44 minutes of old school Whirlpool Wig Wag

Here’s 44 minutes of old school Whirlpool Wig Wag on my 1963 RCA Whirlpool Imperial Mark XII washer :)

[@EATSLEEPDRIVE2002]

It's amazing how long they lasted, considering how much the clutch slips when spin cycle was engaged

[@seana806]

Many ran for many years before needing a clutch replacement. I don’t think many, if any belt drives needed a clutch replacement compared to the direct drives which needed the spin clutch replaced from time to time.

[@Gowther1999]

This is infinitively better than the now current "Vertical Modular" garbage.

[@seana806]

Indeed, it’s a travesty that Whirlpool discontinued the direct drives since that hands down was one of the best machines they made besides their older belt drive washers .

[@CkaroCosetel]

La mejor lavadora Whirlpool

[@jeromedavis8575]

I love how all the pulleys, cams, pumps, and motor and transmission work together.

[@antoniocarter7111]

Woo woo woo woo sooooo soothing omg sounds likes my grandma house

[@UrOpinionsSucc]

American engineering, American Muscle, this is beautiful, just beautiful.

[@seana806]

Indeed, before government intervention and careless consumers along with greedy corporations that ruined the great appliances that once were.

[@UrOpinionsSucc]

@@seana806 agreed!

[@juniormint3136]

It wasn't just cars that suffered in '74 because of bad energy policies, that began killing all the good home appliances. Then again in the Carter years you can see the final nail in the coffin for belt drives. The evolution of the machines don't lie.

[@andrewg593]

Best washer ever made hands down! I'm surprised the round motor is as quiet as it is. Rather complex design but very reliable. I never really understood how this works other than those solenoids move the cam bars to engage agitation and spin.

[@seana806]

Surprisingly these washers are very simple since there’s a total of 7 parts inside the transmission and the wig wag is at the end of the agitate gear and moves whenever the motor is running. How it engages the wash is the wig wag solenoid picks up the the plunger, and there’s a part in the cam bar where it dips down and that drops the shift fork down where the outer agitator gear is and closes off the pump and that’s all there is to it when it engages the wash and when it disengages it simply opens the pump up and brings the shift fork up and is in neutral. When the spin engages, the wig wag picks up the plunger for the spin and there’s a part at the end of the spin cam bar where it dips down and that drops the clutch and spin tube/basket drive assembly about 1/4” down onto the clutch pulley below it causing it to spin.

[@andrewg593]

@@seana806 I've never seen the inside of one of these gearcases before. I'm surprised there's so few parts. I thought these were really expensive to manufacture.

[@seana806]

They weren’t extremely expensive to make but what made them expensive to produce is the labor it took to put them together and the only way to make machines like this again is if you were to use some sort of automation like GM had in the film from 1959 called Up From Clay A Car Is Born in their stamping presses.

[@jeromedavis8575]

I've used the kenmore version. I love them too!

[@jeromedavis8575]

@@andrewg593 How many parts do the direct drive transmission have compared to these?

[@ExcelsiorElectric]

I love the mechanical rhythm.

[@seana806]

Definitely a unique sound compared to the later belt drive washers. It may be louder than most newer machine but that indicates that it’s doing what it’s supposed to do.

[@robertwhite9898]

Great machine 😊

[@seana806]

Thanks! Plan on making videos of this machine sometime this spring or summer but have to get the timer situated and do a few other adjustments and inspect a few other things before I put it back into regular service.

[@tracyfarmer6259]

Now I know how they operate I can hear the woo woos

[@seana806]

This is the first video showing the wig wag doing its thing for a full wash cycle :). Definitely a unique sounding machine with the old school wig wag and woo woos.

[@MaytagMachineManiac]

Some good quality parts right there. I'd be surprised to see any modern machine parts last even an eighth of how long this lasted

[@seana806]

The transmission and gears are made of a heavy cast iron and that’s why it’s still working all of these years. Definitely better for the environment to have machines that last for decades as opposed to machines that only last 5 to 6 years. This has definitely outlasted every single HE machine that’s been made that’s for sure.

