You have to remove the front of the drum in order to access and remove the stainless steel drum. Disconnect the power! Open up the top of the machine. Slacken off the motor by loosening the adjustment bolt - check the tension of the belt first as you will have to reset this at the end.
Slip the belt off. It's now worth just checking that the bearings have gone by rotating the drum by hand - motors have been known to give the same symptoms. If it sounds rough then carry on!
Remove the inspection cover at the back of the machine and remove the nut holding the pulley. This is a standard thread. You either need to hold the drum and/or give the wrench a sharp tap to loosen it.
I've found that it is possible to remove the front of the machine without having to undo the door seal which saves a bit of time later on. Unscrew the front of the machine, remove the control know (it pulls off). Remove the clips from all round the drum. This is fiddly and there are some smaller ones at the bottom - remember where they go.
Pull the front of the machine away to one side leaving the internal drum exposed. You will have to give the spindle a sharp tap (probably with a large hammer!) to free the drum. Withdraw and inspect it. Check the spindle where it sits in the bearing seal. If there is any sign of wear or corrosion it is worth replacing the whole spider assembly. If you don't you'll find yourself replacing the bearings again in the next year as water will get past the seal.
If you live in a hard water area the drum will be full of c**p which should be cleaned out as it only gets dislodged and leaves marks on your washing. To prevent a build up of this in the future you can do a 65deg wash with some soda crystals (without the clothes!!) once a month or so. This dissolves the grease and crud that builds up.
If you can get a suitable bearing puller all well and good. I couldn't so I drifted the bearing inside the drum plus seal from the rear of the machine and once that was out worked from the inside of the drum and drifted the smaller bearing out to the rear. Drifting - hit with large hammer and suitably large piece of metal)
Refitting is a reversal of disassembly (to misquote Haynes). When reseating the bearings don't hit them on the inner race. I used to old bearings to act as a drift. You have to hit them fairly hard.
Although Steve packed his bearings with LM grease I was recommended not to do this by my supplier so it's worth checking to see who is right here. (mine are still running OK).
Reftit the drum, refit clips (double jointed arms are useful here but it is possible) and re-assemble the machine.
It is worth checking the motor brushes if you haven't done so as they will probably need replacing.
Finally, before putting it all back, put the machine on a quick wash and check for leaks.
Ian., July 2004
