Thor Wringer Washer

[tarantulae]

I picked up a Thor wringer washer on craigslist the other day and have some questions about it. Can anyone tell me the year/model so that I can try to find a manual for it?

The wringer gets jammed up on anything thicker than a tshirt. Any ideas on how I can adjust/fix that?

I don't know how to remove the agitator. It has a screw cap on top which removes easily enough, but the agitator still doesn't pull free. I've read advice to pour boiling water in to help loosen an agitator. Will that work on a Thor?

Lastly, the pump wheel has flat spots in it. I was able to get the pump working again, but it makes a racket because of the flat spots. Any idea what the wheel would be made of or where to get a replacement?

Here are the pictures. I also had a maytag wringer which fell apart during disassembly, these are the same pictures as from that thread.

The model/style tag says: T93ER 4302448

Thanks!

 

[tarantulae]

Good and bad news. I took the wringer apart and found out why it was slipping. The axle for the powered roll is so rusty the roll can rotate freely around it. I took the roll of the axle and plan to remove the rust and maybe try some water putty to get it round again, then epoxy the roll back on. Hopefully that will resolve my wringer troubles.

If that works that well, I might try the same thing with the pump wheel. Use water putty to build up the flat spots until round again, then sand it round. So far its looking pretty good though!

 

[wayupnorth]

Same boat here Duncan. Have a red trim Maytag that the tranny seized up on and the '48 Kenmore has a pump problem but can still gravity drain. Frustrating on these old machines now about 70 years old to loosen anything. My Kenmore still runs fine though and love playing with it. Otherwise my 35 year old Maytag 511 washer and 410 dryer work when I need them.

 

[tarantulae]

Sad to hear it Tim. Have you tried opening up the maytag to see if you can rebuild it?

For the pump, I poured in boiling water then manually turned the drive wheel on the pump back and forth until it turned freely. Another option would be to take it off and open it up to rebuild. Have you tried either of those on the pump?

 

[bradross]

Permatex black RTV silicon should work for the pump wheel...

from the pic looks like it's solid rubber. I've had success on similar projects using Permatex. When cured it is firm but supple, and can be trimmed with a very sharp knife.

 

[tarantulae]

Thanks Brad.

Here is what the wringer axle and wringer roll look like. It looks like they had a few bands of glue to hold them together.

Does anyone have recommendations on what I should use to re-glue them? Do I want it to only be a few bands or glue the whole surface? It looks like if its only a few bands then if I can find a roll in better condition, I could swap it over. Do rolls ever come up for sale?

Thanks again. I'll pick up some permatex and give it a try for the wheel. Thanks for the idea.

 

[wayupnorth]

I am not going to bother to take that Maytag wringer apart. I'd gladly give it to any member that could use parts or tackle the job. The Kenmore pump is all complete and turns freely but there is some sort of disconnect on the lever that moves the pumps friction wheel to the motor. Heck I can gravity drain it fine.

 

[stan]

Hi Duncan

Can't imagine anything was elver glued?
Not fimilure with Thor washers?
I'm not from the "show me states" but..
Maybe a few more pics showing what goes where, so we can see how things where taken apart, and what's supposed to be...how they go back ect, then we can throw out ideas for you!

 

[tarantulae]

That rod went in the hole of the wringer roll. There looks like a few glue bands on the rod, but because the rod rusted out and corroded, the wringer was able to freely spin on the rod. The rod end fits into the drive shaft of the wringer and this is the wringer that is powered by the motor. I cleaned up the rust and am going to JB weld it and see how that does.

 

[tarantulae]

Well, that didn't work. Going to try something thicker, like liquid nails along the length of the shaft to hold the roll on. Here's some pictures of how it assembles.

 

[bradross]

Wringer rolls online ...

Hey Duncan ... I have purchased replacement wringer rolls on Etsy for the Beatty wash I restored at the railway museum. There were some rolls that were standard for several brands. In fact, Lovell was contracted by different manufacturers to make the entire wringer assembly, so the rolls were common to many brands (Whirlpool/Kenmore, Beatty, Thor, etc.) Maytag was an exception; Maytag rolls are unique to their machines.

Keep an eye open on Etsy or ebay ... perhaps do a saved search so you can be emailed if/when a set hits the market.

 

[tarantulae]

Progress!

I took a spare 4x4 I had and put some tiedowns on it looped under the agitator, tightened them up and put boiling water in the washer. I plugged it in and the agitator caught on the tie downs and pulled free. I was able to clean under neath the agitator which was full of gunk from who knows how long.

