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I don't dislike direct drive machines, I had a Kenmore in the early 90's that was a direct drive machine, and I liked it a lot. I have to give it up when I moved into my apartment. I had my mom store it for awhile in case I moved into a house again, but after a year I told her to sell it and keep the money since she bought them for me when I moved into my trailer.

But I think the belt drive Whirlpool and Kenmore are the best. I'm anxious as all hell to get the Kenmore from my friends house and start restoring it. My friend lives in Naperville, and I have to wait until she comes back to Davenport to get the washer and dryer.
 
1978 Wards toploader made by WCI looked like a White/Westing house of the time and a tie with our 2002 Amana that burnt up in 2004 and leaked.
 
i have to say the newer ge top load washer, not for relability but for the short/fast agitation, i had one for 4 years and it TORE up everything! just like direct drive whirlpools, i had the straight vane agi, and even with full water level and little clothes there was hardly ANY rollover! all these newer machine are disposable!! except new speed queens!
 
I brought a Kenmore DD on close out, when I moved into my first home.

It did do the job, but it beat the clothes up really bad, so I had to run the next speed down slower. since it beated the clothes soo bad. I had to stop the dryer half way to clean out the lint screen.

I hated the clunk sound of Neutral drain to spin.
 
The worst washer I've ever experienced was a 1959 Speed Queen fluid drive that was included in my first apartment. It had two loud solenoids, one for agitate and one for its anemic spin. It was anything but speedy and gobbled copious amounts of water while leaving clothes soaking wet at the end of the cycle. I even paid to have it checked out, only to find out it was working as designed.
 
how can i forget the GE's produced in the 2000's we had one that only lasted 3 years it beat the crap out of the clothes major lint producer (who thought we would say that about a GE) loud, plasticl and poor at extracting. looooooooong cycle time and noisy omg i could hear it upstairs in the dining room and it was in the basement!!! shame on you GE!!!!
 
Some years back I suggested the Maytag Neptune to my Partners Mom to replace her crappy WCI Top Loader, Both the washer and dryer were a disgrace. She now has a GE front loader (I was not consulted) and the crappy WCI Top Loader is still on the job with by sisters large family.
 
Ummm... I'm sure some people had problems with their Neptunes... but... mindful of some risk, when I bought my Neptune 7500 set in 2001, I got a seven year extended service agreement on both units.

Fortunately at year three, when in short order the motor, motor controller, main board, and belt/tub driving spider all had to be replaced, it was all covered by the extended service agreement. I later learned that my washer was a relatively early model in the third generation series. I understand that later models has new motors etc which would have avoided some of the problems. The cracked belt/drum spider, however, was just a disaster waiting to happen.

Since then haven't had any problems to speak of with the set. No mold or odor in the washer, either.

So... the Neptune problems were all fixable... but an extended warranty was a very good idea to get with these machines.

So I have mixed feelings about the Neptune. I don't actually think it's a bad machine, but it was hampered by poor manufacturing practices. The solid door is a point of contention amongst laundry enthusiasts, but I've learned to deal with it. I can actually tell from the sound if too much suds have developed.

There's also a lot good about the 7500 series. You can more or less instantly pause and open the door at any point in the cycle (well, a spin might make you wait until it stopped). The LCD display is really a great feature. Not only for setting up a large number of custom cycles, but also for the diagnostic tools it offers.
 
Hmmm

It all depends.. The only reason Whirlpool has so many units out there is that they make ALOT of the current washer market (Maytag, Roper, Inglis, Estate, Most Kenmore, Whirlpool and maybe another one i havent named).They are tough on clothes, but are durable for what they are...
GE's older top loaders left alot to be desired..Never had a washer that couldnt actually wash dirt from the clothes.. Dunno bout the new ones, but i wouldnt go back..
My HE2T (Duet) is SO-SO... It makes more noise than i think it should, has trouble balancing its self and its just not that Great.. Im ready to try something else...
But of all of the washers of recent, Maytag took the cake by killing the good thing they had and with the Neppies.. If they hadn't taken a medicore deisgn from another company to cheapen there product (top loaders) they would still be here.. Same goes for there Fridges..I dunno very many maytag fridges that have lasted 5 years..
As far as old units go, i can't really tell you because i don't know.. Apperantly, GE, Maytag and Whirlpool did something right back then, because see how many are still around...

3-12-2009-03-38-32--moonvalleycacti.jpg
 
In my experience-shredmores and shredpools.these machines have some good points-think it could be a simple matter to redesign the transmission to give LONG-SLOWER strokes and still be DD.Best of both worlds!!Another would be the "plastic" GEs.Great trash truck and krusher bait.the plastic parts "krunch" so nicely.
 
I will say something about the DD machines. We have one with the straight vane agitator, it is pretty rough on the clothes, but the dual action agitators are far easier on clothes. Whenever I use my grandma's DD with a DA, my clothes are the cleanest they ever get, and they don't come out twisted or anything.
 
The dual Action agitator makes all the difference. I repair for a living and have to also defend the DD design. Very servicer friendly and decent quality, which says alot today. It does have it's drawbacks,( short choppy agitation)and some would consider it flimsy, but overall the best choice for a standard top loader in the REAL world. I NEVER hear a complaint from a customer about being rough on clothes.
ALL washers have their drawbacks, including older Maytag and GE's. Maytags were not servicer friendly, if you had a tranny or seal problem (built from the ground up) and GE's, while good quality, had design issues. (pump mounted above the clutch/motor, and copious water usage).I don't ever remember seeing water usage data on a GE FF.
Whirlpool belt drive would have been a nearly perfect machine if the spin had been faster: I think centerpost design is smarter, because you don't have any components under water.
Just my 2 cents!!!
 
I'm in the business too, and DD's are great for most people. The older ones were solid machines. They do agitate fast and hard, but get one with agitation and spin speed control. Slow agitation + fast spin = a good wash. The worst are any of the new big door front loaders (except Speed Queen) and Admirals. matt
 
Loud

The worst machine Ive ever heard was a late 60s montgomery ward,it was actually scary.Iclunks and bangs were incredible.I think the biggest problem folks have with their machines is they overload them.I have seen people stuff things in them till they hardly run.Ive had 4 kenmores in 37years all of them worn out when I got them and they lasted for years.I started with a frog-eye and ended up with one now I use almost daily.It spins the water out fine,just dont overload them.In the seventies I remember they slowed the spin speed on some macnines because they spin wrinkles in clothes,like perma press.Folks didnt want to iron.
 
I too had a direct drive Sears Kenmore Elite top loader made by Whirlpool that was very harsh on clothes. It had a 'triple' action agitator, and that did not make a bit of difference. My Mom has a Whirlpool about 4 years old and it is also harsh on clothes. I NEVER had another machine that was so hard on clothing, regardless of how careful we were about the load size etc. I recently bought a Speed Queen top load washer, and it is almost exactly as the old Maytag Dependable care, best choice I made, it is quite gentle on the clothes, my whole family is glad to be rid of the Kenmore.
 
A friend of mine when I was growing had a Kenmore belt drive, BOL the water temperature was controlled by the wash time on the timer 14 was hot, 12 warm, and 10 cold if I remember correctly and only two water levels high and low. She lived and worked on a farm and had two children and was constantly doing laundry, and the only problems that she ever had with it was an occasional belt would break and I think the timer was replaced once. She also had a problem with the water valves because of the very hard well water. Other than those minor problems the machine was great, she used the hell out of it especially when doing work clothes.
 

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