The machine stopped agitating or spinning, but the motor still ran. A bunch of oil had leaked out of the bell housing below the tub (is this the transmission?), got onto the belt, causing slippage, and spewing oil+powdered rubber=black grease all over the interior. After cleaning it off, tightening up the bolts between the metal and plastic bell housing where the leak was, and putting in a new belt, the problem persists, but now the clutch slips instead of the belt.
When it's trying to spin, I can manually turn the tub clockwise, let it go, and it will accelerate counterclockwise until it bumps into the brake. So apparently, the brake is on all the time. Since there is no electric signal controlling it, I assume a properly functioning brake is released whenever torque is being applied to the transmission. Is this correct? Could the fact that oil leaked out account for the brake not working properly? Is this fixable, or should I just junk the thing?
When it's trying to spin, I can manually turn the tub clockwise, let it go, and it will accelerate counterclockwise until it bumps into the brake. So apparently, the brake is on all the time. Since there is no electric signal controlling it, I assume a properly functioning brake is released whenever torque is being applied to the transmission. Is this correct? Could the fact that oil leaked out account for the brake not working properly? Is this fixable, or should I just junk the thing?