Thread Number: 15289
First Electrolux 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 162430   12/17/2011 at 14:48 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

I picked up my first Electrolux today, a turquoise Model L.

It has the belt winder but no power nozzle. It has a fair number of scuffs, but no major dents. Fairly clean as well, the pictures are before any clean up.



Post# 162431 , Reply# 1   12/17/2011 at 14:51 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

View 2

Post# 162432 , Reply# 2   12/17/2011 at 14:53 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

Got it at an estate sale. Everything was half off today so I got for $12.

Post# 162433 , Reply# 3   12/17/2011 at 14:57 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

Apparently last serviced in 1980. I don't know if that vacuum shop is still there.

Post# 162434 , Reply# 4   12/17/2011 at 14:58 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

Front view.

Post# 162435 , Reply# 5   12/17/2011 at 15:00 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

These take the type C bags right? Any recommendations on where to get bags?

Post# 162436 , Reply# 6   12/17/2011 at 15:00 (4,778 days old) by massagemiracle ()        

Thats a sweet looking Electrolux! Good find!!
Post# 162437 , Reply# 7   12/17/2011 at 15:02 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

I think the wands are not original. They seem to light weight and flimsy compared to everything else on the vacuum.

Post# 162438 , Reply# 8   12/17/2011 at 15:08 (4,778 days old) by vacman117 (Chicago, IL)        

vacman117's profile picture
Those wands are actually original. That is one thing that I like about the older Electrolux wands, they are very lightweight! That is an awesome find though!

Post# 162439 , Reply# 9   12/17/2011 at 15:08 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

Excuse me, "too light weight."

Any cleaning tips? So far my only experience is with Kirby vacuums, which have little painted/enameled surface.

Joe

Post# 162440 , Reply# 10   12/17/2011 at 15:18 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        
@ massagemiracle

 Thanks Ben!

Post# 162442 , Reply# 11   12/17/2011 at 15:22 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        
@ vacman117

 Oh, that's good to know. They don't have any markings on them either. I'm glad I didn't leave them behind now.

Thanks Chase!

Joe

Post# 162443 , Reply# 12   12/17/2011 at 15:24 (4,778 days old) by tyson ()        

Awesome Electrolux!It looks to be in nice shape!I have one Electrolux myself and they are terrific Vacs.I'm sure glad you were able to save it.It is a really well preserved machine and I love the styling they had on the model L to me it has a classy look to it and I heard that the Model L was one great vac to own in it's day.Awesome!

Post# 162446 , Reply# 13   12/17/2011 at 15:33 (4,778 days old) by tyson ()        

I wanted to add that the minor scratches come out great with soft scrub or a light rubbing compound.If you lightly use soft scrub and a little windex followed by a little car wax the finish should turn out beautiful.Also a light rubbing compound followed by a damp rag then some hand buffing should take the marks off of the plastic as well as the paint.Just don't rub to hard on the painted surface as you want to apply it lightly but buff clean after a rinse with a damp rag.I've always had very good success with those cleaning tips

Post# 162447 , Reply# 14   12/17/2011 at 15:38 (4,778 days old) by tyson ()        

That and toothpaste works well on the rubber as well just be sure to rinse it off wiping it with a damp rag afterwards.Great find,I'd be proud of that one if it were mine.

Post# 162450 , Reply# 15   12/17/2011 at 15:57 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        
@ tyson

 Thanks for the tips Tyson!

I am pleased, the thing runs like a top and makes a pleasant whooshing sound.

Joe

Post# 162452 , Reply# 16   12/17/2011 at 16:00 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        
Dearborn Vacuum Co.

 Evidently the Dearborn Vacuum Co. is still open at that location, now the "Banks Vacuum Superstore".

Joe

CLICK HERE TO GO TO JHGVac's LINK
Post# 162456 , Reply# 17   12/17/2011 at 16:44 (4,778 days old) by danemodsandy ()        
Joe:

 Your Model L would have been made sometime between 1968 and 1973; these were the years that the L was finished to match the TOL Model 1205. I have one in storage that's identical to yours.

You did very well for $12! The fact that the wands, the combination floor/rug tool and the crevice tool are present is a huge plus. You lack only the combination dusting brush/upholstery tool to have your machine complete.

Turquoise dusting brushes in good shape are getting a little hard to find. There is a soft rubber part inside the brush that tends to crack and tear over time. If you find a dusting brush with this problem, there is a fix: SuperGlue. It bonds rubber perfectly.

If you want a power nozzle for your machine, the correct ones for that vintage Model L are the PN-1 in turquoise, or the PN-2, which was a polished aluminum unit. Early Ls used a non-electric hose, with a separate cord that was clipped to the hose with turquoise plastic clips. You can still buy the cord easily on that auction site, but the clips are unobtainium new; your only chance at them is used. You can also use Rainbow hose cord straps (which come in black only). Late Ls used an electrified hose with a "pigtail" on it to plug into the power nozzle port. The 1974 gold L I just found uses that arrangement.

If you want to put a PURDY shine on your L, I recommend TR-3 Resin Glaze, a car polish/sealant available in auto parts stores. You will end up with a blinding shine on that beautiful turquoise paint.

