Cracking open an early GE AW6 Drive Unit/Transmission

[Unimatic1140]

So after trying out the new washer I found last weekend I need to learn how to service the aw6 transmission. I have absolutely no service information on this tranmission, just a parts list and one chart that I found recently. GE produced this unit from 1947 thru 1950. What was most unusual about it besides the 1140rpm spin was it is like a refrigerator compressor as it is sealed in oil.

Here is the parts list. I also have this chart and it shows the flow of oil (left side is spin, right side is activation). By the way "activation" was the way GE referred to agitation. The activator was how they said agitator...

 

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Here are the two spare units, the one on the left was from 1950, its motor is dead (its grounded) so this will be the one I'm going to take apart as a learning experience. The one on the right is an earlier unit.

 

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Here is the top of the transmission. To remove the drive block I heat it with a torch and knock it off with a screwdriver and hammer.

 

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I want to save this activator shaft seal as its good shape, so I gently pull it off with a gear puller.

 

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Now is the part I dread. Getting the basket hub off of any GE transmission is a total pain in the butt. First I have to drill out those screws and pry off the bar that holds it on.

 

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This is a good sign, this is first time I've ever been able to get a basket hub off without having to cut it off. I heated up with my torch and used a huge pipe wrench to get it turning, I locked the spin shaft in my vice as I was turning the hub. After about an hour I was able to work it up and off of the spin shaft. This is a good part to have because it has only two bolt holes, not the standard three bolt hubs that GE started making from 1951 and went thru 1995.

 

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Now I have no idea how to drain the oil, but I have to start somewhere so I'm going to remove this cup on the bottom first...

 

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Sure enough 40 ounces of nasty old oil came pouring out, I saved it and will take it to the city's hazardous waste recycling.

 

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I put the cup back on temporarily and then I removed the bolts holding the housing together. Time to pry off the motor housing. Not one of us washer collectors have ever seen the inside of this transmission before.

Here goes....

 

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WOW, look at that!

 

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Here is a look down into the motor housing.

 

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I could not believe that the bellows is made out of soft copper! All these years I pictured it to be rubber!! I have absolutely no idea what the Control Spring and Bracket do. Their function is not obvious to me.

 

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Bellows in action...

 

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Clutch and Drum...

 

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Brake assembly

 

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Now I pried off the upper housing off and the activation mechanism is in full view...

 

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Gears, sector bar. During activation oil is diverted away from the bellows and up into the upper half of the unit. It is sprayed out all over the upper half of the mechanism.

 

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Another look at the bellows. While I can force it to expand with my hands, its not done easily and takes quite a bit of strength.

 

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Last a close up of the Bellows and rotor. What I don't understand is how that little oil pump can force oil up through the rotor and out through that tiny little hole and force that stiff metal bellows to expand. I can't imagine that the oil pump would be able to create that much force but it must, it works.

 

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Now that I've taken the learning unit apart I have a bit more confidence to tackle the one in the '48 washer. It seems to sound like like the bellows is sort of stuck half way between the wash and spin position. Not sure exactly how I'm going to diagnoise all that once the unit is opened, but what choice do we have than to experiment. Wish me luck! More to come.

 

[a440]

Robert this is incredible!
Thanks for sharing this.
Excuse my inexperience but is the entire motor submerged in oil? Kind of like a refrigerant compressor?
I find this all so amazing!
The copper bellows blew my mind.
The gears look factory new!
I can see why GE did not make much on profit on this washer.
Will be interesting to hear what you think was the cause of the failure.
Thanks so much for posting these pictures.
This machine is a work of art!
Brent

 

[gansky1]

That is awesome, I would never have guessed those bellows were copper! Can you tell how far they have to move up to engage the spin clutch & drum?

Very cool indeed!

 

[mickeyd]

Been sitting here with my mouth wide open

could not imagine what the oil pump and tiny impeller would do.

And what a bellows would doing be here. Then came the explanations which are so easy to follow.

What an amazing mechanism: the way the oil shifts from one chamber to the the other; how the bellows lifts the cup up to spin, and the brake holds the rotor down to engage the activator gears. This is fabulous stuff Robert. Are you starting to think, "Cooler than a Frigidaire?" Pic # 10 is a killer. Bright Orange, still glowing after 60 years.

Loved the "exam gloves." ;-> Good night Wizard of Aworg.

Mike

 

[rogera608s]

Robert,
This is absolutely fascinating to see the inside of the drive mechanism. Copper bellows.........never expected that. Thank you for all the pictures.
Roger

 

[cfz2882]

Wow,that is one cool mechanism!good luck getting that running
robert!

 

[volvoguy87]

Totally speechless.

How much machining did it take to build one of these?
Dave

 

[eddy1210]

A question about the bellows

This is just fascinating. When the oil is filling the bellows, is it compressing air that's inside the bellows? Or is there very little air inside it and oil fills up the entire bellows?

 

[alr2903]

Robert, Simply fascinating, you could rule the world. You have great patience, to take the time to photograph and label, so we could follow along. One question with the bellows being copper, could this bellows possibly energize at some point, to either push or pull, in addition to the oil pressure exerting force? Thank you Robert. alr2903

 

[bajaespuma]

And this is what they mean when they say "Built to last&

Absolutely fascinating! Thank you for doing this photo essay. How did you learn how to work on washer transmissions? Was it trial and error, did you work with/for someone or did you get this from a family member? Sorry, but I'm curious.

 

[toploader55]

The Amazing Robert Seger

How facinating.

Look at that engineering. Who would have thought. Copper Bellows !!! Wow.

Thanks Robert. Always an education. Eddie