I'm still waiting to see if my permatex holds for reattaching the roll to the axle. In the mean time, I disassembled the upper half of the wringer metal brushed and painted everything rusting with rust converter/primer. Tomorrow I'll coat it in white enamel outdoor paint and that should provide a good seal on everything to keep rust out in the future. Then reassembly. Then I can test my wringer roll repair and see how it goes.

I also tried to fix the pump wheel, but I didn't get enough permatex on it to round it off. It sounds better, so I think just reapplying some more until I get a nice smooth shape will do it.

 

[stan]

Good job

The inside tub looks great.
Shouldnt be long now!

 

[tarantulae]

JBwelded where the rust ate through on the wringer drip plates that direct the water back into the tub. Tomorrow I'll sand the JB weld down and then top coat all of it.

Tested my permatex roll today, and it holds strong. I can't break it free at all. I was able to topcoat the rest of the wringer assembly, so I might grab some pictures of that tomorrow once I put it back together. I still can't figure out exactly what model I have or find an owners manual or service manual for it. Any help?

I saw a snippit from an add which mentioned using SAE 40 oil in the transmission, and that it was easy to top up. But I can't find any obvious access to it. Would really like someone experienced in thor machines to give me some guidance.

 

[bradross]

Access to gear case...

Duncan, if there's no obvious port for oil, perhaps you can access the gearbox by removing the wringer post. On most wringer washers (including 1930s Maytag models)this is a way to top up the lubricant.

However, if there's no obvious sign that the wash tub has ever been over-filled (allowing water down the agitator shaft), I would leave well enough alone, especially if it sounds fine when in operation. A sure sign that over-filling has occurred is displacement of the lubricant, which would be visible somewhere - often around the power leg (the one supporting the wringer). Most of these machines boasted "factory sealed" transmission units, that never required topping up. My 1948 Kenmore has never been touched and still runs beautifully and almost silently.

 

[tarantulae]

Thanks Brad. I can't figure out how to even remove the wringer post. Unlike the maytag this one doesn't just lift off. I had read a thor wringer page that said topping up with oil 1/year and a drop of oil in the wringer bearings is what was needed for normal use. If I can't find instructions I'll just run it till I have a problem I guess, but I'd rather maintain it as needed if I can. I'll hope its one of the sealed systems then.

 

[tarantulae]

Got the drain hose and wringer reassembled. Pretty proud of my drain hose solution. Could be a good work around for maytags too.

What I did was buy a universal 5' washing machine drain hose, and cut the end to fit the drain and clamped it. I also bought an aluminum goose neck. I pushed the gooseneck into the drain hose until it fit flush, giving me that bend to hang it over the washtub with. I had to use petroleum jelly on the inside of the hose and on the gooseneck and really work it in slowly and with a lot of persistence, but finally it went. Then I had a brass piece that converts to garden hose thread. Pressed that in too and then clamped. I then put a quick connector on it that has a 1/4 turn shutoff. This way I can close the drain without the hook needing to be above the tub. My drain hoses also have quick connects on them, as does my house faucet, so this makes connecting to fill/drain very simple and easy. If I had to do it again, I'd cut down one side of the gooseneck to be a little shorter. As it is it hangs pretty deep into the tub. This would also make pressing it in easier as there is less distance to go.

I also reassembled the wringer parts. They look pretty good (I don't spray paint often so good enough to me). They don't look brand new, but it matches the rest of the machine I think. My wringer axle is holding strong, so we will see once I can get some clothes through it how it holds up. I tried to re-attach the wringer slides for the water to follow, but the rivets I bought weren't opening correctly to fasten. Maybe the wrong size? I've never riveted before so I don't know.

So hopefully I can get that re assembled tomorrow, and then put this thing back into service! I'm excited (mostly for the time I will save washing/drying diapers) and then I can move on to my next project (the swamp cooler).

 

[e2l-arry]

Drying

the old fashioned way or with an automatic dryer? Wringing leave about 25% more water in clothes that a high speed spin. I started line drying a few years ago so as to not use more energy drying wet clothes. I have an electric dryer so it adds up in the summer. And you know living in Colorado that Excel Energy jacks up the electric rates from June through September. But with our low humidity levels everything dries outside in only a few hours, at the most. And I've heard the sun acts as a sanitizer on clothes. That would be an added benefit for a new babies diapers!

 

[tarantulae]

Line drying. Right now we need to do so many small loads of diapers we're using a bucket and one of the plunger attachments to just do them by hand. We squeeze out the diapers and hang to dry. Problem is, the diapers are made to absorb water, so they take forever to dry. Hoping a good wringing will help them to dry in half a day instead of 1-2. I don't know about sanitizing, but it does bleach out the stains.