Looking for Tristar/Compact Attachment Set

[briankirbyclass]

Hello everyone, just wanted to ask, does anyone have a set of attachments for a Tristar/Compact they would like to part with?
Im looking for the basic polished aluminum set that would have come with a Compact several years ago. Dosent have to be fancy or in A1 condition. Im especially looking for the metal rug nozzle and wands, and the clear/glittery small attachments.
Would love to have a standard non electric hose with the rubber hand grip, also,,,if anyone does have, and would like to sell, please E-mail me, thank you. Brian W.
[email protected]

 

[danemodsandy]

Brian:

It's important to know if you're looking for older Compact tools, or newer Compact/Tristar tools. On older Compact machines, the tools and wands and hose were all friction-fit, like Lux stuff is. On newer machines with power nozzles, there is a lock button system on the hose, wands and tools. The clear/glitter tools you mention were only available for the lock button hose and wands, so far as I know. Most older Compact tools for the friction-fit system were grey rubber (the dusting brush) or grey nylon (all other plastic tools) with a bright blue grille for the upholstery attachment.

On the rug tool and floor tool, the tools themselves are the same for both friction-fit and lock button styles, but the neck is different. On the neck, where the wand fits into the neck of the tool, there's a little hole and fitting for the wand's lock button (there's a pic of the lock button style neck on the floor tool shown below). Older tools just have a smooth neck, with no hole. The plastic tools for the lock button system have a groove that the lock button fits into.

Where all of this gets tricky is: you can use the lock button style attachments on hoses and wands that are friction-fit, but you cannot use friction-fit attachments on hoses and wands that have the lock button. If you put a friction-fit tool on a wand or hose with a lock button, the tool will cover the lock button, and the button will often jam. Since the button is covered, there's no way to release it, and you can't get the tool off easily.

Whichever you are looking for, you're going to have to look for used- these tools have changed in recent years. Some of the plastic tools are now brown, instead of the clear/glitter combo, and the cast aluminium rug tool and floor tool are no longer available in the polished finish you're familiar with. They're now painted in silver metallic with a black spatter pattern. The floor and rug tool are very expensive new, too- the best price on the Net seems to be from TotalVac. The rug tool is $65.95, and the floor tool is a whopping $93.95. I have used TotalVac, and wasn't terribly impressed with the service.

Wands are around $20-25 each, from either TotalVac or eBay, though some sellers want more. Some aftermarket wands with the lock button are sold as fitting both TriStar and Kenmore; I have not personally used any of them.

I have a new floor tool in the old polished finish for sale, if you're interested. It's $40 plus shipping, absolutely new and unused. It is polished, NOT the new painted finish. It is the lock button style. It is the one you see in the picture.

I hope some of this info helps- I just went through all this on a TriStar I bought from Nathan here ("electrolux-dude").

 

[briankirbyclass]

Thank you so much sandy,,i did not know there was a difference!
Yes, i have a Tristar (metallic gray from the early 90s, with power nozzle)but none of the attachments, except the hose, power nozzle, and its wands. Im absolutely in love with this vac, and intend to use it as a daily driver.
Im so glad to know now exactly what to look for,,,thank you again so much. Brian W.

 

[danemodsandy]

Brian:

Here is a pic of my complete set of TriStar attachments, plus a couple of "extra" things that I put with it for the sake of convenience. None of it is aftermarket or bojack stuff. Shown are:

- A genuine TriStar hose
- The power nozzle with its wands
- A genuine TriStar metal floor tool
- A genuine TriStar metal rug tool
- A genuine TriStar tool caddy (clipped to a second set of wands; it's holding the small tools onto the wand)
- A genuine TriStar crevice tool (clear/glitter)
- A genuine TriStar upholstery tool complete with grille (clear/glitter)
- A genuine TriStar dusting brush (clear/glitter)
- An instruction manual for the CXL/DXL/EX-20 TriStar machines.

