Hoover Model 102 Saved from the Junk Pile

Over the weekend, I randomly stopped into a vac shop to buy some compact bags after discovering the antique car parts auction I had driven 1.5 hours to get to was actually next weekend. I got to talking with the proprietor about old vacuums (not surprising) and before I knew it he invited me back to dig through his junk rooms. After about 30 minutes of digging through vacuums ranging from hand-pump models to convertibles, I came out with 2 machines I wanted to buy, a Hoover Junior model 115, and an Electro Hygiene, both with nice original bags. There were others I liked but decided I'd come back again and take another look at a later date, once I get everything I've recently acquired organized and cleaned up.

After the deal was done, he asked if I was in a rush, then offered to take me to his other shop about 10 miles away. At this point both shops had closed for the day. Naturally I said YES. So we get to the other shop, and I got to look through the junk room, the parts room, and the sheds. I hadn't found anything that caught my eye, then as we were about to leave, in the corner of a small room off to the side, I saw it. A Hoover Model 102! He told me that it had come with the store when he bought it 40 years ago, and imagined it was probably a trade in that somehow escaped the dumpster when they cleaned the place out many years ago. Probably because it's just too cool looking to toss.

I pulled it out into the light, and looked at it in awe. This machine had the original bag, original cloth cord with screw type socket plug, tufted brush roll, it was a perfect "survivor". After hesitantly selling it to me, I got home and started cleaning it up a little.

The bag is in pretty good shape for 96 years old, I made a few repairs (the bag hanger loop was hanging on by a thread) and gently washed it with cool water and a dash of woolite gentle. It came out great! I did nothing more to the machine than oil it, and give it a quick wipe down. The cord looks scary at first glance, but the actual insulation on the wires seemed to be in good shape. The motor was surprisingly clean under the cap, it obviously wasn't used much. So, I plugged it into a lamp and flipped the switch....

After a few seconds of hesitation and a puff of dust, the motor whirred to life and that beatiful sateen bag puffed up to proudly show "The Hoover" emblazoned across it. I have to believe that this Hoover hasn't been run in my lifetime, and probably much longer. Since it has the early Robbins & Meyers motor in it, the sound is unlike any of the other old Hoovers I have. I'm absolutely thrilled to have found such an early Hoover in an untouched state.

Photos... < > Photo 1 of 20 View Full Size


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Post# 332370 8/24/2015 at 07:57 (3,161 days old) by HisMastersVoice (Ferndale, MI)
Checkrate/Likes 2 Over the weekend, I randomly stopped into a vac shop to buy some compact bags after discovering the antique car parts auction I had driven 1.5 hours to get to was actually next weekend. I got to talking with the proprietor about old vacuums (not surprising) and before I knew it he invited me back to dig through his junk rooms. After about 30 minutes of digging through vacuums ranging from hand-pump models to convertibles, I came out with 2 machines I wanted to buy, a Hoover Junior model 115, and an Electro Hygiene, both with nice original bags. There were others I liked but decided I'd come back again and take another look at a later date, once I get everything I've recently acquired organized and cleaned up. After the deal was done, he asked if I was in a rush, then offered to take me to his other shop about 10 miles away. At this point both shops had closed for the day. Naturally I said YES. So we get to the other shop, and I got to look through the junk room, the parts room, and the sheds. I hadn't found anything that caught my eye, then as we were about to leave, in the corner of a small room off to the side, I saw it. A Hoover Model 102! He told me that it had come with the store when he bought it 40 years ago, and imagined it was probably a trade in that somehow escaped the dumpster when they cleaned the place out many years ago. Probably because it's just too cool looking to toss. I pulled it out into the light, and looked at it in awe. This machine had the original bag, original cloth cord with screw type socket plug, tufted brush roll, it was a perfect "survivor". After hesitantly selling it to me, I got home and started cleaning it up a little. The bag is in pretty good shape for 96 years old, I made a few repairs (the bag hanger loop was hanging on by a thread) and gently washed it with cool water and a dash of woolite gentle. It came out great! I did nothing more to the machine than oil it, and give it a quick wipe down. The cord looks scary at first glance, but the actual insulation on the wires seemed to be in good shape. The motor was surprisingly clean under the cap, it obviously wasn't used much. So, I plugged it into a lamp and flipped the switch.... After a few seconds of hesitation and a puff of dust, the motor whirred to life and that beatiful sateen bag puffed up to proudly show "The Hoover" emblazoned across it. I have to believe that this Hoover hasn't been run in my lifetime, and probably much longer. Since it has the early Robbins & Meyers motor in it, the sound is unlike any of the other old Hoovers I have. I'm absolutely thrilled to have found such an early Hoover in an untouched state. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 20 View Full Size

