Testing drum shock absorbers?

So I'm replacing bearings and seal on wifey's LG WM2140CW front loader and making sure anything in need of replacement gets replaced while it's open.

Question: Is there a test for the drum shocks and/or how do you know if they're bad? They're not exactly like auto shocks. The beast is 10 years old, so they don't owe me anything, but I don't want to just replace them if they are still functional.

 

never had to replace shocks on a LG but retired 5 years ago.

 

I don't have an LG washer but I replaced the shocks on our Whirlpool when it was about 8 years old. We had noticed that it was shaking more and noisier than we remembered when it was new. When I had the new and old shocks side by side the new ones were "stiffer" but it wasn't as dramatic a difference as I expected.

Getting access to the shocks is annoying enough and new shocks are affordable enough that I wouldn't take the old ones out just to test. I would have the replacements in hand so you only have to open the machine up once.

 

Thanks guys. Wish I had a new one to compare with. Haven't noticed anything that might be attributed to them being worn out, could definitely hear the bearings.

 

They have a bearing kit for that washer. We always just replaced back shell. Things may have changed in last few years

 

Bought a kit - bearings and seal - but when I opened it up found cracks in back outer shell, so I ended up doing what you said about replacing the shell. Got REAL lucky with an ebay find, brand new rear shell complete for $100 delivered.

Installed today and fired it up. Good trial run empty, so I started a load of some work clothes - 3 pairs of denim shorts and half dozen short sleeve lightweight shirts. Came back about an hour later and had UE code showing [unbalanced load; manual says to redistribute or add more clothes]. Tried several combinations, but it still struggles to balance and run the spin cycle. Finally took the shorts out and left just the shirts. Even that fairly light load had a hard time balancing itself, but finally got up to speed. Shirts in drier now and I'm trying to get the 3 pairs of shorts to spin, so far unsuccessfully.

Have NEVER had this issue before. Washer is level and sits on a wood pedestal I built; it is SOLID, you could park a tank on it.

SO. Sensor of some kind? Those shocks? The shell came with a new rear one, but I reinstalled the old front 2, I couldn't tell any difference in them and the new rear one. Circuit board? I'm stumped.

tg

 

Put about 3 or 4 towels in washer get them wet and than put in spin. Wait till washer gets to high spin Adjust the front leg that is easiest to get to. Adjust only this leg. One way you turn adjuster the wobble will smooth and the wrong way it will increase. Have seen it take as little as 1/2 turn but usually a little more.

 

Thanks, couldn't get it to GO to high spin yesterday, would hardly spin at all before going back to the default load-balancing back and forth routine. I didn't catch your reply until I had already attacked it from a different direction. I removed the shock absorbers and made a modification to improve the dampening effect. Just running test load now - 1 bath towel, golf shorts & shirt, pair of son's pajamas, and half dozen pair of socks. Not much different from the work clothes load I was test running yesterday (and figured the one bath towel would aggravate an unbalance if it was going to). Just finished the cycle without a hitch. I may be a better engineer than the people who designed those "shock absorbers".