Another eBay Disaster

[charles~richard]

I have more bad eBay news.

Just before I left for Sydney, I won a really nice Model 700 Hoover that had the original bag. (See link)

Luckily, I was the only bidder and got it for $20 and another $22 for shipping. I was VERY happy to have found this, since the 700 was Stan Kann's favorite machine. I do have the wonderful "700 Special" with the elaborate bag and badge, but do not have an original 700. So this was quite a find for me, seeming almost cosmic that it would come my way the way it did -- the timing, I mean, and the small payment required.

I sent the payment literally the day I was leaving so did not take the time to send my usual "packing instructions." The seller had 100% feedback so I took a chance that he was not an idiot.

Big mistake.

He DID spend quite a lot of time very diligently crafting a unique trapezoid-shaped box for transit, but overlooked packing it properly. He wrapped a piece of cardboard around the motor unit and that was all. Obviously, the Hoover arrived irreparably damaged.

The bracket for the back wheels snapped off because he did not protect the machine at all from impact-damage. The housing is made of "pot metal," so, from what I understand, there is no way to repair the damage. It's a total loss.

Just a reminder for us all -- Anything that's shipped via UPS or Parcel Post is going to get the living daylights pounded out of it. Have you ever stood in an airport window and looked outside to watch cargo planes getting loaded? The loading crew literally throws parcels down to the loading carts from a distance of some 20 feet. And that's just the start of the bumpy journey. Anything heavy and breakable that's not thoroughly padded with bubble wrap and styro peanuts WILL break.

Here's yet another example of it, in this case an otherwise perfectly preserved, all-original, 1927 vacuum cleaner that would have been a very special addition to my collection but that's now a total loss.

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Last-minute update...

After emailing the seller and advising him of the damage, he offered to have me send the broken part to him because he believes he can fix it with a special type of welding iron. He's an antique auto enthusiast and said this should be a simple thing to repair. We'll see, I guess.



http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=150303442918

 

[charles~richard]

 

[arh1953]

How maddening! I hope he makes good of it.

 

[electroluxxxx]

hey charles I have had the same thing happen to me so I had someone weld it but you need to use aluminum weld becasuse the machine is aluminum. I have had mine welded and it is as durable as it was the day it was made. good luck

Mike

 

[kirbyman89]

If that happened to me I would sue the sh** outta them! Imagine them throwing your package!!! I would be ticked off!

 

[charles~richard]

Well, ALL packages are thrown like that. That's how they get them into the planes. That's why it's always important to pack well and insure highly. But in this case, no amount of insurance would cover the sentimental loss here.

I am going to send the parts to the guy, he seems confident he can make an invisible repair. I sure hope so!

 

[kirbyotronic]

Ebay has it's "pro's" and "con's"...

There's nothing else that can match the excitment of reciving a vintage cleaner from ebay, but there's always a good chance of something getting damaged.

I emailed the seller of the 517 and we were discussing shipping, as he simply wanted to slap a shipping label on those beautiful 51 year old boxes and send them off to get ruined! I told him how I wanted them shipped if I bought it, unfortunately the shipping will cost $60-$80 to get it shipped safely. But he was very nice about it and agreed to do it, and he actually added extra photo's (unlike the "I'll add pictures tomorrow" sellers, where it never happens", and he answered all of my questions.

Do you think it's worth paying the $150 price tag and the shipping?

 

[charles~richard]

"Do you think it's worth paying the $150 price tag and the shipping?"

Well, the question is not whether or not =I= think it's worth it but whether or not YOU do. None of us can fairly place a "reasonable" price on what someone else wants, because too many intangible factors are involved. If you want the machine and can afford to buy it without impacting necessary expenses (rent, gas, utilities etc.), then go for it!

 

[truckerx]

You can make a good repair to aluminum...

...just find a SKILLED welder (TIG/MIG) who works with aluminum. The weld can be ground down and polished. I worked at a custom motorcycle shop where motorcycles came in with cracked aluminum engine cases. We welded them back together frequently and successfully. Welds are generally stronger than the surrounding metal. Hope this helps to put your mind at ease.

 

[kirbyotronic]

I might be splitting it four ways for Christmas, which involves a shampooing for 3 "donors", my aunt, mother, and my brother. The 4th "donor" is me.

The problem is the seller isn't really giving me a guaranteed shipping cost. But I guess, whatever is on the listing is what you should pay, it's not fair if your expecting to pay $20 and after you win they're saying shipping costs $40! So if I win, I might have to get tough with the seller about this, otherwise I just might not bid.

 

[charles~richard]

"Welds are generally stronger than the surrounding metal. Hope this helps to put your mind at ease."

