repairman
Well-known member
Here are the three vacuums I restored this past month. The Omega was probably the toughest but most rewarding.
Blue Kirby D80: I had always admired the look of a red or blue Kirby done in aftermarket trim. I figured I would have to hunt down the pieces and outfit an existing machine or find one with all the blue parts intact. Mike Balda was kind enough to find this machine for me so I could restore it. The only thing missing was the belt lifter decal since this one had a spray painted Kirby decal. Once I found it on eBay, that completed the restoration and I'm happy with how it came out. I also obtained the blue handle grip from Bob at Mr. Fix-It since this originally had a brown one.
Kirby Classic Omega: A customer brought this in to the vac shop that I work for complaining that it wouldn't turn on. Upon removing the rug nozzle, I saw that the safety switch was cracked. Since the switch was discontinued, she decided to surrender the machine that was once her mother's. In addition to the broken safety switch, the power switch was intermittent. The field housing and handle were also cracked and needed to be replaced. After finding some used parts from Bob at Mr. Fix-It and buying the safety switch from eBay, I was able to complete the restoration.
Westinghouse Upright: I already made a thread about this but it was probably the first restoration that didn't require any purchased parts since I had everything on hand. The cord came off of a trashed Oreck Magnesium and I rewired the handle and field using lamp wire that I had on hand. The bag was also graciously sewn back together by Ray after blowing in half upon startup.
Blue Kirby D80: I had always admired the look of a red or blue Kirby done in aftermarket trim. I figured I would have to hunt down the pieces and outfit an existing machine or find one with all the blue parts intact. Mike Balda was kind enough to find this machine for me so I could restore it. The only thing missing was the belt lifter decal since this one had a spray painted Kirby decal. Once I found it on eBay, that completed the restoration and I'm happy with how it came out. I also obtained the blue handle grip from Bob at Mr. Fix-It since this originally had a brown one.
Kirby Classic Omega: A customer brought this in to the vac shop that I work for complaining that it wouldn't turn on. Upon removing the rug nozzle, I saw that the safety switch was cracked. Since the switch was discontinued, she decided to surrender the machine that was once her mother's. In addition to the broken safety switch, the power switch was intermittent. The field housing and handle were also cracked and needed to be replaced. After finding some used parts from Bob at Mr. Fix-It and buying the safety switch from eBay, I was able to complete the restoration.
Westinghouse Upright: I already made a thread about this but it was probably the first restoration that didn't require any purchased parts since I had everything on hand. The cord came off of a trashed Oreck Magnesium and I rewired the handle and field using lamp wire that I had on hand. The bag was also graciously sewn back together by Ray after blowing in half upon startup.
