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Thread Number: 6909
Mr Conrad 'Connie' Hoover aka Constellation 821 goes to the Spa. |
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| Post# 76247 7/23/2009 at 21:32 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
With the Eureka 50th Anniversary Roto-matic model 860AC from the weekend polished up and put on display I turned my attentions to the Canadian 821 tonight. Had the green floor brush in the partz bin, fixed up the hose coupling repair and added a spare more-green-than-blue Vibra-beat nozzle. What year was Eureka's 50th Anniversary exactly, eurekaprince Brian? 
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| Post# 76248 , Reply# 1 7/23/2009 at 21:37 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Next number, please. Calling 821...the doctor is reeady for | ||
| Post# 76251 , Reply# 2 7/23/2009 at 21:40 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76252 , Reply# 3 7/23/2009 at 21:44 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76254 , Reply# 4 7/23/2009 at 21:46 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76255 , Reply# 5 7/23/2009 at 21:49 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76257 , Reply# 6 7/23/2009 at 21:52 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76258 , Reply# 7 7/23/2009 at 21:56 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76259 , Reply# 8 7/23/2009 at 22:04 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76260 , Reply# 9 7/23/2009 at 22:12 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Your muffler felt is slightly musty but a dose of Eucalyptus will have you smelling sweet again. Sure there's a little rust down there but who doesn't have a touch of rust 'down there'. :-) A touch with the dremeltool and some oil polish and it won't spread to the nether regions. Call 'em STD warts or hard won calluses, we can't eliminate them without a complete off frame repaint and you look pretty darn good as is after 55 years on the job. Be grateful the moths and mice didn't get atcha... 
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| Post# 76263 , Reply# 10 7/23/2009 at 22:26 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Okey Dokey, Conrad. You've come through the preliminaries with flying colours. That didn't hurt much now did it? We have a younger cousin of yours in off the streets with very tattered clothing - deep dents and paint chips and mucho nether region rust that has spread - who has agreed to donate his cord and a kidney donut for your engine support. I'm afraid you'll have to make do with with either a gray Hoover or dark blue Kirby cord until a proper blue one comes along. See you in a few days for the final operation and a fresh bag we've located from 1954. That used WayBack Machine was a good investment. Thanks, Sherman. Your nozzles and hose are enjoying a warm soapy long soak and rubdown in the tub and will join you then. Why, you'll be almost as handsome as the day you were born but for the minor battle scars we've discussed. Felix is checking security precautions put in place as standard practice to protect your teensy parts like ridiculously small circlip washers for your handle and hinge rods. 
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| Post# 76266 , Reply# 11 7/23/2009 at 22:47 (5,383 days old) by eurekaprince (Montreal, Canada) | ||
Eureka was established in 1907, Dr. Dave.....
Therefore, your 50th anniversary Roto-Matic (drool, drool...) is from 1957. Did Conrad come with his own OHIP (Ontario Heath Insurance Plan) card? Everytime I see that Eureka woven hose in turquoise or green, it brings me back to fond memories of the attachment kit we had with our Automatic upright in the 1960's. I can still remember the distinctive smell of the outside of the hose....smell is one of our strongest memory triggers....and I don't know what it was, but all Eureka attachments and hoses had a particular fragrance that I will never forget. Oy...I am one sick Filter Queen, aren't I? B :-) | ||
| Post# 76280 , Reply# 13 7/24/2009 at 05:58 (5,383 days old) by eurekaprince (Montreal, Canada) | ||
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Wouldn't that be a fun contest for the next VCCC convent | ||
| Post# 76282 , Reply# 14 7/24/2009 at 09:08 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Once again singing the praises of Mr Clean's Magic Erase
Was studiously scrubbing away at the vinyl hose by the half filled bathtub with a potato brush when I decided to try a Magic Eraser. Wow! Decades of greasy black schmutz came off instantly. So I shucked my duds and climbed into the tub with it, stretching out 12" sections of hose between my knees and left hand. This raises and flattens out the web between coils and a single pass of Mr Eraser wipes it clean as new with special attention to the stubborn spots and coupler crevices. Once again in awe of the amazing Magic Eraser. Now it's hanging on the curtain rod drying out and looking almost brand new & blue. And I have a perfect excuses to scrub down the tub & surround again this month. LOL Such a purty blue... 
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Post# 76283 , Reply# 15 7/24/2009 at 09:15 (5,383 days old) by arh1953  ( River Park, in Port St. Lucie, Florida) |
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| Post# 76285 , Reply# 16 7/24/2009 at 09:54 (5,383 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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So sorry Alan, I never thought to think. By then I was all wet and the camera in another room and awkward tripod manipulations would have been called for and so on. Disregarding post 80s plastic hoses and the like, it is surprising that for all their technical wizardry over the years that Electrolux hoses are so prone to breaking down and leaking. More so the cheaper vinyl hoses of Kenmore, while re-enforced molded hose stock on Sunbeam, Filter Queens, Rainbows and Kirby still do not prevent cracking and splitting in the webs. And yet humble Hoover made a vinyl hose mix that consistently stands the test of time. Also, I've yet to come across a GE or Eureka woven saran hose that leaked badly and in fact usually they are airtight and the weave smooth and snagless. San't say that about Electrolux's saran weave after the 1960s. The Royal crushless hose construction is a brilliant job of double interlocking coils that resist any attack on their integrity and are quite flexible. | ||
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Post# 76292 , Reply# 17 7/24/2009 at 10:47 (5,383 days old) by arh1953 ( River Park, in Port St. Lucie, Florida) |
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Rubbadubbdub | ||
| Post# 76313 , Reply# 18 7/24/2009 at 22:29 (5,382 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Transplant is a success. Donor donut in place and grey cord installed. For those not familiar with the innards of a Connie the rubber donut mount ring fits on top over the fan case and the motor seats in another rubber cup at the bottom that has a keyway to keep the motor from torquing out of position. Because I hope to some day be able to secure a genuine blue Hoover cord I did as little modification to the grey cord as possible. In this case the cord is tied up to the screw lug by the green arrow which will prevent it from being accidently tugged out. 
