Hoover 700 help needed!

[packardmanken]

I recently bought a one family owned Hoover model 700. Great buy, great condition, original bag in excellent shape, etc, etc. My problem is it is in the midwest at a friends house and I am in Atlanta! We are trying to choose the best method of shipping, and so far its so expensive it will have to continue to live in the midwest if we cannot figure out how to break the cleaner down to ship it affordably. As I am not there to look at the cleaner, I cannot guide them on how to disassemble the handle so it can be shipped. Can anyone offer guidance with this that has done it before or suggest an affordable way to ship it safely other than the obvious?
Thanks for any help!

 

[coffeecanman]

Congrats on the 700! The bag spreader is a fortunate find, those are scarce. The bag isn't original to a 700, it should look like the one on the front of the manual linked below (and it's also my profile picture). I've never seen that bag before, I see that it says HOOVER Vac by RS Co. I'm thinking its a well done early aftermarket replacement bag, but maybe someone else knows better than I. Regardless, it looks good and appropriate on the machine.

The handle is one piece unfortunately, however you can separate it from the base by loosening the wing nut where the handle connects to the handle bail and pull it out. There's a plug in the end of the handle tube that connects power to the base so don't worry about ripping out wires, it will just unplug. Then the base can be packed in a smaller square box and the handle in a tall skinny box. Avoid using a shipping tube, I had the handle to my 450 almost lost because the end cap popped off and the handle slid out. An empty tube was delivered to me, luckily fedex was able to locate it and I picked it up. Good luck!

http://vacuumarchives.org/archives/files/Hoover/Hoover_700_Manual.pdf

 

[packardmanken]

Shipping info/Thank you!!

Coffeecanman!! Thank you so much! I thought it must be something simple. My dear friend offered to to cut the cord and take off the handle, thankfully she asked me first before doing so! This sounds very manageable and I think she can accomplish it. I have seen this bag before, but not sure on which model. But like you said, its "appropriate" for the time period and is intact. What belts should i use? It has been in service most of its life according to the owner. Should I service the motor before using? I may need brushes also, any advice?
Thanks again for helping me out. I just saved $300 that the USPS wanted to ship it (wonder why they are not doing so well???)

 

[coffeecanman]

I'm glad she didn't cut the cord! Hoover originally shipped these in 2 boxes as described. The bag certainly is similar to a Hoover bag, like on my 450 below, but the R. S. Co leads me to believe it was not made by Hoover, as these bags said "The Hoover - Reg. U.S. Pat. Off."

As for service, I would take the cap off and blow any dust out and inspect the motor. If it looks ok, fire it up and see if it sounds good. It the bearing sounds screechy or the brushes are arcing you may need to service it. The brush roll bearing will probably require cleaning and greasing as well. A Eureka RD belt should work.

 

[hooverboy81]

If you have a vacuum shop nearby, ask for a Hoover 44783ag belt. They're also available online!

 

[packardmanken]

Hoover

Thank you for everything!! Im glad she did not cut it either. Those are two beautiful vacuums you have there!!

 

[vintagefox]

Service and Cleaning Information

Nice to meet another new Model 700 owner! They're tough little machines. I do agree with everything CoffeeCanMan said.
However, mind you this machine is about 90 years old...Heaven knows when it was last serviced. This is a ball bearing motor so oil isn't recommended.

One thing you can do to clean out the old grease is by placing in a few drops of Zoom Spout oil on the top bearing. Run it for a minute or so and wipe up whatever gunk falls out of it. I should mention you should probably disassemble the machine to get the rest of the gunk out underneath the bearing. Same steps apply for the bottom bearing but space might be a tad limited if you aren't able to pull the armature completely out.

Once all that's done, you can take a syringe with synthetic wheel bearing grease and squeeze it in within the visible crack. Its best to keep do so until you see grease coming out from the bottom end. As for the bottom bearing, you can do this step from the outside (where the shaft protrudes). Just remember how everything comes out first. [fan pulley, fan, washer, and tube sleeve.]

Sounds like a lot of work but its peace of mind knowing you have some new grease in the bearing as opposed to 90 something year old or so grease. But like CCM said, if it sounds smooth, then I suppose you can skip this step.

For the brush roll its much simpler. Just twist off the end caps. [You may have to use a crescent wrench to get the other cap off]
Once you've done that, there's a washer, then a fiber washer, the bearing itself and behind that a tension washer [looks like a wobbly washer]. A degreaser or Simple green will get the old grease out. Once that's done, just use the same synthetic wheel bearing grease and pack it in until it starts oozing out the other end. You can do this by hand but its much faster with a syringe.

For the Motor brushes you can try to find some NOS ones online. However its just a plain motor brush, just find some around the same size. As in spring length and shape. Or you can take some Kirby Heritage II brushes and sand them down to size. Just be sure its able to side in and out freely in the brush holder. I should mention that the springs that these brushes come with are TOO long for the brush end cap to twist back on. So one trick I used was to twist off the old springs from the old brushes and once I took the springs off the Kirby brushes I twisted the old Hoover springs onto the new brushes. Some fine tuning might be required [especially where the brush spring sits against the brush, since the kirby springs that were on these were a tad wide in diameter. A little chiseling, like taking a knife to a stick, creating a spear should do the trick.

