Just got my first wringer washer, and it needs a little work so I need some help

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I heard back from a seller of the 33 point socket, and they said it is .78 inches on the inner diameter. The gulmite bolts heads are 1/2 inch. So I think they are a no go, unless there is a half inch sized one somewhere. .
 
Have u tried

Emailing Larry..I think he had one to remove his bolts, but switched them out.
Unless he's planning on retstoring another, he may not need the gulmite again.
Geoff might know where to get one to borrow ??
 
Oh true! I have not! I just bought the wrench from phil. I was a little afraid to risk it getting away as it had a second watcher. I would also much rather have the correct tool rather than have to destroy the bolts and risk them getting stuck in there forever. Then I'd have to get a new center plate most likely. It may be too late to email them for that since it will likely be too late to cancel the order by the time they respond, but I will email them anyway! There input would probably be helpful too!
After I get the wrench then I can finally start taking the machine apart to see what is really going on. And I have some parts on the way too!
 
Larry just sent me his wrench, so soon I will be able to take the machine apart! (Thank you Larry!)

He brought up a point that my bearings may need to be replaced, otherwise I may still get water in the PU. Instead of replacing the bearings, you pretty much have to get a new center plate, which Mark has many of. What are your thoughts guys?
 
Bearings

Ok The plate off of pinky was super corroded. But I was surprised to see how smoothly moving the bearing was,and no metal shaving from wear. I did not have water in the pu. But you have had water in your bearing.

When you get it apart you can make that judgement. How smooth does it move are there rusted out roller balls in the bearing. Is it loose on the shaft. Any signs of getting hot.
And some how you have to grease that bearing.
The service manual says if the bearing is bad.. Replace the plate. You have to evaluate its condition.
I dont know what Mark gets for a plate.
So it's going to be what you see. Testing it after you replace the seal... see If it leaks. If it leaks thru, You may destroy the seal getting it out . And then mo money for another seal.

Wow another conundrum.
 
Hmm, Larry told me that there is no way to actually see the bearings when you take it out. And that would also mean no way to grease it without figuring out how to separate the bearings from the center plate. The shaft does have some side to side play and barely any up and down play. It turns perfectly smoothly. I noticed the power unit got warm when I ran it for that long time, but I dont think the shaft did.
I do not want to have to redo all that work because the bearing was bad lol!
 
New Parts Sources

My wrench should be arriving soon, and Mark is going to be sending my first box of parts tomorrow. So that is all exciting!

I have an update of interest for anyone looking for parts:
First, Mark is an excellent, helpful source for parts. He is very knowlageable and is willing to spend time on the phone and answer any questions that I have. He also is selling his parts to get rid of them as he has a lot, so he is selling for relatively cheap!

Second, I had called Lehman's and left a message asking about if they had Maytag wringer washer parts, and I thought they never called me, but I got a voicemail that I never knew about until I listened to all the ones I had. It was a representative named Dan who told me they no longer sell the parts, but, a buisness called Bunker Hill Appliance does! I dont think I will have a need for them because I have got a good thing going with Mark, but he is selling off all of his inventory bit by bit and not restocking anything, so once his parts are gone, they are gone.
In a time when the two main parts dealers people know of on this site are either done or retiring, I think these new sources could be helpful to people who need parts.

Bunker Hill appliance: 330-893-3700
Mark Beach: 520-624-4489

I will be taking some pics in the coming days for the "before" pictures!
 
No prob! I feel a little bit compelled to help the wringer washer community stay alive, so that maybe people 50 years from now could still use these machines and even repair them if they have to, including me, as I would like to use this machine as my washer for my entire life.
 
The wringer washer world is sort of like the vinyl record and analog photography world in that it is vintage and unique and interesting. It just is not a very big movement lol.
 
Can't tell what the last pic is

That doesn't good!
In a way it almost look like someone poured oil down the hole that the wringer post fits into and it ran out the leg. But I can also see where it's seeping out the breather hole, then onto the cross bar.
If u wipe that all clean.. How long dose it take for that much to leak out again?
 
The last pic is a pic of the wringer head, the lower roller drive. It is leaking grease.

Mark told me it could be oil from the wringer post too. But I am pretty sure it is mostly oil that has escaped with water from the power unit out the breather hole, then dripped onto that cross bar and either ran down it to that back leg, or overflowed off the bar onto the floor.
I wiped it decently clean before I ran it that time with water in it for an hour, so all this oil has happened over the past week or so since I did that. It gets to be a little more each time I go to look at it.
 
Wowzer And comment made by Geoffdelp to Larry

Geoff said..."Hi everyone ... well ... there you have it. I believe it's a combination of things. My guess is that when Larry got this machine, it hadn't been used for quite some time. I remember seeing the agitator with that big old hole on the top; surely, water got down there and was over the shaft/center. If those seals in the center shaft weren't good, water went into the transmission and into the right angle drive; hence the oil/water mixture coming out of the breather hole on the drive. Just like it was supposed to do.

Also, oil dripping down the legs means that where the right angle drive connects to the wringer post, the gasket is shot AND probably transmission oil/water traveled through the right angle drive and into the bottom of the wringer post." End quote.

That's a lot of runny grease. Neither one of mine were that bad.

Man, you are going to have to get the wringer head off the machine and separated.

As I said ammonia is cheap ( I get mine at the 99 cent only store)and cuts grease
but it is a gas that is very caustic and if you have lung issues (as I do) out side or by an open window with a fan.
A lot of rags. I started out with news paper. Rags next then paper towels.
Invest in gloves of some kind. That grease is a bugger to get off nails and hands,clothes floors. (yes I had a mess)
It's a great thing to be a diyer but we don't have to look like it. Most of the world doesn't get it.

Remember you asked what that long thing was that comes with the large rubber plate seal?
It is used to seal up the hole where the little screw is on the center plate.
Geoff says "
Phil does sell the rubber used to plug that screw hole; I learned it the hard way in reusing a screw without the lead washer; bad mistake. I caught mine, however, with oil shooting out everywhere; before I put the tub back on. Live and learn. Don't forget to tap the center plate securely in that area after placing the plug in; that center plate needs to sit flush to the power unit. That's where that little screw is very important; it also pulled the center plate down to the power unit making a good seal and without it, you will have to make sure that plate is all the way down to the power unit. "end quote.

I hope you have larrys thread saved. I think all your questions can be answered there.
 
Man there is grease coming from a lot of places lol. I got some break cleaner to spray on anything greasy to clean it up. And oh yeah I bought gloves for sure! My hands had that grease on them for days after just carrying that machine! It also ruined my good pants, though maybe when the machine is fixed, I could use it to really bash those pants clean.
And yeah the wringer head is coming apart, but it is just cleaning and some seals. I will not be taking those inner gears apart as long as I dont have to. The wringer head will come after I fix the rest of the washer though.
I will try the ammonia if I need to. Thanks for the suggestion. I have never really cleaned up grease before.
And thank you for telling me about that plug! The odd thing is it comes with the thing rubber gasket, and apparently I will only be using the cork gasket. According to Larry, I actually dont need both.

I am glad my agitator came off normally at least. I would not have bought the machine if it didn't, after reading that thread. I may not have if I knew it was gonna leak through the power unit also. I even tested it with water before buying it! But now at least I will have a machine that runs solidly for years and years with no questions. And I can tackle this teardown and rebuild while there are still people to talk to and a lot of parts available.
Thank you!
 
A small update: The wrench should be arriving tomorrow, and the parts are on their way as of tuesday!
I should be able to start the teardown tomorrow night! Or if not, then in the next couple days!
 

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