I replaced the bearings in two hours, the job is quite straight forward. first you must unplug the machine and turn off water supply and remove the hoses from the back of the machine. then remove rear inspection plate by removing the screws and lifting plate out.this exposes the drive pulley securing nut. then you have to undo the top of the machine by removing the self tapping screws and sliding the lid off. you can remove the drum drive belt without undoing the motor bolts by rotating the drum and guiding the belt off the pulley at the same time.the next step is to remove the front of the machine, this is achieved by removing the soap dispenser tray then undoing the four self tapping screws behind it. next you pull off the control knob, this allows the panel to be pulled forward , the four wires to the push buttons will need to be marked with some tape ( on which you can write their respective numbers ) then the spade terminals can be pulled off. once the panel is removed you can remove the remaining screws to the main front panel. once these screws are out it is time to remove the door seal, undo the jubilee clip and pull the seal forward. the top clip on the outside face of the door seal will also need to be slipped off to allow the entire seal to be removed, this may seem a bit of a chore but it will make the drum removal much easier and allow better access, you can now lift up the front panel and reveal the door latch. undo the two door latch retaining screws and let it hang to one side on the wires. now take the front panel completely off. now the drum is revealed completely. prise off all the spring clips around the drum and remove the heater cover at the bottom by undoing the plastic nut. next remove the metal bracing bar that goes across the front of the machine. the front cover of the drum can now be carefully removed complete with the heater assembly ( after removing and marking the heater supply wires ) It is then time to undo the nut on the rear pulley at the back of the machine, this is rather tight and the spanner may require an initial whack with a copper mallet or hammer whilst holding the drum in position ( a block of wood can be useful here between the drive pulley legs and the drum ) once the nut is off the pulley can be unscrewed. screw the nut back on the exposed drive shaft nut to protect the thread then hit the nut sharply to loosen the drum from the bearings, once the drum is out the bearings and seal can be seen. At this point it is wise to remove any debris and old coins bra wires and curtain hooks from the drain hole that feeds the pump ( there will be some ) the bearings will be really tight in their housing and you will need a large hammer preferably a club hammer and a metal bar about ten inches long and about an inch in diameter to knock them out. working from inside the drum housing drive the rear bearing out by repeatedly hammering the drift it is the worst part of the job but brute force will prevail, they went in so they will come out, once the rear bearing is out drive out the front bearing and seal by working from the back of the machine and once again use the hammer and drift to knock the bearing and seal out. clean out the bearing housing and wipe a little grease or vaseline to aid refitting of the new bearings around the housing. inspect the bearing shaft ( spider ) and if it is badly scored it will have to be replaced. the bearings can now be fitted, be carefull not to hit the centre of the bearings as this will ruin them and you will have wasted you time and money, use a length of pipe or a large socket that fits over the outer ring of the bearing and carefully tap them home, take care not to damage the oil seal also when fitting it, the machine can now be reassembled. when fitting the drum front cover wipe a little vaseline around the rubber seal as this will greatly reduce the chance of leaks, when reassembling take your time and make sure everything is tight and all the electrical cables are connected correctly especially any earth wires!. When my machine started rumbling I thought about getting a new one but otherwise it was a good machine and for the sake of £20 for parts and a couple of hours work it was well worth doing.
b halligan, January 2006
