I’ve joined the Elite crowd!

[justjunque]

I wish.
But, I’ve acquired my first official Hoover Elite.
I’m posting this in Contemporary, because it’s not from the’90s. But, if I’m reading the serial number correctly, it’s also more than twenty years old. So, I wasn’t sure where to post it.
I first saw this at the thrift store on senior discount day, when I could have gotten 30% off. But, I was trying hard to control my impulse buying, so I walked away. And…I’ve been having FOMO about it ever since. So, today, I went back and paid the full $20 for it. It’s in quite nice condition, has all of its on-board tools, and the motor sounds good. Plus, I can use HEPA bags in it. I always like that. The pictures are fresh from the store, with dust, spider webs, and all. Please excuse.
I stumbled upon an old thread, where someone had gotten a nearly identical machine from eBay, and it was NIB. Someone in the comments said they believed it was one of the last incarnations of the Elite line. So, I thought it would be nice to have one. Plus, the closest thing I had to an Elite was my Encore Soft & Light.
I hope you enjoy the pictures, and please share any thoughts you might have!

Barry

 

[wstonehockertv]

From May 2002.

 

[panasonicvac]

Back in 2002, I was staying at a hotel in Minneapolis and the maids had one of those to clean our room. I even got a chance to use it. I'm pretty sure this was one of the last Elites ever sold at least for residential models because the commercial ones ended in 2012.

 

[huskyvacs]

May 2002. It's 22 soon to be 23 years old so would be vintage. That's a nice find! It does certainly look like the last of something, it's got that cheap "slap a name on it and sell it" kind of deal. It's worth the $20, looks like it's all complete and in really good shape too. A lot of vacuums I found out just got put away when stores stopped selling bags for them so they usually don't ever have anything wrong. Love the color too, I always liked this color on Hoovers. It looks like this style was used on the Elite II or Supreme (hard bag) from the mid 1990s, so must have been using up leftover parts.

 

[justjunque]

I don't know if there's a way to move this thread to Vintage.
Like I said, Vintage seemed like it was 1990s and older. Where this was '02, it was newer than 1990s, but still more than twenty years old. I took a shot. I guess I should have gone the other direction.
This one seems to have essentially the same hood design as my Encore Supreme. So, like with that one, I'm probably not going to feel comfortable trying to pry things apart to get to the brushroll and belt.
I believe it currently works. But, it would be nice if I could take it apart to give it a good cleaning.
At least I don't have to worry about washing an outer bag on this one. And, it seems surprisingly clean inside the bag compartment. There was some fine dust on the inside of the door/cover, pretty much in line with the fill tube. I'm hoping that HEPA bags will remedy that.

 

[panasonicvac]

Honestly, it feels funny putting these into the vintage section. I mean I can't believe time flies by so quickly on this site where there were machines like a Hoover Dimension 1000 that were posted on the contemporary forum. It's one of those things where I'm still trying to get used to.

Overall, I think the Elites weren't all bad machines. I mean they were good but not great in my opinion even though my all time favorite Hoover happens to be an Elite. But they are something that I'd definitely take over a Kirby or even an Oreck.

 

[justjunque]

I've seen a couple of videos where people have recommended the CWP brushroll for these machines.
I don't think this one needs a replacement brushroll just yet, but my Soft & Light could use one; provided I can remove the hood without breaking it.
First of all, am I correct in assuming that it would use the same brushroll as this Elite?
And, secondly, where does one purchase said brushroll? And, do you know the part number for the correct one, as well as the belt?
Please and thank you.

 

[ihavetotryagain]

Jealous

Absolutely jealous of you, that machine looks beautiful.

 

[justjunque]

Ihavetotryagain

Thank you.
I think it will clean up nicely. Ive always liked the looks of these Hoovers, but I never owned one until the Encore Supreme Soft & Light. Now, this Elite came into my life, pretty soon afterwards.
I don't especially care for the way you have to take them apart to access the belt. I feel like there's a lot of opportunity for breakage.
Hopefully, I can get them both cleaned up and working properly before too long, and without any carnage.