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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- My dad found a Frigidaire front load washing machine in a metal scrap yard that looked brand new and he bought it for $10. We assumed something was broken inside and began disassembling it, the tub felt loose and wobbly right away. Everything looked brand new with no cobwebs, dust or mildew on gaskets, ect. Once we took it all apart we found that the spider bracket on the back of the tub was broken in 3 spots and the bearing hub was completely loose from the tub as seen in the video. After pricing the part online we knew it was not cost effective to pay $300+ to fix a used washer so my dad decided to build the part. I took photos as an after thought because I've seen lots of people having the same problem and thought a few might benefit from it. I wish I had thought about pictures during the process but this should give you an idea about the structure and how it is made, you can build this with varying designs so take what info you find helpful and give it a try. The most critical part is centering the bearing shaft perfectly and also measuring to the top of the shaft where the pulley bolt goes and measure down to the edge of the tub and repeat in all 4 directions to make sure the shaft is square with the tub. This is definitely not an easy fix but the materials were less than $20 and I have a good as new washer for a total of $30.
Music credit goes to zwieR.Z. at....
• Imagine Dragons - Radi...
Mid-2022 and this washing machine is still used almost daily and no further repairs have been made. Family of 5.
This has been used DAILY ever since this fix and it is still working great. Even I was nervous about the spin cycles if something came apart I bet the neighbors would hear the carnage.
aarongriffin81 Hi, I was just wondering what size the tube in the middle is that the shaft goes through and how is it attached to the shaft. I dont see any welds in the video.
I do not recall the size of the stainless pipe but the spindle fit tight inside of it and is welded on the back side in a ring all around the end of the pipe. It looks like it would be a loose fit from the front but the spindle has 2 raised areas that fit the pipe as seen in the broken spider assembly on the ground next to the washer tub. We used a pipe like this so we could weld to it instead of welding to the spindle.
The spiders on these machines are designed to fail!
Somebody could make a pile of dollars making stainless replacements.
Nice work on the DIY spider! Certainly far better than paying like $400 to get a new inner drum assembly complete with the same POS cast aluminum spider. I haven’t TIG welded stainless in quite a while. This should be fun!
UPDATE: Over 5 years later, this machine is still going strong and no issues yet. It is used daily for a family of 5.
Do you have any idea what size the pipe is in the center? Did you have to change to a new style bearing to account for the extra weight?
@@chrisratcliff486 I don't know what diameter the tubing is but it should fit tight over the original steel spline after you break off the aluminum spider assembly. It may vary in size from one machine to another so just engineer it as you go.
Can I do it for bosch
Now you know there is no $ payback on that very correct and good fix - if you have any value to your time. Satisfaction in having saved something from the scrap heap. Cheers because you are the only one I see that used SS and didn't put an anode back in the washer like the assholes that designed that spider. I would like to hear from one of the designers of that machine that went home sick to his stomach at being forced to design death into the product.
Excellent. Apart from SS spider , manufacturers should think about SS body or atleast good galvanized steel with thick powder coat. The rust i have in LG front load is insane
Still going strong in 2019 (3.5 years so far).....Absolutely no mainetence done to the washing machine yet and used for family of four.
Needs to be made from epoxy-carbon-fiber. I would pay extra $$$ to ensure my washer lasted 10-20 years, besides the fact that servicing the drum is probably the most labor intensive task.
Great video! Just wish I had the skills to weld this. Have the exact same problem.
Well whom ever welded this one didn't have the skills so why not give it a shot.
@@recrdholdr ouch.....lol. My dad has stick welded for decades without training, only self taught. He gets the job done but it doesn't look pretty.
Why you don't make it and sell it for cheap
I need one exactly the same for the model I can buy it from you
Companies will watch this and look for ways to prevent fixes. It's not about longevity it's about the next sell.
Some of the screws holding the spider arm are either glued or welded, ordinary DIY just can’t get it off. I guess that’s one way to discourage you fixing it, since you have to buy the whole inner tub assembly which cost way more to the point better off just buy a new one.