In addition, these bits are extras:

- A second set of wands, so that I don't have to remove the wands from the power nozzle when I want to use the floor tool or the rug tool
- A "rug shoe", which is an attachment in clear/glitter that clips onto the bottom of the floor tool to convert it to a rug tool. I have it only for the sake of completeness; the rug shoe attachment never did work very well, in my opinion. It's hard to put on without bending the bristles of the floor tool, and it has a tendency to drop off the floor tool when you're using it- most annoying.

So, now you can see everything your machine is supposed to have. I put all of this together from four major sources. First, some of it came with the machine, which I purchased from Nathan Thomas ("electrolux-dude") of this list. Second, some of it came from eBay. The hose and rug tool came from TotalVac, whose service I cannot recommend, I'm sorry to say. And the manual came from TriStar Canada, whose service I can recommend. A link to TriStar Canada is below. They carry most every part for your machine, plus their Website has a complete parts manual that you can download in PDF format. The machine you have is probably an EX-20, based on the description you give. If its a CXL or a DXL, they're basically identical to the EX-20 except for colour, and the same parts manual applies.

Also, if you find a clear/glitter dusting brush, it's likely to have dead bristles, since these are pretty old by now. You can tell when bristles are dead by the fact that they break off and drop all over the place when you use the brush. The new brown dusting brush uses exactly the same bristle insert, so you can just buy a new dusting brush and use its bristle insert in the old clear/glitter dusting brush. This is what I did.

Again, hope this helps!

http://https//www.tristarvacuumscanada.com/

 

[danemodsandy]

Link Is Bad:

For some reason, that link will not work. Hmm. Anyway, here's the URL of the TriStar Canada site, and I've double-checked- it will get you there:

www.tristarvacuumscanada.com

 

[arh1953]

I saw a bunch of those in a shop on US1 down here. They didn't register to me at the time.

 

[briankirbyclass]

WOW, Sandy, im jelous! My Tristar is just like yours only mine has black flecks in the paint. Wish i had all those attachments!
You know, i always wondered why IEC didnt make the shape of the machine so as to be able to carry the tools on its back,or somehow make a rack/carrier for the attachments like Electrolux did. Oh well, still a cool machine.
Ive seen some Tristar's with a little pastic tool carrier on the PN wand, but they get in the way, and they fall off easily. (frown)
The outstanding filtration, suction and ease of use of a Tristar/Compact is astonishing,,,i like how the hose end of the machine is pointed upwards,,its ready for action as it follows you around!
One and only problem ive had with the Tristar is the hose popping out of the machine end ocasionally when in use.
Is there a trick i dont know about? I try to always make sure the hose is screwed into the machine as tightly as possible, but,
Somehow the hose unscrews itself, and the next time i pull it, out it pops,,,but only once in awhile.

Arh1953,,or anyone,,,,if you find a set of attachments, with the button ends,,grab em! lol

 

[danemodsandy]

Brian:

The hose just needs to be screwed into the port on the bag door very tight, that's all. It will come loose if it's not screwed in properly.

The pic I posted in my previous post shows that little clip-on tool caddy you speak of. I actually like it; it has worked out just fine for me. I didn't think it would, but I wanted one to have the machine complete. It was a nice surprise when it worked as well as it did.

The design of the TriStar goes back to the original Compact design of 1940. When the Compact was designed, it was a very futuristic design, but nobody had yet dreamt up stuff like tool caddies, etc. In fact, the original Compact only had two wheels, the ones in back. Those neat swivel casters on the front of your TriStar were just two metal bumps on the first Compact. So, since the original design was done in a time before convenience was so important to consumers (Luxes didn't get wheels until the 1950s; before that time, those damn floor-scarring runners were the norm), there never was a tool caddy provision on the machine itself. There was no way to add one without spoiling the streamlined appearance of the machine. The tool caddy that clips onto the wands was the best they could do.

