Legend II All Done!!!

[eurekastar]

Here is the debut of my $10 Kirby Legend II after its spa treatment. 1) Freshly laundered bag and new fill tube; 2) New impeller (fan); 3) new front and rear bearings; 4) new carbon brushes; 5) new belt lifter assembly; 6) new bumper; 7) new cord; 8) new brush roll and belt; 9) thorough cleaning, which included buffing all the aluminum on a bench polisher. I purchased the green Kirby polishing rouge for the final color finish on the aluminum. It makes a HUGE difference too! It didn't arrive until today, so I was able to use it on all the castings except the rug nozzle. I'd already polished it with another compound and reassembled it. I'll take it apart again tomorrow and give it a nicer mirror finish with the Kirby Green rouge.

 

[eurekastar]

Side view, showing a little more of the motor casting.

 

[eurekastar]

If you ever change a fan on this model Kirby, it requires a special "proprietary" tool from Kirby that slides up onto the armature in order to put it into a bind so the old fan can be removed and new fan installed. I'll try to remember to post a photo of it tomorrow. Also, a Kirby bearing puller comes in handy too.

 

[vacuumfreeeke]

hey there

It looks really sharp. I've always liked that color over the Heritage ones, and you did a great job shining it up. I seems that there really is a difference between how shiny the rug nozzle is and how shiny the rest of it is. Congrats on a job well done!

 

[joe22]

very well done, beautiful !!!

 

[gusherb]

That turned out gorgeous!! absolutely pristine, I love it!

 

[eurekastar]

Just a few of the tools that are needed to service a Kirby motor -- from left to right: 1) bearing puller (used to remove the rear bearing); 2) armature locking tool (needed to remove and install impeller); 3) belt/armature pin (not really needed but very handy).

 

[eurekastar]

Polishing rouge that Kirby sells to its distributors. I first used some that I bought at Sears. The stuff that Kirby sells is far superior. The ingot on the left is for the first polish to remove oxidation, scratches, and discoloration. 2) the green ingot on the right is used to give a mirror finish.

 

[eurekastar]

You can see from this photo the difference that is made in using the right polishing compound. Notice that the motor shell is is shinier than the nozzle. I used compounds from Sears to polish the nozzle. It looks very good in person; however, the difference really shows up in photographs.

 

[eurekastar]

I feel like a dork

The last rebuild that I did, I had someone else service the motor. I did all the rest. However, with this one, I did everything, including changing the bearings and motor brushes. Now that I have experience doing all that, I still can't figure out how to remove the light bulb! I know there's got to be a trick. But for the life of me, I can't figure it out!

 

[eurekastar]

I really am a DORK!

Well,all the light bulb required was a little jiggling. I was afraid of putting too much pressure on it because I am notorious for breaking things when I'm not patient.

 

[luxg]

Outstanding job Bill!!

 

[riccarlover]

WOW...

I am handy but not THAT handy! I take my Kirbys in but it is VERY expensive. It must feel good knowing you did all the work yourself and it's up to your standards.
Very sharp looking!
Clayton

 

[eurekastar]

I repolished the nozzle casting with the Green Kirby compound. The difference is quite striking when compared with the previous photos that were posted, especially the outdoor shot.

 

[a007kirbyman]

Bill & L II...

Hello Bill.

You did well. You've successfully passed 'Rebuilding 101 Class' with an A.

L@@Ks very nice, congrats.

Cheers & hagd all,

Bill

 

[vac-o-matic]

Outstanding....

You did a great job on that! I pay 50.00 to have my Kirby's buffed and yours look just as good if not better! Maybe you should start a mail-order buffing service for members.

Rick

 

[eurekastar]

Maybe you should start a mail-order buffing service for memb

Thanks for the compliment, but I suspect the shipping would be a deal killer1 LOL!

 

[electrolux~137]

Hello, actually if folks only mailed you the disassembled parts they need polishing, shipping may not be too bad --

 

[rexaird]

I've never honestly used the armature holding tool when changing a fan on one of those types of Kirbys. I've always been able to get the belt shaft off by turning the shaft with a pair of pliers, and holding the fan to unscrew it.