$10 'Dirty Kirby' G3

[human]

Damn! Fell off the wagon again!

I was out running errands and stopped in at this thrift shop across town that I visit maybe three or four times a year and in the vacuum corner, I spotted a G series handle sticking up but I couldn't figure out what it was because it appeared to be a pale caramel or butterscotch color. When I got up to it, I realized it was an exceedingly dirty Kirby G3; thus its new nickname, the 'Dirty Kirby'. Despite its dingy appearance, it's actually in good shape—no missing parts, belt and brush roll intact, lightbulb works, recently replaced fill tube and no filthy full filter bag to throw out. Heck, the inside of the bag was actually cleaner than the outside and it has no tears or worn spots.

I found an electrical outlet and fired it up for about 20 seconds, verified that the Tech Drive works, and listened to the motor, which sounded sweet. And for only $10, I couldn't just leave it there. I'm such a sucker. I'm not going to do anything with it right away; I just stuck it in the barn where it can wait on cooler weather for it to become a clean-n-shine project, right behind the Sentria I got last April. The nice thing is I don't believe I'll need to buy any parts for it. Just shine it up, slap in a bag and it'll be good to go.

Being that I am so overrun with vacuums, I've resolved to donate at least two to my church's upcoming rummage sale. The Filter Queen is going for sure and possibly my Douglas ATV shop vac or maybe my Oreck...or both...or all three. Something's gotta give!

Oh well, time to find that Vacuholics Anonymous meeting and pick up yet another white chip...

 

[suckolux]

Oh dear,lol! Repeat after me, I am a vacuum holic and I can't help myself, welcome Hi Edgar. Can't say as I blame you though

 

[louvac]

The G3 Bag

Hey Ed!

Let me know how you plan to wash the bag. This model is not easy to disassemble because the bag topper has two black push tension rings that must come off in order to release the vinyl topper. I am not sure if they can be re-used once removed. I am about to work on a G3 myself and thought I would just soak the entire bag assembly outside in a plastic party tub filled with detergent and rinse well and hang to dry in the sun. It will dry rather quickly on a hot sunny day. I am not really in the mood to take it all apart! LOL.

Does anyone else have any recommendation on the best way to thoroughly clean these bags?

 

[human]

Lou,
I honestly haven't thought that far into the process but thanks for the heads-up about the G3's unique bag design. I will definitely proceed with caution. Hand washing does sound like a prudent choice.

I decided to take a closer look at the brush roll and it will need replacing. The bristles are great but the bearings are totally locked up. It's apparently been like that for awhile because the belt has worn a groove in the wood on the brush roll. Oh well, that's usually the way it goes.

The brush roll was also stuck in the nozzle but good. I had to pry it out with a big screwdriver and managed to break a little piece off of the nozzle about the size of a nickel where I was prying. Fortunately, it's completely covered by the rubber bumper so I'm choosing not to worry about it; in fact, I'm choosing not to worry about any of it until the temperatures cool down to highs in the 70s so I can stand to be outside working on it.

 

[lesinutah]

Nice

G3's are good vacuums. They have a kit to put in changing the gear ratio. The drive system is not violent but pushy and sticks. The upgrade smooths it out.
The bag just unclips from the bag hanger. I believe the rings are reusable. I've only done one restore on a g3.
I have donated vacuums before. I figure there not getting used and a good vacuum is sometimes hard to come by.

 

[human]

I've never met a Kirby I didn't like...

Yeah, I've refurbished a couple of G series Kirbys, most recently an Ultimate G Diamond, but I've never had a G3 before. This is a later one with a white bottom on the mini emptor instead of clear. It looks as if it may have sat unused for a while but I think it'll clean up nicely. Thankfully, there are no odors to speak of.

 

[louvac]

OMG Ed!

Oh my God, Ed!

I did the same thing you had done with another Kirby-an Ultimate G. The brushroll was stuck inside the nozzle due to moisture and I had no choice but to pry a bit and dammit-I chipped a small piece of the nozzle, too! I stood there in disbelief about to literally cry! I kid you not! Fortunately, the bumper covered the small missing piece.

I know it's infinitesimal, but I believe when one buffs too aggressively, you wear down the metal a bit which is why I don't get too fussy with the buffing. I'd rather have more dull metal than thinner shiny metal. Yes, I am like everyone else and want them to look brand-new-out-of-the-box but I think they look just fine with most of the oxidation removed. Over time with normal polishing, the liver spots fade more and more and become more obscure. Even if you get a mirror shine, over time it will revert back to the point where it was.

In other words, sometimes less is more. Ed, don't hesitate to contact me when you begin the restoration.

Les, what is the best way to get those black retainer disks off?

