mannys9130
Member
- Model Number
- FEX831FS4
- Brand
- Frigidaire
- Age
- More than 10 years
Hello everyone, new user here seeking some specific info, if anyone is able to help. 
What I'd like to know relates to the washer outer tub's spin bearing.
How much slop should a good/new spin bearing have when riding on a good transmission shaft? Is it nice and very tight fitting, or are there 5 to 10 thou of clearance which produces a noticeably loose rocking slop?
I've just gotten this machine and I'm repairing/rebuilding it. The spin bearing was kinda dirty, so I removed it and cleaned it up, and then soaked it in the proper SAE 20 electric motor bearing oil in a vacuum chamber under a deep vacuum to pull out the air and refill the cavities within the sintered bronze material (it's an oilite oil impregnated bearing) with nice new oil. Now that that is done, the bearing should be refreshed and good to go. The shaft was rusty and the bearing did get a bit scratched up when I removed it despite sanding the rust down. I therefore can't know what the surface looked like when it was in situ prior to pulling it up off the shaft.
Here's what I need to know: when it was new, how much clearance was there between the shaft and the bearing's inner diameter? I measured the shaft with calipers at both the bearing's proper race and at the tip below the agitator hub which are both rust free. The tip definitely oughta be the original diameter since there's no rust and nothing rides there. Both areas measure 1.244" or 1.245", so the shaft isn't very worn itself or even at all, and it just has some light bronze transfer staining on the surface from the bearing over the years. I'm not sure if that's supposed to be 1.25" and I just have some inaccuracy in my calipers, but regardless... The spin bearing ID measured anywhere from 1.250" to 1.256" depending on location. There's a slight taper it seems with the ID near the ears being tighter than the other end. There is definitely some noticeable slop when the bearing is rocked side to side and pushed/pulled directly side to side. It's visual, tactile, and audible. It is a .005" - .010" clearance according to the measurements.
Does anyone know what the original bearing ID is supposed to be? Does anyone have experience with these machines and can tell me from their memory of prior experience whether a new bearing on a good shaft had any felt or noticeable slop/clearance when rocked side to side? Is it supposed to be very tight with almost no felt movement? I have ordered a new bearing, but I'm afraid that I won't be able to get an accurate measurement through the packaging and it won't be returnable if I open it. I want the machine to be rebuilt well so that it gives years of trouble free service, but I also don't want to needlessly spend a chunk of money on the new bearing if this original one is still serviceable now that it's properly refilled with oil. The last thing I want is to get everything put back together and then hear that it sounds like a freight train during the spin cycle and vibrates all over the place. There are those 2 bolts that hold the transmission's bottom one way bearing and block into the lower motor and pulley and spring assembly/bracket, and 1 of those bolts was actually broken off. I don't know if that was due to excessive vibration from a worn spin bearing before I got it, or if it was just a fluke metallurgy failure. I also don't know if that broken bolt allowed the transmission to wobble side and side and excessively wear away the bearing due to increased radial thrust applied. It almost certainly allowed excessive movement, but I don't know if excess wear occured.
Thank you so much!
What I'd like to know relates to the washer outer tub's spin bearing.How much slop should a good/new spin bearing have when riding on a good transmission shaft? Is it nice and very tight fitting, or are there 5 to 10 thou of clearance which produces a noticeably loose rocking slop?
I've just gotten this machine and I'm repairing/rebuilding it. The spin bearing was kinda dirty, so I removed it and cleaned it up, and then soaked it in the proper SAE 20 electric motor bearing oil in a vacuum chamber under a deep vacuum to pull out the air and refill the cavities within the sintered bronze material (it's an oilite oil impregnated bearing) with nice new oil. Now that that is done, the bearing should be refreshed and good to go. The shaft was rusty and the bearing did get a bit scratched up when I removed it despite sanding the rust down. I therefore can't know what the surface looked like when it was in situ prior to pulling it up off the shaft.
Here's what I need to know: when it was new, how much clearance was there between the shaft and the bearing's inner diameter? I measured the shaft with calipers at both the bearing's proper race and at the tip below the agitator hub which are both rust free. The tip definitely oughta be the original diameter since there's no rust and nothing rides there. Both areas measure 1.244" or 1.245", so the shaft isn't very worn itself or even at all, and it just has some light bronze transfer staining on the surface from the bearing over the years. I'm not sure if that's supposed to be 1.25" and I just have some inaccuracy in my calipers, but regardless... The spin bearing ID measured anywhere from 1.250" to 1.256" depending on location. There's a slight taper it seems with the ID near the ears being tighter than the other end. There is definitely some noticeable slop when the bearing is rocked side to side and pushed/pulled directly side to side. It's visual, tactile, and audible. It is a .005" - .010" clearance according to the measurements.
Does anyone know what the original bearing ID is supposed to be? Does anyone have experience with these machines and can tell me from their memory of prior experience whether a new bearing on a good shaft had any felt or noticeable slop/clearance when rocked side to side? Is it supposed to be very tight with almost no felt movement? I have ordered a new bearing, but I'm afraid that I won't be able to get an accurate measurement through the packaging and it won't be returnable if I open it. I want the machine to be rebuilt well so that it gives years of trouble free service, but I also don't want to needlessly spend a chunk of money on the new bearing if this original one is still serviceable now that it's properly refilled with oil. The last thing I want is to get everything put back together and then hear that it sounds like a freight train during the spin cycle and vibrates all over the place. There are those 2 bolts that hold the transmission's bottom one way bearing and block into the lower motor and pulley and spring assembly/bracket, and 1 of those bolts was actually broken off. I don't know if that was due to excessive vibration from a worn spin bearing before I got it, or if it was just a fluke metallurgy failure. I also don't know if that broken bolt allowed the transmission to wobble side and side and excessively wear away the bearing due to increased radial thrust applied. It almost certainly allowed excessive movement, but I don't know if excess wear occured.
Thank you so much!
