(1972) Hoover Handivac model 2901 stick vacuum

[oldcrankman]

Great little machine I picked up for $15 with spare bags and belts?????? Welp, atleast I have belts for some other vacuum when I need it.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Great machine.

I love them.

 

[paul]

Awesome cleaner & price — congrats— you even beat the original sale price in '68 USD (in '24 it would be $177.84)!

I located newspaper ads for it between 1968 and 1973, so it must've sold well. At one point I had the Sunset Orange and Seal Greige 2-speed Model 2951. The original Autumn Gold & Seal Greige model 2900 had been launched in 1966 and sold alongside the 2901 and 2951, so customers at the time had a few options.

The 'Quik Broom' line with varying features, initiated in 1975, succeeded the 'Handi-Vac' models according to ads; and the 'Handi-Vac' became the shoulder vac in 1976 in lieu of the 'Pixie' moniker.

Photos:

1. 1968 Dec 20 READING EAGLE - Handi-Vac Model 2901, Pixie & Hoover Convertible Model 1060

2. 1971 Sep 6 YOUNGSTOWN VINDICATOR - Handi-Vac Model 2901 & tools

3. 1976 Feb 12 THE DAY Model S1005 Pixie (reference; I think the round item is the shoulder strap)

 

[eurekaprince]

Hi Paul! The third advertisement says “For lawns, furn. floors…”. Wonder what they mean? Surely, the user was not being invited to vacuum their outdoor lawn with the Pixie…strange.

 

[human]

I have two of the QuikBrooms from the '80s. Both are blue and white, but one has a blue floor nozzle while the other one's is white. I know the white nozzle one is from 1986, I don't know whether the blue nozzle one is older or newer. They're handy little things for sure. The only thing is the bags for them are getting harder to find here in the age of bagless plasticrap vacs.

 

[paul]

Models 2900, 2941, 2910, 2911 comparisons to Model 2901

Scott,

As an aside, I found online photos of the Model 2900 marked 'Deluxe' and noticed that its nozzle is different than the 2901's. I also located a Model 2941 with a handle grip and a slightly different color scheme than the 2900; the first newspaper ads I located for it were 1969, so the two nozzles either had different performances and/or production costs. Oddly, pricing was comparable and there was no distinction made in the ads I saw.

Also, the basis for model numbers was not always clear. For example, the Model 2910 (1972-1974) was advertised after the 2911 (1967-1968, no online photo available).



Photos:

1. Model 2900

2. Model 2900 'Deluxe' lettering

3. Model 2941

4. Model 2910 in Bali Green & Taupe with a third style nozzle - originally posted by classicfan1

 

[paul]

Brian & Edgar

In order to avoid hi-jacking this thread, I responded to your comments in two other related threads.

 

[oldcrankman]

Patent number

I've noticed my 2901 doesn't have a patent number like the 2900 by the model number.

 

[oldcrankman]

I did find this, which could potentially be the serial number.

 

[justjunque]

Nice find, Scott!
When I was a lad, we had two Hoover Larks, which seem similar. They were blue.

 

[paul]

Re: Reply #6

I meant to include links to the threads:

Brian — https://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?5804_6

Edgar — https://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?25054__0#start_25054.473607

 

[paul]

Re: Reply #8

I think you're correct about the six-digit stamp being the serial number. Here's an eBay photo of a motor housing from a disassembled Model 2910 showing one on its motor housing:

 

[oldcrankman]

Could be wrong but just a guess that the older handivacs had their serial number on the plastic and the newer ones had them on the tag up by the model number.

 

[paul]

Good call. As far as I know, from its early days Hoover US stamped its serial numbers in the casings until switching to adhesive ratings tags in 1978 when the plastic-based Convertibles & Concept Ones were introduced.

It would've been nice if Hoover US had begun embedding the times of production into its serial numbers back in the '60s like Hoover UK, but that began circa 1987 (I'm unsure about Canada's).

Btw, Hoover US & Canada earth-tone colors (in Deep, Medium &/or Light) were Seal Greige from the mid-'60s to early '70s and Taupe from the early- to mid-'70s. Yours appears to be the former, because the darker color looks more like cocoa powder than brown sugar. If you're going for a matching Hoover color set let me know if you want to see a list I comprised of the models I found in those color combos.