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A month or so ago an older lady at church came up to me and said, "You know something about vacuum cleaners, don't you?" I said I did and she continued, "I have an old Kirby [which she pronounced Koy-bee in her Louisiana drawl] that I hadn't used in a while, then last week I decided to get it out and run it. It seems like it's not picking up like it used to." I said that I'd be happy to have a look at it.
So two weeks ago she came up to me and said she'd brought the "Koy-bee." I went over to where she had it. It was wrapped up in a big plastic garbage bag. I opened the bag up and pulled the Kirby out.
The housing was very tarnished but generally clean. The bag was empty -- which I was a bit surprised about. People tend to let the bag fill up to the top and then gripe that it isn't picking up!
Aesthetically speaking, it was a mess! It had a green handle-grip and cord, a red bojack bag, a brown bag top, a bojack belt lifter, gray headlight trim, a gray rug nozzle bumper, a tan Sani-emptor bottom tray, and three different colors of wheels -- red, tan and dark blue.
I had to look underneath to find out the model number: It was a 561. I also saw that the brush roll was clean -- not choked with thread, ravelings and dog hair as it so often is, and it had a good belt on it. So I wasn't sure offhand why it might not be picking up like it used to.
I brought it home and took it all apart. That's when I discovered the problem -- the fan chamber was all clogged up with carpet fuzz. It's the sort of thing that the average Kirby user, especially an older lady, might not know to look after.
After I got it all apart I washed all the housing, then put in a new front bearing and bearing plate and cleaned and greased the rear bearing.
I machine-polished all the aluminum housing parts and then I looked through what little bit of replacement parts and trim I still have and found matching red trim, gray wheels and a gray cord. I also found an original starburst 560/561 belt lifter which just looks so stunning on a sparkling-shiny machine.
The bag was in good condition so I retained it, just giving it a thorough hand-washing then disinfected and deodorized it.
The final touch was to add a set of wheels to the front nozzle with extender screws. This makes the machine more steady and stable and easier to use.
I took it back to church this past Sunday and had it standing in the corner of the Fireside Room (social hall) where I knew she would come in to prepare refreshments for after-church coffee hour. When she saw it, she was, needless to say, quite pleased! She said, "Why, it looks like brand new!" My choir members also admired it, and one of them said, "I used to have a Kirby like that. I thought it was a great vacuum cleaner but just too hard to use, so I traded it in on an Electrolux."
I told her why it hadn't been picking up, that the fan was clogged with carpet fuzz. She said, "Oh, yes, I did recently get new carpeting and I guess it's still 'shedding.'"
I asked her if she'd like for me to come over and demonstrate how to use it. She said, "Thanks, but I'm very familiar with it. After all, I've had it for more than 50 years!"
Point well taken!
Here are some before-and-after photos.
[this post was last edited: 4/8/2014-03:45]
.
A month or so ago an older lady at church came up to me and said, "You know something about vacuum cleaners, don't you?" I said I did and she continued, "I have an old Kirby [which she pronounced Koy-bee in her Louisiana drawl] that I hadn't used in a while, then last week I decided to get it out and run it. It seems like it's not picking up like it used to." I said that I'd be happy to have a look at it.
So two weeks ago she came up to me and said she'd brought the "Koy-bee." I went over to where she had it. It was wrapped up in a big plastic garbage bag. I opened the bag up and pulled the Kirby out.
The housing was very tarnished but generally clean. The bag was empty -- which I was a bit surprised about. People tend to let the bag fill up to the top and then gripe that it isn't picking up!
Aesthetically speaking, it was a mess! It had a green handle-grip and cord, a red bojack bag, a brown bag top, a bojack belt lifter, gray headlight trim, a gray rug nozzle bumper, a tan Sani-emptor bottom tray, and three different colors of wheels -- red, tan and dark blue.
I had to look underneath to find out the model number: It was a 561. I also saw that the brush roll was clean -- not choked with thread, ravelings and dog hair as it so often is, and it had a good belt on it. So I wasn't sure offhand why it might not be picking up like it used to.
I brought it home and took it all apart. That's when I discovered the problem -- the fan chamber was all clogged up with carpet fuzz. It's the sort of thing that the average Kirby user, especially an older lady, might not know to look after.
After I got it all apart I washed all the housing, then put in a new front bearing and bearing plate and cleaned and greased the rear bearing.
I machine-polished all the aluminum housing parts and then I looked through what little bit of replacement parts and trim I still have and found matching red trim, gray wheels and a gray cord. I also found an original starburst 560/561 belt lifter which just looks so stunning on a sparkling-shiny machine.
The bag was in good condition so I retained it, just giving it a thorough hand-washing then disinfected and deodorized it.
The final touch was to add a set of wheels to the front nozzle with extender screws. This makes the machine more steady and stable and easier to use.
I took it back to church this past Sunday and had it standing in the corner of the Fireside Room (social hall) where I knew she would come in to prepare refreshments for after-church coffee hour. When she saw it, she was, needless to say, quite pleased! She said, "Why, it looks like brand new!" My choir members also admired it, and one of them said, "I used to have a Kirby like that. I thought it was a great vacuum cleaner but just too hard to use, so I traded it in on an Electrolux."
I told her why it hadn't been picking up, that the fan was clogged with carpet fuzz. She said, "Oh, yes, I did recently get new carpeting and I guess it's still 'shedding.'"
I asked her if she'd like for me to come over and demonstrate how to use it. She said, "Thanks, but I'm very familiar with it. After all, I've had it for more than 50 years!"
Point well taken!
Here are some before-and-after photos.
[this post was last edited: 4/8/2014-03:45]
-Michelle
