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Lacquer finish I think your right. I thought about it when I was doing it then decided it would be OK but it picks up marks so easily. Just re-attaching the handle yoke and motor with clean hands left fingermarks that could not be wiped off without washing. I guess these days manufacturers...

3D printing Yes, we've got a couple of 3D printers at work. The problem with those is that the more basic one prints in very durable ABS but the finish is unmistakeably 3D printed so needs sanded and painted to look period correct. The higher end one produces finished objects but the material...

That's very kind of you but sadly, I am 300 and odd miles away from you in Scotland. Your right though, they've been kept running for 80+ years so originality is hard to determine. My patterns are not intended to be undetectable facsimiles, I am just enjoying the challenges of identifying the...

800 and 825 Now had a chance to look carefully at your pictures Robin. I think the 800 bumper is a scaled up version of the 400 series section which I made using a tiny bit of original bumper from my 450. That would make sense that the 450 and 800, on sale together had matching bumpers. The...

Old dog, new tricks Thanks portable. I am treating my revived interest in these as an opportunity to learn techniques that I could either not afford to indulge or was too green to perfect when I was younger.

Brushed finish for early Hoovers My first Hoover with a brushed finish was my 575. This finish does not seem to age as well as the highly polished ones, I suppose the scratch finish picks up dirt easier and having a slightly greater surface area is more prone to corrosion. As soon as you try to...

Just what I was looking for... Robin, Fantastic, that's very helpful. Since I last posted I have had a go at an 800/825 full length pattern. I have been working from a fairly poor frontal picture of an 825 bumper so I just guessed about the double rivet sections. My pattern appears to be a...

The 575 was really just the 700 with a black painted motor and a 12 blade fan no? The bodies I have still have an unused space for the 700 logo and serial number on them. The only difference with the later one is that the body is machined to take the 725 style motor casing which has a wider...

Thank you! If you find anything let me know...

Never too old to learn My mistake. I always thought the 700 and the 725 had the same design of motor body and machined area on the body for the motor to sit on. I also thought that the slightly tricorn base of the motor body started with the 750. And of course, I should know as I have examples...

Robin, Do you have an 800 or 825 with the original bumper? I still need to know if the rivet reinforcing triangles are on the back section as well as the front.....If you do, even a dried out, broken one some pictures would be great!

Coming up with the goods Yup that's true, Maybe people will be more interested when I stop talking and have brand new bumpers to photograph.....

Interesting interest in interesting things Hey MadMan, not suggesting that people such as yourself are not interested. Like I said, there are so many different vac collecting options plus these things go in cycles. Inevitably what I am doing which is very specifically focussed on British market...

Bought another 575 this week. Mainly to save it from becoming landfill, it's very rough. I already have one 575 part restored and a spare body. It was my intention to use the spare body as a replacement for the new one as the spare has good plating on all fittings. At least that was my idea...

Vehicle versus Vacuum restorers I agree on the restoration info. I have a 25 year history of restoring old motorcycles. In my experience vehicle clubs and forums are almost completely focussed on restoration and ways of replacing/replicating parts. I thought Vacuumland would be the same but its...

plasti-dip That's also interesting. I have been avoiding latex based products. I once tried making motorcycle seat foam with latex. Its difficult to use and not very durable if you cannot vulcanise it (industrially complex I believe). I am going to stick with the Devcon Flexane despite the cost...

800/825 bumper I recently got hold of a good example of the 800 type bumper that was fitted to older models as a replacement when the 800 and 825 were current. It's of identical section but without the hole reinforcements or the Hoover logo; Hoover part no 20611R (presume the R stands for...

Oh yes they did.. The dangers of asbestos were known long before any of us were born; by the end of the 19th century people were starting to note a connection between exposure and early death, in Britain by the 1920's the danger was officially recognized. Certainly by the time that box of...

Laser cutting So, I made a wooden pattern for the 541/543/700/725/750 bumper with the hoover logo in the middle. I decided to sacrifice what was then my only original version of this bumper, (fitted to my 725) because it was falling apart and I did not think my carving skills were good enough...

More Duster numbers Just to complete the picture here are both motor and body serials from my Duster as purchased.