Post# 332372 , Reply# 1 8/24/2015 at 08:49 (3,161 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)
Checkrate/Likes I'm in Jackson, not too far from you and I'd love to meet up sometime and visit these shops with you... I never find anything good around here- we have three vac shops in town, but two are run by grouchy old men, and the third, well, I doubt they have anything good hidden away. If you don't mind me asking, what did you have to give for that beautiful Hoover?

Post# 332373 , Reply# 2 8/24/2015 at 09:03 (3,161 days old) by kirbymodel2c (Nottingham, England)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Hi Brandon* It's very nice you've found some great old vacs there. I like it when you get to go sorting through a pile of vacs or a place where they might turn up. You never know what you might find. It can give you a real buzz... I look forward to seeing pictures of them once their all cleaned and polished up. James

Post# 332378 , Reply# 3 8/24/2015 at 10:30 (3,161 days old) by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)
Checkrate/Likes 4 *Excellent find!!!!* Isn't it great to save a piece of history??? especially , this time, some HOOVER history? You're lucky. I can imagine breathing life back into that machine after so long! 96 years..and still operates. You save it from a tragic fate: a dumpster. John

Post# 332390 , Reply# 4 8/24/2015 at 12:30 (3,161 days old) by HisMastersVoice (Ferndale, MI)
Checkrate/Likes 2 Here's a better photo of the 102, and I also just uploaded a video of it running to YouTube. Check it out! CLICK HERE TO GO TO HisMastersVoice's LINK View Full Size

Post# 332407 , Reply# 5 8/24/2015 at 15:09 (3,160 days old) by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)
Checkrate/Likes *How fitting!!!!* You also have some very nice furnishings there. John.

Post# 332418 , Reply# 6 8/24/2015 at 16:10 (3,160 days old) by electrolux137 (Los Angeles)
Checkrate/Likes ~ ~ WOW! What a great find!! Congratulations!!!

Post# 332429 , Reply# 7 8/24/2015 at 19:10 (3,160 days old) by classicfan1 (Ohio, USA)
Checkrate/Likes *Very cool!* How about some pics of the "screw in" cord and plug? I've never seen or heard of such a thing on a vacuum cleaner!

Post# 332434 , Reply# 8 8/24/2015 at 21:05 (3,160 days old) by HisMastersVoice (Ferndale, MI)
Checkrate/Likes Stephen, see photo number 4 in my first post, there's a photo of the plug. Outlets as we know them today weren't standard until the 20s. Before that, most electric appliances had a plug that screwed into a light socket, as most homes only had electric lighting, not outlets.

Post# 332438 , Reply# 9 8/24/2015 at 21:35 (3,160 days old) by chad (texas)
Checkrate/Likes You know, I remember hearing the story s of folks getting shocked removing light bulb fragments with scissors. Apparently it was commonplace to screw in appliances into light sockets before outlets became standardized. Electricity as far as household use was in its infancy, and wires were drapped all over everything. I learned the same lesson rebuilding tube radios as a youngster. I had a Majestic I had rebuilt, but it was missing one of the wooden knobs. I was listening to a baseball game from outside, and decided to reach in to tune the game in a bit better. This was before polarized plugs.........ZAP.

Post# 332441 , Reply# 10 8/25/2015 at 00:49 (3,160 days old) by Hooverboy81 (Myrtle Place)
Checkrate/Likes Fantastic find!!

Post# 332469 , Reply# 13 8/25/2015 at 09:25 (3,160 days old) by HisMastersVoice (Ferndale, MI)
Checkrate/Likes Yes it certainly was the "find of the year" (so far, at least!) and I couldn't be happier with it. I think the bag inflates a bit slowly because there are a few small holes in it where it connects to the ring. I could have stitched them shut but the fabric is so delicate I decided to only repair the hanger, since that area had multiple layers of fabric and was a bit more robust. The original belt was still in it, but had hardened to stone and shattered when I touched it. The thing still has great suction, it latches right onto the rug once it gets up to speed. Here is my dilemma: do I buff it out and make it shiny, or leave it as is - it has certainly earned the privelage of being called a "survivor". If it were a car I'd leave it unrestored. Being that the aluminum on this machine was cast in sand, would it have even been polished when new, or was it more of a matte finish? There are certain things I really don't want to disturb, the bag was one of them and I was a nervous wreck while cleaning and mending it. The "leather" furniture guard is another, it's extremely brittle and I wouldn't want to get any polish or compound on it. So, I guess I'm leaning toward giving it one more good cleaning and leaving well enough alone. Thoughts?

