Thread Number: 30310  /  Tag: 50s/60s/70s Vacuum Cleaners
Gave My Neglected 561 Kirby Some Love...
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Post# 336194   10/25/2015 at 18:45 (3,077 days old) by westyfan (St Louis, MO)        

I finally decided to open up my old 561 Kirby and see if I could grease the bearings. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it is quite easy to grease both front and rear ball bearings (surprised me there, good build quality). It purrs like a Kirby should now. Nice and quiet, I could tell it was strained before. The bearings were pretty damn dry so I'm glad that I went ahead and did this.

I also had to pull the brushes from the armature to pull the bearings out. They look remarkably clean as did the armature itself. I am curious though as to how much life the brushes have in them. I measured them both at a half inch exactly in length. I have no idea how long they started out as or how long they have to be when they need to be replaced.

I also shined up the ol girl. She was extremely oxidized as you can tell in the before photos. Nothing professional, just a rag, mothers aluminum polish, and lots of patience. It is far from perfect but it looks 20x better than it did. If you squint it looks like a mirror! There were quite a few blemishes and stains that I could not get out though.

Oh, and I am on the hunt for a belt, bulb (I'm sure they are easy to find, just haven't searched yet), and I will also need a brushroll rebristle at some point. Have no clue about that last one. I really like the way that this Kirby looks. I'm not too concerned about the bag, although I would like to know how old the replacement bag is. I'm sure that an "original" bag would be inferior / expensive as all get out! I also need a new hose that will fit. It doesn't have to match but that would be awesome! The old one got smashed by a car tire when a roommate ran over it :(

It still has the attatchments box but a few pieces are missing. All of the important stuff is there though.

Let me know what you guys think! Tips / suggestions are always appreciated. This is no show queen obviously, I plan on using it weekly!


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Post# 336195 , Reply# 1   10/25/2015 at 19:15 (3,077 days old) by super-sweeper (KSSRC Refurbishment Center)        

super-sweeper's profile picture

Beautiful! Belts and bulbs can be found for these old gals at just about any vacuum shop wink


Post# 336196 , Reply# 2   10/25/2015 at 20:00 (3,077 days old) by westyfan (St Louis, MO)        
Super-Sweeper

Thanks! Like I said, it is far from perfect but it looks a lot better than it did. Sounds better too!

I figured that the bulbs and belts would be at a normal vac shop. Too bad our Kirby dealer went out of business a few years back.


Post# 336210 , Reply# 3   10/25/2015 at 21:52 (3,077 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA)        

suckolux's profile picture
Gorgeous for a driver! And a really nice machine, not too heavy or big, easy to use. Nice work.

Post# 336236 , Reply# 4   10/26/2015 at 15:07 (3,076 days old) by adambomb (Undisclosed )        

Nice Kirby! I don't live too far from you in Festus MO. We should have a mini meet sometime and go to the vacuum cleaner museum in St. James. You would love it! I could introduce you to some of my collector friends. I love Kirbys too! Have a good day and I look forward to hearing from you.

Adam


Post# 336249 , Reply# 5   10/26/2015 at 16:39 (3,076 days old) by Vinvac (Dubuque IA)        

vinvac's profile picture
Replacement brushrolls are also readily available.

Post# 336252 , Reply# 6   10/26/2015 at 18:09 (3,076 days old) by jeschbac (Texas)        
Original Bag

Great work. I think you should consider putting the correct bag on your 561. Check out Chicago Mike's replicated bags on Ebay or YouTube. It's worth the investment!

Post# 336254 , Reply# 7   10/26/2015 at 18:46 (3,076 days old) by KirbyClassicIII (Milwaukie, Oregon)        

kirbyclassiciii's profile picture
Save the bag that's currently on it for a Dual Sanitronic 50, if it has the short zipper in the back.

~Ben


Post# 336277 , Reply# 8   10/26/2015 at 22:38 (3,076 days old) by westyfan (St Louis, MO)        
Thank you all for the information

Thank you Adam, that sounds like it would be fun. I had no clue that there was a vacuum museum around the area.

Jeschbac, I'll have to check out those bags when I get some more money lol.

I went to the local Kirby store today. Yes, I was wrong there is still one in town! Not only did I get a bulb and belts. I also got a used hose in the correct red color! I was so surprised that they had one. I also got a new brush roll ordered. And I also picked up one of their "zip" brushes and it works great! I really enjoy using this machine now.

My only other issue is that I put the belt on the floor buffer and noticed one of the plastic caps is gone! This is what the bar that the buffer roll slides over goes into. The belt just slips off without it.

It is really a fine machine now that it is coming together. Thanks again for the suggestions!



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