I Found an old Chrome General Electric Floor Polisher!

[mom11]

I am so excited! I posted a few days ago asking about vintage floor polishers. I have been looking for one for years locally and never found one. Craigslist-no luck. I emailed someone on here about an electrolux one but didn't hear back. So yesterday I go to a thrift shop and find this General Electric floor polisher-chrome. It is in rough shape: dirty, pitted, cob webs, unknown other yuckies, etc. It also only has the scrubbing brushes. I have been trying to find the other pads, especially the lambs wool pad for buffing my new floor.

I just put down a new vct floor a few nights ago. I bought floor sealer, floor polish (wax) and the neutral cleaner by Zep on a recommendation of a member here.
I couldn't find the GE pads online, ebay or anywhere. I went to 2 local vac shops and they didn't have them. One did have some pads for a Koblitz that he said would work with the Hoovers for sure but he thought they wouldn't fit the GE. I didn't have the machine with me at the time

Does anyone know if the Koblitz pads will fit my GE? Thanks so much.
Here are some pics to help. I have not cleaned it up yet. And a few of the vct I just layed down.

 

[ronni]

Congratulations on your purchase of a Model P-5 G-E twin brush floor polisher along with your installation of a colorfully attractive vinyl composition tile floor!

While I am unsure if the Koblenz pads will work with your floor polisher the folks at thevacuumcenter.com may know: http://thevacuumcenter.com/floor-buffers/floor-buffer-pads-and-brushes/

Judging by your photo the center of your scrubbing brushes appear to have sockets for snap studs (like Electrolux's). I wonder if your brushes are 5" ones like others I've seen online?

Furthermore, I wonder if the Regina brushes and pads on this eBay listing are the same as G-E? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-REG...156?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item339f430edc The brushes appear to be the same as yours. Perhaps someone else will know if Regina floor polishers were rebadged G-Es or vice versa.

Additionally, you may want to consider asking this seller if s/he would sell you an electronic photo copy of the owner's manual which is part of this listing: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-GE-...605?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item339e656685

Happy scrubbing and polishing ... and best wishes in locating parts for your P-5!

 

[ronni]

Photos from eBay Listings

I am including photos of the eBay listings I referenced above for future reference when the links expires.

I also want to mention that the model is actually 'FP-5' (not 'P-5' as I'd used in my last reply).

By the way, another eBay listing of Sears buffing pads lists the following compatible brands (along with others that I couldn't decipher), so I wonder if they all used the same brushes and scrubbing pads, or if it was just that their sizes were the same: Atlas, Black & Decker, Fillery, G-E, Floorcraft, Gold Seal, Hoover, Landers, Lifetime, Red Devil, Shetland, Singer, Sunbeam, Super Dynamic, Universal, and Vactric.

 

[ronni]

Corrections/Additions to the list of floor polishers in previous thread:

General Floorcraft (not just Floorcraft), Regina, Westinghouse

 

[mom11]

Thank you

so much, ronni! I just wish it came with the other pads so I would know. A few things: do you know if the buffing pads fit OVER the scrub brushes that I have? Or do I need the flatter brushes to attach the other pads? I know my mom had one just like this but green when I was growing up but she ditched it long ago. She also threw out an incredible Electrolux tank, and I mean TANK, I grew up with as well. Wish I had those machines today.

I saw those ebay auction for the Regina sets but I just don't want to spend lots of money if I am not sure they will fit.

I am so impatient to seal and wax my floor. I cannot wait but the Armstrong instructions said to wait 72 hours before sealing. Thank your help.
Lisa
Oh, wait, does anyone know what year or years this was made? It may help to know when asking about the pads.

 

[ronni]

You're welcome for the information, mom11.

If I were you I'd see about getting a copy of the manual from the listing I linked to previously; actually I saw another eBay listing with what appeared to be a photocopy of a manual, too. That would be your best bet to obtain the information for which you're seeking (if no one else here knows). Regarding the year(s) of manufacture--the manual may have a copyright year printed somewhere in it or there may be a written-in delivery date. Wish I could help, but I am not that knowledgable about G-E appliance history. I do know that G-E sold their floor care division to Premier in the early '70s; so your polisher could have been manufactured anywhere from 1950 to that time. It doesn't appear to have the '40s look (more rounded, with burgundy or brown features, but I may be mistaken.

