Westy L-5 moves to Michigan's west coast

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in2itdood

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Jan 6, 2012
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I was up with the birds this morning ... and headed to Michigan's East coast to fetch home this "needs attention" Westy L-5. Cosmetically she needs some help for sure. Her internals do not look too bad ... just encrusted with years and years of laundry spills and by products. The drum interior is really nice other than one dime sized bit of surface rust. All the wiring looks to be in good shape... though there are a few loose connections. This gal was in the house when the current owners bought it. I'm really glad they already had moved her from the basement into the garage! She's a heavy gal.

in2itdood++3-18-2012-17-41-42.jpg
 
From the back

Internals with the back off... that floor panel needs a good cleaning with a stiff brush and Lemon soft scrub. Gotta get that spring and belt back in place too.

in2itdood++3-18-2012-17-51-37.jpg
 
Unloading the beast ...

Who said I needed help? I just built a quick 2x4 ramp and slid her right down into the garage. All done for the night!

in2itdood++3-18-2012-17-56-59.jpg
 
Is that an imbalance cutoff in the upper left control shot? We had the W'house before and after this one and neither had a cutoff. They were known to samba across the floor on occasion. They were also BOL. Even with employee discount dad always bought the cheapest. (But he also sent 4 kids to college.)

And there's the mighty earthquake solenoid in the first shot. Scary loud even when you know it's coming.
 
Is this the model that had the hard plastic-bound manual that slid into the top? A very very awesomely cool machine Scott! They were the industrial strength-looking, yet streamlined machines. I remember growing up, an elderly neighbor had a set (w/d) in her basement, put up on a big slab to keep them secured and stable!
 
I pulled a kitchen chair up in front of ours. Which I jumped up out of when the spin solenoid went off. And I was usually there for the imbalance samba to shut it off and put the snubber arms back on their plates.
 
SLANT FRONT WH WASHER

WOW Scott that machine is in good overall condition and I would guess that not only has it not been used in a very long time, It doesn't look like it was used too long or hard in its first life.

 

All the suspended WH Slant Front washers till the 3belt models had A mechanical off-balance shut off. But like other washers , [ MT Frigidaire  and others ] they didn't always work as the tubs swinging motion would sometimes be in a different obit and miss the cutoff lever.

 

These are fun machines I have the L-4 which is the same except for minor trim differences and we have the dryer that matches your new find. On my L-4 the motor has stopped working, so I will have to get into it one day soon.
 
All the suspended WH Slant Front washers till the 3belt models had A mechanical off-balance shut off.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Beg to differ, neither of our BOL models had offbalance shutoff. First aprx 1947 (2-belt) and second aprx 1956 (3-belt no potato).

I have also had TLs with offbalance shutoff which could bang themselves to death if left unattended because the tub doesn't always choose to sway in the direction of the shutoff lever.
 
westy

That is the same washer my mother had when I was very young that started my interest in washing machines,I loved that machine.The big question,how is the door boot?
 
Congratulations - those are fun machines and surprisingly not that bad to work on!    I have lots of service information and hard-learned lessons that I'd be happy to share with you.   My first 'tear down and restore' on a vintage washer was an L5!!

 

If the door boot needs to be replaced,  that is probably going to be the biggest challenge but substitutions are possible.

 

All the best with your 'new' machine!!

 

 
 
Thanks and update!

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the comments. I have not had much time to work on it this week ... but I have tightened a few loose ends and did some cleaning. Interestingly. I found some missing bolts and one missing "shock mount" .. ( pretty sure one can be fashioned from a car/ tractor part ). I did some deeper cleaning on the front ... and it turned out nicely. I will try and post a picture in the next day or so. She was glowing pretty brightly in the morning sunshine. Yes, the little white knob is water level. I took that knob off and lost its tiny flat tension insert last night ... Hurray ... I found it on the floor of the garage this morning. The door boot seems to still be in good shape and malleable ... at least it is not crumbly. The basket is in nice shape too ... but I have found a few minor chipped/ rust spots that will need to be repaired. All in all she is a pretty good old gal. Once my buddy reconnects some of the loose wires (electricity scares me a bit) ... I'll give her a test wash.
 
In the sunshine

Hi Guys,
Here is the picture I took yesterday morning after a good cleaning to the front. Overall, I think she is going to clean up nicely. A little of the interior boot is showing ... seems to be a little stretched.

in2itdood++3-22-2012-08-24-13.jpg
 
WOW!

 

 

What an awesome find Scott, CONGRATULATIONS!!   I would LOVE to find one of these (same model) within driving distance some day!  

 

This is the same model washer my grandmother had on her "laundry porch".   The small pass through between the kitchen and sun porch, it was only big enough for the washer, a utility sink and water heater.   Every time we'd go to my grandparents house I would find my to the porch to see if she was doing "a load of wash"!   I can still remember the smells.....

 

I'd stay there, watching the washer until my grandmother would yell at me, telling me to "Get out of there, go outside and play".   Even then I would find my way back until she'd yell at me again.

 

I hope you get it up and running soon!

 

Kevin
 
Laundromat

Such a simple and classy design, i would someday love to find this or a spacemate. This machine looks to be in great condition, even the paint. I'm looking forward to reading as this project unfolds.

 

-Tim
 

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