Another thing - all the brush bristles on your tools are replaceable. That auction site is one good place to look for them if you ever need them. Even the dusting brush's bristles just pull out (they're mounted in a metal strip) and a new set snaps in. Also, that cordwinder is rebuildable if it ever gets lazy about rewinding the cord. You will improve the rewind a lot if you will make sure the cord is clean and then dust it with a little talcum powder; that was Electrolux's recommended lubricant for the cord.

Great machine! You're lucky.

Post# 162503 , Reply# 18   12/17/2011 at 21:38 (4,778 days old) by JHGVac ()        

Thanks Sandy!

Wow, lots of good info there.

Was the power nozzle an option on the Model L? Based on the amount of stuff the owner of the house hung on to, it seems like it should have been there had they ever been in possession of it.

Also, the little receptacle for the PN has a rubber cover that plugs in, and it's still nice and tight with good insertion force as if it seldom has been opened. So I suspect this one has never been used with a power nozzle.

Joe

Post# 162505 , Reply# 19   12/17/2011 at 21:43 (4,778 days old) by pnluxconvlvr (Georgia)        
Wow!

 pnluxconvlvr's profile picture
That is one nice Electrolux!

Post# 162509 , Reply# 20   12/17/2011 at 21:51 (4,778 days old) by danemodsandy ()        
Joe:

 Yes, the power nozzle was an option. It cost around $69.50 extra by the time the PN-2 was introduced.

You could buy the PN with the machine, in which case your Lux was called a Deluxe model, as in Deluxe Model L. Or - you could buy it later, in which case your machine was just called a Model L on the sales order.

Electrolux salesmen used the PN both as a way to upgrade the sale and to save it if the customer was hesitating. If the customer would go for the PN, well and good. But if they balked at the total price, then the salesman could say, "Well, the machine itself is only XXXX amount without the power nozzle - and you can always add the power nozzle later if you decide you really need it." This made the customer feel like they had some control over what they were spending.

Also, in the '60s and '70s, power nozzles weren't yet the standard feature they are now. A lot of people did not have carpet at all, just throw rugs, so they didn't really benefit from a PN. The family you bought that machine from might have been in that category at the time they purchased it.

Post# 162533 , Reply# 21   12/17/2011 at 23:33 (4,778 days old) by tyson ()        

Your welcome Joe and she sure is a keeper!

Post# 162540 , Reply# 22   12/18/2011 at 00:56 (4,778 days old) by BrianKirbyClass (Eudora Kansas)        

briankirbyclass's profile picture
Danemodsandy, you just confirmed something i said several yrs ago on this forum and was balked at. Someone asked what the "Deluxe" means on several Models of Lux's made after 1959, 60.
I wrote that i was told by an old Electrolux salesman once that the "Deluxe" infront of ANY model Electrolux just means WITH POWER NOZZLE.
You just confirmed that,,thank you! lol

I also asked this old salesman about my Grandma's Model E. once.
She had a standard model E that she bought back in the late 1950s,,the one with the chrome cord halo on the back,,but no automatic control. You just changed the bag whenever the suction got too low.
Anyway, in around 1966 Grandma had wall to wall carpet installed. And about that time, the Electrolux man came calling.
She didnt have the money for a new Model G with PN, so right there in her living room, the salesman performed some surgery on her Model E and made a PN port to the side of the front wheel, just like a model G. Put the blue cord and cord straps around her Model E hose,,and sold her a PN1,,,she loved it,,and that Model E lasted that way until the late 1980s when i brought her a new Electrolux Silverado,,that she is still using.
Anyway, i asked the old Lux Salesman that since her Model E was now equipped with a PN,,would you call it a "Deluxe" Model E. He laughed and said YES!! DEFINATLY!



Post# 162552 , Reply# 23   12/18/2011 at 07:35 (4,777 days old) by danemodsandy ()        
Brian:

 That was the beauty of the power nozzle - you could add it to a new cleaner sale, you could take it off to save a sale, you could add it back to the sale later to increase it, or you could add a PN to an old machine to get a sale out of someone who would not have bought a new machine. Electrolux was very smart about that kind of thing. VERY smart.

They did the same thing with the turbo polisher, though that was never as popular as a PN. My first Electrolux was a factory-reconditioned L in hammertone blue, with a PN-1. They made good and darned sure that I sat through the WHOLE presentation on the turbo polisher.

To help you understand what an effective and efficient sales organization they were, I went in looking at stuff I could not possibly afford in 1972, when I worked a couple of doors down from Electrolux's Atlanta showroom on Piedmont Avenue. I wanted a 1205 REAL bad; they had just come out with the PN-2, and the sight of all that turquoise-and-aluminum goodness gleaming in the show window was driving me nuts. I also wanted a B-8 shampooer-polisher, because I'd used one belonging to a friend and loved it.

The catch was, I was on my first real job, didn't have any credit to speak of, and the 1205 and B-8 would have been something like $500-600 total. Well, they let me down gently - they told me what they COULD do for me, and I left with the L - though I declined the turbo polisher as not being close enough to what I wanted. I got regular postcards from the agency after that, advising me of new models and sales on bags and tune-ups.