 

[lesinutah]

I

Thinking your talking about the part that clips to the handle and the lower part connects to top of bag dock. It stays on I pull it to outside of bag tie it in a loop and wash the bag inside our.
Its been a few years since I messed with a g3. If it's enclosed in the top of the bag similar to royals just leave it if you take it out it will snap.
If I didn't get it yet take a picture and I can be assured I'm giving you correct info.

 

[human]

I didn't have that emotional of a reaction, just a brief moment of disgust at myself for not being more careful. But then I put the rubber bumper back on and realized the missing chunk was completely covered, I just sighed a deep breath, shrugged my shoulders and continued with my assessment of the machine's condition. upon reflection, I've been wondering if I would have been better off leaving the bumper in place when I applied the screwdriver.

I agree about polishing. Not wanting to take too much metal off, I've come up with a pretty effective minimalist method using a cheap, a combination of Nevr-Dull wadding, Mothers, and a relatively soft knockoff of a Scotch Brite pad, sold in ten-packs for a buck at the Dollar Tree. The pads aren't aggressive enough to etch the metal but they'll knock off most of the oxidation fairly easily with light, brisk rubbing. Doing this way, I can get a Kirby polished up in an afternoon.

 

[human]

Forgot to mention, I'll post some 'before' photos of 'Dirty Kirby' in a few days. I'm up against an unreasonably short deadline right now to get final grading done for the summer term so we can turn around a week later and gear right up for the fall semester.

 

[human]

"Before" photos

As promised, I'm posting a few "before" photos, as in before I've really done anything to this machine beyond removing the brush roll and slightly damaging the nozzle in the process. Yeah, I've included photos of that carnage, with a penny for scale, as well. The old brush roll went out with the trash yesterday and a replacement is due to arrive on Friday although it won't be installed until I can clean the crud out of the inside of the nozzle.

Looking at the photos, the obvious conclusion is that it is, well, very dirty. There's some surface rust on the steel parts like the motor spindle, which will clean up with a little penetrating oil and sandpaper or maybe a Scotch-Brite pad. The handle lock lever (G3 exclusive?) is frozen in place. Hopefully, a heavy dose of penetrating oil will loosen it. Silicone spray worked wonders on the release levers for the sole plate on the nozzle but now the black plastic cushions won't stay on. Very minor worry. The greenish caste to the cord makes me think heavy cigarette smoke was in the air where it was used but there's no tobacco smoke odor to substantiate that. We'll see what a little Simple Green can do for that. I'm thankful the little chunk I took out of the nozzle is only about the size of a penny and is completely covered by the bumper. Speaking of the bumper, I'm not sure if the red striping tape will survive the heavy cleaning it's going to need. If it does, it does. If not, oh well. I can always get some automotive pinstripe tape if it really bothers me.

This will be a good project once fall-like weather arrives. It's in the 90s here today and it was all I could do to stand outside and take these photos. I'll be excited to see how it turns out.

Enjoy!

 

[louvac]

Doesn't look quite as bad as you had said it was!

Edgar,

It would make good sense to replace the fan while you are restoring this machine since you would not have to do anything other than remove the old and install the new. The spindle, fan, and required washers and spacers all come with the replacement kit. The airflow will greatly increase since the fan will be brand new. Should you decide to change the fan, make sure you lightly lubricate behind the fan with a bearing type of grease. This is done to ensure the fan doesn't seize onto the shaft. To lock the armature you will need an 11/32 open-end wrench-sometimes a 3/8 wrench will work OK-just be careful! You will need enter the area from the right side of the motor.

Regarding the cord, they ALL turn this pukey green color. It has nothing to do with smoking. It must have been something in the dye of the vinyl jacket. You will have success cleaning it but I doubt you will be able to change the color. If you do, let us all know!

As far as the nozzle goes, you can remove the bumper and wash it, and soak the entire nozzle in Simple Green or your favorite cleaner. When rinsing, concentrate on the belt lifter area to flush out fine dirt and grit. Since it is summer time, if you at least work on the nozzle you can let it dry thoroughly in the sun and then install your new brush roll when it arrives. You can also lightly lubricate the belt lifter area with a silicone spray. Actually, 3-in-One makes a silicone liquid and can be found at Walmart. Once cleaned, it will turn SO smoothly and without that gritty feel. You really don't need to remove the entire belt lifter assembly.

Let me know if you need any other assistance. There are some other "tricks of the trade" that I can share with you, as well, if you'd like.

 

[human]

Brush roll is here...

Sometimes USPS actually manages to surprise me in a good way and today was one of those days. The brush roll arrived two days ahead of schedule! I've tucked it inside the nozzle for safekeeping but said nozzle still needs some heavy cleaning. It got up to 93 degrees today so too hot for me to work on it as I have a pretty low tolerance for heat. The yard also needs mowing right now but that's not going to happen immediately for the same reason. I need to wait for cooler weather or plan on getting up early to take care of such physically strenuous tasks.