[@jeromedavis8575]

@@seana806 What does the motor look like? I'd like to see it up close next time.

[@websurfin9575]

Compare that to the Whirlpool plastic JUNK washers that are manufactured now!

[@seana806]

There’s no comparison.

[@dynatrak]

27:33 was awesome!

[@seana806]

Indeed, I think the clutch was somewhat out of adjustment since the wig wag slowed down quite a bit when it engaged into the spin. Thankfully the clutch is adjustable on these machines since there’s. 3/4” nut you turn to adjust the clutch and I backed it off and hopefully that corrects that problem.

[@dynatrak]

@@seana806 I'm sure you'll get it dialed in just right. That is good, it's adjustable.

[@jeanlucdrion1152]

In later wig wag models, plastic liners were used to line the inner part of the wig wag to make it quieter and less clunking sound on the metal track it was sliding over..

[@jeanlucdrion1152]

That's Right. I remember those inserts.

[@seana806]

@@jeanlucdrion1152 the later Whirlpools were a bit quieter but don’t have that mechanical charm like the older belt drives from 1964 and older.

[@TheWASHINGMACHINEBOY]

i just noticed the drain pump is behind the transmission also ive seen a video of a different model of this machine that has an orange agitator that can switch between drain and agitation at will during the cooldown portion of its wash & wear cycle. that means this system is more flexible than the direct drive machines

[@juniormint3136]

Also, the oldies had aluminum body pumps. Dam machine weighed a ton empty. Pre-'73 machines had the porcelain on steel tub ring, cast aluminum control panels. In '73-'74 they went to more plastic parts. Oh and add in some more weight if you got a suds saver model.

[@seana806]

From what a friend of mine told me, porcelain cabinets were an option in the early to mid 60’s and mine doesn’t have the all porcelain cabinet though the top is porcelain. Since I’ve moved this machine around quite a bit from having to work on it and make various adjustments and such, I’d say it weighs about as much as my 1973 Maytag A606 plus or minus a few pounds but otherwise feel like they weigh the same.

[@juniormint3136]

I think the 50's machines offered medium temperature water. It had a third solenoid valve to allow more hot water to give you 120°. Hot was 140°. Warm may have been 110°. Back when people set water heaters nice and hot and actually relied on heat in the water to help clean the clothes. Pre-83 machines had a 60/40 ratio mixing valve so you'd get nice warm washes.

[@seana806]

I believe it was in 1954 when the medium water temperature was introduced since my friend Gsohoover here on KZbin has a 1954 Whirlpool washer with warm, medium, and hot temperature selections. Most of the time I wash my clothes in this machine on medium but sometimes I’ll wash on hot from time to time to be sure everything is all washed and rinsed out properly.

[@paulmuratore7072]

Boy does this bring back memories. I used to be the Mr. fixit guy in my neighborhood. Cant even count how many wigwags i replaced and transmissions rebuilt. You will never see anything built like this today! Great nostalgic video! Thanks!

[@seana806]

You are very welcome! I rebuilt the original transmission on this washer last spring, the transmission that’s in this washer when I filmed this video is a diner transmission I bought off of eBay and it worked but made strange clunking sounds when in operation, turns out the oil in this transmission when I opened it was brown like it had been contaminated with water and probably has. Going to pack that transmission with John Deere corn head grease which basically turns into a oil when mixed around in a gear case and turns back into grease once it settles.

[@paulmuratore7072]

@@seana806 Fantastic brother. You can hear the chatter from the cam when its not agitating which is that tell tall sign that the oil needs to be replaced. So cool brother. Just the sound of it takes me back to when i was a kid. Now I'm stuck with the new so called "state of the art" front loaders where everything goes wrong with them that comes with a lot of dollars. Back in the day it was either wigwag. belt, timer or sometimes the pump. Its good to know you're out there.. looking forward to your future posts.

