Thread Number: 8682
A "Vision in Turquoise" Dream Machine Finally Found!!!
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Post# 96419   4/18/2010 at 19:39 (5,092 days old) by electrolux~137 ()        

Well, this weekend I found one of my "Holy Grails."

For many years I have been waiting to find a 1960s Johnson Wax Floor Care Machine, in vivid (almost fluorescent) turquoise to round out my nearly complete collection of Johnson Wax floor polishers. It has a single 10"-diameter brush.

Yes, even in the face of drastic reductions to my collection this was one machine I have been dying to have for many years, so when one came my way I happily jumped on it!

As some other of us vacuum cleaner collectors, I also have a very soft spot for floor polishers. In particular, the exquisitely beautiful Electrolux Air-Powered Floor Polisher and Scrubber, and Johnson Wax electric polishers, even more particularly the '50s and '60s turquoise models.

Their last machine was sold in the mid to late 1960s and was called the "Johnson's Floor Care Machine." I have wanted to find one for many years. One came up on eBay a while back and I got into a bidding war over it and finally had to let the other bidder take it because, oh break my heart, it just went too high for me.

But recently one became available!!!

So where, inquiring minds want to know, did I find it? You may recall a posting here a couple of weeks ago by Mark Berger, "Large Hoard of Vacs For Sale" -- a collection of mostly vacuum cleaners that he was selling for someone else. I didn't see anything in his initial posting that interested me, but in a subsequent posting he added "Johnson’s Wax Floor Buffer/Scrubber."

Curious as to what model it was, and not really thinking about getting it in the face of the "Great Reduction," I posted a query to Mark asking him which model it was. When he wrote in a reply post that "It is a Johnson's Floor Care Machine ... It has a one piece V-shaped handle with a plastic grip" well, I almost fell off my chair!

I emailed Mark and told him I was very interested in it and asked what the seller wanted for it. Cut to the chase, I got it for a very good price and PayPal'd him the money.

When I got to church today, there was a coffin-sized cardboard carton waiting for me in my office! Excitedly, I opened the box and there it was, in all its radiant turquoise glory! AT LAST!! A dream machine found!!!

I want to publicly thank Mark for arranging the sale of the polisher and also for the incredibly meticulous and careful packing job he did. Mark, I could tell you put a lot of time and effort into it, and I really, REALLY appreciate that. I would have just been sick, brokenhearted if it arrived damaged -- thinking of the long, slender, easily-snapped handle ....... I am elated to report that it arrived in perfect condition.

¡¡¡¡¡¡¡ THANK YOU MARK !!!!!!!



Now, of course, piccies!!!





























Here are some of my other Johnson Wax machines.

The third one down is one of two commercial models. This one has a 12" brush and this beast is a real ball-buster, weighing about 75 lbs!! There was a larger 16-in. brush model that I've only seen in photos -- I can only imagine what THAT monster weighs!















Now, the remaining machine (that I know of) that I need in order to have a complete set of Johnson Wax polishers is a model like the one in the three-shot above, finished in a metallic blue color. I have not seen that model since I was about four years, but remember it clearly!




Something else I'd love to find, although Lord only knows where I'd put it, is one of the Johnson Wax polisher rental racks you used to see in the front of some grocery and hardware stores.

When I was a little boy, every time my mom would shop at the Colonial Grocery Store, I'd dash from the car, through the automatic door (in itself a great wonder!) and over to the Johnson Wax display with a row of shiny turquoise polishers, accessories in boxes with bright red letters, and bright-yellow cans of Beautiflor wax (the most heavenly smelling floor wax ever created). It would be a real kick to find one of those display racks someday. (Heck, I'd love to find just a photo of one!)

[Glamorine and Blue Lustre also used to have similar rental racks of floor polishers and rug shampooers. The Glamorine machines were similar to the Johnson-Wax machines, with a single large polishing brush.]

Incidentally, Johnson Wax made a special "badged" version of their Floor Care machine for the Singer Company. It was sold by Singer during the era of the beige "canned ham" machine, beige pot-type canister and the beige slimline upright, and was done up in the matching two-tone beige color scheme.



Post# 96439 , Reply# 1   4/18/2010 at 23:02 (5,092 days old) by luxg ()        
Beautiful Charles!

It is great that you were able to find one of your dream machines! i too have fond memories of the Johnson polishers. In our little town Spieths market had the same metal rack display for rental of these polishers. I seem to remember that they also sold disposable buffing pads for these machines. Oh the memories. Have fun with your new treasure.

Terry


Post# 96440 , Reply# 2   4/18/2010 at 23:21 (5,092 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA)        

suckolux's profile picture
Wow, back when we had style!

Post# 96648 , Reply# 3   4/21/2010 at 12:58 (5,090 days old) by ohio_tuec ()        

I don't ordinarily do this, but I was wondering Charles, if you had seen this....

CLICK HERE TO GO TO ohio_tuec's LINK on eBay


Post# 96675 , Reply# 4   4/21/2010 at 14:47 (5,090 days old) by electrolux~137 ()        

Hey, yes, I did see it. Already have that model, but thanks for the link! :)

The model in the auction is the HP-57. There was an HP-54 which is the dark turquoise one in the "three shot" above, an HP-55 which is the same machine as the 54 in canary yellow, the HP-56 which is the same machine in metallic gray, and then the HP-57. Note that the 57 has a narrower and more angular motor hood and an attractive aluminum trim running down the top. (However, all the hoods are interchangeable.)

There was also an HP-58 but I don't recall the difference/s between the 57 and 58, if any.

And, yes, the number corresponds to the year of manufacture, HP-54/1954 etc.

I don't know the model number of the metallic blue version I'm looking for. I haven't seen one since I was 3 or 4 years old.



Post# 96678 , Reply# 5   4/21/2010 at 14:54 (5,090 days old) by petek (Ontario)        

Glad you found another dream machine. It looks quite jet set modern. Not a polisher collector myself but somehow I end up with a few, no Johnson ones, just the Sunbeams, GE's and a Kenmore

Post# 96681 , Reply# 6   4/21/2010 at 15:35 (5,090 days old) by electrolux~137 ()        

Sunbeam made one polisher model with a single 10" brush. It's also pretty cool looking.




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