Finally got a direct drive!

[eurekaprince]

Hey Bobby! We'll gather in Orlando one day - I am sure! Portland is kind of off the beaten path, so Orlando might be able to win the convention one year! Besides, I am sure most of us at Vacuumland would love to visit WDW at the same time!

Sorry you got a cheaper brush roll...maybe you would consider investing in a new replacement with 4 rows! Let's see if they are out there....

Oooooooo! Eureka! I found it! But YIKES! It's $135!

Here ya go, buddy:



http://www.sweeper-city.com/pabebr.html

 

[Sanifan]

Purple one...

Wow, I had no idea the purple one was a different design. Any idea why the changed it? I'm always very interested in those reasons. Cost cutting or an actual attempt at improvement? Or some contractual reasons?

I also have a purple one that's bagless. I though it was okay, but some pieces are broken on the clear cyclonic bin are broken and super glue and epoxy just won't hold. Perhaps it's the older model, even though it has a bagless design?

Boy, you are very serious about getting the vac in shape. I wish you great success!

 

[eurekaprince]

Khoi - I think that Panasonic improved on the purple version of the Direct Drive (though the brushroll is cheaper). First, they added a nice secure topside storage bin for the mini turbo nozzle, which the purple one did not have. Second, they added new vents in the bag chamber to improve airflow even as the bag filled. Third, the bag door on the old purple one came off completely, whereas the new one is a swing door that is more convenient to open and close.

I think they also added a better hose on the new one which may stretch to a longer length and is designed to prevent tip-over of the main unit when you pull on the hose to move the vacuum as you use the tools and hose.

In any case, the Kenmore versions (both the old purple one, and the newer blue one) consistently received high ratings from Consumer Reports (along with the long-running Hoover Self-Propelled WundTunnel) for great carpet cleaning, bare floor cleaning, airflow for tool use and ease of use in general. They are all solid performers and great carpet cleaners that are very easy to use.

 

[vacuumfreeeke]

Finally back together! The hardest part is always putting them back together and this one was no exception. The small stiff hose that connects the bottom to the top on the side was pushing the body of the cleaner sideways and that panel just would not go back on! I figured out that was the problem after an hour of struggling and held the cleaner straight with one hand and forced the panel back on with the other... had to remove the headlight bulb as not to break it.

I don't like the positon of the headlight.... shines on the nozzle instead of the floor.... This machine sounds different than anything I've ever used before and I just realized it's because of the extra vent holes in the back.

Another feature of this one over the purple predecessor is that the dirt sensor is multi stage.... the old one just had a red and a green light and that was it. But you could change the sensitivity on that one and cannot on this one. I'm surprised they kept the same hand grip with all the other things they changed... I've never been crazy about that grip. This one does seem to have more suction than the older one. I vacuumed the multi colored stripped rug that I used to do my youtube videos on and this vacuum actually changed the color of it (had powder on it) in one pass and left vacuum lines in it (not many machines are powerful enough to do that!). I do appreciate the hinged bag door, but would gladly trade it for the extra 2 rows of bristles and better aesthetics of the purple one. Another feature they removed that the purple one had was a sensor down where the hose plugs into the machine.... it would stop the brushroll when the hose was removed even if the handle wasn't upright... this one doesn't have that, but I imagine most people would use the tools with it in the upright position anyway.

Wish they had made this machine with a quick draw wand! Another thing I wish it had is lights to tell what mode the vacuum is in... It's hard to know if its in regular, gentle sweep, bare floor, or high., medium, or low suction modes because there is nothing to indicate any of that. With all the other lights, they could have put those useful indicators somewhere on the machine.... it doesn't have slide switches so you can't tell just my looking at the buttons. Even on my Hoover Z, when you change a setting, the button you press flashes until the machine responds and then remains lit...

Oh well, it's a fun machine nonetheless. Brian you really know your Panimores (or Kenisonics?)!

 

[eurekaprince]

Hehe! I guess I do know a bit about these - even though I have never owned one! I guess whenever Consumer Reports gives top ratings to a certain vac, I like to see what all the fuss is all about. And 9 times out of 10, there is some Kenmore or Panasonic that really gets top marks. And so you can imagine what happens to Eurekaprince Brian whenever he is in the vicinity of a Sears store!!!

