Fair price for a Fantom Thunder

[michboy]

I'm still on my quest to find a Fantom upright, and I found on on eBay, with a starting bid of $100 or buy-it-now for $200. What's a fair price, and if anyone has one (And the tape, if possible, or just a CD or DVD burn of the tape would be appreciated as well), that would be much appreciated.

Considering can be as old as I am (19), how much am I looking at in parts on top of the actual machine?

 

[durango159]

A lot of people like these machines. They were probably the best Fantom vacuum. While they pop up here and there, they are hard to come by. Parts are going to be extremely hard to find if it needs anything. The machine looks good in the auction and the customer claims it runs flawlessly. However there is reserve on it as well, so while starting bid is $100 they're not letting go for that! I'm actually surprised that the Buy It Now is at $200. Otherwise with the starting bid that high and how much these were liked I honestly see it selling for higher than that. A vacuum is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it!!!

 

[fantomfan]

Wait a while

You will find one, if you look hard enough. The thunder was fantom's best machine. It was the only one that could "stand the test of time", which is why there are still many out there. In my opinion, $100 plus shipping alone is too much for a thunder that is in only "ok" condition. Again, as stated before, any vacuum that is considered collectible is only worth what the buyer is willing to pay. Personally, I would not spend over $75 on one. (Unless it was brand new in box).

 

[michboy]

Looking on Craigslist and other shopping sites, people are selling the Fury model and saying it runs great for $45. The lowest I saw was $15. The problem is the two listings I saw were in Georgia and I think New Mexico, and I don't know that someone on Craigslist would be willing to ship a vacuum to Michigan, and if they were, that might triple the cost for me.

I don't have a collection or anything, I just want the Fantom to actually use for normal cleaning purposes. I remember them from when I was a kid and that my grandma bought one off the infomercial because my brother has asthma and it worked real well to where he wouldn't get flared up from being on her living room floor.

Just wondering here, if anyone has a PDF of the owner's manual of a Fury or Thunder, would you be willing to email me a copy?

 

[fantomfan]

Be very careful if you find a fury...

I would NOT use the fury as a regular machine, if you found one. The problem with the fury (this was a problem with the other fantoms as well, but it was the killer on this one)was that there was no pre motor filter to catch any dust not captured by the
cyclone, so the fans would eventually be blocked. Unless you know how to take apart the motor, and clean it, it would not be a good daily driver. However, if you find a nice thunder, and clean it out well, you should probably get a couple more years out of it. In my opinion though, most nice fantoms should be for collectable purposes only. Parts are difficult to find, so if something breaks, it could take a long time to find another one. Research on this site about fantom technologies, and you can get the whole "Fantom Story". Good Luck! -Mitchell

 

[michboy]

I've seen tons and tons of parts on many different websites, but I haven't seen the actual vacuum for sale anywhere with an active listing. There was one Thunder in Florida where the girl selling it said it'd been used about 3 times since it was purchased in the 90's, but the listing had expired and I had no way of contacting her. She wanted $50 and shipping would have been about $60, but the listing had expired. Grrrrr

 

[nightfly]

Mine is for sale. It's used. It works great, but....

I know that someone else wants this vacuum way more than I do, because I just uise if for basic cleaning, and it should go to someone who collects these things. I've had this Fantom Thunder vacuum for close to 15 years; It still works just as good as the day I got it, but I know there are collectors out there who might want this before it dies, and as parts are hard to come by, I don't want to wear it out and junk it. So I found a Dyson 17 used, and bought that; I've used it for about six months, and it's a good enough replacement for my Fantom. I live in New Jersey, if you want a Thunder email me. [email protected]. The vacuum is used, a bit dusty (If you want me to clean it I will, but I charge by the hour for labor). The very top cap is loose on the handle, but it's in good condition, the original black extension hose is in great condition as I pretty much just used the vacuum to clean the floors. The lights don't work, the height adjustment doesn't seem to move (though honestly, I'm lazy and never bothered to make any attempts to move the adjuster so it might just be frozen in it's original position). But all the parts are there, I even have a set of the accessories that are still in the plastic wrap that they came in the box (I never used them, either). If you want, I can send pics. I don't really know a price for this, but say, $75? If you need it shipped, that's probably going to be too much, these things are heavy and long.

 

[Gr8DaneDad]

The Thunder is the only regret I have about a vacuum I got rid of. When I find one I may just have to buy it again. That machine was a monster but boy did it clean the carpet