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Thread Number: 23709
How did you discover other collectors? |
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| Post# 265500 1/31/2014 at 06:58 (3,732 days old) by Turbo500 (West Yorkshire, UK) | ||
A recent post in another thread inspired this - thought it might make for some interesting discussion.
We've all had that moment, haven't we? The overwhelming, shocking, jaw dropping, gleeful moment where we realise that THERE ARE OTHERS. Others with this unusual hobby. I've often said it can be an incredibly lonely hobby, especially before the discovery is made of others. We first got the internt in 2002. It was in the days of dial-up where you had to buy a CD-Rom from a retailer and install drivers and a browser from it and register your details. We went with "WHSmithNet". Total budget thing, I think we were paying £10 a month, which back then was INCREDIBLY cheap as internet subscriptions were pricey - anywhere between £20 and £60 a month. Oh my word, I can't even begin to tell you how slow it was. The first 2 sites I recall discovering (I can't remember which order) were Charlie Lester's 137.com and Jack Copp's Vintage Hoover Emporium. Well, I was in awe! I remember reading through all the info on the different Hoover's and looking at the pictures of all these old cleaners I remember seeing as a child. I think I made more of a connection with Jack's site as it was British, and full of machines I knew of, but I loved reading through Charlie's site as you got (and still do get) a real sense of all the feelings that one goes through in relation to the interest. From there, I stumbled across Hooverland on Yahoo Groups and subsequently vacuumland. 12 years later, I've now met a whole heap of people through chatting online. Some of my very best friends have been people who I've met from here. Big thank you to Charlie and Jack :). So, how did you make the discovery of everyone else? | ||
| Post# 265520 , Reply# 1 1/31/2014 at 09:41 (3,731 days old) by adambomb (Undisclosed ) | ||
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YouTube, Facebook and here | ||
| Post# 265527 , Reply# 2 1/31/2014 at 10:14 (3,731 days old) by guido (ITALY) | ||
good memories
For me too it was the internet, when it still was a frustrating and time-consuming playground and it took hours to charge images :
- CHARLIE LESTER's 137.com ( not sure the adress was the same at the time ) thanks to which I also came to know about the person we could consider the "patriarch" of vacuum cleaner collectors : STAN KANN - the now abandoned VINTAGE HOOVER EMPORIUM - another site - I don't remember the name or could be it was a prior version of one of the other 2 sites, not sure - where the screen-background was made like a vintage vacuum bag fabric and the sound of vintage vacuum cleaners used to welcome the guests ! There was great stuff there too ! All these sites were very useful "bibles" for anyone who wanted to start a vacuum cleaner collection or at least start to understand more about it. Today I see many curious guests entering VACUUMLAND and asking for general info...many times they don't even get an answer from " Us Experts " as we are some steps forward...but could be it's a pity and we might loose some fans or fellow-future-collectors in this way.... I really wish we could have some updated sites for general information and reference for starters ( but not only starters ), now that there is so much material and images around, if compared to the past ! | ||
| Post# 265532 , Reply# 4 1/31/2014 at 11:01 (3,731 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA) | ||
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Post# 265536 , Reply# 5 1/31/2014 at 11:20 (3,731 days old) by electrolux137  (Los Angeles) |
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 One day in 1990, a new friend came to my apartment for coffee. When he walked into my living room he noticed there were a few old vacuum cleaners sitting around. He exclaimed, “I don’t believe it! I asked, "Don't believe WHAT? He said, Here's another nut with a house-full of old sweepers!” I said, astonished, “What do you mean, another nut?!” He replied, “I can’t believe you’ve never heard of Stan Kann, that zany guy who’s been on the Carson show a bunch of times with his gadgets and antique vacuum cleaners that never work! He’s the organist at my church.” I couldn’t believe my ears! Another person on this planet who not only is interested in vacuums but who is also a church organist, like me. I was very anxious to meet him. My friend didn’t know Stan’s number but thought it was in the phone book. The next day I looked up his telephone number. I phoned him and introduced myself by saying, “Mr. Kann, my name is Charles Richard Lester. You don’t know me, but I am calling because we have something in common.” “What’s that?” came the vaguely suspicious reply. “I have here in my living room a 1937 Electrolux Model XXX, a 1925 Scott and Fetzer Sanitation System, and a 1937 Hoover Model 150 vacuum cleaner.” In his inimitable way, he asked, “Well, what are you doing with all that stuff!?” He was quite surprised to hear from me, and we talked for a long time that first day. He told me about three other people (all in other parts of the country) he knew who also collected vacuum cleaners -- John Lucia, Mike Pupek and George Bourhill (R.I.P.). Through John Lucia I met Alex Taber and, from then on, well, "The Rest Is History!" Here's a photo of Stan and me taken in 1991. 
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| Post# 265537 , Reply# 6 1/31/2014 at 11:35 (3,731 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA) | ||
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| Post# 265550 , Reply# 7 1/31/2014 at 13:35 (3,731 days old) by beko1987 (Stokenchurch, United Kingdom) | ||
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Hooverland first for me, then 137 and James's site, then here! Youtube and facebook are great now too! | ||
| Post# 265682 , Reply# 10 2/1/2014 at 10:03 (3,730 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 265714 , Reply# 11 2/1/2014 at 15:36 (3,730 days old) by TASE (Colorado) | ||
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| Post# 265779 , Reply# 12 2/2/2014 at 07:31 (3,729 days old) by sebo_fan (Scotland, UK, member AKA ukvacfan, & Nar2) | ||
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| Post# 265807 , Reply# 13 2/2/2014 at 11:38 (3,729 days old) by Collector2 (Moose Jaw, Sk) | ||
My first knowledge of there being other collectors in the world was in the 1970's when the Stan Kann show came on TV here. It also made my life a lot easier as my parents suddenly accepted my collection. Their attitude was - well, if he collects them too and he's on television it cant be all bad. Thankfully I got to meet Stan about a year before his passing. He was a fantastic man and is sorely missed. (Thank you again Charlie for putting me in contact with him)
The first web site I saw, about 15 years ago, was Charlie Lester's site but my first actual contact with another collector was with George Bocknewch in Florida who purchased a 1940's Electrolux I had put up on ebay in 2001. We have stayed in contact every since and become very good friends. A lot of other contacts have been made through here and, in the last couple of years I have found several other collectors closer to home. Doug | ||
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