Hot Rod Maytag SMALL washload

[yogitunes]

the main that made Speed Queen some what special in my book was not only the 210 degree, but the agitator had vanes all the way up to the top of the water line, and with the speed of the oscillation, caused the water to splash upward out of the machine and hit the lid, no other machine I have ever seen did this, maytag may have had the same stroke degree, but the vanes were limited to the bottom only.

a maytag repair guy once told me the reason maytag lasted so long was because of the belt that would slip under strain, if you were washing a load of dungarees or work clothes, the machine would adapt to "save" the mechanics of the machine rather than do the actual job of handling the load and scrubbing the clothes clean, but the speed queen was what was the "chosen" one among construction workers, farmers, mechanics, these were heavy duty clothes that needed scrubbed and a machine that wouldn't back down, SQ was preferred over maytag, and if the customer wasn't sure what to buy, he would ask what line of work they were in, that would determined which machine would work best.....always talk to a repairman before you see a salesman, even when buying a car, go out back of the dealership and ask a mechanic which car do they see in the shop more for repairs?....then decide

food for thought!

 

[scrubflex]

Hey Yogi, are all Maytag motors designed and built to adjust to the agitation strain? Does the Dependable Care 1/2 hp motot operate the same? The orbital trans agitation stroke seem stronger and harder. I figure a 1/2 hp motor would enable the Power-Fin agitator to pull the clothes down from the top of the tub much better. The 4 large fins should not have any problems 'sucking' and 'pulling' the load down, up and over. Of course, it will not force the clothes downward like the dual action (spiral vane) but, better than it does. If the motor didn't 'give' the power fin could turnover more clothes per load size. What do you think?
The older Speed Queen 210 degree Polypropylene 3-Vane agitator was COOL. I loved the splashy-splash but, the washtubs weren't big enough.
Harry

 

[qsd-dan]

It takes a lot to strain to cause a Maytag transmission belt to slip. Believe me, I tried and only succeeded once.

 

[brettsomers]

Thats true, Dan. Overloaded my parents long-stroke and orbital machines and saw no noticeable belt slippage. Just because the belt is meant to clutch during spin doesnt mean it slips during agitation.

And i tend to load heavy, esp when the articles are lightly soiled.

 

[yogitunes]

to over come much of the "give"...I usually add an extra spring, theres already the slots for it, the orbital seems to "jump" a lot, and the extra spring holds it tighter, to really moved the agitator, you can even test this by putting a small board (like a broom stick) between the motor and the front suspension spring, watch the wash action, and with your foot, apply a little more "pressure" to the belt, and watch the agitator speed up a little and stronger, and then you'll see why the extra spring helps, and doesn't let the load make the system give in, I have asked about adding the spring and the damage it may cause, all they said was that it could cause the motor to burn out a little sooner but not much, I have done this on every maytag I come across, except for the "50hz upgrade", that made it too tight, and the motor over heated during the first spin and shut down, but i never had a problem with all the other machines... after putting the orbital powerfin in the helical small tub, I then put the helical powerfin in the orbital machine, added another spring, now this may be different because of the smaller tub, but it handled a jean load nicely...so I would say I have 2 happy maytags.....

my sisters SQ was a large capacity, it would wash a goodsize load, the nice thing about SQ was as the tub got bigger, the vanes also changed, not just taller but the bottom vanes increased, only about an inch or two, but unlike maytag, kenmore, GE they only added 2 inches of height to the agitator and brought the top of the vanes with it, it just to me a taller tub needed a bigger agitator to compensate, as well as a longer wash time than the regular capacity...but back to SQ small tubs, I always thought the laundromats only had the small tub, because of what they were meant for, then I found out later, SQ never made a big deal on the control panel about being EX-Large capacity, It was built in to the time fill to add an extra minute of fill time for the larger tub, only way you knew the size was by opening the lid and looking, odd things we just notice, I never like maytags as a kid, because could never seethem wash, even though all the guys in here recommended using a stick or similar item, at our laundry the attendant was always watching you, I tried to peek, but couldn't see much, and I had to know how the machine was washing, not when you open the lid and it stops!...but thats just me

 

[scrubflex]

I never liked maytags as a kid...could never see them wash..

I felt the same exact way about Maytag. As long as I can remember I'd like to watch washing machines wash and spin etc. Maytag became one of 'my loves' from the AWOR club and YouTube. Could adding a Start Capacitor Kit help prevent the extra motor spring from overheating and shutting off with the "50hz upgrade"?

 

[yogitunes]

thats possible, I wouldn't know, but there doesn't seem to be any slippage with the conversion, even with a good size load...this could be because of the material the new pulley is made of, it grips!...this pulley is a heavy solid piece unlike the original which is 2 pieces riveted together

weak springs alone will cause slippage, even if you get a 10 year old set, its alway as good idea to replace the springs and gliders and relube...

slippage may be minimal, but it's there, it won't stop agitation, it just slows it down slightly, like with the stick test, even with good springs, you will see the agitaor speed up a little bit, and you didn't even know that is wasn't going as fast as it could be all along....

 

[scrubflex]

Yogi, you know what my plan is for my Maytag dream machine. I want the strongest stroke that can be created for the Power-fin agitator with 50 hz upgrade. All of the Whirlpool/Kenmore 'straight vane' agitator stroke seem to pull the load down to the bottom of the tub stronger with steadier strokes, more so than the Power-fin. They used 1/2 hp motors. Would the extra spring for the motor absolutely make this possible?

Harry

 

[yogitunes]

I would think so, you may not need the extra spring, that new pulley really grips, I know it does in mine, and a heavy load of towels doesn't hold it back, and the power fin would actually work better if it didn't flex at the bottom, if I am correct the first black ones were connected at the bottom, you have to think like you said, whirlpools surgilator is a solid agitator all the way down, definate movement, and a solid power fin would get every bit of action if it didn't flex under pressure, but try the 3rd spring and if not it takes seconds to take it off and its only about 3 dollars, you could be hitting on winning combinations with the 1/2hp motor, the 50hz upgrade, and the non flexing larger powerfin, on this you may need a new brake package to hold that puppy still...lol...make sure its a 2 speed, cause on lower levels you'll really want to slow it down, mine is not and thats why I had to go to the orbital smaller base agitator, but there's still no question as to what it can handle, I have tried a number of different loads, and it pulled thru with the helical, and with the stick test there was no marked amount of "give" in the belt, the only other attempt would be a "load sensor" agitator, at least then you know the clothes will definately get pulled down and scrubbed, even a jean load, or heavy towels, and this would handle a bigger load, I would sacrifice the larger power fin just to have positive rollover, no matter what the load, even if it was a Whirpool/Kenmore, go Dual Action, with a surgilator, this works fine on a few items for rollover, but why not get the benefit of the full tub of water and know its going to move clothes everytime, and most maytags only have a short rinse so you want maximum movement in the short time....just some thoughts.....

 

[scrubflex]

I figured the power fins 'FLEXING' would have no problem pulling clothes down to the bottom because they're large and the added size would make the rollover action much better because they flex.

 

[yogitunes]

I would try different ones to see which one works best for you and the application, took a few tries till I got it to where I wanted mine....experiment!