

 

[Unimatic1140]

So Jed's 1955 Unimatic is working well except for three problems that we didn't get to finish before the end of the weekend. Restoring a vintage automatic to showroom new condition can sometimes take many days (if not weeks) and only having two days wasn't enough. So I told Jed to leave the machine with me and I will take care of the rest of the following issues for him:

#1 It was leaking during drain

#2 The cold side of the water valve wasn't working

#3 The motor start switch is acting up and needs some work.

So tonight I worked on #1 and #2.

#1 The leak was caused by two problems, first one of the two clamps connecting the pump to outlet drain port was completely loose ***clears throat*** . There was also a small hole at the bottom of the drain hose which I corrected.

#2 The cold side of the water valve was 90% blocked, so I took it apart and cleaned it, here is what the valve looks like. It has two ports, the nylon side is for the hot connection and the brass side is for the cold connection.

Here is what the valve looks like...

 

[Unimatic1140]

The holes on the cold water outlet side were blocked with hard water scale, I took a dental instrument and cleaned them out, here is what the valve looks like apart, post cleaning...

 

[Unimatic1140]

To test water valves I like to connect the valve outside of the washer to hot/cold water hoses and then I take an test electrical cord and apply power to each solenoid and make sure its working properly. This 1955 valve now works perfectly, YAY!

 

[swestoyz]

WOW Robert - you are a great guy for taking care of those three issues for Jed! For the valve rebuild, did you have a kit on hand, or were you able to reuse the rubber pieces? I have a few of these valves but dread taking them apart. I wasn't sure if a kit would still be available and were to find one.

Ben

 

[tuthill]

<font size= 9> THANK YOU ROBERT </font size= 9> Don't you just love when people post pics of themselves working on your washer... I could get used to this. <img src= http://www.automaticwasher.org/SMILES/S3.gif>

Glad to see all the valve needed was a good cleaning!

one of the two clamps connecting the pump to outlet drain port was completely loose ***stammering*** But I, ummm, I could've sworn... umm.... O well, at least it was an easy fix!!

Love that date stamp, so nostalgic. Hopefully that motor start switch won't be a big problem. Thanks again, Jed

 

[a440]

Very Cool!
I had no idea you did dentistry on the side Robert!
I think that is the most "futuristic" water valve I have ever seen! I think that valve alone made these washers so unique!
Thanks to you both for posting all of the pictures!
Brent

 

[rickr]

Too bad a 57 didn't use this same water valve as the 55 and 56. I would have the correct valve on mine, in place of the 3 way Maytag thermal valve that it now has as a replacement. I never could find the parts for that 57 valve. The Maytag valve works well though, and has all the right temps.

Thanks for the detailed repair pixs Robert. That is how we learn.

 

[~sudsshane]

What a great thread~

Robert- Wow!!- this just reinforces for me what a pretty awesome guy you are.

Jed- How excited you must be? and how lucky are you to live so close to the "Unimatic" expert!.

Thanks for posting the pics and vid. I really enjoyed it.

 

[Unimatic1140]

For the valve rebuild, did you have a kit on hand, or were you able to reuse the rubber pieces?.
Ben as you probably already know there are two sizes of rubber diaphragm seats. In the 30's thru the 50's they used large diameter seats (as shown in the pictures above), in the 60's water valve manufacturers went to the smaller size seats. The larger seats are very hard to find NOS now, but they seem to hold up better than the smaller seats. You can still buy water valve repair kits with brand new smaller seats, so those are easy to replace. In Jed's water valve the seats are in beautiful shape so this isn't a problem and I reused those seats.

Don't you just love when people post pics of themselves working on your washer... I could get used to this.
Ummm, don't get too used to it mister

 

[Unimatic1140]

I want to show you all how I fixed a leaky Unimatic Drain Ho

The engineers at Frigidaire decided that they were going to attach the drain hose in a way that no clamps were needed. So they used a standard garden hose connection and permanently crimped a hose to it. After 53 years the crimp connection has a tendency to leak as shown below. You just cannot unscrew the hose and connect a standard new washer drain hose to the threads, as it may fall off and flood.

 

[Unimatic1140]

So I unscrewed the hose and put it in a vice. I then take my hacksaw and on a diagonal I make a cut into the crimp connection.