Lou,
Good tips on the fan I'll look into that. I did notice it has the old style gray (lexan?) fan rather than the newer style white amodel fan version. I wasn't planning on replacing the belt lifter assembly on this one like I had to do on my Ultimate G Diamond last spring as it's in pretty nice shape. That said, it will definitely get a spritz of silicone spray, which I prefer to WD-40 for most applications.

There are chemicals in some plastics that cause them to discolor over time as they break down with exposure to UV light. Old electronics from the '80s and '90s are notorious for this. I think the white plastics on the G3 fall into this category as well. I noticed that the exposed plastic on the headlight assembly is yellowed but that underneath, which would have been protected from UV light, is still bright. There's a method to correct this using a hydrogen peroxide-based creme called Style Care 40 (see video linked below). It's an activator for hair dyes and is sold at beauty supply stores like Sally. I'm not totally sure if it would work on the cord as I've only seen it done on harder plastics. Other than the discoloration, the cord is in good shape with no splits or tears in the jacket so I see no real reason to replace it just for aesthetics.

 

[human]

The cleanup begins...

So I took advantage of cooler morning temperatures to begin work on the G3's nozzle. As I mentioned earlier, I had put the new brush roll into the nozzle for safekeeping but I later found it had become just as stuck as the original. Fortunately, I had a better idea this time for getting it unstuck without causing any further damage. After spraying the two ends liberally with silicone spray (I generally prefer that over WD-40), I was able to pop it back out with minimal effort. Wish I'd thought of that trick before I damaged the nozzle. I decided this situation needed to be addressed so I got out my cordless drill and put a wire brush on the end, which has the bristles facing forward and is just wide enough to fit inside the nozzle's narrow confines, then I had a good go at both ends. This thing was incredibly encrusted and although I got most of the crud out with the drill. there was still some stubborn stuff that needed to be chiseled out with a flat screwdriver. After about 10 or 15 minutes of work, I got the channels where the ends of the brush roll go cleaned out sufficiently where it now seats and unseats like it should.

I've got the nozzle and its rubber bumper soaking in a bucket with a strong Pine-Sol solution and I'll give it a good scrubbing after lunch. This is just to get it clean; no polishing today. Once it's clean and dry, I'll give all the moving parts another liberal dousing with silicone and put it back together. Maybe this evening, once it cools down and while I still have some daylight, I'll pull the rest of the machine out of the barn and give it a good wipe-down with Tub-o-Towels before I re-mount the nozzle onto the machine. At least then I'd be comfortable bringing it into the house for a little test run. More comprehensive cleaning and polishing will have to wait for cooler weather when I can stand to be outside for most of the day break down the rest of it for a thorough going over.

 

[louvac]

Another trick to remove the nozzle

Another trick to remove the nozzle is to use the old belt if it is still attached to the brush roll. Use it as leverage to pull the belt out once you position the belt at the ends. I should have done this to mine but I was being hasty and wanted it done immediately. Hence, a lesson learned!

If the belt is broken, use a piece of rope to do the same. Just tie a good knot!

 

[human]

Getting cleaner...

The Dirty Kirby is a little less dirty now. After I finished scrubbing, lubricating and reassembling the nozzle, I couldn't help myself. Even though it was getting hot outside, I found a spot in the shade and worked on the rest of the machine. A few things I discovered along the way include: evidence of black mold on the bottom of the emptor and between the emptor and the body of the machine as well as mold or mildew stains at the bottom of the bag; and breaks in the cord jacket on either side of the anchor that attaches to the back of the handle just below the top cord hook. Also, despite a generous dousing with silicone spray, the handle lock lever is still immovable.

Because of the mold issue, the machine is not coming in the house anytime soon. I'll let it sit in the barn a while and if it reappears, I'll take more decisive measures. Either way, the bag is definitely going to be my next project. It'll get a thorough washing in the near future. I have no idea how to take the little zip tie like band off to remove the emptor and fill tube assembly from the bag so I'm just going to leave it all together when I wash it. The cord is now wrapped with black electrical tape just above and below the anchor. Guess should be looking for a replacement cord at some point.

So the Dirty Kirby is relatively clean at this point and it's waiting for a good polishing. I don't know that it'll ever look brand new but it'll be presentable once it's shined up. At that point, I'll probably have to think of a new nickname for it.

 

[lesinutah]

Zip

Ties if you pop a flathead screw driver right where the zip tie attached to itself pry the zip tie basically loosening it. If all else fails cut off the zip ties and you can heat up the fill tube if it's glued. You could also cut a small portion basically how you fixed a hole in the hose on a vacuum video you did recently.

 

[human]

Thanks for the tip, Lou. I'll give it a try, perhaps honing my technique on a trashed G5 bag I've got sitting on a shelf in the barn before I try it on the G3 bag.

 

[fantomfan57]

Question about the nozzle damage,

Would it be possible/worth it to JB Weld the chip back into place?