Just curious, is it driving around in a small circle, or is it spinning around in place? That spinning maneuver is how it changes directions periodically. Sounds like it might be stuck in that mode. If it's small circles, that sounds like something is broken. Either way, it needs servicing.
More to the point, I'd suggest you shop around about what servicing one might cost, along with what it costs to change out the wheels. My Rebel is about five years old and seems to be going strong. But I recently had to change out the wheels, as they do wear down.
I did a quick Google search and found an entire replacement head is only $229.95 :
Pentair Kreepy Krauly Rebel Cleaner Head has a two-wheel design that allows the Rebel cleaner to access hard-to-reach corners. Order now!
www.epoolsupply.com
The wheels I just bought were about $35. It looks like gear kits are $70-100. Plus some guy's time to fix it? Plus your time messing around with this? And that's
if you can find a guy, and that's
if what is wrong with your Rebel is actually repairable. Will a repairman charge you if it can't be fixed? So do some math first. You might be better off just replacing the vac head, 5 minutes and you're done. If your wheels still have some life in them, put them on the new Rebel (that's easy to do) and you'll have your future replacements "in stock."
Lots of folks here love their robots (I've never owned one), and there seems to be some advantages to them. The primary one, as near as I can tell, is that they brush the pool surface where Rebels do not. And you don't need to run your filter pump for them to do their thing.
But I wouldn't want a cord running across my deck. I find cleaning out my pump basket a simple, easy task. I would not want to lift a robot out of the water every few days to clean out its on-board collector. They are considerably heavier than a Rebel. And I can tell with a quick glance when my pump basket needs a dump. How does one determine if a robot needs a diaper change without pulling it out of the water? (I honestly don't know.) Robots are considerably more expensive to replace, and I would guess considerably more expensive to repair. So for me, I'm quite happy with my Rebel and don't see any advantages a robot could bring to me or my pool.
