Eureka Vacuums History

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Here is an Eureka advertisement from 1953....

This is when Eureka introduced a "tub" style canister cleaner called the "Roto-Matic" because the hose swivelled 360 degrees on the top of the tub.....

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And here is another print advertisment from 1956....

...which shows an improved Roto-Matic canister in red, plus a larger Super Roto-Matic and a new Super Automatic Upright Cleaner....

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I have one of those small Roto-Matics....

Mine is dated 1954. It is in perfect condition, even has a brand new, genuine, vintage Eureka paper bag, from the correct era. I just need a hose for it (excuse the pics of the old vacuum room, lol).

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Wow! That IS in excellent condition! Hope you find a hose to complete the package.

If I remember correctly, Eureka had a winner with the Roto-Matic as it was not that expensive and was highly rated in Consumer Reports at the time.

I guess it was Eureka's answer to the GE Swivel Top tub vac of the same era.
 
And here is a photo of a Eureka vacuum display from a store from about 1957 or 1958 or 1959. The store is already displaying the new 50th Golden Anniversary (1909-1959) editions of the Eureka Super Rotomatic Golden Crown canister (in green, cream and gold) and the green and gold Super Automatic 260 upright cleaner in the centre with the matching cardboard tool carrier. The anniversary editions were already being advertised in 1957, two years before the actual anniversary, so it's hard to tell exactly which year this photo is from.

Wish I had this in colour!

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I'm pretty sure the Super Roto-Matics were still being made at the same time as the new Mobile-Aires. Probably into the first years of the 1960's when the Eureka line-up went all Lagoon Blue. There was a blue version of the Super Rotomatic barrel vacuum, which means it was being sold alongside the other blue canisters and uprights.
 
Were the rug and floor nozzles for the Golden Crown made different for the USA than for Canada? My aunt had a Golden Crown and those 2 nozzles did not have the metal elbow piece as shown in the picture. Instead it had the 3rd curved wand.

Gary
 
Hi Gary,

I don't think the separate curved wand was introduced until 1959 when the Vibra-Beat carpet nozzle made its debut. Eureka must have thought it would be easier to store 3 separate floor "heads" (bare floor brush, regular carpet nozzle, Vibra-Beat nozzle) if the necks were removed from the nozzles entirely, and replaced by one single curved wand. Marketing wise, Eureka touted the system as making it easier to change floor heads: you simply swivelled any of the 3 heads 180 degrees to the "bottoms up" position which lined up a nipple on the curved wand with a notch in the ring of the attachment neck. This released the tool from the curved wand. You did the reverse to secure another tool. Consumer Reports did not like the system - they found the tools had a tendency to rotate to the "release" position and fall off when being carried between tasks!

Since there was a brief period when both Roto-Matic canisters and Vibra-Beat canisters were both being produced, it makes sense that the later Roto-Matics had the separate curved wand too since it was more economical to manufacture one version of bare floor brush for all Eurekas. The tool set for our blue Super Automatic upright had a separate curved wand for just the floor brush! :-)
 
That was a long-winded way of saying: I don't think there was a difference in "tool system" between the two countries...there was a change in tool system time-wise with the arrival of a third floor head, the Vibra-Beat, in 1959.
 
That was a long-winded way of saying: I don't think there was a difference in "tool system" between the two countries...there was a change in tool system time-wise with the arrival of a third floor head, the Vibra-Beat, in 1959.
 
As far as I know my aunt's Golden Crown did not have the vibra beat nozzle. She had the Eureka storage chest and I looked in there many times just to have a look at her Golden Crown and I never saw a vibra beat nozzle but it did have the 3rd curved wand.
 
I know. It may have not come with the VB nozzle, but because Eureka was already selling the new canned ham vac, all the tools across the Eureka line up had to use the new "neckless" tools. It was probably cheaper to have common "neckless" tools included with all Eureka vacs from 1959 forward, including the old Rotomatics.
 
Reviving a zombie thread.

Thanks for the info, not a collector, just an everyday user.

Was looking for info on my Old Ironsides, a red Eureka Model 1757 A, which my wife and I got as a wedding present in 1982 and came across this forum. Still runs good. Have replaced the hose once and had the power head rebuilt once (both about 14 years ago). The exterior white rigid plastic parts have gotten brittle, so are well duct taped.

Would not trade it for a new one, though.
 
I have

A bunch of Eurekas, From early straight suction uprights, to early 80s self propelled,I will try and take some pictures, I know I have 2 or 3 Straight suction uprights, a Model G upright, a model M upright,a D-272 that needs a handle grip, a 250,260,several mid to late 60s uprights, a 800,both versions of the 800a,a few later 800 style machines, several 900 style machines, one including my kindergarten teachers 910 B that she bought new in October 1962 at Leflers Sewing Center in Lenoir NC,a Empress and a few more canned ham machines including the first a 1010.
 
hose for Eureka 1660?

Does anyone know the part number for the hose for the 1660? Its the non-electric one and the Hesco diagram doesn't show it. Alternately, where can I get one of the quarter-turn locking hose for my sweet 16.
 

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