Thread Number: 33069  /  Tag: Recent Vacuum Cleaners from past 20 years
My small project to restore a Kirby Sentria
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Post# 361308   10/21/2016 at 22:34 (2,714 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        

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Hello everyone,
3 weeks ago I was at Value village and I hit the Jackpot! I found A Hoover Dial-a-matic A Kirby Legend, and A 2009 Sentria which is F style. I bought it for 30$ with the hose (it came with no power nozzle). Thing is the previous owner must've had dogs because the Mini emptor was caked, Motor shaft and the inner bag was unchanged. Now I’m attempting to restore it myself with Mothers Mag, Windex, and some turtle wax.

below are the pictures ( I already buffed most of the outer casing and the last picture is the comparison with the Ultimate G that also needs a rebuild.)

however The Sentria has problems that I Discovered when i First brought it home.
1. Tech Drive takes me to the right slightly
2. Techdrive clicks in neutral
3.Techdrive Vibrates violently when the motor is running
4. Pushing the Sentria in Neutral while on bare floors makes winding up sounds in the transmission.

Help would be appreciated
-Bryce



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Post# 361443 , Reply# 1   10/25/2016 at 08:54 (2,710 days old) by josh (Forest Park, IL & Spring Grove, IL)        

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I can help you with the drive clicking in neutral. This is because the transmission is not fully disengaging. There is a piece in your transmission behind the neutral/drive pedal called the cam bracket assembly. It disengages a gear to put the transmission in neutral. When the end of the cam lever wears down, it no longer fully disengages the gear, causing the gears to click against each other.

Let me know if you need pictures or disassembly instructions. I'll do my best to help.


Post# 361448 , Reply# 2   10/25/2016 at 11:48 (2,710 days old) by sptyks (Skowhegan, Maine)        

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Bryce, here is a link to the part that you need to fix your Sentria transmission:

 

www.goodvac.com/Kirby_bracket_cam...

 

Here is a link to the step by step instructions to replace the Bracket Cam assy:

 

www.goodvac.com/kb_results.aspQUE...

 

 

 


Post# 361451 , Reply# 3   10/25/2016 at 12:59 (2,710 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)        

human's profile picture
Yes, this is a common issue on Kirby machines from the G3 to the present. The part isn't expensive and it's not a big deal to fix if you're reasonably handy with a screwdriver.

Post# 361452 , Reply# 4   10/25/2016 at 13:08 (2,710 days old) by beekeyknee (Columbia, MO)        

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Don't know if you want to spend the money or not but from the sound of things you might be just as well off to replace the entire transmission. There are several on eBay.

Post# 361745 , Reply# 5   10/31/2016 at 15:16 (2,704 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Update:Ordered New Parts for the Sentria

brycerivers's profile picture


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Post# 361868 , Reply# 6   11/2/2016 at 18:13 (2,702 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Getting Ready to Hand wash this

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The Outer bag is in My washer machine right now.

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Post# 362075 , Reply# 7   11/6/2016 at 11:09 (2,698 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Just Got a new fan and installed it

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Got a new fan assembly and installed it last night. I also gave the internal parts a wash.

Right now im waiting for the New powernozzle and a bench buffer to get a clean shine.

The link below is a comparison test between cloth and paper bags. This Video was made before I changed the fan out in the Sentria.


CLICK HERE TO GO TO brycerivers's LINK


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Post# 362426 , Reply# 8   11/14/2016 at 17:00 (2,690 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Updated:PowerNozzle

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Power Nozzle came in the day It was expected however, the bench buffer that I ordered is past delivery date.

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Post# 362447 , Reply# 9   11/14/2016 at 21:18 (2,690 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)        

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The nozzle looks nice. It isn't going to take much buffing to get it gleaming.

Post# 363846 , Reply# 10   12/18/2016 at 22:13 (2,656 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Question about my Sentria

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I’m Not exactly done yet with this Post as I am going to try to get this Kirby to Shine Like chrome and I Plan to do some work on the Motor. To ask two questions what object will I need to work on The Motor’s Commutator? Also when and where was This Particular Model made? The Serial Number is 1090602025.
-Bryce


Post# 364067 , Reply# 11   12/22/2016 at 19:43 (2,652 days old) by fantomfan57 (Central Texas)        
I found a Sentria G10...

last month on my way to breakfast. It was sitting on the curb in front of a French Immersion School.

The cord had a knot in it and it was missing a hubcap. When I got around to checking it out, I noticed the transmission was not engaging.

Thanks to Youtube, I have taken these apart before so I got it up on the bench. All I found was that the transmission's forked lever had been bumped out of it's corresponding loop. (Excuse the made up part descriptions). I managed to get it back together and now it works perfectly.

Cleaned up and ready to use. I wonder what they did with the attachments. Someone may have gotten frustrated trying to maneuver it and got rid of it.



Post# 364078 , Reply# 12   12/23/2016 at 00:14 (2,652 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)        

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Good for you fantomfan! It just goes to show that a little technical knowledge can be absolutely priceless.

