Hoover 455 (A3072) Washer Overhaul Pt 3

[crouzet951]

I took the opportunity to reconnect the original drain hose from the machine, which was retrieved from my parents' house the week-end before.

 

[crouzet951]

Right, there should be no more leaks, so onto the main motor.

The machine was again switched on, the water filled to the low mark and no leaks (yippee!), but the main motor was still dead. There was the awful contemplation of what could be causing it, and how difficult it would be to diagnose.

I took the motor off and checked the male terminals in the socket at the back of the motor, to ensure they were clean and tight. I also checked the resistance of both the field windings, and the armature while slowly rotating it. I had no idea of the correct resistance readings, but neither of them were open circuit.

The motor was reinstalled without the belt, and a quick spray of Electrolube was applied to both the socket and plug.

When the machine was turned on again, the motor started operating. It was very noisy, as would be expected after the commutator was skimmed and new brushes fitted, bur nevertheless, it ran.

I turned the machine off, reinstalled the belt, and turned it back on. The motor was dead again. AARRGH!

As a last resort the motor came off again, and I fitted my last pair of genuine Hoover brushes. Non-genuine new brushes had been fitted and perhaps this was the problem.

Reinstalled once again, it was still dead. When I say dead, the rest of the machine was working perfectly (filling, heating, pumping, and timer running), but the motor was not operating.

In final desperation, I lifted the rear of the machine about an inch and dropped it. The motor sprang to life.

I then tilted the machine, and with the timer at distribution, I compressed the clips and jiggled the plug in the back of the motor. Success! It could be made to stop and start when moving it.

The motor was taken off again and the male terminals were removed from the socked and cleaned properly, and the same was done with the female terminals in the plug. The motor was reinstalled, another light spray of electrolube, and the plug pushed home.

The machine was finally working. However, there were a couple more surprises in store. It was as if the machine was getting back at me for being left in the garage for all those years. Hehe.

 

[crouzet951]

The machine was started on a programme and seemed to be running properly. That was until it filled to the high level before the initial pump out, when there was another leak. Unbelievable.

Looking under the machine, it appeared this time that either the rust repair, or the drain hose where it connects to the drum, were leaking, as water was running down the hose. After switching the machine off, and further investigation, the water seemed to be coming from the front of the drum. The front?

If you look at the attached image, at about the four o'clock position there is a noticeable gap between the seal and the inner drum. It turned out that the seal was slightly twisted where it was attached to the outer drum, hence the leak only when it filled to the high level.

The sad thing was, was that I attached the seal to the outer drum when it was out of the machine so this exact thing wouldn't happen. Simply amazing.

All fixed? No, the machine had one further little surprise.

 

[crouzet951]

I forgot to take pictures of this so no images.

Not wanting the motor to run at spin speed much until the brushes had bedded in, I selected the B2 programme, which is the prewash high level fill at 50 degrees, than the main wash low level at 85 degrees. This would run the machine for a long time at wash and distribute speeds only, before spinning. The heat would also test everything for leaks, but as it turned out, leaking wasn't to be the problem.

When the very hot water was being pumped out following the low level wash, the water started pumping - but then it stopped. I looked at the drain hose, where no water was being pumped out (the drum was still half full of water), and looked at the pump, which was still running. It was a bit of a double take at first. This could only mean one thing, the pump impeller had come loose.

The water was drained out manually, and the three pump clips removed, The impeller fell out, as it had detached from the threaded insert still attached to the shaft. The very hot water must have expanded the impeller enough to detach it.

I didn't have a spare pump, so a small batch of the trusty Chemical Metal was mixed up, and the boss was glued back in place in the impeller. The repair was allowed to set overnight. I normally don't do 85 degree washes, but it has been perfect ever since at 50 degrees.

 

[crouzet951]

Some more images before closing the machine up.

The new module guard turned out well.

 

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All looks good down here.

Two more holes were drilled in the wire support to allow another cable tie for the thermostat wires.

 

[crouzet951]

Everything looks OK.

 

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Before the rear panel is attached.

 

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One last look inside from the front.

There is supposed to be a suppressor on the rear upper panel, but the new one hasn't arrived yet.

 

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From the rear with the back panel and lid installed.

 

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Manufactured in February 1979.

 

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To complete the olde worlde installation, new hoses were made from bulk hose using the original brass fittings.

As can be seen, it's now running on hot and cold water

 

[crouzet951]

Finally, it's back in the correct space.

The paint on the cabinet has yellowed slightly over the 34 years, so unfortunately the door colour is a little jarring. My bathroom has two enormous skylights, so perhaps the door paint will mellow too in the sunlight.

 

[crouzet951]

That's it folks.

Just one last thought, I know it's not very ecologically responsible, but it's sooooo nice to see the clothes actually tumbling in visible water.

Thanks to everyone for their assistance.

Best wishes
John

 

[mrprojectionist]

Fantastic!

A great job!

 

[electron1100]

Well Done

I would like to congratulate you aswell an excellent job and machine
Gary

 

[fido]

Quite a labour of love! I hope the repair to the sump hose stub holds up with the vibration etc. If not, it could be welded at a later date. I suppose it is different when you are doing the restoration as an enthusiast rather than (as in my case) as a reconditioner. I would have fitted a modern universal pump, as the old type with the cooling fan will always end up leaking when the shaft and seal become worn.

 

[hotpoint95622]

hotpoint95622

John

Bravo dear man bravo, excellent work and fine tuning of a magnificent machine I have been following this from the start, I have I job like this waiting to be started on a Hoover machine, just fantastic.

Lee

 

[chestermikeuk]

Hoover Oovah...

John, congratulations on a great restore and for taking the time to show the complete process, its a labour of love with any of these machines getting them up and running again - has the Bosch been retired ?

Cant get over how good the motor looks for a strip down and paint job - glad to hear its working as it should...

What next - matching dryer on top?

 

[ronhic]

John,

Congratulations. Looks wonderful and I bet sounds great too!