Washer makes noise during spin cycle, wont agitate

The problem as I noticed it was that the washer would start making a super high-pitched and very loud whirring noise during the spin cycle, and that when I would open the lid, the drum would not be spinning, but when I would close the lid, the drum would start spinning. I was okay with this during that load but after reading here and taking it apart, I realized what had happened:

The agitator dogs are supposed to have a 3-toothed profile on each one, but they become worn over time due to being made of a soft plastic. The dogs should "throw out" into an inner ring gear during normal operation, turning the entire drum. But when they became worn enough to slip, they would still throw out, grinding them at very high speed into the inner ring gear. Since they are made of a softer plastic than the gear, they were just getting more and more worn.

I assume the way this was supposed to fix itself was that when the outer tooth on the dog became worn, the next one would engage, but that didn't happen.

Because the dogs are made of such a soft plastic, I was able to cut a new tooth profile into each one, so that when they were put back in they would function correctly. It takes very little effort and a few minutes with an x-acto knife to cut the right profile.

I'm going to buy the replacement dogs, which being a manufacturer substitute will hopefully be made with a better tooth profile, from harder plastic, or both.

As another note, who knows how long the dogs weren't engaged correctly during agitation, causing clothes to sit without really being washed, but without the high pitched air raid siren. So probably a good idea to replace or repair them immediately, even if you can get it to work intermittently.

Sounds like your transmission is going out. Yes washing machines do have transmissions, I know, strange huh? Anyway, the transmission is connected to your motor and the motor makes it spin and agitate. The transmission goes up into the tub and is basically the agitator. When the gears go bad in it, it will start making a loud noise almost like a grinding noise and won't spin properly or agitate. It is expensive to fix, almost as much as a new washer. Your best bet is to buy a new machine unless you can find a good deal on a refurbished transmission. Those will sometimes run only around 150 dollars. A new one though will cost you around 250. You might be able to find a good deal though. They are easy to fix, I myself replaced one in 15 minutes once when I was still a repair man for Sears. So, check out some prices and see what the best way to go is for you. If you have any questions about installing it let me know and I can give you an easy step by step walk through on it. I hope this helps you out and good luck.