Thread Number: 18698
recently aquired kirby tradition and kirby heritage repairs 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 205678   11/2/2012 at 21:59 (4,182 days old) by ad356 ()        

i recently bought a nice condition kirby tradition. i paid $25 for this vacuum and it needs nearly nothing except the cleaning i have already done to it. i have restored it to an almost new shine with mothers mag and aluminum polish, although its not perfect yet for a 30+ year old vacuum it looks great. i also checked the motor brushes, they were barely worn. when you compare this 30 year old kirby to walmart vacuums that are only 3 or 4 years old, that 3-4 year old cheapy usually a disgusting, dust and dirt spitting piece of junk. the kirby on the other hand has a pretty blue bag which is easily washed and aluminum that even after all of these years cleans up well. you cannot buy one of those cheap junky china things for what i paid for a kirby. i think the old kirby vacs are an incredible value; people just about give them away and they were built extremely well so usually there isnt much wrong with them except for maintenance and cleaning.

anyways i think what i have is an older machine that was not used hard and will last another 30 years or more. how does this tradition compare to the 1981 heritage that i have been using for the last 15 years? how does the suction power compare? why did kirby change the safety switch design, my heritage hose will fit on the front but will not engage the safety switch.

i still have my heritage and it has been in my life 15 years so far, it still has all of the power it had when we bought it 15 years ago used from a vac center. it has been one of the most reliable vacuums you could hope to own, what an awesome machine. i have to do some maintenance to that machine soon. i replaced the headlight lense/socket recently, i have to replace the brushes in the next few years (i checked them, they were not shot but worn down quite a bit more then the brushes in the tradition, for the few dollars they cost i will replace them sooner then later).

i also need to replace the handle spring assembly on the heritage, the bushing that the pin slides through broke recently and the handle spring poped out of place. should i fix this myself or drop the housing off at a vacuum center and allow him to deal with it. it looks kind of like a pain in the butt to replace.

should i think about upgrading either one of these classic vacuums to the newer mini emptor style emptor off the heritage II? it would allow me to run newer bags and save a little weight over the older style emptor?


i just love older kirby vacs and i cannot stand junk from the big box stores, because that's exactly what that stuff is brand junk out of a box. a vintage kirby any model will outclean any one of them

Post# 205693 , Reply# 1   11/3/2012 at 00:48 (4,182 days old) by KirbyClassicIII (Milwaukie, Oregon)        

kirbyclassiciii's profile picture
Hi Andrew,

What is the serial # of your Tradition? If it is between #F000001 and #F500000, it will be distinguishable from later units in two ways:
(1) There will be a locking headlight cap. A blue sliding lock switch will be present on the left-hand side of the cap.
(2) There will also be a 10-blade metal fan.

~Ben

Post# 205703 , Reply# 2   11/3/2012 at 07:30 (4,182 days old) by dysondestijl (east midlands, UK)        
hi

 hi there, i have a kirby tradition too. james (kirbymodel2c) kindly gave it to me, in full working order! i also have the miracle buffer head which i use to make the carpets look all fluffed up!!
thedysonman

Post# 205718 , Reply# 3   11/3/2012 at 10:11 (4,181 days old) by ad356 ()        

the tradition i have looks allot like my heritage, same headlight cap and has a plastic fan, is the fan plastic or is it lexan? the fans on these vacuums has to be something tougher then plastic, becuase i have never had to replace the fan on my heritage and it probably has sucked up just about anything short of coins (which i make it a point not to suck up coins, coins and kirbys dont mix well.

Post# 205724 , Reply# 4   11/3/2012 at 12:31 (4,181 days old) by KirbyClassicIII (Milwaukie, Oregon)        

kirbyclassiciii's profile picture
Andrew,

Then you have the more common version of the Tradition. To the best of my knowledge the early plastic fans were made of a polycarbonate called Lexan.

~Ben

Post# 205814 , Reply# 5   11/4/2012 at 10:07 (4,180 days old) by ad356 ()        

what is the current construction material? i thought they still used lexan? the lexan fans are pretty durable my heritage has never needed a new fan in 15 years of hard work.

Post# 205854 , Reply# 6   11/4/2012 at 17:25 (4,180 days old) by KirbyClassicIII (Milwaukie, Oregon)        

kirbyclassiciii's profile picture
Andrew,

They use Kevlar to make their motor fans. They did so since the time of the G5 in 1996.

~Ben

Post# 205891 , Reply# 7   11/5/2012 at 09:55 (4,179 days old) by rugsucker (Elizabethton TN)        
Kirby plastic fans

 The early (Trad,Her,Gs)was gray and depending on number of hours and type of dirt would often develop tiny even cracks at center and will break.The later white fans(later Gs) hold up very well even with much use and some abuse of pennies,rocks,nails,etc.You should always check a grey fan for tiny cracks and may find the white fan on a Heritage or early Gen as the replacement is a common repair.


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