Thread Number: 39898  /  Tag: 50s/60s/70s Vacuum Cleaners
Model S - By Request. 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 423516   4/14/2020 at 20:17 (1,462 days old) by electrolux137 (Los Angeles)        

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Here are a few photos of the Electrolux Model S. It really is a pretty and dainty thing! :)
  Photos...       <              >      Photo 1 of 5         View Full Size
Post# 423607 , Reply# 1   4/16/2020 at 10:24 (1,461 days old) by luxz80 (England)        

Out of all the American Lux models this one was always my favourite. I guess it is the simplicity and no frills that won my heart.

Does not have to be top of the range to be a great cleaner.

Post# 423619 , Reply# 2   4/16/2020 at 16:15 (1,460 days old) by Oreck_XL (Brooklyn, New York 11211)        

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"A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever"

That model S is STUNNING. Awhile back, I got an Electrolux Automatic F in the same colors (guess that was the TOL at that time). The switch is shot and the motor smoked but I don't have the heart to bring it to the metal recycler. The couple that had it were the original owners and they bought a Perfect C103 tank cleaner. They never had a power nozzle until now. For them, it was LIFE CHANGING!

Post# 423620 , Reply# 3   4/16/2020 at 16:21 (1,460 days old) by Jo (Dallas,TX)        
So lightweight and convenient of all Electrolux models

 My parents still have theirs down in the basement as the basement vac. I did get them a new cloth bag as the other finally developed holes and my Dad had duct tape over the holes! I’ll likely get them a new hose for it as that’s been replaced twice now but a plastic or rubber one would do better as the current is leaking. I have the dusting brush upholstery tool for it somehow, think I took it when I got my Silverado which had a generic one which quickly broke and my Dad had several others he could use. The rug and floor tool tool got swapped with one from a 1205 we had obtained for a while and have to my Aunt who needed something easier than an old heavy Hoover and she ended up with the gray S rug and floor tool.

I replaced the stiff black cord with a Silverado era gray ge June Electrolux cord in the mid 80s. The old black one was ok but just stiff because I think it was some sort of cheaper plasticky rubber that had hardened over time.

We’ve replaced the switch at least two or three times...when I was little it was Moms regular vacuum. When the switch was going out the first time I remember it sparking and it was scary. I wasn’t using the vacuum but Mom was and kept complaining to my Father it wouldn’t stay on and sparks were coming from the switch. The second time we replaced it we didn’t have the sparking issue but you’d have to wiggle it to get it to stay on so my Father, having replaced it before, got a new one and we did it together...one of the earliest vacuum repair jobs I started with. Last Christmas I went to use the S to vacuum the carpeted basement stairs and floors and it wouldn’t start. I reached in the bag compartment with a screw driver and turned the motor fan slightly then tried it again and it started up. I think the motor is getting loose as it vibrates terribly when it’s winding down after switching off. After all these years at my Grandmother’s first until 1960!when it went to my parents first apartment, the second, then to their new house and then became the basement, workshop and car vacuum which it still is today...it’s still going. My Dad wanted to throw it away a couple of years ago but I told him absolutely not.

I really like this model because it’s so light and short. Easy to use on steps and for the cars due to its weight and size and is even great for quick clean ups nowhere you want a canister vacuum.

We had a problem once where the fans started disintegrating and on a quick turn of it all of the sudden it was coughing and shooting bits of twisted chopped up metal out the back of it! It was quite the scene. I took it all apart to find the fan blades had been worn down and were breaking off likely due to bits of dirt passing through from the cloth bag with holes in it. Probably gravel and sand was getting through the hole in the bag from using it to clean the car. There was always lots of sand in the car from the rough winters in NJ. I ordered new fans from the Electrolux store but they were all too thin and wide, I gave up and in the meantime acquired a model E and found it used the same fans so put those in to the S and then I visited our original Electrolux mans house when he was closing his store to buy some parts for other vacs as he had things discounted and told him about the issues and we found that the model E had the same fans but now I had this E that needed fans...he said how about we go back into the garage and see what I’ve got. He had tons of used Electrolux vacuums in the garage and I ended up trading the E for a nice used Gold Model L which now my Sister has.

So the model S has survived with replaced switches, bags, cord, motor fans, hoses...I don’t think anything else could go except the motor and handle now! The wheels are actually quite sturdy on this model compared to the model R and L wheels which were more prone to breakage.

Well I must get back to vacuuming...took a break. Using my usual Silverado today.

Post# 423626 , Reply# 4   4/16/2020 at 18:51 (1,460 days old) by Jo (Dallas,TX)        
Thank You, Charles

 Thank You for posting these wonderful pictures and taking the time out to pull out the model S. Just wish my parent’s one still looked this good. I especially loved seeing and reading the manual which shows that a crevice tool was NOT included with this model! We did it have the manual for it. Interesting....and it’s not even on the available other items page. Maybe they didn’t want to draw attention to the fact that it’s not included as standard.

I do like the tips on how to empty the bag without making a dust mess! This confirms the S indeed came standard with the cloth bag but was adaptable to self sealing paper bags.

