1920's Royal

[thevacuumguy96]

A few weeks ago, I posted a want ad for vintage vacuum cleaners on CL. Igot a call the other day from a guy who said he had a vacuum from the 1920's that I could come take a look at. So, yesterday I went and took a look at it and he let me have it for $10. I took it to the vacuum shop I do apprenticeship at and my boss and I couldn't get it running. He said it probably had sticky motor brushes. I took it home and cleaned it up and then I took it apart to see if anything was wrong with it. When I was taking it apart, I accidentally pulled the wires out off of the plates the slide into the motor brush housing. I super glues them back on and while I was letting the glue dry, I took the switch plate off the handle and noticed that only one wire was hooked to the switch. I saw the other wire sticking out after I bought it and I thought that was part of why it didn't work. So I hooked the wire on the switch and put the switch plate back on. I started putting the field coil back in and it wouldn't go in all the way. I tried pounding it in with a hammer which probably wasn't the best idea and it still wouldn't go in. So I put all of the parts in a container and went inside is it was getting late. Can the vacuum still work even if the wires are super glued to the plate that slides into the motor brush housing? And how can I get the field coil back in without damaging it? Any info would be greatly appreciated!

 

[electrolux~137]

 


 


 


<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva; font-size: medium;">Hammering motor parts is generally not a good idea...</span>


 


 

 

[bvac6]

Ive had this kind of problem with those Royals as well, the only suggestion I have for that would be to just gently work with it until it decides to cooperate. Keep manipulating it and wiggling it around and it will eventually work, patience is a must with old vacs as they can be contrary. As for the brush wires the glue should hold but I would recommend gorilla glue since it holds up to heat alot better (I used gorilla glue in my dishwasher and it has held up under the heat very well)

 

[thevacuumguy96]

Okay, thanks for the info bvac! The armature is a little hard to turn manually, so I'm thinking that may be the problem because all of the wires are connected to where they are supposed to be. I'm thinking that when I plug it in and turn it on, it won't do anything because the armature is hard to turn. What could I do to make the armature easier to turn?

 

[bvac6]

Well, if the armature is hard to turn on its own those bearings are going to need oil. I will have to check on my old Royal but im pretty sure there are oil ports where you can add oil to it. I think everyone recomends three in one oil. If you can oil, dont overdo it. Try a drop at a time to see if it frees up.

 

[super-sweeper]

could you please post picture's of your machine?

 

[thevacuumguy96]

Bvac, it does have oil ports and I will see if I can oil the bearings. And super sweeper, I will try and post pics as soon as possible.