Found a $5 Filter Queen

[human]

Yeah, I do enjoy these sort of repair jobs. By the time I do all that work, I feel like I've put enough of myself into it that it's really become mine.

I just checked tracking on my various parts orders and it looks like the most critical pieces will arrive Tuesday. The rest of it should be here by the end of the week.

My 'punch list' of remaining tasks looks something like this:

Vacuum
-Install new power cord
-Replace all filters
-Reassemble

Power Nozzle
-Replace elbow cover
-Replace belt
-Replace headlight bulb
-Reassemble

When I put the motor assembly back together, I'm thinking of adding a second nut to each of the long bolts that hold everything together to make them stationary. This will make it much easier to take that assembly apart--and more importantly put back together--in the future.

 

[suckolux]

Isn't it satisfying to do it and have it turn out so nice? I feel they are part of the family after that, save one's life! Weird? maybe. I can't sell one if I spent a lot of time with it and hard work. Give to a friend, for an easy life? maybe. I know it will be great when you are done Edgar. I had one ages ago, nice machine, well made!

 

[jodan3399]

Great find!

I wouldn't have been able to pass it up either.

 

[dysonman1]

One HUGE tip: NEVER EVER use any filter cone OTHER than a Genuine Filter Queen filter cone in your machine. Filter Queen genuine cones are made of two layers of cellulose. Generic cones from DVC, Envirocare, etc. are NOT the same and will leak dust and cause trouble.

Your filter BAT at the top by the exhaust holes is cotton. This was discontinued almost 20 years ago. The mesh filter that's sold now will NOT muffle the motor sound nearly as well. If you replace the cotton batting (which I DON'T recommend), it will make the cleaner MUCH louder when running.

 

[human]

I wasn't expecting any deliveries until tomorrow, but the postman brought a good cache of FQ parts and supplies today--power cord, filter cones and discs, belt and elbow cover for the power nozzle--but a couple of items (light bulb for the power nozzle and replacement motor batting) are still in transit, so I can't do a final reassembly until they arrive. The elbow cover is black and the plastics (with the exception of the chromed top cover) on my power nozzle are graphite/charcoal gray but I don't care; it doesn't look bad and just a tiny bit of black plastic is even visible. The important thing is it's a perfect fit.

The filter cones and discs are Envirocare, so I'll keep a close eye on them and make a point of replacing them a bit more frequently than I might otherwise and look for genuine FQ filters when I run out. I'm not sure what the motor batting was made of, but it didn't feel like cotton and it was so badly deteriorated that it crumbled to dust when I touched it, so there's not much choice but to go with fiber mesh on that one.

It will be what it will be...

 

[kirbyvertibles]

Amen Tom NEVER EVER use the awful generic cones. I've never seen a generic cone I couldn't SEE through.



You can also date that model on the model tag at the exhaust. You might need a flash light to see it stamped into that little metal ring. Also if the power nozzle motor is original it too will be dated. But yes 1992 is the date

 

[kirbyvertibles]

My parents bought one in 97. I still have it and the paperwork. It blows my mind that it was an even $2,000 back then. My Mom's car at the time didn't even cost that. (she had a sharp looking used 1980 Chevy Malibu Classic)

 

[human]

It's a model 95X, serial no. 754262. If the model number is the date code, then it's a 1995 model and the power nozzle is a few years older. If the date's somehow encoded into the serial number, then I'm not exactly sure how to decode it.

The power nozzle has a sticker for a local vacuum dealer on it, so I suppose it's possible the dealer could have cobbled some pieces and parts together to come up with a complete machine. The crevice tool and the pigtail cord that runs between the hose and the wand are both brown, so they're obviously not original to the machine. As you can see from the photos in earlier posts, everything else on the machine, which has a black/graphite color scheme.

 

[human]

Reassembly almost complete

The motor batting arrived in the mail yesterday, which allowed me to finish reassembling the FQ canister. I had a problem with the lock grommet for the cord. It broke apart and the smaller half went flying, never to be seen again, so I swung by Home Depot on my way to my girlfriend's for supper and got a package of regular rubber grommets (package of 8 in 4 different sizes for $3.29). It was late when I got back home, but I decided to at least test fit the grommets to see which one would best fit the hole in the motor housing. The one that fit the best had a hole too large to hold the cord snugly, so I took the two that were the next size down and put one on either side of the hole to help immobilize the cord. It's not a perfect solution but I'm not one to jerk cords so it should be okay until I can come up with something better.