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| Post# 76316 , Reply# 19 7/24/2009 at 23:08 (5,382 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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This is going well...
Test fit. Hit the switch, the lid was sucked down tight and got a solid smooth 60" reading. Woo-hoo! Bolted the halves together before re-attaching the base ring hinge, silly me. Took it apart again, did that and re-attached the hinge-pins and handle. Was forced to epoxy the swingarm/bag seal ring assembly in place as I do not have a spot welder handy. It's a hidden repair so you'd never know...unless I tell you. :-) Arcane Minutia and Trivia section: Sometime during the 1954 - 1957 run of the three concurrent swiveltop Constellations 82, 84 & 85 the bag support was changed from this one's half-shell one piece stamping with the ballchain restraint to a thick wire frame affair with crimped-on bag collar. Jeez, did a ball chainm restraint add That Much to the beancounter's bottom line? I guess so... Both my North Canton made 82 non-floater, floating 85 and the Canadian Mulberry 841E have the later open frame. I revel in differential dating details like this... 
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| Post# 76317 , Reply# 20 7/24/2009 at 23:09 (5,382 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76318 , Reply# 21 7/24/2009 at 23:11 (5,382 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76357 , Reply# 23 7/25/2009 at 08:40 (5,382 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Never used one! Fred, it will change your life! LOL
Once you've used and understood how effectively the Magic Eraser works one will never be enough, Fred. :-) You need to be forewarned that you'll want to find them on sale and stock up by the dozens. Stick with the Original version or buy generic knock-offs. My box says the material is made in Germany. In that box you will find two rectangular white blocks that seem to be nothing more than micro-cell foam. They feel like sponges and have a squeaky rubbery texture. You wet them under the tap and squeeze out the water, then attack your smudge. I'm sure they last a decently long time under normal household use of gently rubbing the kiddy's crayon marks off walls and baseboards... But for our purposes of removing decades of schmutz and scuffs - like no other sponge, abrasive pad or brush you've ever used - from upright hoods & handles and bumpers, wands, hoses, cylinder hammertone, etc, your jaw will drop in giddy astonishment. They deteriorate quickly while getting into all the crevices and bumps. Under a firm heavy hand necessary on some stubborn flaws the material compresses permanently and soon the block starts to break up into fragments. As it gets filthy with the rubbings you can rinse it fairly clean under the tap and keep going. I keep paper towels handyby to wipe up the cleaned area as I go, before the muddied water droplets can dry. I begin by tearing one rectangle in half, or use scissors. I used up two whole erasers on the Connie and that was by using the increasingly small shard fragments to complete sections and the nozzles before they were too small to pinch between two fingers. Yes, they are that good! And that expensive. In Canada a Two pack of Mr Clean costs about $3.99 !!! The originals are usually on sale as they are being discontinued. Get mine at Giant Tiger for $2.99 or less. and at Target the generic two-pack is $1.50, I think. They are such a runaway hit for Procter & Gamble that they have introduced more pricey 'improved' versions with 'texture' on one side or bonded to a scouring pad/sponge. WASTE OF MONEY! They are ridiculously expensive to begin with and that's why I look for the generic versions at Target or discount grocery stores. Once you've got those marks off a once over with a damp cloth and you're ready for your favorite wax or polish application. While the Eraser is not abrasive - more like a draftsman's pencil eraser - they do leave a satin finish on enamel paint and plastic hoods and such. This is where plastic polish or Muther's Aluminum polish will restore the gleaming shine. Obviuosly, do not use them vigorously on decals or litho-stamped letterings. Do try them, Fred, and when Mr Clean says disposable, he really means it. Worth every penny, you'll see. Dave 
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| Post# 76358 , Reply# 24 7/25/2009 at 08:41 (5,382 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Who doesn't trust Mr Clean? | ||
| Post# 76381 , Reply# 25 7/25/2009 at 15:07 (5,381 days old) by crevicetool (GA ) | ||
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Great job again Doctor. Modern science and a dedicated medical genius has put humpty dumpty back together again! The above picture- alas, no earring, I rarely smile, and the arms? I wish. A fun, wonderful thread Dave! Rick | ||
| Post# 76516 , Reply# 26 7/26/2009 at 09:38 (5,381 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Not finished yet, Rick. :-)
More observations of minutiae... Positing that this Canadian 821 is one of the very first issue, due to its one piece bag support, looking closer I find the handle hinge brackets are inserted and riveted from the inside through slots in the dome, presenting a cleaner cosmetic design. Later swiveltops I have have the brackets attached on the outside, eliminating the slots. This 821 had the remains of a factory sealing putty over the slots from the inside. When I re-sealed them with epoxy the suction rose 15" yes, 15" !!! Pic proof later. Here's Conrad in all his renewed gleaming glory...alas, I've yet to find a blue dusting brush and crevice tool. But I WILL! 
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| Post# 76517 , Reply# 27 7/26/2009 at 09:44 (5,381 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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Being my first original Ultraflex I am fairly excited. | ||
| Post# 76518 , Reply# 28 7/26/2009 at 09:47 (5,381 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76519 , Reply# 29 7/26/2009 at 09:49 (5,381 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76520 , Reply# 30 7/26/2009 at 10:02 (5,381 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 76521 , Reply# 31 7/26/2009 at 10:04 (5,381 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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