I know this is ancient, but in case anybody's still looking in 2024... They're only welded by corrosion (dissimilar metals). I sheared all 6 heads off with a 1/2" breaker bar in a minute or so. Just need a big enough tool for the leverage. The fact you destroy it is irrelevant since the spider is dead anyway.@@youarehere1251
my frigidaire laundry center front loader gets very little use and looks almost new -except for the spider. It seems that the part (only with the spin basket) goes for $300 or more. In addition there are many variations for the various models of electrolus/frigidaire and allied brands. The manufacture designs a bad part and the gouges the consumer for another defective replacement part.
the spider and ss basket is sold under one part number only is lifetime warranted
Would you make one for me?
Amazing. Exactly wat i need for my ge
It's a great idea. But if you upgrader the spider with better material the drum will rust and give up. I have first hand experience with that.
The drum is stainless steel.
Very cool! I just had the same issue on mine. I bought one on eBay, and coated it in Marine paint used for out drives on boat. Hopefully it will last me.
Silicon is also a good material - 4 tubes of silicon cand seal your spider
@@MonkeyBlueAss Nah, silicone would NOT last, I guarantee you on that. Fiberglass or marine hull repair put on the spider, now that I can guarantee you WOULD last. Did it 10 years ago and still going strong.
How do I order 1 for my gr wbvh5300k0ww?
No vibration in the spin? How did you balance it?
It doesn't vibrate, the machine experiences much more imbalance from just the clothing not being balanced. There is no way to balance it, per say. It is STILL used all the time to this day and no further repairs made.
Great fix. Got the exact same problem with my Gibson, spider arm was broken. Removed the original spider, one heck of a job, had to grind cut the arms as the bolts were jammed, and had to turn the shaft on a lathe to remove aluminium it was cast in. It appears you used a 1- 3/4 tubing, what lenght was it ? Also, what width were the arms made of 1/4 in Stainless plate ? Did you have the spider dynamicaly balanced after fabrication ? Any significant unbalance at spin cycle ? Stainless is definitely the best way to go.
We did not balance anything. We centered the shaft and squared it true by using string to measure from the end of the shaft downward to the edge of the drum and repeated several locations around the shaft/drum. After it was all assembled there was a slight offset when turning the drum when viewing from the front of the machine. It is my opinion that these are made to withstand the unbalancing quite well. The spin cycle is incredibly fast and most times I don't notice any shaking, the other times can easily be normal unbalancing from clothing. It has been 3 years and still used daily without ANY further maintenance yet. This was a machine found in a metal scrap yard for $10, the spider assembly was already broken. There was around $10 extra in material to repair it. All stainless steel. The 1/4 inch bar stock is probably 1.25 inch, I can't remember. The length of the tubing would just depend on your machine, it has to end before the water seal. The brass section has to be protected and not scored or damaged from welding, etc. The tubing was a tight fit over the original spindle/axle and welded to the axle on the BACK side of the axle.
What was the sequence of assembly? Did you first weld the arms to the tubing making sure that the arms were perfectly flat with the tubing sitting, then adjust final position by tacking in the bolted sections ? Since the shaft has to protrude a certain height so the brass sleeve and bearings fit, the tubing is floating over the drum, did you install it that way? Thanks for the responses
The flat bars on the bottom, nearest the drum, were all welded on initially and all were cut exact same length. That centered the axle. The outside ends of the flat bars were then attached to the drum at the original mounting holes via stainless bolting tabs. At that point, the axle is still movable UP and DOWN, towards or away from the drum. We looked at the original spider bracket and could determine there was a small gap between it and the drum....we set a temporary spacer under the new stainless bracket to match somewhat close. That gap distance only slightly matters, you want it close but exact is not critical. Then, with that space set we squared the axle with the drum, explained in prior text, and welded 1 flat bar at a time maintaining the axle square. The upper flat bar creates a solid bridge support and the spacer could then be removed. The water seal and bearing races must be protected the whole time, especially the brass water seal race. The end result can vary slightly as there is room for the drum to move forward or backwards just a small amount inside the drum housing. You can feel the gap if you reach inside a front loader and pulling up the large rubber seal for the door. The drum obviously rotates but the outer drum housing does not. The distance between is forgiving. I can nearly fit my fingers in the gap, that is how much you can be 'too high' when setting the height of the axle from the drum. I can see a slight wobble of the drum at the front of the drum, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch variance. It has been going great for 3 years since the repair. 4 people in household, daily use.
