Thread Number: 28870  /  Tag: 50s/60s/70s Vacuum Cleaners
Hoover Dial a Matic U6003 bad power drive 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 322589   4/19/2015 at 17:53 (3,288 days old) by Herky ()        

I'm a new member. Who would have guessed there was a forum for vacuum cleaners? The internet is an amazing thing. Anyway, my trusty Dial A Matic that I bought in 1978 finally gave up the ghost, at least the power drive did. It was making a lot of rattling noise when I turned it off, as it was winding down. Finally the input shaft to the drive unit froze and started burning the belt. So, I want to know if the drive is repairable (disassemble & replace bad parts), remove and replace as a unit, or call it curtains for the vac? What say you all? Thanks in advance.

Post# 322596 , Reply# 1   4/19/2015 at 18:40 (3,288 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA)        

suckolux's profile picture
welcome! Many Hooverphiles will jump in with help/ advise.

Post# 323239 , Reply# 2   4/25/2015 at 12:35 (3,282 days old) by smow69 (Muskogee Oklahoma)        
repair

 i say repair it its a great machine well worth the money to fix...

Post# 323241 , Reply# 3   4/25/2015 at 12:53 (3,282 days old) by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)        
I

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agree.
Post# 323341 , Reply# 4   4/25/2015 at 22:15 (3,282 days old) by Herky ()        

Thank you for the replies. Maybe I didn't phrase my question properly. I would love to repair it. I need to know if the drive itself can be disassembled and repaired, or if it's a remove and replace process. New drive units seem run $125 or so online. I have not found any repair parts for the drive, nor have I attempted to take it apart yet. I suppose that's cheaper than replacing the machine though.
Thanks again.

Post# 323369 , Reply# 5   4/26/2015 at 09:54 (3,281 days old) by HooverCelebrity (Germany)        

Early on, Hoover would service the power drive transmissions if/when they had problems - but it became too much effort (too many tiny parts, and a real time-suck), and eventually they stopped doing that, likely from a cost perspective on how much time it took service techs to perform those fixes. Hoover then just replaced the entire power drive assembly if it became problematic. $125 or so seems about right for a new transmission. Your alternate option would be to find a donor machine, which would give you other spare parts then as well. There are lots of Power Drive Dial A Matics out there, but hunting down a donor machine may not be as fast as ordering a new transmission.

There is a complete service manual posted on www.automatice.org... for the Dial A Matic, and those instructions do inlude how to take the power drive assembly apart. That would be a good resource for you to have, if you want to attempt fixing it before shelling out $125 for a new transmission. I've never tried taking a power drive unit apart personally, so I can't speak to its level of difficulty. Link to thise service manual is below.

Hope that helps!

CLICK HERE TO GO TO HooverCelebrity's LINK
Post# 323379 , Reply# 6   4/26/2015 at 11:33 (3,281 days old) by Herky ()        

That's what I was looking for. Thanks. I'll provide an update after I get the manual and take things apart. I found Dial a Matic on e-bay for ten bucks, but it was not local for me, so not really a player since shipping would be costly. Maybe Goodwill has a donor.

Post# 323568 , Reply# 7   4/28/2015 at 17:49 (3,279 days old) by Herky ()        

Well, I took the plunge and took the transmission apart, figured I had nothing to lose. It wasn't too bad, no oil inside, just thick grease, so nothing leaking out. If the bearing had come out easily I would not have had to take the tranny apart, but it was so tight I had to pull it out with a screw & nut, thus had to dismantle it. The ball bearing at the input end of the shaft had failed, probably due to the constant tension of the drive belt. I found a replacement at a local small appliance repair shop. I replaced both bearing as long as I had it apart. Turns out the bearing is the same as the one used in the roller brush thing. However, parts are not generally available for this machine, so I lucked out. It works like a champ now. Here's to another 30 years.

Post# 323571 , Reply# 8   4/28/2015 at 18:48 (3,279 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA)        

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Great news! Nice work.


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