Well, I never thought I'd say that! But, it was too good an opportunity to miss.

I was browsing Gumtree last Tuesday and came across a Kirby Legend 2 with tools for sale for £40. I contacted the seller and got him down to £35, arranging to collect it the following day, which I did.

The seller turned out to be a retired Kirby salesman so knew all there was to know about them, and we had a very pleasant vacuum-related chat, given our shared interest.

I tested the cleaner for the first time today on thin and shag pile carpets, also using the tools for above floor cleaning and even took it out to do the car (of course being careful for any metal objects). It excelled in all conditions and I am very pleased with it, even though I feel like I've slightly betrayed Hoover...

Here is a picture of it - I will take more and of better quality tomorrow and update the thread with them.  In the next couple of weeks I'll hopefully pick up some metal polish to bring its shine back!

Jamie, welcome to the wonderful world of Kirby ownership. The Legend II is considered to be one of the best Kirbys ever made. It should give you many years of trouble free service.

Here's a tip regarding polishing your Legend II to a brilliant shine. Use some Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish and some microfibre cloths to polish the aluminum to a nice shine. Mother's polish is available on ebay. Post some pictures after you get her all shined up.

And welcome to the Kirby family....as they say lol

I'm not sure if we have Mother's Mag over here in the UK so you might be best getting some "Autosol" which you can buy from most car shops like Halfords etc.
Also remember to only use genuine Kirby parts(Esp belts).

I'm sure the retired Kirby salesman you bought it off showed you how to use it correctly.

You will have to show us it once you have it cleaned and polished up.

James

Congratulations on your Kirby Legend II, the last of the second generation of Kirby and the final model to be made before the invention of TechDrive!  Nice little piece of Kirby history you have there.

I have a Kirby Heritage II, which is the model right before yours in black, gray, and red color scheme.  I use that as a daily driver and I love it!  It picks up like a champ and grooms the carpet beautifully, and for not having TechDrive, it's not as hard to maneuver on carpet as, say, the Heritage, Tradition, or Classics.

I hope you enjoy your new machine!  When you get a chance, definitely polish it up with some Mother's Mag & Aluminum Polish, then you should totally take a picture with your new Kirby!  We'd love to see the happy new couple!  

I don't think my Kirby Heritage II is my favorite model, but it's my current daily driver after my bestie bought it for me at a thrift store and we fixed it up together.

My favorite vintage model is probably the Kirby Dual Sanitronic 50.  I love the small profile and its ability to get into tight spaces, as well as the ease of maneuvering.  All of this with a two-speed motor, beautiful styling, incredible suction, and awesome grooming of the carpets make it my favorite.  I really love the light-up Kirby logo on the headlight hood.  So snazzy!

Not to take away from Jamie's beautiful new Kirby Legend II.  What a gorgeous machine that is!

"This doesn't mean you're "jumping the wall", does it? LOL"

Oh no John, never.  I wouldn't even peek over it...