Favorite upright with on board tools?

[vacuumfreeeke]

Hey guys, I just wanted to do kind of a poll and see what your favorite upright with on board tools is... I know some people are die hard fans of uprights that lack tools (Eureka F & G Style, Hoover Convertible, Kirby, Royal), but I really enjoy the versatility that my 3 uprights with tools provide and find myself reaching for one of them more than any of my other machines that lack them. The three I have that have on board tools are the Hoover S/P WindTunnel, Eureka Smart Vac, and Dyson DC 14. I'd like to say that my favorite overall is the Hoover just because it's beautiful and powerful, but because the attachments are awful (save the turbo tool), I would have to go with the Eureka Smart Vac. The hose doesn't fight me and the attachments are excellent quality (except the turbo tool), and it's still a powerful versatile machine. While I enjoy my Dyson much more than the typical "Dyson haters" it loses points for a hose that fights, and an awful (and too short) telescopic wand system. The attachments are well designed, however, and the hose is anchored at the bottom so it follows instead of falls much like the Eureka and not like the Hoover. Wouldn't it be great if a manufacturer could take all the great qualities from each of these machines and incorporate them in to one amazing cleaner? I think so!

So, what about you? What's your favorite upright with on board tools? Hoover Elite/Runabout or Windtunnel, Eureka Bravo or Excalibur (I've still never used one of those), Dyson, Sebo (I want an X4 so bad!), or something else? Panasonic (direct drives are nice, and the uprights with quick draw wands are great too), Riccar, Simplicity, Miele.... what do ya think?

Thanks )

 

[thevacuumman]

Mine would have to be my Panasonic MC-V7389

 

[kirbyotronic]

Mine is my Miele S7 Tango.

 

[eurekaprince]

Though I heard there were a lot of electrical/circuitry problems with it, I have to give my vote to the orange Electrolux Oxygen Three upright. It had such a cool look to it, along with a full set of tools hidden away behind a door.

The only other two "combo" uprights that might get my vote is the Eureka Excalibur and the Miele S7. Both offer a full set of proper "adult-size" tools, though the Excalibur had one up on the Miele in that it also stored a bare-floor brush and two wands on board! But both seem to have problems: the Excalibur also had electrical overload problems (burnt out switches, if I remember the reports correctly), and the new Miele seems to have a hose that collapses under the force of the suction - preventing the user from putting it back in place after use!

My other vote would go for the old fashioned Panasonic/Kenmore uprights of the 1990's - they had a hose port that allowed you to attach a much longer hose for real "canister-like" cleaning. Sadly, none of the new Panasonic/Kenmore tools on board uprights have that hose port any more. :-(

 

[jfalberti]

Mine would be

Either my Dyson DC14, or my Kenmore Progressive DD. Both are great. Hate my Eureka Altima because the attachments are crap.

 

[bagintheback]

I haven't used much on-board vacuums, but I recently bought a $39 Bissell Powerforced bagged and I love it! The hose is easy to grab because there is a handle on the hose. I'm sure there are much better uprights but this ones working for me.

 

[suckolux]

would have to be my Dyson, dc18, so easy to use.

 

[sanimatic]

I am going to place another vote for the Miele S7. The tools are readily available, there are various suction levels and I have not yet experienced the problem with the collapsing hose. Also the vacuum remains very stable even with the hose stretched far from the unit. I do have to say the standard Miele dusting brush is not my favorite as it is much too small in diameter.

I recently acquired a Sebo Felix which I love overall. I plan to describe it in more detail in a separate thread, but as much as I like it, the hose is top mounted and the unit does want to tip over. It also does not come standard with a dusting brush or wand which much be purchased separately and I take issue with that for a vacuum in that price range.

 

[kenmore81]

Id have to go with the older 1990's Kenmore/Panasonic uprights with the "power port", my next is the Elite's.
I had used a Eureka Excalibur and I do have to say I did like the two wands and bare floor brush but it lasted just over a month before the switch shorted and then anoter two weeks till the circut board in the nozzle motor went. Not exceptable for a 260 dollar upright back then.

 

[2011hoover700]

Well, maybe a hoover powermax. I haven't used any upright with onboard tools in a long time.

 

[kloveland]

Hoover Elite

In my opinion the Hoover Elites had a good setup. I Like the models where the hose wraps around side as opposed to hanging over the vacuum handle, which looks cheap to me. Recently acquired a Hoover Elite U4617-930 and it is noisy. Would like to find a 5 amp Elite in the future, I would imagine those are probably quieter.

 

[kloveland]

Walmart Bissell

Nathaniel,

The $39 Bissell is a great value for a cheap vacuum. Had one for about a year that my sister used, when she wanted to vacuum. Eventually the front wheels feel off. But for $39 I'm not complaining.

Hoover type A bags can be substituted for the style 7 bag. Although they are longer, it's a cheap alternative.

 

[piano_god]

Another vote for the Miele S7...

The S7 has the best hose setup I have encountered on an upright. When I feel like using an upright, my Miele Marin (S7580) is what I normally reach for.

 

[djtaylor]

My favorite...

I like the Hoover WindTunnel bagged with out the self propel.

 

[jcste09]

I vote for the

Hoover Windtunnel bagged. If I recall correctly, it was purple with the red and green lights. It was quiet but the carpet looked amazing after using it.

 

[vacuumfreeeke]

I do like that the Excalibur had an on board bare floor tool, that is great. I think the Fantoms were the only other upright to do that if I remember correctly, but the hose suction on them was terrible and they lacked an upholstery tool.... maybe not the Cyclone XT and subsequent models, but I know they Furys and Thunders didn't include one. I never liked the placement of the switch on the Excaliburs. They had a 2 speed motor didn't they? Or was it a bare floor, suction only option on the switch instead?

 

[vacuumfreeeke]

Kenny (Loveland), what in the world happened to that poor Eureka's handle in the background of your Avatar pic?

 

[bimmer740]

I liked the Kenmore/Panasonic uprights from the late 90's with on-board tools. They had good suction through the hose and we also good at cleaning carpet. My grandmother had a Kenmore upright which was well built and so much quieter compared to the Hoover Elite upright it replaced. I would love to try the Miele S7 since I love their canisters, so hopefully Ill get to take one for a spin soon.

As I think back about all the machines I've had and those that I own now, my favorite uprights are those which dont have on-board tools. Kirby is my number one choice for an upright and I rarely use the tools with them. For a more simple and easier to use vac, I love the Electrolux Discovery II - Lux 3000 uprights. While they may not be the best at deep cleaning, they groom the carpet well, have a straight forward idiot proof design, and have an electrified hose for the sidekick. If I wanted to use something with tools or do above floor cleaning, I use a canister. If its deep carpet cleaning that needs to be done, than a Kirby it is.

 

[eurekaprince]

Eureka Excaliber Upright

Hi Bobby,

Like the other combo uprights I like, the Eureka Excaliber had two motors - one for suction, the other to drive the brush roll. The three-position switch allowed you to choose between carpet cleaning (both motors running) or bare floor cleaning (suction motor only) or both motors off. The other neat thing about the Excaliber was that the brush roll motor automatically turned off as soon as you removed the hose from its stored position (there was some kind of switch in the hose holster). When you returned the hose to the stored position, it allowed the power to the brush roll to resume.

If I remember correctly, the Excaliber also had a short air path when used for carpet cleaning - the dirt did not have to meander all the way through the hose when you used the vac for carpet or bare floor cleaning. There must have been some valve somewhere that redirected the suction into the hose when you removed the hose handle from its stored position. A really great design - too bad Electrolux could not get the electrical system to handle the two motor system!!!!