For more info on the first Compact, and to see more about how it morphed into later Compacts and TriStars, I recommend Charles Richard Lester's page for Compact on his excellent vac site. A link to the Compact page is below; the link is just the first page of three pages of info.

One more tidbit of info about your TriStar. While the cast-aluminium alloy housing is very tough, it can be cracked if the machine is dropped or if it falls down a flight of stairs. Housings are still available, but you do not want to pay for one, trust me. Just normal care in use is all that is required. If you don't drop the machine, etc., you will never have housing trouble.

http://www.137.com/compact/

 

[camelotshadow]

Love my compact so far

got to get that filter bag set
speaking of hose
is the attachment split & bent a bit like a cork screw
It was seperated & I thought

ooh now its hirribly mangled
but popped it on & it was happy

Change filter evry 6 mo
Well mine wasnt so lucky but still the filter looked good
so maybe it wasn't used much more than 6 mo

LOL

 

[danemodsandy]

Christine:

That "corkscrew" slot on the hose end is the way it's supposed to be. The hose end screws into place; if you'll look at the port, you'll see a little metal pin inside it that guides the corkscrew slot into place and secures the hose. There's nothing wrong with your hose, 'kay?

 

[briankirbyclass]

Thanks so much Sandy for all your help,,,i absolutely love my TriStar,,,and am kicking myself for not having tried one years ago. Im so thankful to know all the info you've shared about them!
I used to be a Kirby salesman (back in the 1980s),,,and sold a Kirby (Tradition, i think it was), to a favorite cousin,,,,anyway, she HATED IT (as many woman do),,and traded it a few years later for a Tristar to a salesman who sold her one.
I know it was the maroon colored TriStar, with the 2 speed switch on the rear end.
I was hurt, and angry at the time, of course,,and swore id NEVER have anything to do with a Tristar again,,haha,,,jeeez, what a dope! lol

 

[danemodsandy]

Brian:

"I know it was the maroon colored TriStar, with the 2 speed switch on the rear end."

I've never used one of those machines; they're fairly rare, being sold for only three years. I've always guessed that the two-speed feature was there to cut the suction a bit for jobs like lampshades, etc. I had a chance to buy one when I was talking with Nathan about my CXL; Nathan had a couple of the maroon ones, I think. But I wanted one as close to the C-2 as possible, so I ended up with the CXL I have.

 

[briankirbyclass]

Sandy, your CXL is just perfect,,,Tristar's are such beautifully styled machines. I like the looks of the new ones, but dont care for the plastic wands,the bottom cord wrap,or the price!

The last i knew, my cousin still has her maroon Tristar,,,i know she bought it new around 1982. Said she has had to get a new hose, brush roll, and belts (of course) a few times over the years, but the machine is still going strong as always.
I havnt seen that machine close up for several years, but i seem to remember the power nozzle looked to be made by Eureka,,,it was also maroon, but had the little slider button on top.

Hmmm, wonder if she'd trade her Tristar for a Kirby??!! haha

You know, i wish the Tristar did have some sort of suction relief valve, or a lower speed,,,whenever i put in a new bag, and new filters,,and new belt on the PN,,the Tristar power nozzle clamps down on my kitchen carpet so tightly, i can barely push it!

 

[danemodsandy]

Brian:

Sometimes you have to play with the slide control on the PN to get the best results on carpet.

By the way, when you get attachments for your EX-20, be sure to keep looking for an upholstery tool until you find one with the grille. The grille is a little snap-out piece that fits in the mouth of the upholstery tool; it decreases the suction for vacuuming curtains, etc. When you're vacuuming most upholstery, you take the grille out, for stronger suction.

This kind of simplicity is another thing I always liked about Compact and TriStar. There's not really a need for fancy controls in most instances, and they're usually just one more thing to go wrong. That snap-out grille does the job without complications. The only tricky part is finding an upholstery tool that still has its grille. I think TriStar Canada still has them available. I was very fortunate; when Nathan sold me my machine, he included both the upholstery tool and the grille, so that was one less search I had to go through.

