Hoover Concept One - Best Upright Hoover Ever Made??

H

hoover78

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Sep 21, 2012
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dallas tx
Hey Guys...


I found a C1 at a estate sale, model U3101, blue model, powerdrive.. was in pretty good shape, replaced the brush strips on it, greased the brushroll bearings, gave it a good wipe down and cleaning, new belts and bag....  Works like brand new again.


Just outta curiosity, and I know there are tons of vintage hoover lovers on this site, but could you all say that the Concept One could be the <span style="text-decoration: underline;">BEST</span> Upright that Hoover manufactered? Or do ya'll think there are better ones. I know theres alot of convertible fans here too... but just wondering? I love the sound of the concept. the way it cleans and grooms the carpet. I also have an older windtunnel,(circa 2002)  which i know is Hoover's first clean air upright since the dial-a-matic. But IMO, the concept is a way better machine.


Any feedback is welcome. Now we're just talking Hoovers, but if you all think there is some modern machine nowadays that can mimick the Concept, what is it? 
smiley-cool.gif
 
Superb!

I have a standard Concept One and a Concept One with PowerDrive. I don't really use the standard, it's kinda loud (ridiculously so!) but the PowerDrive model gets used pretty often at my house. It's not very loud, but I think I'm going to replace the transmission belt one of these days. It's sort of sluggish in forward drive.


The cord reel works, though! 
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 For only paying $3 for the Concept One PowerDrive, and absolutely nothing for the standard, I can't really complain! The PowerDrive is on the left, standard is on the right. 

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awesome machines

My U3101 had a replacement bag on it, but i was able to find a almost mind condition Blue striped bag that goes with it on ebay. came in right away.. now it looks like its supposed to with the matching vinyl bag. Also the plastic housing on the machine is a pale light blue..which i love. I just ordered LED lights for it, im excited to see how they look.


yes replace that drive belt, it'll make all the difference, but they are a pain in the rear to put on, takes some good finger/hand strength... agitator belt isn't as hard to put on..but get ready for a good workout.
 
Where did you find

LED lights that fit the Concept One?! Do you have a picture of yours so I can see if it's similar to mine?
 
The Concept One is a great upright if you don't need tools. I'd go so far as to say that it really is Hoover's best, and it keeps up with Kirby and Royal, which is no mean feat.

As for modern uprights that can compete? Royal, Kirby, Riccar/Simplicity, Sanitaire, but not many others. It's a tough act to follow!
 
Thanks!

Those light bulbs are NERDY! But they look cool, I'll have to get a couple. Let me know how they work. I like your Concept One! That is a great color.
 
Best Upright Hoover Ever Made?

I would have to give the nod to the Dial-A-Matic. Although it did have some flaws, the clean air design and ease of tool use put it ahead of the Concept. Plus, Hoover's switch to a plastic base with the Concept made it look well, cheap. I know the Concept has a loyal share of followers, but Hoover's reversion to a "dirty-air" design was a classic display of two steps forward, three steps backward. Who knows what a great cleaner Hoover could've had if they produced a Dial-A-Matic II! Sadly, they sold out the clean air patents to Panasonic and the Jet-Flo had to pick up with the DAM left off...

- Hershel
 
Hershel

A "dirty air" fan first vac will always out clean a "clean-air" vacuum because it has greater airflow, plus the concept had better agitation with the new quadraflex agitator. Just sayin... :-)
 
U have a blue U3101 as well, its definitely one of the best cleaning machines Hoover ever made, as they clean very very well, and going by what I've seen they held up well too. But In my eyes I wouldn't say its the overall best. To me the best that Hoover ever made is the 150. I think it represents the peak of quality and design. It was built simply to be the very best machine that they could reasonably build, back before price came before quality and durability, as well as style and design. Although the machines that followed soon after were excellent as well, the 60-63 style machines were great too, those years were the height of Hoover to me, the peak in their mountain, from there, once they let all their salesmen go and started just selling them off of the shelves in the store was when Hoover began a slow decent to what the product is today. Not to say new Hoovers aren't any good, just compare a Windtunnel T Series to a 150, or a 913, or 62 and you'll easily see what I'm talking about.

All that being said, I would say that my U3101 was the first truly excellent deep cleaning vacuum I had, and I used that machine as my daily vac until I got my Rainbow D4.
 
I have always loved the concepts. My mom had a U3101 growing up, and I always had that thing out. I've used them off and on through the years, and now that I own a home, I bought a U3101 for myself, along with a set of the older attachments with the metal wands. (I find the the newer attachment sets were cheap). I have a 2700 square foot house with wood floors and large area rugs. This machine is my daily driver for both floor types, and it performs wonderfully. I really can't imagine using anything else, especially any of that crap Hoover puts out now. I've had a windtunnel, and they are just clunky plastic junk that can't come close to a Concept.

Best ever made? I would say so, but that's my opinion. :) It is definitely the last good vacuum Hoover has produced.

Just my two cents :)
 

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