Westy L5 - lots of progress to report!

[turquoisedude]

Finally got a high-speed internet connection at home (should work in Ogden, too, they claim) and since I am at home a lot more now, I figured it was high time to share the progress and pain (you'll see that later) with the L5 Laundromat!

First - I was challenged by hubby to get the Westy of the garage to make room for his new car...

 

[turquoisedude]

Brackets and springs were reassembled

And I moved the refinished cabinet down to the basement. That may not have been exactly where hubby wanted me to put it, but hey, I will use this beauty one day!!

 

[turquoisedude]

Tub reassembled and ready for a water test

It took a couple of tries to line 'em up right but I did eventually figure it out. The worst thing that I did when I quit my job was to NOT download all my archive photos to a disc for easy reference. Thank goodness I had a the CL8 sitting in the garage as a sample!!

 

[turquoisedude]

But does it hold water??

YES!! You can imagine that I did a happy dance to see that water was accumulating in the tub. I even made hubby divert conditioned water to the outdoor tap for this test!

 

[turquoisedude]

Tub seal dry as a bone

Call this 'pure dumb luck' - I was able to re-use the original tub seal beefed up with some flexible liquid gasket compound. Better still - it worked! Not a drop to be seen from between the tubs and the hole that I had patched up in the bottom of the tub was not an issue anymore either. The gods of Laundromats were well-pleased!!

 

[bygted]

Looks Great!

Nice job !
I tried to email you back about the westy boot.
Email me at [email protected] if you get a chance!
Thanks
Ted

 

[turquoisedude]

Slight pump issue

I managed to pierce the cover of the pump when I reassembled it for the water test AND the gasket I tried to make for this was far less than a perfect seal... I figured a gasket plus liquid gasket approach was going to work here and that a touch of JB Weld would fix the pump cover.

 

[turquoisedude]

So now it was time to mount the tub back in the cabinet

And oh my, that was trying exercise indeed! Hubby was most gracious in helping me to wrestle the tub back onto its spring-loaded supports. I would definitely recommend a two-person approach for this step!

 

[turquoisedude]

Re-installed the timer and wiring

Compared to the GE Combo, this was a piece of cake! Oh, and I made absolutely sure that the timer motor still ran BEFORE I installed it again... It did... LOL

 

[turquoisedude]

Now the water inlet valves

They had originally been installed on a bracket that pointed the hose connections inside the cabinet (possibly the machine once lived with a through-the-floor water conncetion). I re-installed the hose connectors through the back of the cabinet, since I may wind up having to swap water connections until I can get some permanent plumbing in the basement done.

 

[turquoisedude]

And now for the belts and changer

These were also a bi***, er, challenge, yes, that will do, to install! Again, hubby helped me out here.
It looks good, but read on...

 

[turquoisedude]

Power cord

I figured that 25 feet of 14/3 would do... LOL I could have used some 16/2 but I figured grounding was our friend...

 

[turquoisedude]

The first test

I just had to record this for posterity. It was NOT the result I expected, needless to say...
I recall in a previous post that someone had pointed out that the bracket on the changer was not securely attached. This was indeed the case, but Mr.Know-It-All here figured that JB Weld would do the trick. It didn't. The good news is that I found a welder in Magog who is currently repairing the changer bracket.
OH and I found a motor repair shop there, too! These people can and will rebuild any motor! Jeb (from Mansfield, OH), email me - I think they may be able to help out with your Westy dryer motor!!

 

[christfr]

hang in there. one step at a time. trust me i had mine totally apart 3 times.. but she is lookin real good and almost there... oh cool vid.. did you say the f word? ha ha

 

[aldspinboy]

Paul ! that sucks...but your one step closer to the wash drama right... hang in there. The machine looks great. Your efforts will be rewarded... take care.

Darren k

 

[northwesty]

That machine sure is getting a lot of care and attention, it will be a great feeling when it is finally up and working. These really are fun machines.

 

[a440]

Great Job!
Brent

 

[gadgetgary]

Oh Paul

Good luck with your venture.

I think I heard the F word(LOL)

 

[re563]

Congrats!!!!!

Can't wait to see the entire project complete, and maybe a video on the maiden wash????