Kirby 514 trim and parts

[castrojoel]

Does anybody know where to find (nos) or somewhat new trim pieces and wheels that are original to a kirby 514..... Working on a restoration project and can't find any.... Only tan!!!! .... There has to be some out there.... I've searched everywher

 

[kirbykid]

Buy the tan and paint it. Ill find what you need to do to pain the trim. I've got it somewere in my computer files. And the wheels, well I might have a pair but you can also paint the wheels. Don't know how though

 

[eurekastar]

The red trim is no longer made, but you can buy the tan trim from a member of the club.  His name is Bill Edstrom and his email address is [email protected].  He owns a Kirby service center in Wisconsin.  He will give you a very fair price and he ships fast.  I've dealt with him often.  As noted above, you can paint the trim with plastic/vinyl paint.  I use SEM products. Here's the procedure I use:  1) wash the trim with soap and water.  2) Wipe it down with methyl ethyl ketone (MEK).  3) spray with SEM Sandless primer.  4) While the primer is wet, spray on the first coat of paint.  I think the color I've used in the past is "Portola Red" in SEM's plastic/vinyl paint line.  Let it dry for an hour and the spray again.  I then let it cure for about 4 days before stretching it onto the machine.  You can buy SEM paint online.  Hope this helps!


 

 

[castrojoel]

Ok... Thanks..... I will look into the paint.... This is my first 1950's kirby restore... Just having problems finding eny body with trim for headlamp and nozzle.... I've started to refinish the aluminum and its looking good.... Had to do quite a bit of wet sanding but it's looking great... I'm a newbie to the vintage Kirby's, but I did restore a heritage ii that looks great.... Just need wheels and hubcaps for that one too.

 

[eurekastar]

Wet sanding does a great job, but it's very labor intensive too.  If you find yourself doing quite a few, you may want to invest in a bench polisher.  If you click on my profile photo, you'll find a Model 560 (from 1960).  I painted all the trim on it.  The SEM plastic/vinyl paint is very durable.  It's often used to spray out plastic trim on cars, so it works well.  Please post photos!  I love work in progress photos! 


 

 

[kirbykid]

yes wet sanding is wonderfull

 

[castrojoel]

Here it is after 5 hours wet sand 600gt then 1500gt then a light polish

 

[castrojoel]

And next to her daughter

 

[castrojoel]

And one more!!!... And I have been using a grinder with buffing wheel to polish.... I don't have patients for polish by hand

 

[castrojoel]

One more thing.... Like I said... I'm a newbie to restoring, but I am going to need a new armature for the 514. Any ideas where I can get a replacement?? I'm 95% shure it is bad.... How to test??
Here is a pic of burnt spot

 

[kirbykid]

it shouldent be bad. it looks like it might have another 15 years of use that it can take

 

[castrojoel]

Well... It was working good, but now the motor spins at an incredibly slow speed. The field windings look ok.... That little knick between the two copper plates worries me.... The only thing I can think of that would do that would be the two plates arcing .... Here is another pic of the commuter and a pic of the field windings ... Let me know of any suggestions of testing.... I am very electrically enclined

 

[castrojoel]

Here is a pic of the field windings

 

[kirbykid]

i dont like the look of that hole in the comutator

 

[castrojoel]

Yeah... I don't know how to test the armature for faults, can anybody tell me how to test for shorts, or could it be the field?? .... Symptoms were wen I plugged it in yesterday it was working ok, then after it ran ten min. It started to bog down like a gas weed eater does when it is flooded... It then was emitting a smell of burning. I then immediately started to dismantle it to pull out the armature. Wen I pulled it out it was very hot compared to the field windings.... Any suggestions on the issue?? The brushes were well seated.. Bearing we're just oiled up,the shaft spins freely.. The only thing I can think of is the armature??

 

[eurekastar]

You can test the armature with an Ohm meter.  Just your multimeter to Ω (Ohms) and touch one lead to a segment on the commutator.  Touch the other lead to the adjacent segment.  The needle should move all the way to the right.  Keep repeating that for each segment.  If the needle doesn't move or doesn't move all the way to the right, then you have a bad or weak segment.  If that's the case, then it's time to toss the armature and probably the whole motor.  That one segment with a piece missing with case excess sparking, so the armature is toast anyway.   However, despite your motor problems, you did a very nice job of polishing it! 

 

[kirbykid]

i didnt know how to do that. i use a battery and a light