kirbylux77
Well-known member
Nathaniel, this is the Kenmore I was suggesting you buy....
Like I was talking about, this is one of many models from the 90's with the bag change light near the cord-rewind pedal at the back. It would have the same Ametek double-stage motor as the Tri-Star, Miracle Mate & Filter Queen canisters, so with a new set of carbon brushes you would get a VERY long life out of the motor.
I know you have your heart set on a Tri-Star, but I tell ya you would be much better off with a Kenmore. It's not that the Tri-Star & Miracle Mate have a smaller bag. What I meant by 'useable bag capacity' isn't how much the bag is capable of holding, but rather how much the bag can hold before power drastically drops off to the point where you need to change the bag to maintain decent cleaning power.
The Tri-Star, Vortech Force, Miracle Mate, & Patriot/Airstorm have 2 fatal design flaws- first being that they use a vertical bag rather than one that lays on its side, such as what Kenmore/Eureka/Hoover use. What winds up happening is when the bag is about 1/3 full, it blocks off airflow to the motor, since the motor is directly behind the lower half of the bag. Second is that, in my experience, fine dust tends to stick the sides of the paper bag & clog it prematurely. Others may not find this as problematic, though, if they are picking up lots of carpet fibers or pet hair. Patriot attempt to overcome the problem of the vertical bag by positioning the bag at an angle instead of straight up-down, & Miracle Mate uses a patented airflow guide in addition to angling the bag to encourage dirt to settle at the front of the bag, but these measures don't compensate enough to overcome these basic design flaws.
One other thing the Kenmore also has going for it, is the micro-filter bags. They really don't let a lot of dust back into the air, & the HEPA bags are perfect for my allergies- I love those bags! The Tri-Stars, however, do throw a lot of dust back into the air, & you would not be pleased if you are an allergy sufferer or don't like lots of dust in the air after vacuuming.
Nathaniel, I can honestly say from personal experience from owning several Kenmores, a Tri-Star & Miracle Mate, that you would not be pleased with a Tri-Star over time, especially if you were using it against the Kenmore for a long period of time & could see the difference in cleaning performance. As a matter of fact, I will say that even the Hoover Windtunnel Anniversary Edition canister would be a better choice than the Tri-Star- and thats saying a lot, since anyone that knows me knows I don't like Chinese-made junk! And, it also doesn't hurt that it comes with a standard 3 year warranty. I know it is a little out of your original price range of $250, since it retails for $350, but well worth considering....
OK, I will get off my Kenmore kick now!
Rob
Like I was talking about, this is one of many models from the 90's with the bag change light near the cord-rewind pedal at the back. It would have the same Ametek double-stage motor as the Tri-Star, Miracle Mate & Filter Queen canisters, so with a new set of carbon brushes you would get a VERY long life out of the motor.
I know you have your heart set on a Tri-Star, but I tell ya you would be much better off with a Kenmore. It's not that the Tri-Star & Miracle Mate have a smaller bag. What I meant by 'useable bag capacity' isn't how much the bag is capable of holding, but rather how much the bag can hold before power drastically drops off to the point where you need to change the bag to maintain decent cleaning power.
The Tri-Star, Vortech Force, Miracle Mate, & Patriot/Airstorm have 2 fatal design flaws- first being that they use a vertical bag rather than one that lays on its side, such as what Kenmore/Eureka/Hoover use. What winds up happening is when the bag is about 1/3 full, it blocks off airflow to the motor, since the motor is directly behind the lower half of the bag. Second is that, in my experience, fine dust tends to stick the sides of the paper bag & clog it prematurely. Others may not find this as problematic, though, if they are picking up lots of carpet fibers or pet hair. Patriot attempt to overcome the problem of the vertical bag by positioning the bag at an angle instead of straight up-down, & Miracle Mate uses a patented airflow guide in addition to angling the bag to encourage dirt to settle at the front of the bag, but these measures don't compensate enough to overcome these basic design flaws.
One other thing the Kenmore also has going for it, is the micro-filter bags. They really don't let a lot of dust back into the air, & the HEPA bags are perfect for my allergies- I love those bags! The Tri-Stars, however, do throw a lot of dust back into the air, & you would not be pleased if you are an allergy sufferer or don't like lots of dust in the air after vacuuming.
Nathaniel, I can honestly say from personal experience from owning several Kenmores, a Tri-Star & Miracle Mate, that you would not be pleased with a Tri-Star over time, especially if you were using it against the Kenmore for a long period of time & could see the difference in cleaning performance. As a matter of fact, I will say that even the Hoover Windtunnel Anniversary Edition canister would be a better choice than the Tri-Star- and thats saying a lot, since anyone that knows me knows I don't like Chinese-made junk! And, it also doesn't hurt that it comes with a standard 3 year warranty. I know it is a little out of your original price range of $250, since it retails for $350, but well worth considering....
OK, I will get off my Kenmore kick now!
Rob