 

[briankirbyclass]

Sandy, wasnt one of the selling feature's of the Compact/TriStar that it never looses suction, no matter how full the bag is?
I do agree with that to a point,,,i have filled the TriStar bag to nearly overflowing,,and have found that it DOES in fact loose suction,,,but dosent stop it completly,,,at least not nearly as much as an Electrolux with a full bag,,at least an older than 10 years Electrolux.
I always did like the pop open when full feature of the Automatic lux's tho,,,but it seems like whenever i used one, that darn little bag was full, and the cover was popping open. GRRRR

Oh well, the older Electrolux's will always have a soft spot for me.
When i was a kid, my Grandma bought a BRAND NEW Electrolux 1205 Deluxe (with power nozzle) I thought id died and gone to heaven! lol I always thought that little PN recepticle above the hose handle was just the coolest thing,,,you could plug the PN either in the front or back of it,,and the PN plug was sort of angled.
I remember Grandma being so proud of that Electrolux,,,all the neighbors and family had to come and see it when it was new. haha - guess it didnt take much to entertain people back then!
(small town, no one had much money,,and an Electrolux was considered very prestegious,,,only a RICH person would have such a thing! haha)

 

[briankirbyclass]

Oh, thats great to know,,,i had seen that little snap out piece that goes in the upolstry nozzle, but assumed it was some sort of brush or something,,,thanks so much!

 

[camelotshadow]

Thanks

The hose fit
so all was well
but I was really so scared something had mangled it like that nasty green monster that I found smothering it. LOL

I couldn't imagine what would rip the metal like that
it's unusal & looks really strange but thats the way it is & it works
So I;m happy

Have to get the bags & filter so I can put that dear compact back to work...

 

[danemodsandy]

Brian:

"Sandy, wasnt one of the selling feature's of the Compact/TriStar that it never looses suction, no matter how full the bag is?"

Yes, and you're right- it works, up to a point. I personally don't reach that point, because I long ago figured out that bags are cheaper than motors, and so I change them way before a lot of people would. I change the CXL's bag once a month; it's never more than a third full, if that. For fifty cents, it's cheap motor protection. It also prevents that "dirty vacuum cleaner" smell that builds up in a vac full of dirt, which is a particular problem here in Georgia, where the humidity is so high.

Now, my mom's C-2 was a different story. Mom never, but never used the paper bags with her machine (we found the original supply that came with the machine safely put away with the machine's instruction manual a few years ago, long after the cleaner had died and gone to the dump). Since the cloth bag was a horrible chore to empty, and since we kids were doing that chore most unwillingly, it tended to get very full before getting emptied. The vac still had very decent suction at that point.

Christine:

Glad you're now reassured that your hose is like it's supposed to be!

P.S., Alan:

I think the upholstery tool grille is NLA, so existing supplies at TriStar dealers are it. Be a good idea to pick one up ASAP, and to keep up with it, I think.

 

[briankirbyclass]

How Often

Sandy,,thanks so much for all your help,,,ive learned alot!
A few more questions,, How often do you change all of the filters on your TriStar? Im going to only let my bag get half way full, and then change it, from now on,,,i promise!,,,i just wanted to see IF what TriStar said is true about it not loosing suction as it fills.

Ive also noticed that even after a couple years after putting in brand new exhaust filters,, the exhaust air is VERY clean and fresh smelling. I dont have any pets, so that may make a difference too.
I have also been putting 2 paper liners in the cloth bag liner, instead of one,,,is this a good idea, or not really necessary?
Ive noticed the inner paper liner, next to the cloth, is sometimes a little dusty/dirty,,,but not much.

Also, how often should the filter infront of the motor be changed, and what do you do to clean the cloth bag filter, and how often?

Thanks again for all your help! Brian