Latest addition… my birth year Kirby Heritage!!!!

[charleskirby66]

Hey guys, I found a Kirby Heritage on eBay with best offer available! It was located within 30 minutes of my home and work, so I went to pick it up to save on shipping. I got the main unit, the convenience group with turbo power, and the super renovation group. All that for $75, and I earned extra eBay Bucks on a promotion!!

The only thing missing was the hose, the rug renovator, and the Handi Butler. As luck would have it, a friend gave me a Rug Renovator from her old Heritage months ago, and I got the Handi Butler from a Craigslist ad last week. Just need the hose, but I now have my complete birth year Kirby!!!

Got some cleaning up to do yet. This one's in line after a G4 and Dual Sanitronic 80.

 

[Vacuummania]

pretty!

That's my favorite heritage model - I just love the tomato-colored bag! Congrats!

 

[kirby519]

@charleskirby66

One thing you may want to locate is that model also had available a complete set of above floor attachments the same as prior models and the models after that.

I have a set with my Heritage that I have at work. You have the "Turbo group" set. that was included. I was amazed to find that model also had the standard set that has been included with all other models. Up until I found the "standard" set I thought the Turbo group set was all that was available. At the time the newest Kirby I had used was the Tradition model. We all had the Kirby Classic or Classic Omega. And hadn't looked at a new machine since purchasing those.

Then I bought the Heritage II in 1987. And was glad it came with the "standard" set I was used to.

By the way enjoy your new toy. Also be aware the earlier model Heritage didn't have quite the cleaning power or air flow of the classic Models. It was more like the tradition. Later in that run they improved the air flow / cleaning power that equals the Heritage II. I used both the early run and later run of the Heritage and noticed the difference between the two runs. And also used several machines in each of those runs. Both of the Heritages I have at work are of the later run and perform very well.

 

[kirby519]

I should also mention that both of mine are the Heritage 84.

 

[charleskirby66]

1981 model

I used it tonight and did notice a bit less airflow than I expected. I have a hunch it's the emptor that restricts the airflow. However it also proved harder to push, as the suction is still quite strong. Indeed, this is the 1981 release, which was the first year they made the Heritage.

I suspect the bearings may need to be serviced. I've never gone that deep into the motor, makes me nervous. Possibly need to replace the brush roll and belts as well.

 

[electrolux137]

~
~

"Beautiful." Is the hose for this model the one that's black coiled vinyl with silver tracing? I =may= have one, will have to dig around and see if it's still here. If so, it's yours!

 

[kirby519]

The hoses that I have that are original to the machines I have are grey in color with the silver stripe. Any hose from the Heritage series will fit. As the speed/safety switch are all the same.

Kirby is now only offering only black replacement hoses for all models prior to the Generation series. And the "bell" or connector to attach the hose to the machine are standardized to fit the models prior to The G series. IE has the Pin or tab to activate the safety/speed switch for the model it is being used on.

 

[kirby519]

As far as performance goes on the early model wasn't so much about the sani emptor. Part of the issue was that the top fill hose was made out of fabric like a fabric tarp. All of the ones I used had the sani emptor with disposable bags. The later models they used the wire reinforced vinyl hose like the attachment hose used for cleaning. Just in a larger size so as not to restrict air flow to the dust bag.

That was one of the down falls on the tradition model. the first top fill hose was about the size of the attachment hose. Very poor air flow. I also never liked the lexan fan on earlier models. No matter what any one said the lexan fan didn't create the air flow of the metal fans. In the later models like the Heritage two we got the kind of air flow that was similar to machines with the metal fans. I expect in part that the motors were designed to spin at higher rpms than prior models. to increase the air flow.

I know I was disappointed with the performance of the Classic, Omega and Classic III with the lexan fan. No were near as good as it was with the metal fan. I had them changed back to the metal fan.

 

[human]

Beautiful machine. Quite a haul with all those accessories for what you paid. That's just like the Heritage I used to have that my (ex) girlfriend permanently borrowed a couple of years ago. I'm not worried about it. I've got way too many vacuum cleaners as it is and I refuse to stoop to the level of demanding all my stuff back. It's just stuff, after all.

 

[dysonman1]

What are eBay Bucks? I have been buying on eBay for more than a decade and don't know what they are.

 

[kirbysthebest]

Ebay bucks

<span style="line-height: 22px; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; font-size: medium;"><strong style="line-height: 22px;">General</strong></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px;"> </span><br style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;" /><br style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;" /><strong style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;">What is the eBay Bucks Rewards Program?</strong><br style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px;">The eBay Bucks Rewards Program is designed to reward eBay members for purchasing items on </span>www.ebay.com<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px;">. If you join, you can accrue eBay Bucks based on your qualifying purchases. Upon the completion of each calendar quarter, if you earn $5.00 or more in eBay Bucks during that calendar quarter, you will receive a reward equal to the amount of your eBay Bucks in the form of an eBay Bucks Certificate. You can use this Certificate to buy more things on eBay! </span><br style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;" /><br style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;" /><strong style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;">Does this program cost anything?</strong><br style="line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;" /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 18px;">Enrollment in the eBay Bucks Rewards Program and participation are FREE. There is no cost. </span>

 

[charleskirby66]

Thanks guys!

I really dig the brotherhood and community that I get to enjoy here on Vacuumland.

@electrolux137- Charles, how could you possibly be any more awesome?! And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the G4 you gave me. I'm about to put on the new fan, after already having blown out and vacuumed up the inside. Then comes the ever so exciting task of polishing on the bench sander for the first time! Eeek!

@kirby519- I guess you could say I am just a tad bit disappointed in the performance of the Heritage. How ever, there is something so exciting about having my birth year Kirby that I can't extinguish my enthusiasm and excitement for it. Haven't even begun to take it apart because I have other Kirbys in line for their renovations. I may just leave this Heritage all original, and have in my collection the one Kirby that doesn't suck. LOL

@human- That is very generous and mature of you to be willing to part with such a beautiful machine. I'm sorry you will have to go without it, but it sounds like you have a lot of other great machines to keep you busy. What year was your Heritage?

@dysonman1- The cool thing about eBay bucks is that every few weeks, they offer a VIP promotion where you get more bucks per purchase. Often, the more expensive the items, the bigger bonus bucks you can earn. It's pretty cool, however, if I am very close to the five dollar minimum at the end of the month, I find myself rushing to purchase more in order to get my eBay bucks certificate the following month. Smart marketing.

 

[charleskirby66]

Using a DS 50 Dirt Meter

I conducted a little test this evening. Just shampooed my carpets yesterday with my Ultimate G Diamond. I wanted to see what my Heritage would pick up, how it would perform.

I put the Dual Sanitronic 50's dirt meter on the Heritage and vacuumed my apartment. Sorry for the nastiness, but the first picture shows what I pulled up. Notice the Kirby logo is not visible, which to my mind indicates a lot of fine dust and debris picked up.

I then put the dirt meter on the Dual Sanitronic 50 and re-vacuumed using a new testing pad. Results of that are on the second picture. To be fair, because of the large size of the Heritage nozzle, I was not able to vacuum in the tight spaces and closets that I did with the DS 50. However the Kirby logo is almost fully visible.

Oh the liquid splotches are from Odorific application.

Wonder if I were to get a dirt meter specifically made for the Heritage, if I would get better results? I'm sure this is not a valid, scientific test. Just trying to get an idea of the performance of my new Heritage.