I purchased a Breadman TR444 a decade or more ago 'cause it was highly rated by Consumer Reports. It has performed well though I have moved on (or rather back to "manual") in bread making, but the program feature is nice on occasion. Waking up to fresh coffee and fresh-baked bread is nice. Curiously, the coffeemaker just died as well. It's digital and the 'motherboard' seems to be truly dead.

The shaft on the Breadman seized up between use yesterday and today. Wouldn't budge even after soaking in PB Blaster. Since I'm good at fixing things, be that overhauling a Zenith carb or an M-1 Garrand, figured I'd have a go. Nothin' to lose... so here's how to get yours running again for little or no coin.

You'll need snap-ring pliers to remove a snap ring that secures the drive adapter to the shaft, and a drift to hammer out the shaft from the bottom. (I've gotta think that most bread machines are of a similar design.) Use some fine grit emery paper to shine up the shaft; the bronze bushing can be cleaned with a .22 cal bore brush. The seal seemed to be just fine, though replacements can be secured on-line for about $12. Internal parts too, like a drive belt or timing gear. A few years back, parts were expensive and hard to find. Not so much anymore....

Good luck!