But again like CCM said if they aren't arcing or damaged there's no reason to replace them.

For the belt, a Eureka RD belt will work [might take some effort to get on but it will work] I prefer a stretched Hoover Convertible belt(meaning not new,as the new belts are way too tight and difficult to install), it slips on much easier since its more elastic, yet still snug compared to new Eureka belt.

Lastly if you want to shine it up a little, some Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish, a terry cloth, and a microfiber cloth will do the trick. Just follow the instructions on the container. [These polish supplies can usually be found at your local auto store]
If you're going for that mirror shine, it might take about 4 or so applications.


My apology for quite a long read, I just got done fully servicing my Hoover Model 700. But I hope any of this information is of use to you. The guys on here are more than welcome to correct me.

Happy Hoovering!

-Alex

 

[packardmanken]

Hoover 700

Alex! Thank you for taking the time explain all of that. What a wealth of information. As soon as it is shipped from Minneapolis, I will dig in!! Pics to come.
ken

 

[vintagevaclover]

Hi Ken!!

I'm sorry I haven't called you in forever but I've lost your number!!

 

[vintagefox]

Hoover 700

No problem Ken! If you ever need help, I'm sure anyone of us here is glad to be of assistance.
Looking forward to your project!

-Alex

 

[packardmanken]

Austin: Check your email and lets catch up.

 

[vintagevaclover]

I actually have a new email now,

[email protected]

 

[packardmanken]

Austin: your email does not work

 

[packardmanken]

Hoover model 700 arrived!

Coffeecanman and Alex: The 700 arrived and I just got it unpacked. Very disappointed. Was told this was a working machine when I bought it. Guess Im not the first person this has happened to?!! The motor tries to turn, but fan will not spin. Its either locked up, stuck, or something more serious. I am going to tear into it in the next few days. Another question for Coffeecanman, Your models have black and chrome trimming. Mine is completely paint and trim free. Wonder what the difference is? Its all metal. Also does anyone know where to get the black bumper replacement? Any suggestion as to how to proceed here would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again to everyone for your input!!

 

[vintagefox]

Regarding your 700

The Model 700 is just plain jane! They originally come from the factory in a rather dull looking aluminum finish, most of us just polish them up to make them look a little nicer!
There was an add on for it called the "Dirt Searcher" basically replacing the top cap with a cap/light installed. Otherwise, as you see it, is how it came from the factory! I'll attach a video below. It is a 750 but basically the same machine. The 750 was just a 700 with the dirt searcher light attachment as standard.

As for the black bumper replacement, you can just have your local Vacuum Shop install one for you. Its nothing but a black strip of rubber riveted to the machine.

For the motor, did you run it without the belt on? The brushroll could be locked up (old grease or spun in bearings) and prevent the motor from turning.

One common mistake people do when they service these machines is that they forget to replace the sleeve spacer (metal hollow tube in between the bottom motor plate and the fan)
Doing this, basically locks the fan against the motor housing and prevents it from spinning.

If that's not the case just open up the top cover and (with the machine unplugged of course!!) see if you can spin the commutator by hand, if it doesn't budge then there lies your problem.

To double check, just remove the fan completely and try spinning the bottom shaft by hand, it doesn't move then its possibly a shot bearing or a bearing with old hardened grease within it.
BUT if it does spin free by hand and there isn't any up, down, side to side play in the shaft then it could possibly be that missing sleeve spacer I mentioned earlier.

Some pictures or a video would be great help in assisting you as well. Take a few shots as you tear it down if you can.

http://https//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qd33P0L8VHw

 

[coffeecanman]

What he said! ^

The ones I posted above are Model 450s and made many years after your 700. These are common enough that you may be able to find a parts machine for very little money if needed. The original bumpers were molded but you can just use a strip of black rubber and it would look fine. You'll want to use split or bifurcated rivets to attach it. These are pretty easy to install using either a rivet spreading tool (fortunately I have one from installing transmission band linings on my '26 Model T) or you can just use a large flat head screwdriver to spread the rivet apart once it's inserted and then use pliers to flatten it. I'm going to be installing a bumper this week, I can take a few photos of the process.

 

[packardmanken]

Hoover 700 part needed

Guys! Thanks for all the great advice so far!. Got it unpacked, and unfortunately it is missing the belt cover underneath!!! Anyone have an extra for sale that they would part with?

 

[vintagefox]

Just glad to help! I don't have any sadly. Might have to do some eBay searching there, I'm sure someone here has a parts machine.
It doesn't have to be a 700 cover, one from a 725, or a 750 will also fit in its place.

-Alex

 

[coffeecanman]

Ken, I have one. Send me a private message.