My sweet new Electrolux 1205

Per your request, below are pictures of (L to R) a PN2, PN4 and PN4A in Silverado gray. It's easy to mistake the PN4 for a PN2, especially with the polished aluminum cover, but if you compare the PN2 and PN4, you'll notice the elbow where the wand connects is set further forward on the PN2 while the PN4 and 4A have the elbow slightly protruding from the rear of the nozzle's body. Looking underneath, the PN2 has three cylindrical rollers while the PN4 and PN4A have two wheels, one on either side of the elbow. Other than cosmetic features, the PN4 and PN4A are pretty much identical except for the motor hump, which only extends about 3/4 of the way across the cover on the 4A. The 4A also has a slightly longer elbow and lacks the metal ring at the top. The PN4A also has a painted cover, either brown for the Olympia or gray for the Silverado. This is unfortunate because the 'battle scars' show a lot worse on the painted covers, especially the brown ones. In that respect, you're lucky that yours has the polished aluminum cover, even if it isn't original to that power nozzle.

The PN2 always had a white bumper and originally had a teal elbow. That version was paired with the Model G (I think), 1205 and Golden Jubilee models. The Jubilee version came with a 50th anniversary decal. The ones with a white elbow like mine would have been paired with either a Golden Jubilee or a Super J. The PN4 with the polished aluminum cover was paired with the later Super J's and early Olympias before they began painting the covers brown (big mistake, IMO). They transitioned to the PN4A during the Olympia era but the plastics were off white. The Silverado got the gray plastics to match those on the vacuum cleaner itself.

Please understand I was not running down your machine in any way. I was just pointing out an unusual characteristic of your power nozzle, which happens to be a 'plus' in my book. I strongly prefer the look of the polished cover. A few years ago, I tried to strip the paint off of a PN4A cover with the idea of polishing it up but I never could get the paint completely off, except for the 'Electrolux' nameplate area. I finally gave up and repainted it with Rustoleum Hammertone Black paint and primer in one, the color of which is really more of a gunmetal gray. Just for fun, I polished up that nameplate area and masked it off before I painted the cover. The color is slightly darker than the original and the textured paint hid a world of sins. The polished nameplate really made the whole thing pop. They should have done them that way at the factory. I've been very tempted to give the PN4A in the pictures the same treatment, although if a polished PN4 cover were to come my way for a reasonable price, I'd slap it on there in a heartbeat.

Photos... < > Photo 1 of 2 View Full Size


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Post# 446188 9/18/2021 at 11:24 (948 days old) by mjhoshaw (Western PA)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Hello all, I received this yesterday. It has what appears to be an Aerus replacement motor, but AFAIK everything else is original. The only cleaning I've done is to the floor tool. The electric hose is airtight as the seller stated, and the body is dent-free. This is one sweet machine. I forgot how nice the 1205's are. Joel View Full Size

Post# 446209 , Reply# 1 9/18/2021 at 19:28 (948 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Very nice...* Nice machine but interesting collection of accessories. The gray plastics on the PN4 would indicate that it went with a Silverado but I'm wondering if somebody switched the cover with one from an earlier power nozzle. I thought the polished aluminum covers were discontinued by the time the Olympia came out and that the Silverado shipped with gray painted PN4A that had the motor hump running only partway across. That's obviously a cover for an earlier PN4 the full width motor hump. The PN4 came in polished aluminum with the Super J. Some early Olympia Ones got the polished aluminum PN4 also but most were painted brown. Also, is that a non-electric hose?

Post# 446213 , Reply# 2 9/18/2021 at 21:38 (948 days old) by mjhoshaw (Western PA)
Checkrate/Likes *I figured it's not all original because . . .* . . . owners did what they had to do to keep their vacuums working. The plastic parts should be teal, but it is what it is and I'm not bummed. What I have is a PN-4A, but only occasionally am I a stickler, and this isn't one of those times. The housing is polished aluminum, and that's the greater good, so until I find a proper PN-2, this suits me. A casual observer would never know the difference, and humbly and frankly I will admit that I thought all was well because Electrolux changed components at will throughout a production run. Now I know that's not always the case. The hose is electric, is airtight, and works perfectly. That alone makes this purchase worthwhile to me. I would appreciate it if you would post an image or images of what the power nozzle should look like, so I can work on obtaining the correct one. Until then, this one will fill in nicely. Joel This post was last edited 09/18/2021 at 22:21