I wondered myself if the buffing pads were strapped over the brush holders--as that's how it appears, but I don't know for sure.

Yes, it's too bad that your mom ditched her G-E floor polisher and Electrolux tank. I have tried to put that in perspective by considering the modern appliances I have gotten rid of that had no sentimental value to me; so I can imagine how she (and others) felt about getting rid of those.

Unfortunately, G-E has not kept records of its vintage appliances--or at least they are unavailable to the public. I attempted to get information from them on a Model C-13 Swivel-Top I used to have, but they couldn't provide any information. In addition, I am not aware of anyone on this forum that collects G-E floor care products; so your resources are limited.

I wish you well in your endeavor.

 

[cleanqueen]

I found an old chrome General Electric floor polisher

Did you ever find the pads for your floor cleaner? I have a GE floor cleaner that I inherited from my mother-in-law. My husband said she got it with green stamps! It was probably manufactured in the 50's or 60's. It does not have a model number but it does have a catalog number of PHFP 3. I have not used it for several years, but I recently resurrected it to clean and buff a marble floor. I too can not find pads. They would be six inch pads with a small (maybe an inch) center hole. They attach to the two brushes with plastic snap on pieces. Any idea on where to find these?

 

[bonnie]

Polishing pads (sheepskin)

I just got my moms GE floor polisher from her this past weekend (looks similar to this post only brown/beige colour) and she had the sheepskin/wool pads and orange/red clips to attach. Sharing photos I just took.

 

[dustywalker]

I have a friend who needs an armature for a GE polisher.
Can anyone tell me where to start in finding parts for these?
thanks
Dan in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

 

[heatherell]

Somebody tell me about this?

Just picked this up today from a guy for $40. I can’t seem to find anything about it… can anyone enlighten me on what I have here? I remember my dad having one when I was a kid

 

[paul]

Canada G-E Polisher Models

Late response, but your model CS-25A was marketed in the mid-'60s.

My newspaper database search led me to compose the list below, which I'll include as a reference for other queries. Years represent newspaper ad sightings and may or may not be actual production years. Also, there may be other model numbers that were not included in the ads accessible to me.

It appears that Canada General Electric began producing its floor polishers in 1949 (about 8 years prior to the G-E USA). These had their own rounded hood style initially and later the same or similar style to the original (1957-62) one used on the U.S. polishers. Letter suffixes of model numbers, such as CS-25A, were never included in the ads I saw. It could be that an 'A' indicated 'De Luxe' and a 'B' 'Standard'.

According to an April 24, 1969, UPI article by Dorothea M. Brooks in the YOUNGSTOWN VINDICATOR, Polyurethane Seamless Flooring was introduced in 1964 initially for commercial use and then increasingly for residential installations by Cargill of Minneapolis. This type of floor retained its sheen which rendered waxing, polishing, and buffing unnecessary. That, along with the growing preference for carpeting, led to dwindling production and sales from the late '60s and forward as illustrated by the list below.

By the way, in late 1983 Canada G-E sold its small appliance division in Barrie, Ontario to Black & Decker.

(CS - Canada Scrubber?)

CS-11A seafoam
CS-12B seafoam
CS-15 1960 two-tone gray & coral shades
CS-16 1961-62
CS-17 1962-63
CS-18 1963 De Luxe horizon blue
CS-21 1975
CS-22 1964
CS-25A 1965
CS-26 1966
CS-27 1968 metallic gold & off-white
CS-28 1968 De Luxe with cord reel
CS-29 1967
CS-32 1969

Some ads:

1. March 10, 1960 CALGARY HERALD - model CS-15 (first hood style)

2. April 5, 1962 SASKATOON STAR-PHOENIX - models CS-16, CS-17, CS-18 (second hood style)

3. June 7, 1963 SASKATOON STAR-PHOENIX - models CS-18 (third hood style-like the original US style) & CS-17

4. March 10, 1965 EDMONTON JOURNAL - canister vacuum model VC-9 & floor polisher model CS-25

 

[paul]

Correction

CS-16 De Luxe - not CS-18

 

[eurekaprince]

And here is a Canadian General Electric TV commercial for their floor polisher from about 1959….