Westy deja vu??

[turquoisedude]

History does repeat itself sometimes... Just about a year ago, I got my first Westy Laundromat (the L5) from Tampa and it spent most of the summer in various stages of dissambly in the garage - here we are a year later and the Canadian Westy Laundromat I got last August is now undergoing its turn in the restoration process!!

 

[rp2813]

I do love these machines. Mine was a total basket case but the mechanics were still good. It was too much of a project for me, and I had no place to use it, so I let it go.

 

[turquoisedude]

This one should be relatively easy

There's nothing like having worked on a similar machine already! Knowing the insides of the Westy Laundromat made it a snap to disassemble (fortunately, I got to decide when the tub would come off with this one!!).
I knew I had a motor that wouldn't run, so I wanted to extract it for testing andI knew the door boot was in really bad shape so I would have to take the tub apart to temove it. Step 1 was taking the tub assembly out and it went very smoothly. This tub is still in really great shape, too!!

 

[turquoisedude]

Wash tub

Looks fantastic! This machine was probably not subject to hard usage, as it was in a seasonal home that was open only during the summer months. A little CLR cleaned up the wee bit of scale present and it was fine.

 

[turquoisedude]

The offending motor

I got the motor out easily enough and hooked it up; it buzzed but didn't turn. I gave the drive pulley a twist and the motor ran! I could not make it run without an assist, though. Like the motor from the matching dryer, I suspect it needs a good cleaning. I took it into the motor repair place in Magog where they brought the dryer motor back to life; I hope to hear back from them about it next week...

 

[turquoisedude]

My new mascot

Echo kept me company while I disembowled the Westy. I figured since I had the tub out, I might as well clean up and prep the cabinet for repainting.

 

[turquoisedude]

Inside tub nearly perfect

Just a couple of small rust spots! I roughed them up and gave them a preventative dose of POR15. I also got the new door boot installed (that is a piece of cake when you know how to do it!!)

 

[turquoisedude]

Cabinet before cleaning

I hauled the cabinet outside and gave it a good cleaning with a heavy-duty cleaner and degreaser.

 

[turquoisedude]

Well worth the effort!

I can't believe how nicely the cabinet cleaned up! I don't think that I am going to repaint it after all. I may need to repaint the top cover and the front access panels, but I will try cleaning them up first, too.
Oh and I have to come clean, too... I thought this was a model CL-8, but when I could actually get a good look at the name and model number plate I discovered this a CLB-6! OOOPS!
I also discovered the 'birthday' of the machine - May 29, 1953. It'll turn 57 soon!!

 

[turquoisedude]

Still lots to do, though!

I still would like to do an oil change on the speed changer unit. It seems to run fine, but I figure it will be worth it. Also, I need to work on the water solenoids. Initial testing wasn't conclusive, so I am going to make one (and only one) attempt to open up the solenoid and clean it out. Any signs of trouble after that and I will replace it with a 'modern' one like I did with the L5.
And, of course, I will have to do some reverse engineering on the door gasket to make it seal properly because I am using a door boot that is not the exact match for this machine.
Despite all of this, I think I can get this beauty washing again by the end of May! Well, unless the job offer I got last week does turn out to be legit...

 

[laundromat]

reintroduction

I would like to see Electrolux take that design,modify it a bit and reintroduce the Laundromat washers and dryers to the public!They are,by far,the best design in automatic washers (not necessarily the best one way tumblers) ever introduced and,as long as they were used and well maintained,they would last a generation.We all know this from our own experiences with the Laundromats.Wouldn't it be so fabulous for them to bring the laundromats back???!!!!

 

[turquoisedude]

I would buy one in a heartbeat! That would indeed be great if they brought them back!!

 

[customline]

Well......

Can't wait to see it kicked into action.

 

[austinado16]

It's fun to watch you go through this machine. Would love to hear more about the washer boot you're using, what it's from and what mods you have to make to get it to work.

I just took my '53 LB-6 apart and rebooted it w/ an original boot.

 

[turquoisedude]

The door boot I have is a style Q-4699 which I believe is for the space-mates (I have a couple of spares, too). I thought it would sub for the Q-4688... However, I did manage to jury-rig the door gasket on the L5 with some closed-cell weatherstripping to form a tight seal. Not pretty, but it works! I will use the same trick on the CLB-6.

 

[turquoisedude]

Motor has been fixed!

Just got a call from my now-favourite repair shop in Magog, Quebec to let me know the motor is fixed! The starting capacitor was shot (a common failure from what I could gather in some Westinghouse service literature). So, guess who's gonna be re-assembling a Laundromat this weekend?!?!?

 

[turquoisedude]

Got the motor back....

And being the 'never happy to leave well enough alone' type that I am, I figured that it would be a good idea to change the wiring leading into the motor 'cause it was kinda brittle... EEESH! I struggled to get the cover plate off and managed to crumble off most of the insulation of the red and white wires. Even worse, I could not clearly see where I could re-attach new wires and I was not about to start messing around with the windings. It took me a while, but I finally decided to try slipping insulating tubes on the wires that were exposed and taping them into place. Thank goodness the black wire was intact 'cause I had a time getting the newly-insulated wires through the cover plate! The motor wiring is shown in the photo - not pretty but by jove, it works and I did not get electrocuted in the process! Note to self - make sure the washer is well-grounded for testing... LOL

 

[turquoisedude]

Tub almost back together

I noticed a problem with the outer tub, though. The inside rim was raised for some reason and would probably have leaked water badly. A coat of JB Weld took care of that! I did manage to get the tub back together by the end of the day Sunday (no photo of that). With any luck, I will be able to water-test it this coming weekend...

 

[turquoisedude]

Oil change

And of course, I just HAD to change the oil in the speed changer unit. The stuff that came out was pretty gummy and gross, so I am sure this will make a difference... Stay tuned!!

 

[turquoisedude]

Not much work on the Westy this week...

Yeah, working again is cutting into my restore time... LOL
I did manage to water-test the tub, though. I was hoping the seal would hold and that the raised section of the inner tub that I plugged would hold...

 

[turquoisedude]

YAY - it doesn't leak!

Needless to say, I was VERY happy that the tub seal was good!! The tub is ready for reassembly now...

 

[turquoisedude]

Electrical stuff...

I figured it would be a good idea to check the timer again - it ran through a whole 'cycle' just fine. Wow - a working timer! Last thing I did for this week was to wire in a new power cord and I had to change one of the disconnect terminals on the timer (it had broken). Stay tuned for the reassembly!!

 

[golittlesport]

You do good work! It looks like the water inlet is at the 11 o'clock position, instead of the 2 0'clock position I've seen on most slant-front Laundromats. Is that right?

 

[turquoisedude]

Yep, the water inlet is at the 11 o'clock position... Funny, so was the L5. Could later models have had the inlet at the 2 o'clock position??