Thanks, it does put my mind at ease since I had thought -- erroneously, apparently -- that pot metal breaks can't be repaired. The seller is an antique auto enthusiast and is confident he can make an invisible repair. It's nice of him to offer to do so, at any rate.


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"The problem is the seller isn't really giving me a guaranteed shipping cost."

This does get dicey here. A seller is contractually obliged by eBay to stick with a quoted shipping price. However, in this case the seller did originally plan to ship the machine in the original box, so by changing his plan and using a larger box will rightfully impact the final cost. The last complete-in-the-box Kirby I got was a 515 (that I haven't had time to do a write-up on yet). The person who sent it to me shipped it in a large hot water heater carton. The cost from the midwest to L.A. was about $75.00.

 

[charles~richard]

p.s. I note the seller is only offering $100 in transit insurance, not even equal to his opening bid amount. I hope the winning bidder will be on his toes and require the seller to increase the insurance coverage to equal the amount of the winning bid.

 

[kirbyotronic]

The first plan was to ship everything in 2 boxes, the original boxes/attachments in one, and the vacuum in another.

Now, he said that it would be cheaper to ship everything in one big box (like how you got your 515).

I told him to make sure to wrap all of the smaller attachment boxes in bubble wrap, and fill in any spaces with newpaper so nothing moves around. Then wrap the original box in a few layers of bubble wrap so the corners won't get "smushed". After that disassemble the handle into 3 parts, take the head off, and the Sani-Emtor and wrap all of those parts in bubble wrap or newspaper. After all of that pack everything in the box and fill in and gaps with packing material, to nothing moves. Is there anything that I should add or take away?

Ps, I'll ask about the insurance.

 

[electroluxxxx]

charles if I were you I would go to your nearest auto garage or a friend with an aluminum welder and find out if they would not mind making the repair. when my vac was sent to me the back wheels had broken off at the base. this really sucked. it broke in a bad spot. luckily I had a friend who was into welding and had an aluminum welder and let me tell you the weld is so strong that nothing will break it
good luck with ur new machine and it looks great
Mike

 

[charles~richard]

Spare 700 parts sought

Upon looking more closely at this 700, I have discovered that one side of the bakelite insert in the handle grip is broken, and also that the switch does not work.

Does anyone out there by any chance have either a spare handle, or the bakelite inserts; and does anyone have a spare switch for the 700? There were two kinds, one with an "H" hollowed out of the finger-push and one with a solid finger-push. Either one would be fine.

I have everything else to make this machine an all-original beauty -- I have an original spreader top for the bag, a set of brand new wheels, replacement agitator bristles, era-appropriate thick rubber cord, original Hoover bakelite plug, and an original replacement bumper. All I need is a good handle and switch.

Thanks!!

 

[kirbyotronic]

I'm going to take my chances...

My mom is going half with me for Christmas.

They assured me that it would cost under $60 for shipping if we shipped everything in one big box. They also said that they would insure everything for the purchase price.

Hopefully it won't be a disaster!

 

[laundromat]

U.P S. (Un Predictible Sh--t Heads)

I work for the Equator corporation in sales and customer service.we used go make a counter top compact dishwasher that held a service for 6.A woman in Hawaii who had an older model needed to replace it and I had a few left in stock. I ran one all day long to be sure it worked fine then drained it,dried it out completely,double wrapped it in popcorn,bubble wrap and styrofoam.I shipped it via U.P,S. and when it arived,it looked like they delivered it via air directly dropping it into the customer's back yard!!!Now mind you,I placed it into its original container prior to wrapping it and placing it into another to be sure it was going to be protected.They need to go out of business.I heard they merged with FedEx and now they're "FedUp"LOL

 

[charles~richard]

Back to the 700...!

Per the seller's offer, I did send him the broken rear wheel assembly. He emailed me today and said he got the part from me and thinks it will be easy to repair. We'll see, I guess.

If so, once I get the wheels back I'll be able to put together a beautiful and all-original Model 700: I have nearly everything I need for it -- an original spreader top for the bag, a set of brand new wheels, replacement agitator bristles, era-appropriate thick rubber cord, original Hoover bakelite plug, and an original replacement bumper.

All I need is a good handle and switch. Upon looking more closely at this 700, I discovered that one side of the bakelite insert in the handle grip is broken, and also that the switch does not work.

Don't suppose anyone out there by any chance has either a spare handle, or the bakelite inserts, or a spare switch for the 700? There were two kinds of switches, one with an "H" hollowed out of the finger-push and one with a solid finger-push. Either one would be fine although I do kinda like the fancier "H" version.

Thanks!

 

[kirbyboy1]

Charlie I have a 700 from Tom As garage sale. Its in sad shape but the handle is in ok shape. There is a little bit of paint missing but call me tonight. 814 553 8702