$10 Diamond Jubilee at Goodwill

[human]

Okay, me walking into Goodwill is like an alcoholic walking into a bar--a very dangerous proposition. To be honest, I've been pretty good lately but tonight I had a "slip" when I saw a gleaming off-white Electrolux Diamond Jubilee canister with hose and PN5 power nozzle for the paltry sum of $10. This thing looked like it had hardly been used. It had no dents or gouges, no broken parts. The chrome was shiny and it had a brand new bag in it. All in all, it looked a lot cleaner and nicer than the bagless plastivac next to it. It definitely did not look 30-odd years old. The kicker was it had a brand new looking aftermarket hose that still had the $69.99 price tag on it from Triad Vacuum Center. The hose had no scratches on the metal and isn't even dusty inside. The only issue I found is one of the screws that holds the bag door hinge onto the canister body was missing and the other was very loose. It took me a few minutes to figure out how to tighten it back (HINT: You've got to take the front off the bag door) but I still need the other screw. I guess I'll be taking the thing back apart at some point to see what size screw I need to be looking for.

I've included a couple of quick snaps of the machine for your viewing pleasure. Now, I'm headed downstairs to the 'Vacuholics Anonymous' meeting to pick up my start-over chip...

 

[panasonicvac]

Nice find! One of my favorite looking lux's of all time.

 

[human]

So I decided to take the Jubilee for a little test drive by pulling back the chairs from one end of my dining table and giving it the Persian Rug Challenge, which is to see how easily it gets up the cat hair from a Persian rug. I would have done the whole rug but There are so many boxes stacked around the far end of the table that I could only do the near side.

The machine did quite well so I feel like I got my $10 worth. That said, it is a bit noisier than either of my 1205s or even my Super J but it's still a fairly civilized machine. In taking a closer look at the PN5 that came with it, I'm convinced that accessory has seen little use. There are very few nicks and the brush roll is like new.

 

[KirbyCollector01]

OMG!
Amazing find!

I am trying so hard to find these

So far I have just found a Golden J at habitat for Humanity for $10

 

[rainbowd4]

Bag door screw....

As long as the other one is good and tight, you won't have any problems with it missing that screw. Not much stress is put in that area really, except when you pull it by the hose, but the bag door latch takes most of that pressure. Anyway, if you want to know what kind of screw it is without taking the door apart again, open the blower door, and take out one of those two screws and look at it. It's the same screw.

 

[human]

Yes, it feels pretty secure now that I've tightened it down. Thanks for the tip on the blower door screws. I'll pull one of those to get an idea of what to look for.

 

[vacuumlad1650]

I still have the first pn5 you sold me. I had to cha he it's Brushroller. It was well past it's prime, and now it's a whole new power head!
Andy

 

[blknblu]

thread size is 8-32 on the Electrolux canisters
The screws underneath the rear blower door are known as fillister head screws, not so common today. I ordered stainless fillister & pan head screws for my Electrolux top covers.

I ordered 3/4" fillister screws & 5/8" for the pan head screws.

In the pic, the top screw is an original screw from underneath the blower door.

 

[blknblu]

I forget to mention a way to save money on specialty fasteners.
If you are in the U.S., you can have Home Depot ship to the store without paying shipping costs. (This goes for other items as well. HD online carries a lot more than the stores)

 

[ronni]

Good bargain--good for you! It's an early version with the sand-colored PN5 (the first PN5 had a black hood to complement the Silverado and gray Deluxe Special). The later version of the DJ had the dark green- (jade-colored) PN6.

The late Silverados and DJ did have a different motor than the SJ and OOs which others have said was problematic.

 

[human]

Andy--Glad you're still enjoying that PN5. A new brush roll does indeed make a world of difference.

Blknblu--Thanks for the info on the screws. That'll make it much easier to find what I need. I agree with you on the stainless steel screws. I use those whenever I have to replace one on a vacuum. The difference in cost for the better quality screws is negligible.

Ronni--I knew the DJ motor had a reputation of being lesser quality than its predecessors but this one sounds nice and smooth. Being that it's more than 30 years old, I figure if it was going to self-destruct, it would likely have done so already.

 

[human]

Screw problem solved

So I went through my stash of screws and bolts and stuff and found a pan-head machine screw that works. I pulled one of the blower port screws for comparison and then screwed the one I found in its place. When It worked without binding, even though it's slightly longer than the original, at maybe 7/8", I just left it there and put the one I'd removed in at the hinge. I didn't hear any bad noises when I turned the machine on so I don't think the extra length on the screw I found will be a problem. Problem solved and the best part was being able to fix it with something I had on hand.

What I can't figure out is how that screw got lost in the first place. There's just not enough clearance at the head end for it to come completely out, even if it did manage to work itself loose. The only thing I can figure is that someone had the front off of the machine, lost one of the hinge screws, and just put the thing back together without it. With one screw missing, I can see how the remaining screw could work itself loose like it did without the other one to hold the hinge firmly in place. And if the owner weren't particularly mechanically adept, he or she might not see exactly how to get to the remaining screw to tighten it.

 

[vacuumlad1650]

Those Lux motors that were trouble some would have showed their problems within the first years. I've only seen one or two that still had the bad motors
Andy