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P.S. to my last post. Shortly after Joe Urso, et al, purchased Electrolux from Sara Lee for $55 million and immediately sold the rights to the Electrolux name to the Swedish AB Electrolux, who years before had been Electrolux's parent, and who continued to call themselves Electrolux everywhere...

As a long time vac shop owner let me clarify a couple of things here. Electrolux (now Aerus) even when they were a healthy operation (as opposed to their present teetering on the edge of extinction) were for many years the last holdout among major manufacturers, who refused to sell their parts...

Here's the skinny on the Whirlpool/Oreck deal. In 1963 David Oreck set up in business to liquidate the unsold inventory of Whirlpool branded vacuums, when Whirlpool decided to get out of the vac business under their own name, even though they continued to build the Kenmore for Sears. Those...

Sorry I hadn't looked at this thread before, as I have about 20 original bags for the MV-1. I also have one of these machines, though not nearly as nice as Fred's, so I don't want to give up all the bags, but will part with some. Whe GE got out of the vacuum business, and then Premier...

The switch on the back of the motor housing turns the headlight on and off. I know because I have worked on these motors.

Last week an old man brought in a practically new Hoover Wind Tunnel upright which he had vacuumed up water with and ruined the motor. I couldn't help myself - I looked straight at him and said "What were you thinking???" He hasn't decided whether to have it fixed or trade it in. A couple of...

What can I say??? Looks as though Ms. LaToure has put in everything I forgot to include.

There seems to be a lot of misinformation floating around about the ages of old Rexair models, and Rexair's own website (www.rainbowsystem.com) is partly at fault. My buddy Sherry in Customer Relations at Rexair and I have talked about it. She would like to correct the misinformation on the...

I regularly throw Classics, Classic Omegas, and Classic III's in the trash. To me they are too new to be collectible (we each have our own criteria) and too old to sell customers who come into my store. If someone has a fondness for these models let me know - I'll let them have them for little...

I got out of Bison, and went back into Rainbow in 1975. This was just before the Mark II was replaced by the Mark III. We had so much trouble with the machines breaking down, even when they were new, on the demo in customers' homes, that I became discouraged. I had been impressed originally with...

I just heard about the Ocean Blue today. Looked at their website, which contains absolutely no product info, other than a picture of the machine without its tools, Power Nozzle, or any other accessories. Looks like a D4 of SE knockoff to me. Ho-hum! Along with Hyla, Big Power, Delphin, etc., it...

Since my last post to this thread I have sold two new Rainbows, one rebuilt Rainbow, and one new Air-Way. I have heard from all those customers, and they all love their machines. The Rainbow customers were all repeat buyers. One of the new machines was sold to a well-to-do couple who bought a...

I am a big fan of both Air-Way and Rainbow, and sell them both. I still have trouble figuring out what makes any of the European canisters special, other than a protected profit for their dealers. This includes Miele, Bosch, Sebo, etc. I am constantly approached by these companies to sell their...

Guys, I've been asked to speak at next year's Convention about Bison. I was briefly one of their distributors in the 1970's and have been thru the factory. Unfortunately, I have next to no Bison "stuff." If anyone has anything related to Bison, which they want to part with, please let me know...

I use a D2 Rainbow as my everyday vacuum. It was a used machine I fixed up for my parents when they bought their new home in 1971. I don't use it for any sentimental reasons, but because I can sell every newer Rainbow, that is D3 and newer, that I can get my hands on. My cleaning lady kids me...

Those cleaners DO NOT have a Genereal Signal motor. The motor was made by what used to be (and was at the time of the vac's manufacture) Electrolux's own motor plant at Piney Flats, TN. With Electrolux becoming Aerus, and generally going to hell, that motor plant, as an independent manufacturer...

I think Hooverland is the "Best Theme Park" ever! I'm glad I had a chance to visit it at the Chicago Convention!

The answer is simple. It was a much less expensive machine. Unless customers are educated as to why they should pay more for the more deluxe model, they'll always go for the cheaper one.

I think the new Constellation is really neat - bringing back a classic, but as a vac shop owner, I can't imagine it being a commercial success. To really clean carpeting, it needs an electric power nozzle, a turbo just doesn't cut it. One of the problems with the original Constellation that...

Skip's answer is correct. The companies that sell in the home don't want potential customers to know anything about the new machine if the local dealer is still trying to sell the unsold inventory of the old. It is easier to tell the customer that this is a new model, too new to be on the...