Latest Addition (Number 1)

[seamusuk]

Hey Guys

My bosses brother helps out in the local Salvation Army shop. I asked him ages ago to let me know if anything interesting comes in - yesterday I got a call to ask if I would be interested in this........

 

[seamusuk]

Hood closeup

Showing its only major issue- any tips on how to improve the scratches?

 

[seamusuk]

Bag-Assembly

Pretty much perfect

 

[seamusuk]

Back

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[seamusuk]

Base- note the condition of the paint!

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[seamusuk]

Cover off

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[seamusuk]

On British Machines....

Its Carpet not Rugs- this was the last UK model to carry this slogan........

 

[seamusuk]

Under the Hood

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[seamusuk]

Switch

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[seamusuk]

One more.......

Colour match .

Im very pleased to have found this as the 638 is one of the most difficult post war machines to find- especially in this condition !.

Stay tuned for the next installment that I will be picking up from work tomorrow .

Seamus

 

[funvacfan]

Nice machine..

in terrific condition. I have the same one but with a DVC bag. At least it's the correct colour!

Guy

 

[seamusuk]

Possibly ....

Hey Guy

Is yours possibly a 63 as opposed to a 638?. The differences are the 63 has the handle switch, lacks the handgrip and has the cable hooks on the other side.They look pretty much the same other than that tho .

Seamus

 

[turbomaster1984]

Drools,

and im now totally jealous despite knowing one of the amazing finds we had this week quite well will be trumped with this beaut!!!!

God its gorgeous, have never seen one in that condition.

 

[thevacuumguy96]

Hey SeamusUK,

My Convertible has scratches on the hood like your 638 does! I tried getting them off but it didn't work that well!

 

[aeoliandave]

That's simply beautiful, Seamus.

So clean on the bottom and around the bumper & base the Lady was clearly careful with it...but she had a bad habit of ramming the hood under one particular piece of furniture where it was a whisker too tall.

Unless you practice and undertake a true plastic scratch polishing out (very hard to do without heat-distorting the plastic) the best visually would be an oil or liquid wax set into the scratches to clarifiy and build up the surface - like wet stones are so much prettier than dry ones. You could also 'wet' the scratches with an automotive interior silicone plastic shiner impregnated cloth?

Don't use any wax or polish product that drys to a powdery haze, for obvious reasons.

Say, I just thought...what about rubbing a matching dark blue wax crayon over the area and melting it in with a hair dryer...to fill the surface gouging? Keep rubbing til the area is a s smooth as possible and follow up with an all over wax job. I'd try this first before contaminating the dry scratched area with oil or silicone.

Just letting my own thoughts fly as if it was my machine and that was the only cosmetic problem short of a perfect machine.

Good luck and do let us know.

Dave

 

[seamusuk]

Thanks Guys

I know how lucky I was to come across this one believe me !.
Ive just ordered this - looks like it could be just the thing for those scratches . I have several other cleaners it may be good for as well!

Seamus

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=400073453971&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT

 

[aeoliandave]

Oh good for you. Looking forward to your review of how this works out. I've been many times tempted to try polish kits specifically for plastics but haven't taken the plunge. If it didn't work it would be for sale, right?

I do know the joys of bearing down into large buffing wheels primed with the correct compounds.

Why, I can remember way way back 230 years ago when I was appalled at the thought of taking fine steel wool directly to tarnished aluminum or chrome to remove the first layer of tarnish. But once I'd done it and there was no further scratching and indeed a high polish emerged there was no going back to the old way...

Dave

 

[74simon]

Hey Seamus, congratulations, that has to be the nicest 638 I've ever seen! How's the flex? Looks good! And the handgrip is remarkable!

Hope the polishing kit works well, hope you let us know! Looking forward to seeing your other find too!

 

[hooverbaby]

Seamus, that's a great find, especially with the original bag.

I wouldn't say that 638s are hard to find generally but you seldom see one in that sort of condition.

Re: the scratches I've managed quite well by rubbing down with progressively finer grades of abrasive paper, followed by a coat of clear laquer aerosol. This has worked well for me on a number of plastics, including bakelite hoods, brings the shine back and doesn't leave any sticky residue. You can get these items from most car-accessory shops.

I'd be interested to hear about how the plastics-polishing kit works out.

Stephen