Post# 446226 , Reply# 3 9/19/2021 at 13:39 (947 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes *Happy to oblige...* Per your request, below are pictures of (L to R) a PN2, PN4 and PN4A in Silverado gray. It's easy to mistake the PN4 for a PN2, especially with the polished aluminum cover, but if you compare the PN2 and PN4, you'll notice the elbow where the wand connects is set further forward on the PN2 while the PN4 and 4A have the elbow slightly protruding from the rear of the nozzle's body. Looking underneath, the PN2 has three cylindrical rollers while the PN4 and PN4A have two wheels, one on either side of the elbow. Other than cosmetic features, the PN4 and PN4A are pretty much identical except for the motor hump, which only extends about 3/4 of the way across the cover on the 4A. The 4A also has a slightly longer elbow and lacks the metal ring at the top. The PN4A also has a painted cover, either brown for the Olympia or gray for the Silverado. This is unfortunate because the 'battle scars' show a lot worse on the painted covers, especially the brown ones. In that respect, you're lucky that yours has the polished aluminum cover, even if it isn't original to that power nozzle. The PN2 always had a white bumper and originally had a teal elbow. That version was paired with the Model G (I think), 1205 and Golden Jubilee models. The Jubilee version came with a 50th anniversary decal. The ones with a white elbow like mine would have been paired with either a Golden Jubilee or a Super J. The PN4 with the polished aluminum cover was paired with the later Super J's and early Olympias before they began painting the covers brown (big mistake, IMO). They transitioned to the PN4A during the Olympia era but the plastics were off white. The Silverado got the gray plastics to match those on the vacuum cleaner itself. Please understand I was not running down your machine in any way. I was just pointing out an unusual characteristic of your power nozzle, which happens to be a 'plus' in my book. I strongly prefer the look of the polished cover. A few years ago, I tried to strip the paint off of a PN4A cover with the idea of polishing it up but I never could get the paint completely off, except for the 'Electrolux' nameplate area. I finally gave up and repainted it with Rustoleum Hammertone Black paint and primer in one, the color of which is really more of a gunmetal gray. Just for fun, I polished up that nameplate area and masked it off before I painted the cover. The color is slightly darker than the original and the textured paint hid a world of sins. The polished nameplate really made the whole thing pop. They should have done them that way at the factory. I've been very tempted to give the PN4A in the pictures the same treatment, although if a polished PN4 cover were to come my way for a reasonable price, I'd slap it on there in a heartbeat. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 2 View Full Size

Post# 446263 , Reply# 4 9/19/2021 at 23:09 (946 days old) by mjhoshaw (Western PA)
Checkrate/Likes *Wow, talk about an, um, hybrid* No worries, I was neither offended nor affected in any negative way by your post. So my PN-4A should not have a full-width motor hump (which it does), but the baseplate reads 4A. It seems that someone cobbled this together. Like changes to an old house, I would love to know how this unit ended up as it is today. There's a PN-2 on eBay that totally matches what should come with the 1205, but I couldn't see paying the asking price, so I did a BIN on a PN-2 with an off-white elbow for about half the price. I figure I'm most of the way there. Thanks, really, sincerely, for your input. I wanted to know what I have, and what I need to make it all original.

Post# 446278 , Reply# 5 9/20/2021 at 11:57 (946 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes *Glad you found what you need...* Very cool. I really like the PN2. I think the geometry of the center mounted elbow makes it a little more maneuverable in tight spaces. I also prefer the roller arrangement, which is similar to the PN1. It also has a closed dirt path that keeps the motor cleaner. they simplified the design for the PN4/4A, which allows the inside to get a little dirtier. I certainly wouldn't lose any sleep over the white elbow vs. teal. The one design feature the PN4/4A does have over the PN2 is the permanently attached pigtail cord. The one on the PN2 has a tendency to fall out at the machine end. This design flaw apparently drew enough customer complaints that Electrolux offered a three-piece metal retaining clip to hold it in place. Those are pretty much unobtainable these days but I've found that you can accomplish the same thing by fishing the pigtail through the top cover so that the bottom of the Mayan pyramid shaped plug is underneath the cover. Getting the cord through is the easy part. The head of the plug then takes some persuading but once it's through, you just need need to make sure the plug lines up properly as you press the top cover into place. It might take a try or two, but once everything is screwed back together, it shouldn't fall out.

Post# 446592 , Reply# 6 9/27/2021 at 18:42 (939 days old) by Jo (Dallas,TX)
Checkrate/Likes *There are significant design differences* Between the pn 2 and pn 4a. The pn-2 is much harder to push and tends to stick to the carpet because of it�s design the placement of the elbow and the air opening and the rollers all make this to be the case. The entire pn was redesigned for the pn4 and 4a which uses a flexible duct with two rear rollers for it to glide on the carpet with. The front of the pn has no rollers and glides over the carpet and can actually raise or lower via the flexible duct. The flexible ducts were prone to ripping however which causes suction and dirt leaks into the pn�s motor area. Technically it shouldn�t get dirty inside but if it does likely the throat has splitting and should be replaced but they are no longer available from Aerus. Al parts for all power nozzles except the L shaped models have been discontinued and even some parts from the early L shaped models are no longer available. My Aerus Electrolux rep just told me this summer that the pn4a was specifically designed to fluff and correctly clean shag carpeting which was popular in the 70s. By its self heigh adjusting nature, it would glide on even the thickest carpet and not be allowed to bog into it regardless of how hard one pushed down on the wand. The downward pressure would only press those two back wheels into the carpet but the front of the pn would still ride atop the carpet. The pn2 is totally different. If you push downward on the wand you�ll press the whole pn into the carpet. Jon

Post# 446690 , Reply# 7 9/30/2021 at 17:32 (936 days old) by mjhoshaw (Western PA)
Checkrate/Likes *Thanks to human, everything matches now* I appreciate your welcome input, I now have the proper PN-2 for this vacuum. It arrived with probably the most-oxidized cover I've ever seen, but a half hour with polishing compound got it looking very presentable. It has no deep scratches and will buff out nicely. I've attached a new image showing the current configuration. I haven't corrected the sticking motor brush yet. Maybe I'll get around to that this weekend. Joel View Full Size

Post# 446695 , Reply# 8 9/30/2021 at 21:11 (936 days old) by eurekaprince (Montreal, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes top rated canister in Consumer Reports in 1969 if I remember correctly