Thread Number: 19369
Salvaging plastic parts - example w/ WT2 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 214590   1/18/2013 at 00:27 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

Plastic parts were meant to be replaced, not repaired. However, I've found many ways to make repairs to them; sometimes they are stronger after repair than the original design.

The example at hand is a Hoover Windtunnel 2 bagged machine. This is Model U8311-900, made 11-07. I've had this machine for months, waiting for a parts donor to come along. The WT2 series embodies numerous weaknesses. One serious flaw is the design of the floor nozzle frame where the handle pedal installs. The frame cracks out below the pedal, then it won't hold in an upright position. Worse, it cocks the pedal out of kilter and sometimes the left side trunnion cover gets broken from excessive leverage being placed upon it as the user tries in vain to get the handle to unlock.

The best price I've been able to find for a replacement bottom frame is $19-something. Too much money to spend on one part for a refurbed vac. Hence the reason for sidelining this machine until a donor came along.

Yesterday, a lady called me looking for a vacuum cleaner to replace her existing machine. During the course of the conversation, it came out that the "dead" machine was a bagless WT2. She asked if I might be interested in having it. The long and the short of it was, she came over and bought a refurbed machine and left her bagless WT2 for which I allowed her $5 in trade.

Any trades of dead vacs that come my way I scrutinize carefully. They have to possess some redeeming quality that will further my refurb cause. They must be rebuildable or be a donor machine with something on them that I can use for another similar machine. Actually, I've gotten many good candidates for refurb this way, kind of like an exchange system. I quickly learned not to say "yes" on the phone to any proposals without first viewing the machine offered up.

Anyway, the trade was a WT2 bagless as stated, Model U8341-900. Build date 08-06. From the lamp up, the internals of the bagless version are useless in restoring a bagged version. The floor nozzle is mostly the same, however, and the bottom frame is exactly the same.

The lady who brought the trade-in over said she'd paid $300 for it new (about right) but had had the use of it for five years so she didn't mind letting it go. When someone is just about to toss a machine in the dumpster, they like the sound of getting even $5 out of it.

I don't refurb and try to sell the bagless WT2. The filtration system is so flawed in both original concept and design that I won't bother with one except as a parts donor for a bagged machine.

To get back on point, the bottom frame in the handle release pedal area was cracked in both machines but not quite as badly in the donor. Also, the left side trunnion cover was intact on the donor, so I used both of these parts on the bagged machine that was being refurbed.

The cracked floor nozzle bottom frames can be repaired with epoxy. The reason they crack out in the first place is because the material wasn't made thick enough below the pedal to withstand the forces being exerted upon it. My repair process for this part is as follows.

(1) Strip the bottom frame and wash it completely. No adhesives like to compete with dust on a material surface. (2) Use a heat gun to gently soften the plastic in the area of the crack. This is done very carefully and briefly. You are attempting to restore the area to its original shape, because the cracking distorts the area downward. Once the material softens slightly, you withdraw the heat and place pressure upon the cracks to push them back into place. I use the butt end of a 1/4 inch drill bit as a tool to do this. It will cool while you are going over the area with the tool. (3) Once reshaped, I take a soldering pencil and kind of stipple the cracked area to do a little rejoining of the original material. Then I use the same tool to stipple the entire well where the cracked area is located. This is to give the surface of the plastic some "tooth" for the epoxy to grab onto in addition to its normal adhesive qualities. (4) Using children's Play-Doh, I create a couple of little dams to fill a hole and a gap in the well area. I reinforce the dam in gap area with a craft stick (sometimes called a Popcicle stick). (5) I use bulk epoxy that comes in pint cans for repairing the bottoms of boats; it doesn't cure as fast as the small quantities that come in tubes. Mine cures overnight to a nice hardness but within 48 hours it's harder than a rock. (6) After you've mixed the epoxy, simply pour it into the well to a depth of about 1/8 inch below the wheel axle hole. There is a slight shrinkage factor with the epoxy, so if you fill to this level, you can still get the E-clip on the end of the axle after it cures. (7) After your epoxy is hard, cut off the tall end of the craft stick with a Dremel tool and file the edge if necessary. (8) Last step, paint it over with some suitable color. In this case, my gray can was dried up so I just used some silver and it looked passable. The Play-Doh and the remaining end of the craft stick remain in place but they do no harm and after painting are anonymously entombed forever.

The epoxy reinforcement that you put into this well under the original pedal area will be much stronger than the original.

Here's a picture of the two machines just before work started. My main work area is inside, but in clear weather (even if cold), I sometimes like to work outside. The blue plastic gelato container is for the fasteners as they come off.



Post# 214591 , Reply# 1   1/18/2013 at 00:28 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

Here's close-up of the cracked area as seen from the bottom of the frame. Follow the orange arrow.

Post# 214592 , Reply# 2   1/18/2013 at 00:29 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

This shows the epoxy having been poured into place. Note the craft stick dam at one end.

Post# 214593 , Reply# 3   1/18/2013 at 00:29 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

Now this is what the repair looks like after paint.

Post# 214594 , Reply# 4   1/18/2013 at 00:30 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

Here's the repaired area after completion of the project.

Post# 214595 , Reply# 5   1/18/2013 at 00:32 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

One last picture, the finished machine. Hoover Windtunnel 2, Model U8311-900. It still has the original temporary decal affixed to the dust compartment cover attesting to its virtues.

Post# 214635 , Reply# 6   1/18/2013 at 12:33 (4,114 days old) by TheHooverMan (United States )        

thehooverman's profile picture
OMG I was waiting for someone to talk about the w2 ihave a green one like pictured. i try not to use it much

Post# 214659 , Reply# 7   1/18/2013 at 16:32 (4,114 days old) by stricklybojack (Southern California)        
Nice work...

 stricklybojack's profile picture
I like the look of that green machine Hoover...nearly bought one once.

Post# 214669 , Reply# 8   1/18/2013 at 19:08 (4,114 days old) by gmerkt (Edmonds WA)        

I should clarify those pictures. #2 is a view taken from above the frame (or the "top"), not the bottom. #3 and #4 show the well or cavity directly below the area shown in #2, and these are taken from the bottom.

Post# 214825 , Reply# 9   1/19/2013 at 16:14 (4,113 days old) by guardsman69 ()        

why dont you just call 5703432020 and john gregory would just send you a brand new one....he has tons of those bases....just give him your address and he could mail one out to you....nozzle are 9.95 hardly worth all that jazz

Post# 214888 , Reply# 10   1/19/2013 at 22:39 (4,113 days old) by TheHooverMan (United States )        
Guardsman69

 thehooverman's profile picture
MY BASE IS BROKE AND BELT SNAPPED I NEED HELP


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