IONA FANTOM SALTON/APPLICA

[jasefantom]

Hi- I have always been a fan of IONA and Sunbeam mixers. When I learned that IONA made Fantom vacuums, I began a vacuum obsession. I want to know where I should look when it comes to finding a Fantom vac. A month ago, after school I went into a bunch of thrift stores yet I couldn;t find anything. My dream is to own a Fantom Canister-the lightning as well as an upright such as the crosswind, Fury, Wildcat, Thunder or Cyclone. I mist say that this website is most insightful and I just love reading about Fantom. I know Salton (who is part of Applica -they make Black and Decker products) purchased major Fantom assets before they went under in 2001. Can anyone tell me if the Westinghouse versions are any good? or better? Salton licensed the Westinghouse name just as they and Applica license the Black and Decker name from B&D

Anyways, if someone could suggest where I may have a better shot at finding a Fantom or two, please let me know! I've posted an ad online looking for a Fantom, so may be I'll be in luck. Please be patient with me as the vacuum thing is new to me- I'm a mixer person (WACEM). I would imagine the vacuums were built for life if you never have to change anything ofther than the HEPA filter. I really want to learn about Fantom Vacs!!

Thanks,
-Jason

 

[jasefantom]

That mixer is from IONA Fantom. Here is the first vac I'm looking for though- The lightning. I'm not familiar w/ the Fantom uprights which one is the "best"?

Thanks

 

[director12]

Hey Fantomvacuumfan, look at the mixers.

 

[fan-of-fans]

The Fantoms seem to me to be hard to find. Although I saw them at Kmart when they were new, they never seemed to be all that common in my area. I did see a Fury in a thrift store a few years ago, but other than that I never see any around now. I think most of them probably have worn out by now, and also the fact that there were no replacement parts made after 2001 or so if I recall correctly, which makes them rare these days.

The Thunder I believe was the original model and was 11 amps and later 12 amps. The Fury was a smaller, less expensive model to the Thunder and had lesser amps, but later was also 12. I think the Cyclone XT was an improved new model for the Thunder. I don't know much about the others or the Westinghouse versions. There were Sears Kenmore versions as well of the Thunder and Lightning at least called the Destiny series.

 

[jasefantom]

Thanks- Yes, I'm familiar with the "Destiny" branded for Sears. I live in Canada and I recall seeing these at Sears Canada. I guess you're right. However I did see a Wildcat, red for sale on kijiji Ottawa going for 50$. I'll keep my eyes open for one. I think that even if I find a good Fantom on ebay-the shipping will be insane. I'm used to shipping mixers which only cost about 10-20$ but because of the size and weight of these vacuums, it may be too much for a student on a budget. The second I buy my first Fantom, (the real one of course- NOT Euro-pro eeww) I'll be sure to post numerous photos.

Thanks for the insight. I'll just wait and eventually something will turn up. I believe these were manufactured here in Ontario, Canada however there was a South Carolina factory. I wonder how long they manufactured for Fantom. Another confusing thing that I can not understand is- If IONA began in the US, how the heck did it become a Canadian company? I think switson industries was the old Welland factory then Regina vacs were made there. After this, IONA was no longer General Signal, they started doing business in the mid 1980s as "IONA Appliances inc" then did business as "Fantom Technologies inc". I just don;t know how IONA in the US became Fantom in Welland. Gosh having meeting the CEO, Allan M from Fantom would be awesome. I'll try and contact him.

Thanks again, and I'll keep you posted when I get the first Fantom

-Jason

 

[director12]

Euro-Pros are horrendous. Lets hope Fantomvacuumfan doesn't get a Euro-Pro product.

 

[jasefantom]

Eruo-pro is an embarrassment to the IONA name from what I've been told. I won;t touch those EVER

 

[fantomvacuumfan]

I at one point had...

2 Euro-Pro Fantoms. Both actually worked really well, but the first one developed the electrical problem they commonly had, and died after only 7 months. The other one, I donated to Goodwill as the filtration sucked.

As for which upright was the best, it depends on what you consider the "the best". The Thunder seemed to clean the best, followed closely by the Fury. The Fury was the lightest, and easiest to maneuver around furniture. The Cyclone had the most features of all, and had the least stuff to break off, as well as the tool storage was very nice, as the tools were hidden in the top of the vacuum. The Crosswinds and Wildcat were not as impressive, and did tend to have problems.

I would say as far as durability, the Uprights would rank:

Thunder: 1

Fury: 1.a *almost as good but not quite

Cyclone: 2

Crosswinds, both probably 3rd although I only have used the Crosswind 200

Wildcat: 4th as the handles tend to snap off

Jason,if I am not mistaken, you messaged me a while ago on youtube. Am I thinking of the same person?

 

[director12]

I knew Fantoms from Euro-Pro, the filtration was horrendous. Buy a Miele if you want a sealed system, and 100% filtration. FantomLightning aka Zach has a Thunder and Fury, they need new belts and brushrolls, but he had no time for that.

 

[gmerkt]

In the past two days, I passed on two Furys that turned up at a local thrift. One was the regular version, the other was a special edition with the pink dust canister and headlight lens. I've got one very nice Fury; of these two that I saw lately, one had the wand latch, filter and filter cover missing. Upper cord hook (typically) was broken off. The other was missing the headlamp lens, the handle pedal/lever was broken (which could mean a bottom plate which is the frame in this case), and was generally quite marked up. I've got eight or nine Fantoms of various model (all Iona, all black) uprights, plus a couple of Cyclones for parts out in storage. One is a nice Kenmore Destiny branded version. Not long ago, I got two Furys in a batch of clunkers for re-hab but both had fatal flaws in them so they went to the dump. The good Fantoms that I've got just take up space but I'm reluctant to get rid them.

Keep your eyes open and you will find some used Fantoms around. Don't get desperate. It's my experience that the harder you look for something, the harder it becomes to find. When you become indifferent, you may stumble over them.

Oh, also this week I ran across a red (literally) Chinese Fantom (post-Iona, made by Shark/Euro Pro). I did actually put hands on it, but wasn't even tempted to buy it for any purpose. My limited experience working on Euro Pro causes me to have a great aversion to their products.

 

[eurekaprince]

It would indeed be fascinating to read the full history of that vacuum factory in Welland Ontario. Welland is not a very big city, and so I imagine there must be someone at City Hall who could refer us to a book about the history of that site. Would be fun to even get an address for the factory! Some pics would be great too!

Our vacuum expert Doug in Saskatchewan used to have an extensive collection of Canadian vacs, including those made in Welland. I would ask him to chime in here, but he unfortunately has been recovering from a tragic fire which resulted in the sad loss of a lot of his collection.

 

[director12]

What is the full history?