There is an appliance parts house here that has the couplers for under
$4.00. They are actually easier to replace than the belt on the old
Whirlpool/Kenmores IMO. Those were a major PITA, especially if you never
did one before (or often enough to remember how). I recently bought a
set of the dogs for the agitator for a friend's machine but haven't
gotten around to installing them yet. Forgot exactly what they cost. Do
all the direct drive machines have that "ratchet" setup on the agitator
or just certain models? My own machine is an old Montgomery Wards
(Norge) that my aunt gave me when she inhereted her mother's nearly new
machine. I've had it for about 30 years.It washes great, but is the
noisiest machine ever made. Years ago my sister had a similar one and
left it with the old house when they moved because it was so noisy. I
replaced the belt about 4 or 5 years ago--talk about easy! No tools at
all. Just had to lean the machine back enough to get my hand under it.
The motor has a spring tensioner on it so you just crank the belt on.
Hardest part was draining the machine. Belts NEVER break unless the
machine is full of water, and this one has a huge tub. Yeah, I know it
is ineffiecient from that standpoint, but it drains out into the yard,so
the water is not wasted. Larry