Post# 364729 , Reply# 13   1/5/2017 at 18:52 (2,638 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
I have a HUGE problem

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I just used some 220 Grit sandpaper on the Sentria's handle and now its all scratchy and dull. Do I need to buy a new handle or retry?

Post# 364735 , Reply# 14   1/5/2017 at 22:20 (2,638 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)        
You've made a good start in the right direction

human's profile picture
Keep going to finer and finer grit (e.g., 400 then 600, then 800, then 1,000, etc.) and the scratches will get less and less noticeable. You might then want to switch to automotive rubbing compound (the red stuff) on a soft cloth and then to something like Mother's chrome polish to give it that mirror-like shine. Also, keep your sandpaper wet and don't sand in circles. Sand in straight lines and each time you graduate to a finer grade of paper, sand perpendicular to the previous grade. Patience and persistence really are key.

Post# 364767 , Reply# 15   1/6/2017 at 16:36 (2,637 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Did some more work on the handle Today

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With 225 Grit sandpaper, I went vertically all across the handle and then horizontally with the same grit. I plan to move up to 400->600->800->1000 grit next time I stop by Wal-Mart.

Question, Would it be a good idea to buy Auto Sol polish for Harley Davidson to use on a Kirby?

-Bryce



Post# 364827 , Reply# 16   1/7/2017 at 11:20 (2,636 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
A video of Me using The Sentria today

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I Decided to do A small Cleanup on my carpet today.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO brycerivers's LINK


Post# 364829 , Reply# 17   1/7/2017 at 14:13 (2,636 days old) by sptyks (Skowhegan, Maine)        

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I have one exactly like yours and I love it!

 

 


Post# 364882 , Reply# 18   1/8/2017 at 15:23 (2,635 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Is this Good Or do I need to restart?

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I went 220-400-1000-1500
Do I need to restart?


Post# 364884 , Reply# 19   1/8/2017 at 15:40 (2,635 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Decided to redo

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This is the result
Still very dull.


Post# 364894 , Reply# 20   1/8/2017 at 18:46 (2,635 days old) by larryeddy (Sandusky, OH)        
more info

fists make sure the 1500 is going length wise
you should always finish with the finest paper in the longest direction.

then use some 0000 steel wool
the steel wool is the link between the paper and the chemical.
and steel wool the living daylights out of it!
then go with a heavy duty buffing compound.

then LOTS of armstrong power!
i mean LOTS AND LOTS!
i use a buffer and a part like that might take 10 minutes at a few thousand rpm.
if your doing it by hand a hundred rpm it will be like 100x time longer!

good luck!


Post# 364938 , Reply# 21   1/9/2017 at 17:28 (2,634 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
I Think I did a really good job

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When I First got it from Value Village it looked like this. Some part of me wished I got the Heritage 2 Legend, but it had no powercord so I could not test it.

Post# 364940 , Reply# 22   1/9/2017 at 19:32 (2,634 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)        

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You've done a great job so far. Don't get discouraged.

Post# 365084 , Reply# 23   1/13/2017 at 17:41 (2,630 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Made some progress on the handle

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90% done with the handle, should I use mothers or blue magic?

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Post# 365109 , Reply# 24   1/14/2017 at 11:44 (2,629 days old) by sptyks (Skowhegan, Maine)        

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Use Mother's or even better use Flitz on aluminum, not Blue Magic.

Flitz is expensive but worth it.

 

 

 

 

 


Post# 365186 , Reply# 25   1/16/2017 at 09:17 (2,627 days old) by brycerivers (Atlanta,GA,30273,United States)        
Does it look like im done?

brycerivers's profile picture
Just used Mother's Yesterday and I got a cross between a mirror and a dull finish.
Do I need to completely restart or can I Start back at 1500 with Mothers?
Also how do I remove the liver spots on the sides?
Thank you for all the support you’ve given me on this site!



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Post# 365192 , Reply# 26   1/16/2017 at 11:03 (2,627 days old) by sptyks (Skowhegan, Maine)        

sptyks's profile picture

Try using some Mother's with a high speed buffing wheel for the liver spots.

If that doesn't work then you will need to sand them out.

 


Post# 365251 , Reply# 27   1/17/2017 at 22:44 (2,626 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)        

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Looks like I got the evil twin to yours, mine was free and in perfect mechanical condition aside from needing a new belt (even clean inside and the brush roll is like new!) But must have been stored where some type of cleaning chemicals were stored (came from a daycare/preschool with 4 other machines) and had been spilled on it. I washed the parts from all the machines with no cleaners, whatever had been spilled on them was soapy and smelled nice. The soap/chemical (I'm assuming either hand soap or floor cleaner) pitted the aluminum pretty badly in a few places and took the shine off completely. I spent hours trying to polish it up and finally just gave up. It works great, and I really can't complain for free (even had some attachments and the shampooer). It looks OK, but I doubt it'll ever look new again. I need to order some bags (it had a new one installed but that had been saturated in whatever as well, I filled it and don't have any extras) and wash the outer bag.


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