I guess I have really been intrigued by the beltless brushroll developed by Panasonic. It's one of those innovations that I really think is absolute genius - hide the motor INSIDE the brushroll - amazing! And to think that it actually results in excellent cleaning of carpets, makes it even more revolutionary to me.

When you think about it, it's really too bad that Japan's Matsushita/Panasonic company did not buy Hoover, instead of TTI. Panasonic had already bought the rights to the old Dial-A-Matic design, and after 30 years of tweaks and improvements, your Kenmore Direct Drive is basically what the Hoover Dial-A-Matic could have become. It would have been great to see the Hoover name on some of these really great performing uprights with really innovative features like a beltless brushroll. Can you imagine how great these Panasonic uprights would be with a WindTunnel brushroll cavity?

What a lost opportunity for the Hoover name......:-(

 

[Sanifan]

Okay. You will kill me...

...but I was in the thrift store today and I found the exact same vacuum we are talking about for $4. $4!!! It was in very good cosmetic. Quite a bit nicer than the one I gave to my brother, but not as nice as the minty one I found, of course.

When I turned it on all the buttons worked but the brush roll was dead. I'm no dummy, though (I think), so I pressed the little reset button on the brushroll and, walla!, we have brushroll! It was missing the turbo brush, but all the other attachments were there.

The only glitch was that the dirt sensor would not budge from red. Whether there was some obstruction blocking the light, or it was just dirt, or the sensor was broken I don't know. I'm sure it would have been easy to find out, but I had to steel myself and walk away. I have no more room for vacuums, what with everyone wondering why I have so many anyway. Add to that the fact that I never get around to using the one I already have. I had to convince myself I didn't need it. Still, it was a great deal for someone to check out and fix up.

One thing I worry about though is the longevity of those control buttons. They are the kind of buttons that are arranged in a line on a small printed circuit panel, which are then covered by a thin plastic membrane with raised bumps where the buttons are. Like the ones you sometimes see on microwave ovens. The one I gave to my brother was worn through the membrane on the "stop" button so that you cannot see the lettering, just the red color. The vac I saw today showed signs that the membrane was about to crack on one of the buttons and was soft on another. The buttons still work, but will be impossible to tell which button is which once the words crack off and fall away. That style of button is inexpensive to produce, but is not durable.

I did check the brushroll on the $4 vac. It had only 2 strips, as you described.

 

[vacuumfreeeke]

Oh man I should have had you buy it just to get me the upholstery tool LOL Mine didn't come with it and I want the original and I think I would use the hose because it is long and the suction is variable.

That's a good deal though! Wow, 4 dollars!!!

I do know what you mean with the membrane switches. I've seen a few Kenmnores with similar switches (but they were older Progessive uprights) and they were worn clean through! So annoying. If that ever happens to mine it will just drive me bonkers... I wonder if I could cover them with clear nail polsih or something.... The off switch is just starting to show a little spot where the button under the membrane is, but its just the color, not the actual surface of the membrane. I will have to baby it!

You could go back and get that vacuum and sell it for a profit on Craig's List if you were so inclined... I don't like doing that because I think people deserve to find good deals, but I have a neighbor who makes his entire living buying stuff cheap at thrift shops and reselling it on C/L... He got some Kenmore Progressive canisters for 15 bucks and sold them for 180.... I don't know who the fool was that paid that much, but I feel sorry for them! I think it's kinda mean! LOL

 

[sebo_fan]

vacuumfreeke - did you see the post I left about the Windsor upright on Ebay.com? (http://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?14438)

It's a rare Winsor Sensor, only has two lights for the brush roll and bag fill - but it does state on the fascia that it has automatic height adjustment.

 

[vacuumlad1650]

My friend has one of these, a Hoover Windtunnel, and a Hoover Elite. The Kenmore is great, but i hate those Dirt Sensors

 

[kirbysthebest]

I love the dirt sensors

Though I am easily amused.  


 


I recently bought a Hoover Windtunnel Anniversary Edition, It's my first ever Hoover.  I really like it, and the dirt sensor is fun to watch, I keep finding myself throwing things down so the sensor will turn red.  Then again like I said, I'm easily amused. 


 

 

[floor-a-matic]

I bought the 1st generation Direct Drive & a Kenmore Cyclonic (Eureka Whirlwind) back in 1999; both great vacs but I wish I still had them