Thanks Aaron, at what point were the bolting tabs welded to the outside of the arms?
Gerard Vachon The bolt tabs were shaped to fit the drum and bolted down tight to begin with. Then, the lower flat bars were spot welded on to both the tabs and the axle. When we were happy with the centering position of the axle(early adjustments were needed), the tabs were welded from the top side that was visible and then unbolted to weld the back side. Also, while it was unbolted, welding the back side to the axle. Then bolted back on to finish adding the top flat bars. The outside of the top flat bar restricts you from welding the underside due to the close proximity to the lower flat bar so make sure the weld is solid from the top. I recall grinding the flat bars to fit the curve of the axle to get a better weld, doing so BEFORE cutting to fit the length as it will change the point of contact. It's easier to shorten the bars than it is to lengthen them. The bars all fit tight and tapped into place just prior to spot welding.
Bush diameter length balancing?
My spider arm broke on my GE Front Loader. I am going to find a welder to fabricate my spider arm. do not want to get a computerized model. Are your tips and guidelines written anywhere?
No, sorry. But there are some other videos on TH-cam similar to mine that may help get an idea how to do it. Mine is still being used about daily with a family of 5. I forget how long it's been since this video but the washing machine has never needed repaired again.
Smart!
cool I need to find someone to make this for me.
Music is:
radioactive (instrumental version) imagine dragons
not sure what version?
If you replace this part make sure you coat the new spider with Epoxy Resin Paint. This will seal it for good so this problem will not happen again.
It is made entrely from stainless steel. The original problem exists solely because it was made from an anode material that corroded in water since there also exsted a cathode material next to it.
NLA
Balanced??
It seems pretty balanced, washing machines are NEVER balanced while loaded but they are designed to accept imbalances. This machine worked for 7 years after the repair and still worked when we moved and bought new machines. Everything else would fail before this repair fails.
when buy a replacement spider arm, buy some rust bullet and coat new one , problem solved! rub in 3 coats, it will stop the corrosion!
NLA
Good idea. Fire whoever welded it but a good idea.
I purchase my Samsung front loader from lowes the sales man said this to me believe me this is the last washing machine you will ever buy is all stainless still very durable 6 years later the spider arm is crumbling like is Mexican cheese what kind of Bs fucking product this company is making I will never buy another Samsung again I can't even find the part anymore because the stop making it I took the whole machine apart and now I sit with spare part so frustrating I'm sure I'm not the only one
You're not. There are many others and as of yesterday, me too. Shopping for a new machine today, Top Load 4 sure
this fix will not last long. since it is not balanced.
It's been used daily for OVER 3 years since the repair and never needed any maintenance yet. The imbalanced drum was also a concern to me but the washer is designed to absorb a major imbalanced load to begin with. If I replaced the spider assembly with an original part, it would have already failed again.......
@@aarongriffin81 Exactly. If the materials used are approximatly symmetrical, it will be 'reasonably' balanced. Who knows whether even the manufacturer's parts are balanced precisely, seeing as a few washes or any slight corrosion will through them slightly out of balance very easily. Yet they work well, until they crack. My only worry would be that I'd make one of these and struggle getting that shaft perpendicular.
how do you make sure shaft is centered?
Finding center of a circle is a useful trick. Use a straight edge or long level and make a mark across what looks to be 'about center. Turn several degrees and repeat. Do this 4 or 5 times and you will end up with a circle(pentagon or such) and the center of THAT is 'center'. The lines you made do not have to be centered but each one makes center easier to find after you have several made.
Better than new I would say that new spider arm will probably never break, the original one becomes weak from exposure to soap, bleach etc, and eventually breaks :)
Nice work! The spider just broke on our 13 year old Whirlpool. The bearing went out at 6 months, and I replaced one of the computer boards a few years back, so if you’re handy, you can keep them running for a long time. Had to buy a new washer because of the time needed to repair the spider and the price doesn’t support a new spider on an old machine, but may try repairing and sealing with epoxy. But, I really like what you did on yours.