[@seana806]

@@paulmuratore7072 unfortunately we are stuck with front loaders since millennials keep on demanding them and think they are better than top loaders when in reality top loaders are some of the best washers out there. Reason why top loading machines get a bad wrap is because people either overloaded them or used too low of a water level, used too much detergent, or simply didn’t select to correct wash time. You really only need a 6 to 8 minute wash time for lightly soiled laundry which extends the life of clothes and the machine.

[@paulmuratore7072]

@@seana806 Don't get me started with the millennials, They know it all and call me old and they live in a disposable world where nothing lasts. They don't ( or cant comprehend) good workmanship.

[@juniormint3136]

I could tell it wasn't the original gearcase, up until the late 60's there was a cap on the bottom and when you unscrewed it there was a locknut and screw to adjust the gearlash of the main drive gear. There was a procedure to set it.

[@aidenholfter641]

My mum used to own a whirlpool and she has that mechanism inside the washing machine

[@seana806]

@@aidenholfter641 believe the Australian Whirlpools used the same setup as the North American Whirlpool washers.

[@aidenholfter641]

@@seana806 that's true

[@thomasball3658]

It has a good beat you can dance to it lol.

[@AnaValentt]

the sound looks like a music

[@joeyjennings9548]

95405 👍 dont lose your ball in cup.

[@sharipuckett6923]

Wow!! That's quiet for a 63' Whirlpool!!

[@seana806]

It is quieter in person than it is on video. Btw, it’s ‘63, not 63’.

[@GothGuy885]

how did the two Solenoids come into play with this?

[@seana806]

@@GothGuy885 just the sounds of it in operation. One solenoid engages agitate, the other spin. When neither one is energized, you get drain.

[@GothGuy885]

@@seana806 quite an ingenious mechanism! thanx 😀

[@antoniocarter7111]

And granny would say don’t overload my damn washer

[@seana806]

The original owner never overloaded this machines and the gears inside the original transmission hardly have no wear on them at all. This machine was definitely very well taken care of from 1963 to 2005.

[@Ififitzisitz]

The point of the wig wag and the solenoids inside is so that the motor's torque can take care of the shifting and the solenoids just engage it. Is that correct?

[@seana806]

It’s just the way Whirlpool designed the belt drive design. All the control magnets aka wig wag does is engage and disengage agitate and spin. Whirlpool wanted the motor to only go in a single direction hence this design.

[@michaeljackson1716]

I pleasure to see your video I remember I did repair the machine type 30 year ago

[@BruLc7]

Good machines, but not the best. That title goes to Maytag since they stayed in service longest with fewest repairs and when loaded properly, they washed clothes as well or better than any automatic washer. They also spun out the clothes drier which cut down on drying time.

[@seana806]

Whirlpool machines have their quirks but are easy to work on when something does go wrong or fail. Maytags are good machines but only downside is they don’t work too well on homes with a raised foundation since the floor tends to give in a little while it spins.

[@patcola7335]

Best all depends on who you ask. Maytags might have been the longevity champs but you could get a Whirlpool made Kenmore and get more for less with just as good a build quality and nearly the longevity.

[@jeromedavis8575]

I vote GE with their filter-flos.

[@markg999]

​@patcola7335 Yea my moms Kenmore she got from the mid 80s lasted 30+ years.

[@thomasball3658]

Woo woo with a wig wag,it doesn't get any better.

[@patcola7335]

Sean do you know if that is the original wash basket to that machine ? If it is that is a testament to how well those wash tubs were made. Is the porcelain still in good shape or is it worn ?

[@floodedcar123]

Man that second one really got shacky

[@jeromedavis8575]

You should do a rant video of why new washers suck!

[@jeromedavis8575]

Very nice engineering!

[@saymyname218]

Awesome

[@seana806]

Thanks! I plan on making more videos of this machine but when it will happen I don’t know since I don’t have to house to myself like I did in the summertime plus there’s a the issue with background noise which will effect the video quality.

[@vanni9283]

Where's the drain hose by chance?

[@seana806]

It’s to the bottom right hand corner. Can’t see it because of the way the camera is positioned/angled.

[@vanni9283]

@@seana806 Okay, thank you? What about the inlet pumps?