All gone now, and Aerus ain't the same.


Post# 162556 , Reply# 24   12/18/2011 at 09:00 (4,777 days old) by danemodsandy ()        
A Little Perspective....

 If Atlanta's Electrolux agency had let me finance $500 worth of new equipment back in 1972, it would have been equal to more than $2500 today. I was asking for a lot, LOL.

The refurbished Model L was around $140, if memory serves, which would have been equal to more than $700 now.

Back then, consumer durables were DURABLE. Considering what they cost, they needed to be - you didn't want to buy a new vac every couple of years at those prices.

Post# 162717 , Reply# 25   12/19/2011 at 18:46 (4,776 days old) by rugsucker (Elizabethton TN)        
'flimsy' wands

 These are a quality original wand set.But they may need a trick I learned as a sales rep.If wands fall apart hold one in each hand in T shape then roll the solid part of one wand over the slotted part of the other.On carpeted floor is good.The even pressure will tighten them as new.

Post# 162732 , Reply# 26   12/19/2011 at 21:35 (4,776 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        
1205

 My parents paid $200 back in 1970; & even includes the PN1 & Turbotool Rug Washer. :)

Post# 162733 , Reply# 27   12/19/2011 at 21:36 (4,776 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        
Rug Washer

 They paid an extra $100 with the 1205 in 1970.

Post# 162734 , Reply# 28   12/19/2011 at 21:39 (4,776 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        
B8 Floor Polisher/Carpet Beautifier

 I don't remember how much my parents paid for it back in 1970? Also at the same time as the 1205 & Rug Washer. My guess was about $200?

Post# 162738 , Reply# 29   12/19/2011 at 21:41 (4,776 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        
"Guesstimated" total they spent

 $500 for everything; if that's what it all cost back then.

Post# 162742 , Reply# 30   12/19/2011 at 21:51 (4,776 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        
The other 1205

 I bought from eBay back in 2004; 100% complete & pristine condition. :)

All I need to do is polish the chrome on top of vac & PN2.

Post# 162754 , Reply# 31   12/20/2011 at 06:45 (4,776 days old) by danemodsandy ()        
Erik:

 My memory of 1205 pricing is that it was around $300 full list price with the PN-2, and that the Carpet Beautifier was around $200-250. That was without trade-in.

It was a lot of money back in '72. A LOT. You could buy a Sears Best Kenmore vac and shampooer/polisher for way less than that - although you did not get the level of after-sale service available from Electrolux. Sears was already finding ways to drive customers nuts by the early '70s - the beginning of the long, slow demise that is still going on.

Post# 163170 , Reply# 32   12/23/2011 at 08:28 (4,772 days old) by JHGVac ()        
Sandy:

 "Turquoise dusting brushes in good shape are getting a little hard to find."

You weren't kidding about that. I saw one on that auction site for $50 buy it now, which I thought was a little out of line. But then I found one on auction at $15, but by the time in closed it was up to $46. Yikes.

Joe

Post# 163226 , Reply# 33   12/24/2011 at 04:51 (4,772 days old) by danemodsandy ()        
Joe:

 Hang in there - I've never paid more than $5, and I bought one only two weeks ago.

One source I would try if I were you is vac repair shops. They often have some used parts around, and if you ask nicely, they will usually try to help. This is how I got the one I just bought.

The only thing you have to worry about is the condition of the bristle insert and the rubber ring inside the brush (the part the wand goes into when you turn the brush around to use it as an upholstery tool). The insert is replaceable; the old one pulls out and the new one snaps in. Inserts are about $5-7.

The rubber ring is sometimes torn or cracked from long years of use. SuperGlue will bond it back together; you'll never know it was damaged.

eBay is the easiest way to find obscure stuff, true. But as with all forms of convenience, it's the most expensive, most of the time.

Post# 163570 , Reply# 34   12/28/2011 at 01:43 (4,768 days old) by uprightman ()        
Congratulations!

 Joe, VERY nice work! From a fellow Kirby man, I believe that you will be well pleased!

Regarding bags: please check your messages.



Post# 164422 , Reply# 35   1/2/2012 at 21:08 (4,762 days old) by JHGVac ()        
Steve:

Saw your message; thanks for the gracious offer.

 

You are right, so far I've been quite impressed!

 

Joe
Post# 165356 , Reply# 36   1/9/2012 at 20:27 (4,755 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        

Or you can tap between the slots of the wands; & they fit perfectly snug. :)

Post# 248149 , Reply# 37   8/28/2013 at 18:09 (4,158 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        

Can the rubber "donut" or upholstery "wing(s)" be purchased by itself or do I need to buy the whole combo duster/upholstery tool?
Post# 255087 , Reply# 38   11/3/2013 at 19:44 (4,091 days old) by dwblanc ()        
Elecrolux Model G Automatic Control??

 Help anybody? The catch on the hose end of the machine releases when I start the machine. Do I have a problem with the "automatic control" located inside the end where the filter bags go?
Thanks for any suggestions.


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