On 28 Dec 2017 19:41:01 GMT, Tim+ wrote:

T i m wrote:
On 28 Dec 2017 19:22:38 GMT, Tim+ wrote:

snip

Our 27 year old White Knight is on its original motor, belt, idlers, drum,
bearings etc.

That sounds like it was a good buy. ;-)

We think so. It was a bit pricey but gas ones cost more.

Ah, so not an 'ordinary' (electric) model then. ;-)

True, but to look at, it looks every bit as flimsy as any cheap electric
model.

;-)

I guess it's like computer cases. In the old days they were very heavy
and robust, now they are (often) just strong enough to hold all the
bits in place because in most cases, that's really all they need to
do.

It certainly doesn’t look like extra money was spent on any
internals just because it was a gas model.

The thing is the difference between a good and a less good bearing is
generally very little (if you are only buying one), so I wonder if you
could tell just by looking from the outside?

When I saved the 13 month old Zanussi washing machine that was written
off because the bearings had failed and the tub was plastic and welded
(rather than bolted) together and so 'not financially viable to
repair', if being done so 'professionally'. I replaced the bearings
with quality bearings and they lasted 7+ times the time of the
original ones.


But a 27 year old belt ... how often do you use it?

Just about every day. Frequently for two or three loads in a day. Been
with us since we had two young kids and all the laundry that entails.

Ah, so it has been 'used' then. ;-)

I wonder how their std / condenser models fair?

No idea. The trouble is the reliability of a 27 year old model isn’t
necessarily representative of newer models.

True.

Have been impressed by the
support from Crossley over the years for the very occasional spare part
though.

Good to know.

I would buy White Knight again though.

And that's always a good test.

Cheers, T i m