Restoring the 1959 Lady Kenmore.......

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I was thrilled when I found this set (posted in Thread #19602) for sale by a local dealer......who said it was in great condition (it was) and complete (it wasn't !). When we went to load it and upended it, the pump was missing.........taken off years ago (?). The dealer assured me he would get me a new pump (2 ports) and mail it out to me (he did). Here is the pump, actually a 3 port pump. Its the industry standard now that is used as a replacement for both Whirlpool and Kenmore, with either the recirculating filter or side mount self cleaning filter........

 

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3 port replacement pump.......... Three ports are circled in red...........the small port with the plug at the end is capped when replacing a 2 port pump.........the 3rd and small port being connected when a waterfall flo filter is used (or MagicMix on Whirlpool)........

 

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Trying to keep the washer as vintage as possible I first opted not to use this new pump. I had a NOS (new old stock) 2 port metal Kenmore FSP pump so I tried using it. When I first hooked it up and water tested it, it leaked EVERYWHERE possible.......and even in some IMPOSSIBLE places too. So the first thing to do was replace those #$**^##@!! CORBIN CLAMPS........ Corbin Clamps are those springy type of clamps that are the meanest thing to work with sometimes.......I replaced most of them with stainless adjustable hose clamps.....that took care of SOME of the leaks......

 

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The washer was "working" but NO water would pump thru the systems.......neither the drain, suds valve, waterfall recirculating filter........I could hear it trying......it turned out the system was totally plugged with "rusticles". Little bits of metal rust particles.... NOT a good sign.......

 

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So the disassembly started: This is a VERY complicated washer with a complex system of hoses and Check Valves, along with a suds saver diverter valve..... The rust totally plugged up the NOS pump I had put on........

 

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This is a view from underside of the washer....what looks like a "sump" from the bottom of the tub is actually one of the check valves. It has a rubber ball inside that "floats" up and down according to the flow of the water, either pumping in when the returning suds water, or "recirculating" and pumping out, during different modes of the cycle......The sump is circled in blue.....

 

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Flushing and draining the washer over and over didnt help as the rust was still present.......So there was no choice but to remove the inner tub and see what was going on.......

 

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Top removed........

 

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Removing the tub nut........

 

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Inner wash tub removed, it was not as bad as I thought but there were still little dams of rust in the tub.....all of which were blocking the system and the check valves when pumping out........

 

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And the source of the rust? The dreaded spin shaft rust.......oh oh.......NOT a good sign........

 

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The next step is to try and halt the rust from continuing.......I thought it best NOT to removed the outer tub at this point, but just to reseal the bottom donut seal with silicone and then to paint the spin shaft with POR-15

 

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I also siliconed ALL the possible places in the outer tub where a leak could (and did) occur.....The four screws at the bottom of the tub were also loose and needed tightening.....this the water port for the pressure switch....

 

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Now for a nasty job.......trying to repair the "self-cleaning" filter..... This is the chamber for the filter.....

 

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Its made to be easily taken apart so I guess the original designers felt it could be serviced........

 

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More of the filter.......

 

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Here is the filter "split" in half........ it was totally blocked with not only rusticles but also a big glob of lint.......

 

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Close up of the filter.........It consists of two rubber "bumpers" and is filled with glass balls. I felt bad taking this thing apart, it was the only thing on the washer that didnt leak! Its an amazing contraption.......makes me wonder who dreamed something like this up........???

 

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Inside of one half of the filter chamber.......

 

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Opposite side, with the glass balls removed for cleaning and the lint taken out........these are the two rubber bumpers.....

 

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Glass balls and Lint........

 

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All cleaned out, and ready to reassemble.......

 

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I was lucky to have the service manual for this washer. It describes the system for those of you who like me are facinated by its workings.......So here you go!

 

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more.........

 

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talk about complicated !

 

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more........

 

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and yet more......

 

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for Suds Return.... Notice the Check Valves in the system. They are very important for proper operation.......and a real pain when they dont work properly.....

 

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Here is one of the check valves close up. This one worked fine, thank goodness. This is the lower check valve, used in place of the usual sump, on the underside of the washer...

 

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It consists of a little rubber ball in a "sump". The ball floats up or down according to the flow of the water...