What this usually is
The usual answer on this unit is a door switch that is not making contact, with no power, or half the supply lost next. Both are free to check and neither needs the machine opened. Nothing here needs a tool until the very last cause.
What you are looking at
- It starts only if you hold the start button in — The start circuit is marginal, and it is telling you so.
- It runs only when the door is pressed firmly — The door switch is not making contact on its own.
- NEAR MISS: it starts and stops partway — That is a cycle fault and belongs on its own page.
What it usually turns out to be, in order
- A door switch that is not making contact — No dryer will run with the door reading open. The switch is pressed by the door on every cycle, and the plastic actuator wears until it no longer closes the contact reliably. It leads the list on a West Bend dryer because it is operated every single cycle and it is a mechanical contact, which makes it the part that fails first on almost every dryer.
- No power, or half the supply lost — A dryer runs its motor and its heat from different sides of the supply. Second: the breaker can look perfectly normal and still be half tripped, which makes this the check to do properly rather than by eye.
- A worn start switch or push-to-start contact — The start button carries the motor circuit until the motor is running. Third on the list, and worth the look because it carries current every cycle and its failure is gradual, which is why it announces itself long before it stops working.
- A failed motor, centrifugal switch or control — A motor with a failed start winding hums and does not turn even with a good belt. Last, and that is the point of this order: everything above it is free, obvious and far more likely, and because this needs a meter.
The order to check in
- Close the door and press it firmly while pressing start — If it runs when you lean on the door, you have found it.
- Switch the dryer breaker fully off, then back on — A breaker that has half tripped does not look tripped.
- Press and hold start rather than pressing and releasing — If holding it works, the switch is the fault.
What an owner can safely check
- Close the door firmly, press start, then press the door harder and listen — Check the actuator on the door is not worn or missing.
About 10 min
- Switch the dryer breaker fully off and on again, and check the plug and socket for heat damage — A scorched plug is a reason to stop and call.
Tools: a torchAbout 15 min
- STOP AT THIS POINT if the next step is inside the cabinet or on the gas train — Burners, valves and igniters are not owner work on any gas appliance.
Before you open anything
Safety
Power off at the breaker and gas off at the appliance valve, in that order, before anything else. If there is a smell of gas: leave it alone, get out, and call the gas utility or emergency services from outside, not from inside the house. Never tape a door switch closed to keep a drum turning, and never reach into a drum that is still moving. A packed vent next to a heating element is the fire risk here.
The line between a fix and a service call
Call once the door switch, the breaker, the start button and the belt are all confirmed and the machine still will not run, because what is left is the fuse, the motor or the control and all three need a meter. Call immediately if the plug or socket is scorched, if the machine trips its breaker, or if there is a burning smell.
Related pages for this unit
What is deliberately not on this page
This page covers the West Bend dryer as a class, not one family or model line. Where a family- or model-specific page exists it is linked here. Deliberately not here: belt lengths, switch part numbers, fuse ratings, motor specifications and any panel removal sequence, all of which differ by family and belong on the page for that family.
Links: - [Water under a West Bend refrigerator, and where it comes from](/blog/west-bend-refrigerator-water-leak) - [Why a West Bend microwave will not start](/blog/west-bend-microwave-wont-start) - [VMX dryer dead or humming without turning: what to check](/blog/vmx-dryer-wont-start)
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
