Nice work, OP! Not enough people think about fixing things anymore, especially since all products seem to be designed to have a single piece that is guaranteed to fail. Usually a plastic piece, in some critical location.
This reminded me me of the fix I had to do to our HE Kenmore front load washer - the rubber flange around the door had developed a hole, causing water to leak out all over the floor, and I went to the Sears store, where I was quoted $300+ for a new rubber flange. So I asked about fixing the existing one somehow, and the person said, no, no way to do it. I figured I have a patch kit that can fix a hole in a rubber dinghy, so why not give it a try - it wouldn't cost me anything except 20 minutes effort. I didn't expect it to last very long, but it's been 5 years now...
It's also the washer that I googled about an error code I was getting, and it wouldn't drain. Results suggested something might be caught in the drainage pump, so I followed the instructions, and sure enough there was a nail in it. Removed it, put it back together, and everything worked again.
So 2 fixes to a very overused and abused washer, both of which cost nothing. If I hadn't, I would have paid $350 for a rubber flange (that would have taken me longer to replace, too), and then bought a new washer at the cost of $1000 or so. So like OP illustrated, it pays to be a bit persistent.