Control Magnet

Procedures for Gathering Confirming Data

Read about the control magnet (Wig Wag) and the spin coil in the spin function section of Proper Operation.
Move washer away from wall and disconnect power cord.
Grab a 5/16" nutdriver or a flat blade screwdriver and crawl in behind the washer.
Remove the two 5/16" sheet metal screws securing the grey access panel. Remove the access panel and set it aside.
Locate the spin coil in the wig wag. It's the black plastic cylinder to the left when viewed from the rear of the washer. It's the one closest to the motor with the red and white wires.
MAKE ABSOLUTELY SURE THAT THE WASHER IS UNPLUGGED. Pull the wire and connector off one of the two lugs on the spin coil. We are going to measure the coil's resistance and don't want to measure the resistance in the rest of the washer's wiring.
Get an ohmmeter and select the 1000 ohm scale. Now place the ends of each probe against the two lugs on the spin coil. If nothing happens, the coil is open and must be replaced. Just to confirm your measurement, perform the same procedure on the agitate coil on the wig wag. The agitate coil should be good and give you a reading of between 200 and 800 ohms. If the impedance of the two coils is the same (between 200 and 800 ohms), the spin coil is good.
To make sure you get the wires back on right, put the red wire on the spin coil (the one nearest the motor) and the yellow wire on the agitate coil. The white wires are common and go to both coils.
If the spin coil checks out OK then go back to the timer section of Spin Problem Diagnostics. If the spin coil checks out bad, continue on with the procedure to replace the control magnet.

Tools Required

5/16 inch nut driver
Ohm meter
Socket wrench (preferably 1/4 inch or 3/8 inch drive), 6 inch extension and 5/16 inch socket

Procedures for Replacing the Control Magnet

Before you start this procedure you will need to buy a new controlmagnet without the plungers part number 84867 or with plungers part number 89814. The following pictureshows a control magnet kit including plungers and pins.

UNPLUG THE WASHER.
Unplug the washer and insert the three-prong plug in three holes of the four-hole diamond on the rear of the cabinet, just below the console.
Lift the drain hose out of the sewer drain pipe and hook it over the console.
Turn the water off at the faucets for both inlet hoses and disconnect them from the faucets.
With the water out of the washer you can procede to lay the washer down on the front of the cabinet. If you have a dolley you can lift the washer up from the front of the cabinet and lay it front side down in a convenient place to work from the bottom of the washer. If you don't have a dolley, lay a rug that won't be damaged by a little water in front of the washer and then pull the washer over and lay it down with the front of the cabinet on the rug.
Remove the two 5/16 inch sheet metal screws that secure the rear access panel and set the panel aside.
Place an old rag or some paper towels on the cabinet under the transmission gearcase. Most gearcases will start to drip transmission grease when placed on their side. This is not a serious problem but you wouldn't want to leave the washer in this position overnight. The rag or paper towels will catch the grease so that when you tip the washer up again, the grease will not run down on the floor.
(Figure 1) Remove the wire connector lugs from both of the solenoid coils. Notice how the wires are routed before you remove them from the control magnet assembly. You don't have to mark the wires because you will be told how to reconnect them.
Use a socket wrench to remove the tapered screw from the base of the control magnet assembly. This screw goes all the way through the shaft that the control magnet assembly is mounted on.
Grasp the control magnet assembly with both hands and work it up and off of the shaft. The end of the shaft is split and presents a tight fit inside the control magnet collar. Occasionally the control magnet will resist your attempts to twist it up off the shaft. A little more persuasion in the form of a large screwdriver used to pry it up and off usually works.
Examine the plungers that slipped out of the solenoid coils of the old control magnet assembly when you removed it. If they are not badly worn, reuse them by just leaving them in the slide bar slots.
CRITICAL INSTALLATION STEP: Slide both plunger shafts into the corresponding new solenoid coils before you place the control magnet collar over the gearcase shaft.
Work the control magnet assembly down on the shaft until the hole in the collar lines up with the hole in the shaft. Replace the tapered screw and tighten with a socket wrench. If you had trouble getting the old control magnet off, you may have trouble getting the new one on the shaft. Try putting a small amount of grease on the shaft and rock the control magnet down by hand as far as you can. Then push it the rest of the way down with a long screwdriver positioned as a pry bar with the end of the blade under the top edge of the spin pulley and the middle of the screwdriver shaft resting on the top of the collar. Pull down on the handle of the screwdriver until the hole in the collar lines up with the hole in the shaft.
Some new control magnet kits come with a bushing that you can install in the hole at the top of the control magnet to prevent chaffing the control wires. After installing the bushing, route the wires down through the hole in the top of the control magnet and reconnect them. Connect the common white wire to both coils. Connect the red spin wire to the spin coil on your left. Connect the yellow agitate wire to the agitate coil to your right. Make sure that none of the wires drape down too close to the drive belt.
Replace the access panel. Move the washer back and reconnect the water and drain hoses.
Right the washer and plug it in. Rotate the cycle control knob to a spin function and start the machine. Make sure the lid is closed. If the machine spins OK, you have succeeded.

Figure 1 (Return)