Post# 332522 , Reply# 16 8/25/2015 at 16:25 (3,159 days old) by bikerray (Middle Earth)
Checkrate/Likes I know there is currently a Hoover 541 manual on ebay, there was an early Hoover broucher covering the Model 102, 103, Junior and Senior. I thought it was interesting that the Senior listed $20 extra for a ball bearing motor. As for the holes in the bag could you use an iron on patch on the inside of the bag to seal the hole? I know I've done that with Kirby bags, sealing the hole right at the seam where the bag attaches to the emptor.

Post# 332453 , Reply# 11 8/25/2015 at 06:02 (3,160 days old) by Tech12 ()
Checkrate/Likes *Congratulations* Excellent find, wish we had some OLD vacuum cleaner shops over here. Unfortunately they became do everything appliance shops years ago, I did find 1 old vac shop a few years back that was closing down. Sadly the owners Moron son had put all the old stuff in a dumpster & sent it to the tip.

Post# 332456 , Reply# 12 8/25/2015 at 06:21 (3,160 days old) by tolivac (Greenville,NC)
Checkrate/Likes That is a really GREAT find-and it was lurking in a dusty corner so no one noticed it until you spotted the machine.Glad the vac place gave you a good deal on it.No old vac places my way-no Hoover 105's hiding in the corners.Shops are too new.Like that sort of cylindrcal shaped bag--and orig-looks in good condition.The motor has a sound of its own.The bag slowly inflates and poofs out when the machine starts--COOL!!!The lamp socket plug-a real old timer!!!

Post# 332473 , Reply# 14 8/25/2015 at 09:51 (3,160 days old) by rugsucker (Elizabethton TN)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *"make it shiny'?* "leaving well enough alone" is probably best here as early Hoovers were not highly polished until later.There is a wonderful 'Tour or the Factory'booklet for dealers who might not have visited for sales rallies from early 20s that shows the entire manufacturing process.Not sure if it has been shown here.To me polishing this Hoover would be like chrome plating the oil pan on your Imperial.Might look nice but NOT correct. Back to this Hoover, you have proved that you find them where you look for them!Where will the next back room be that has had trade ins sitting for 40 years??Very hard to find these in as original condition as yours.Bag looks great.The cloth parts should be handled with 'museum' care as you did.I think I saw an instruction book for this or very similar Hoover on EBay last week.Would be nice to display with book and attachments.As you have seen for the early part of the last century if you had rugs and carpets the best way to care for them was to go to the finest department store and ask to see'the HOOVER'. Now when it is time to 'beat,sweep & clean' you will first have to choose which one!

Post# 332474 , Reply# 15 8/25/2015 at 10:38 (3,160 days old) by HisMastersVoice (Ferndale, MI)
Checkrate/Likes I kind of figured it was never polished when it was new, which is why I questioned it. Thanks for the info!

Post# 332531 , Reply# 17 8/25/2015 at 17:40 (3,159 days old) by HisMastersVoice (Ferndale, MI)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Regarding patches...* I could, but I don't really want to apply anything with an adhesive to it. Kirby bags are fairly heavy compared to the thin sateen used on the early Hoovers. Since I'll never use it to suck up dirt, the small holes will not pose an issue. Over-repairing something this old and fragile is asking for trouble!

Post# 332533 , Reply# 18 8/25/2015 at 18:13 (3,159 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Beautiful find. Don't restore it. It'll only be original once!

Post# 332595 , Reply# 19 8/26/2015 at 15:19 (3,158 days old) by chad (texas)
Checkrate/Likes That's a hell of a question, isn't it? I don't own anything I either don't or can't use, so I would fix it 100 percent. But, I personally will never buy anything that someone ELSE restored, no matter how nice it is. That's the part I enjoy. With me it's not the thrill of the hunt, or searching for parts. It's bringing something back from the dead.