Found a Gsix at Goodwill...

I'm a sick, sick man and my disease is vacuholism!

Last Thursday night, I won an online auction for a Kirby Heritage 84 and was alerted today that it has shipped out and is to arrive Thursday, so what the hell did I do? Like an active alcoholic wandering into a bar, I stopped by Goodwill today. And what did I find but a nice, clean, reasonably shiny Kirby Gsix 2001 Limited Edition (no accessories) for $30 and since it was educator day, I got it for $27. Decent enough deal, considering what they sell for on eBay, but did I actually need it? hell no! Of course, I don't need most of the vacuums I own and that includes the two Gsixes I already had. So yeah, this one makes three of one model and 13 Kirbys total.

All that said, it's a pretty decent machine. It doesn't really need much polishing but I know it'll take a shine like nobody's business. It's had some use but not abuse. The brush roll's bristles are a little worn but they still have some useful life left in them and wonder of wonders, the belt still is in good shape, too. The Floor nozzle was amazingly clean, no caked on crap, no odors and no sign at all of exposure to that damnable carpet fresh powder. The cord was replaced at some point and for whatever reason, probably lack of a Torx screwdriver, they just cut the old cord above and below the anchor where it attaches to the motor housing. They also didn't bother replacing the screw at the bottom of the scuff plate or the cover that goes over the plug at the motor housing. Those two items are missing. All I really had to do to it was properly install the cord, wipe it down with Lysol wipes and put a new bag in it as the one it came with must have weighed three or four pounds when I took it out.

I just brought it in to give it a test run and it works like a Kirby should. The Tech drive is smooth and it passes the Persian rug test. The headlight even works and there are no unpleasant odors. It's just a good running machine.

Now, which way to the vacuholics anonymous meeting? I've got to pick up yet another white chip.

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Post# 447374 10/26/2021 at 15:40 (911 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes 2 I'm a sick, sick man and my disease is vacuholism! Last Thursday night, I won an online auction for a Kirby Heritage 84 and was alerted today that it has shipped out and is to arrive Thursday, so what the hell did I do? Like an active alcoholic wandering into a bar, I stopped by Goodwill today. And what did I find but a nice, clean, reasonably shiny Kirby Gsix 2001 Limited Edition (no accessories) for $30 and since it was educator day, I got it for $27. Decent enough deal, considering what they sell for on eBay, but did I actually need it? hell no! Of course, I don't need most of the vacuums I own and that includes the two Gsixes I already had. So yeah, this one makes three of one model and 13 Kirbys total. All that said, it's a pretty decent machine. It doesn't really need much polishing but I know it'll take a shine like nobody's business. It's had some use but not abuse. The brush roll's bristles are a little worn but they still have some useful life left in them and wonder of wonders, the belt still is in good shape, too. The Floor nozzle was amazingly clean, no caked on crap, no odors and no sign at all of exposure to that damnable carpet fresh powder. The cord was replaced at some point and for whatever reason, probably lack of a Torx screwdriver, they just cut the old cord above and below the anchor where it attaches to the motor housing. They also didn't bother replacing the screw at the bottom of the scuff plate or the cover that goes over the plug at the motor housing. Those two items are missing. All I really had to do to it was properly install the cord, wipe it down with Lysol wipes and put a new bag in it as the one it came with must have weighed three or four pounds when I took it out. I just brought it in to give it a test run and it works like a Kirby should. The Tech drive is smooth and it passes the Persian rug test. The headlight even works and there are no unpleasant odors. It's just a good running machine. Now, which way to the vacuholics anonymous meeting? I've got to pick up yet another white chip. View Full Size

Post# 447392 , Reply# 1 10/27/2021 at 11:45 (910 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes *Found a plug cover...* So I looked on eBay last night to see what a plug cover might cost me as its absence from the Gsix was of mild concern. I was surprised to see how few were available and how correspondingly expensive they were. I did find a second-hand part off of a Sentria so it was medium gray instead of black but it had a 'best offer' option already about half the price of the other two so I decided to push the envelope a little bit and make a low-ball offer, which was instantly accepted. The photos don't show that the screw is included but I'm sure I can find a reasonable substitute, along with one for the scuff plate screw. From previous experience, I know that a wire retaining screw from an old electrical outlet or light switch will fill that bill perfectly. I'm certainly not above improvising a solution for things like that to solve a problem at little or no cost, compared to a ridiculously expensive OEM solution. I'm not going to let myself voluntarily get 'screwed' buying a $6 screw when I probably already have something on hand that will work just as well.

Post# 447409 , Reply# 2 10/28/2021 at 08:28 (909 days old) by rugsucker (Elizabethton TN)
Checkrate/Likes 2 *'not--screwed buying a $6 screw"--* Much like the old joke of man at hardware store finding washers were 8 cents and going home to drill holes in nickels.

Post# 447420 , Reply# 3 10/28/2021 at 14:06 (909 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes *True story...* I have a large jar that originally held mixed nuts, into which my dad collected an eclectic assortment of screws, bolts, washers, nails and other fasteners, including nuts. I once found a penny in there that had been drilled as you described to serve as a makeshift washer. And yes, the ironic humor of the "Mixed Nuts" label on the jar is not lost on me.

Post# 447425 , Reply# 4 10/28/2021 at 17:00 (909 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes *Screw Situation Solved...* Writing the above inspired me to take a look inside that jar for screws to use on the Gsix. I didn't find exactly what I was looking for but I did find a couple of pan head machine screws that were exactly the right diameter and thread pitch, just three times too long at 1 1/4 inches in length. But that was easily solved with a hack saw and a pair of Vice Grips. It turns out the scuff plate screw and the plug cover screw are the same, except the scuff plate has a wider head. The vacuum now has two new bespoke screws. I figured the best way to keep from losing the cord cover screw was to put it into place while I wait for the cover to arrive.

Post# 447542 , Reply# 5 11/1/2021 at 15:02 (905 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes *The plug is covered...* The cord plug cover came today. I had thought it was from a Sentria and thus a medium gray, but it turned out to be from a Sentria II so it's that muddy gray color--not my favorite, but... If I decide later on I'm sufficiently bothered about the color, I'll get a rattle can and spray it black but at the moment, it's in place and doing its job. Funny thing, after going to the trouble of cutting two screws to fit the cord cover and the scuff plate, I removed the bag to access the location for the cord cover, heard a rattling noise and out came a screw! It's definitely the right size to fit either the scuff plate or the cord cover but I opted to use my two bespoke stainless steel screws and saved that one in the aforementioned screw jar. The crazy part is the exact same thing happened to me with my G5 several years ago. It also was missing the scuff plate screw and when I shook out the emtor, out fell a screw that had apparently been used as a replacement--and is still in use for that purpose today.

Post# 450242 , Reply# 6 2/21/2022 at 18:36 (793 days old) by panasonicvac (Northern Utah)
Checkrate/Likes I'm like you sometimes. Usually I wouldn't keep some of the exact same vacuums for my collection, but I can make myself an exception once in a while for various reasons. Overall nice grab, I love these Kirbys!