This model holds a special place in my vacuum cleaner heart because it was the first vacuum I ever saw or used and my parents have pictures and movies of me Pushing around the flip over rug and floor tool with just one wand attached. At the time I thought that was just great...that the the wand came apart so little kids could use the vacuum too! Of course it was more for general user convenience and 2 half wands fit better in the box than one long one. As a kid I didn’t know any better and thought it was made that way for me to use!

Something else that also intrigued me on this model, the side of the metal where the glide strip is on almost all these metal machines, the strip goes all the way to the end of the main body, the model S was different, the side glide strip fades away and then reappears again at the back again. Only on this model! Has anyone ever noticed that, I did, long long ago when comparing Moms model L which replaced her S but we still had the S.

The color is interesting and the attachments were keyed to match it rather than the same as the upper model sold at the timenwhich seemed to be the standard practice. The earliest hose I remember on ours was blue with the double raceway white strip common on the blue Model L’s and 1205’s. Maybe Mom or Dad replaced it at some point. It also had the plastic handle which I find more comfortable.

Also just remembered the bag door clips on ours...the little rubber tabs wore off and the Electrolux man gave me new tabs free for it when I was there for something else telling him I was sad the tabs had disintegrated and fallen off!because the ends of the metal there were kinds sharp. Who knew they made those tabs for replacement but they did and probably still do.

Thanks again for showing off this wonderful collectible display.

Jon

Post# 423704 , Reply# 5   4/18/2020 at 12:20 (1,459 days old) by Jo (Dallas,TX)        
Differences

 Ours also has the fastening system on the floor nozzle neck and we have the next generation rug and floor tool with the different rug side design. Obviously at some point these things changed during the production years of this model so yours looks like the early version. I had a model E for a while and the neck did not have the fastening system, didn’t seem to need it, but it made me wonder at what point did they change to add it. That model E’s floor tool also did not have the full wrap around rubber bumper. With all of the changes to the rug and floor tool over these few years in the mid 50s to mid 60s you can see they were constantly working to improve it. I never understood why they changed the gleaner bar to be a permanent style without the switch, and Aerus has in more recent year now changed it to a completely smooth rod which essentially deletes its functionality but yet the raised words and arrow “gleaner bar” in the Suction trough still exist. I’d love to know what the thinking behind both of the changes is.

Also I’d be curious to do a suction test of white powder on dark carpet to see how the suction is with the older style rug side and the newer style. I don’t doubt the newer style which still is in existence today likely cleans more evenly across.

Post# 423712 , Reply# 6   4/18/2020 at 14:19 (1,458 days old) by electrolux137 (Los Angeles)        

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The later S featured the new-style combination rug nozzle -- with longer and narrower suction opening on the rug side, and a spring-loaded neck as Jo noted -- and new hose (light blue with light gray stripes instead of arrow-patterns).  A third variation on the rug/floor tool was provided in the style of the late Model F with the addition of a rubber bumper.
Post# 423782 , Reply# 7   4/19/2020 at 18:46 (1,457 days old) by Jo (Dallas,TX)        

Aside from the thrift model.... this may have been Electrolux’s lightest weight and shortest model made of metal bodies. I’d be curious to weigh it against a plastic body machine. My Xxx (no cordwinder) is pretty light too, but thinking the S is lighter. The XXX has the heavier bag door for sure.


Post# 423789 , Reply# 8   4/19/2020 at 20:14 (1,457 days old) by Paul (USA)        

Yeah, she sure is! The only one I've seen personally was at an Aerus franchise several years ago. I inquired about it and was told by the dealer that the woman who owned it wanted desperately to have the motor repaired or replaced; but was informed that it wasn't possible with Aerus parts. I'm guessing the owner was either the cleaner's first or at least a longtime one that had found it to be effective and reliable prior to the required maintenance; its light weight was probably also a factor. I gave the dealer my number and asked for a call if the owner was going to trade it in but never heard back, and the franchise has since folded.

Anyway, I acquired Model S-colored attachments at one point (it's been awhile); so someday I'm hoping to find just the cleaner at a rummage sale, flea market, or thrift store.

Thanks for the subject post, including photos of the instruction leaflet. I've never seen the "small multi-purpose tool" referenced as the "contour tool"! Did the Model T have a similar leaflet?

Post# 423843 , Reply# 9   4/20/2020 at 17:48 (1,456 days old) by Jo (Dallas,TX)        

Yes I thought the combination dusting brush/upholstery tool referred to as a contour tool was interesting. I never really saw it featured this way until more recently periodically in some literature by Aerus or Electrolux but not consistently. I use the contouring shape on my rounded sofa arms and always thought that was neat I could do but that it wasn’t meant to be used this way but low and behold...it is.

That’s an interesting story about the lady and her model S. I had a terrible time getting the fans for it back in the late 80s/ early 90’s and our sat unused for some time until I finally did get some out of that E. Odd that Electrolux didn’t want to retrofit the unit with a different motor. The plastic canisters are quite light and I do like this about them, so light in fact you barely feel them tugging along behind you.

The back end of the machine is distinct in itself with no cord halo, just a stainless steel ring to prevent the paint from getting scuffed when standing it up to open it own store it.

While this was a small model, it was not small in performance and has plenty of gusto just like any other straight suction model.


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