Got Another Heritage...

[human]

Further assessment...

Thanks. I ordered a two-pack from Kent Oyler earlier this afternoon.

I had to go back to campus and teach class this afternoon but when I got back home, I tore the machine down and ran the orange bag through the washing machine. It's now hanging in my tool shed next to the water heater. I'll check it later tonight and see if it's dry although it'll probably take until morning. Once it's dry, I'll reassemble everything and give it a test run. I cleaned the rest of the machine with Lysol wipes and made a further assessment of its condition:

•The orange bag was a little dusty and had some dirt in the bottom, indicating it may have been run briefly without a filter bag.
•The fill tube has a little pinhole at the very bottom but it's too small to have let some of the course debris through that had collected in the bottom of the bag, plus it's completely covered by the hard plastic of the Sani-Emptor. I'll probably replace the fill tube after I run out of Style 2 bags and update the topper to the H2 style.
•It has a white amodel fan so it's definitely been replaced. This is also evidenced by some white silicone residue along the seam between the fan cover and the motor case. Definitely not a factory job.
•The brush roll and belt are in great shape. I just had to remove some hair from next to the belt and at each end. No need to replace either at this time.
•The lower cord retainer on the back of the handle was missing one of its two hooks but I have a complete Heritage handle assembly in the barn, so I just swapped the handle back from it onto the H84 handle. Speaking of the handle, it and the hubcaps have special logos with Kirby k's facing each other with the number 84 in between. Despite the logos, the machine is a model 1HD, just like the other Heritage I have.

All in all, the machine is in great shape and really just needs some polishing at this point. Once I wiped it down, I could see very few battle scars. It's obviously seen some use but not abuse and has had some good TLC along the way. It's a nice addition to the collection, even if I do have too darned many vacuums.

I'll post some photos tomorrow once I have everything back together.

 

[human]

Cleaned but not polished...

Well, the bag is dry and the machine is all back together, awaiting a new headlight bulb and a good polishing but otherwise fully functional and ready for action.

I did run into a bit of an issue with the bag reassembly in that I couldn't figure out how to mount the original sani-emtor onto the bag. I eventually had to admit defeat and use a Heritage II mini-emtor and fill tube assembly I had on hand. Those are so much easier to install because they're more compact and smooth, thus they can slide into place from inside the bag. You just can't do that with the bulkier Sani-Emtor, which is a holdover from the dump bag design and not really necessary with the paper filter bags. I had planned to eventually change out at least the topper on the fill tube so I could use the same newer style bags my other Kirbys use but I had wanted to keep the original Sani-emtor. I had also wanted to use up my supply of Style 2 bags before making the conversion. Oh well, the conversion is not irreversible and I can choose to revisit it at any time.

One other thing I noticed while putting things back together is the foot switch and plug assembly appear to have been replaced as the switch is black instead of charcoal gray. That wouldn't have registered with me except I had to replace the one on my Legend II and had to go with a black one as the brick red ones appear to be unavailable.

 

[human]

Bulb is good but headlight is still dark...

So the headlight bulbs I ordered from Kent Oyler arrived a little while ago and I opened up the headlight carrier on the Heritage 84 to find that the bulb is good. The filament appeared intact so I tested it with an ohmmeter and confirmed it should work so I put it back in, screwed things back together, turned it on and nothing. So I took it back apart and tested it from the contacts on the headlight carrier. It tested good and just for fun I swapped one of the new bulbs in and tested it again. Still good. I again put the carrier back into place on the vacuum, turned it on and it was still dark. I'm a little nonplussed at this point. I guess I'll have to take the thing apart and look for loose wires. I may hit the female contacts into which the carrier plugs with some radio contact cleaner, just to see if that helps. It worked on the switch for the top on my convertible when the guy I bought it from said it probably needed replacing and good luck finding one. A good spritz and I haven't had a single problem with it in more than three years. As Dylan would say, "If you ain't got nothin', you got nothin' to lose".

 

[human]

Found another issue...

So as I was putting the headlight carrier back into place yet again after spraying contact cleaner on it and testing continuity all the way to the plug (it's good), I managed to drop one of the screws for the headlight carrier down inside the machine. Not wanting to leave it there, I took the rear cover off and discovered yet another problem.

The foot switch felt a little loose to me and I discovered why. The spot where the screw goes to hold it in place is broken to bits. This is so ironic because for some bizarre reason, I saved the bad switch from my Legend II, the casing of which is completely intact. Would that there were a way to disassemble the two and take parts from both to make one good switch. Unfortunately, they're held together with rivets so there's no good way to put them back together, even if I could get them apart.

Looking on eBay for a replacement, I see a variety of models that all look like what's in my machine but they all have different model numbers and none of them are the same as what's presently in my machine. I did, however confirm the switch that's in there is for a Heritage II because it's the same model number as the one I kept from my Legend II. The best deal I see is for a model 110573, which has a blue foot pedal for a Tradition and another with a dark brown foot pedal, presumably from a Classic Omega Both of these are the same model number. The question is whether either of these will fit the Heritage 84. Just looking at the pictures, it seems as if the foot switches were essentially the same from the Classic/Tradition era, right on through the Heritage/Legend era.

Ugh! It's always something...

 

[human]

Not compatible...

Well, I think I just answered my own question by trying to plug the Heritage 84's cord into my Classic III. The Heritage plug is thicker and asymmetrical so that it can connect in only one orientation. The Classic plug is thinner and symmetrical so the switch would not work unless I also replaced the cord. Darn!

 

[hoover300]

I've got a parts HII with a good switch. I can take it out and sell it if you want.

 

[kirbyclassiciii]

human

Edgar,

You guessed right: any cord set designed for models Heritage I to Legend II will not work with models 516 to Tradition.

In the Heritage I service manual, it says thus:

WARNING
Do not use the Kirby cord set as an extension cord. This may damage the cord set and make it unsafe to use as a power cord with the Kirby.

CAUTION
A plastic key has been included in the female end of the cord set. This is to prevent the cord from being used as an extension. Because of this, it is also no longer possible to test the continuity by connecting the cord between a power source and a desk lamp to observe operation of the lamp.

~Ben

 

[human]

@hoover300: I would be interested in that switch. Look for an email from me with the subject line "Heritage Foot Switch".

@ben: I tested continuity with an ohmmeter, one leg at a time. I stuck one probe through the little hole in one prong of the plug, then stuck the other one in one of the two terminals where the headlight assembly connects and then the other, then repeated the process on the other leg. As expected, one leg has continuity regardless of whether the switch is in the 'on' or the 'off' position and the other leg had continuity only when the switch was on so I'm kind of mystified as to why the light doesn't work.

 

[kirbyclassiciii]

human

Edgar,

Order a replacement light assembly, no. 108979, if all else fails.

~Ben

 

[human]

@ben: I have another Heritage so once I get the switch situation (switchuation?) straightened out, I'll try swapping the light assembly from it onto this one, just to eliminate it as a possibility and then see about getting one, if necessary.

 

[human]

All in one piece again...

Two months later and I've finally got the machine back together with a replacement switch and a new light assembly (but the original bulb that came with the machine) and it all works. One interesting thing is the seller just cut the wires to remove it from the donor machine and there were four wires (two black and two white) attached to the switch but my Heritage 84 only has three wires, two black and one white.

I still haven't reinstalled the original Sani-Emtor. I need to get a piece of ducting to slide the bag onto it. But that and a good polishing is all it really needs now. Of course, it's fully functional in its present state, with a Heritage II mini-emtor and fill tube assembly. For now, I'm just glad it's back to actually being a vacuum cleaner and not just a pile of parts.