Thank you ...welcome to my channel to share together
Great vid, great thinking and i want to try it myself. But i am having problems finding the way howe to align everything.
Maybe HoneyBees could explain this process to us all. I did notice other viewers were wondering how you did that ?
I have my spiderarm on the bench, i treated it with some epoxy 2K seaker and paint. But this spider arm had it days so i need to prepare and start making the new one.
But if i fail and it wobbles a little bit i am doomed.
Start by finding center on the drum by drawing several straight lines with a straight edge or yard stick, etc. They don't have to be perfectly centered but after you place several, rotating to make many lines across, you will see where it creates a small circle in the middle. Even when not crossing exact center, you can see where center is. You can also make a temp jig to hold the axle and simply measure from the base of the axle to the edge of the drum. Repeat all the way around the axle.
Then, to center the end of the axle furthest from the drum, take measurements from the end of axle to the edge of the drum. Repeat the measurement in 4+ points all the way around the drum. The axle is straight if the distance to the drum is the same all the way around. This can be done during welding if you spot weld and bend things around before finishing the welds.
You’ve added more spinning mass
Nice job be nice watching you build like why would they use aluminium
$. It's pot aluminum, prob with zinc added to help it flow in the mold.
how about the weight? how much heavier is this compared to the aluminum? coz you know the drum should sit balanced. there are counter weights both in the front and back on these drums to make it balanced
I'm not sure how the weight compares but it lasted at least half a decade and was still working normally when we upgraded to a new matching set recently when we moved. The balance is vastly thrown off by the clothing every time anyways, as long as the drum is centered and doesn't wobble as you turn it by hand it seems just fine.
@@aarongriffin81 how much kg can this hold? im about to copy your design on my 13kg samsung washer.
I'm sure the replacement was stronger than the original. Make sure it is centered and square with the drum to avoid wobble. I used a string to measure from the end of the shaft to the edge of the drum all the way around to make sure it was the same distance. Do that while it is only spot welded so you can bend things or remove welds if needed. Do not damage the brass seal nor allow weld splatter on it.
The aluminum is a lighter metal than stainless steel, but the aluminum casting is greater volume than the volume of the welded stainless steel, so I suspect the weights of the two would be in the same ballpark. Also, considering the massive counterweights, and the huge weight of the wet clothing, any weight differences between the aluminum casting and the welded stainless steel would be negligible.
What happened to this machine when you replaced it?
How the shaft was welded with plate in bottom can you show the video
Namasthe sir....does vibration occurs? Douse it work without vibration? Tell me please Sir.
No vibration from the repair. Every washing machine vibrates but this did not cause any extra vibration. There are heavy weights built into the outer drum to absorb vibration and it is still being used every day after more than 5 years.
could I do this project using a soldering iron to make the welds for the spider?
no, not even remotely the right thing for this.
how much to make me 1
OK, what did you use for the center shaft? Mine is destroyed.
I reused the shaft from the original spider assembly. I just broke all the aluminum off of it and found a stainless steel pipe that fit onto it very tight and welded the far backside(nearest the drum) of the pipe and original shaft together. After that, the bridge supports are welded to the SS pipe.
@@aarongriffin81 oh OK, I gotcha. I need to replace that shaft on mine somehow.
Youll need a higher load bearings
This washing machine has been used every day, some days multiple loads, ever since it has been fixed. That's 2 1/2 years so far and no indication of wear/tear yet. I put original spec bearings in it and new seals at the time. Most brand new washing machines are doing really good if they last a mere 2.5 years to begin with. The cause of death is usually a part DESIGNED TO FAIL. In this case, the most suspect part is no longer designed to fail so it keeps going like an energizer bunny.
No, adding extra weight of 0.5-1.0 Kg does not break it. it is rated to handle at least 10 time more load with full speed.
LOL, higher load bearings? Do you know what those are theoretically rated for!?!?!?!?!?! well over anything the struts, springs, tub, or washer could handle, I PROMISE. That bearing is probably the best made thing on the washer. Hardened, chemically treated, low-carbon steel, if not stainless. As long as the water is kept off of them, they will last literally decades. Key part: water off of them.