Given the lateness of the hour, I had only intended to test fit the grommets, but one thing led to another and by 12:45 a.m., I had the reassembled entire canister. I was too tired to plug it in and test it, so I'll do that when I get home this afternoon. USPS tracking shows the headlight bulb should arrive in today's mail so I'll be able to get the power nozzle finished and hopefully put a "done" stamp on this whole project well before suppertime.

The machine was surprisingly easy to tear down without any sort of diagram or instructions. I was very surprised the wiring was just held together with simple plastic wire nuts and not crimp connectors, which are much more common in modern appliances. That's proof this machine was largely hand assembled at the factory. In reassembling the unit, I discovered a date stamp on the metal serial number ring that I had missed earlier. It reads '9 91' so the canister was manufactured a full six months before the power nozzle, which is stamped '3 92'. It seems kind of odd the manufacturer would let a $2,000 canister sit around half a year waiting on a power nozzle. I think it's more likely the original power nozzle, or at least the sole plate, was replaced at some point.

 

[human]

FQ Majestic Tear-Down Instructions

After tearing down my Filter Queen to replace the cord and the motor batting, I decided it might be helpful for others to offer a step-by-step procedure for tearing down the motor unit to gain access to the wiring, motor components or batting. Going in blind wasn't all that bad, but I could have saved some effort if I had known what I know now. The only tool necessary is a Phillips screwdriver and maybe a pair of pliers.

1. Open the canister's latches and lift out the motor assembly.
2. remove the screw at the pointed end of the cone-shaped basket, take off the basket and discard disposable filters.
4. Set the motor assembly on a flat surface, remove the exhaust port cover, and remove the three screws surrounding the exhaust port. If the unit has an older style pedal type power switch, carefully pull the rubber cover off of it in order for the pedal to fit through the opening on the top motor cover.
5. Carefully lift the motor cover off. You will still need to disconnect several wires before you can completely separate the outer top cover from the motor. Be sure to label the wires before you undo the wire nuts holding them together so you'll know what connects where when you go to reassemble it.
6. To access the motor in order to replace the brushes, unscrew the three bolts that hold the two halves of the motor cover together.

To reassemble, just reverse the steps above, replacing the paper filters as you go. If you replace the motor batting, you will need to save and reuse the cardboard ring that was underneath the old batting. The bolts holding the two halves of the motor cover together go with the nuts at the bottom. One of the more challenging parts of reassembly is lining up the screw holes on the top of the motor cover with those on the metal basket and the serial number ring that go in the exhaust port. They are unevenly spaced so they only line up one way.

 

[human]

Project complete.

The mail came a few minutes ago and my headlight bulb was in there so I installed it, finished buttoning things up and took the machine for a little post-repair test drive. Performance is definitely head and shoulders above what I experienced when I first brought it home a week ago but it's not nearly as well mannered as my Electrolux canisters. But I'm not saying I regret the purchase. Even with the cost of replacement parts, I'm still into it for a steal. I guess time will tell how much--or if--I fall in love with it.

Because of its marked similarity to my childhood Lewyt model 130, working on this machine unlocked an early memory. One of the things I really loved about that pink and gray vacuum cleaner was that it was the first machine I figured out how to dismantle, albeit not to the extent I did this FQ, and put back together when I was about four or five years old. I didn't know the phrase 'power user' back then but that's how it made me feel.

 

[packardmanken]

floor tool

Edgar! Don't forget to check out the original floor tool. It is amazing! You have to have the old style wand for it to work or the curved extension for the straight wand you already have. It works very well and you don't have to use the powerhead all the time. Several on ebay right now.


http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...w=filter+queen+vacuum+floor+tool&_sacat=42146

 

[kirbyvertibles]

The model number and serial number are not the date codes. On the model tag stamped in the metal of the tag there should be 2 numbers (example 93) etched or stamped into the metal kind of like someone scratched it into it with a pin.
So use a flash light to see it.

 

[human]

Yes, I found the date code on the vacuum when I was shining a strong flashlight onto the serial number plate to align it and the exhaust basket upon which it rests with the holes on top of the plastic motor housing. The date stamp reads '9 91'. The numerals are stamped faintly into the plate, not even deep enough to break through the black paint covering that part of the plate.

 

[packardmanken]

strain relief grommet

Edgar! Congrats on the progress on the Filter Queen! I too walked out with a un-needed Filter Queen, A Princess, today for 15.00$ ! That makes four!!
I needed the strain relief grommet for one of mine and bought four. I can share one if you still need it.
Here is the link to Bills listing. He is a great resource as he has been selling and repairing for many years.
Take a look at his stuff if you need anything else.



http://www.ebay.com/itm/222095369045?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT