"I also far prefer the Concept over the Dial A Matic&qu
And that's why Baskin Robbins makes 31 flavors. Concepts are more plentiful for the simple reason they were built after the Dial-A-Matic. I just feel Hoover could have produced a better vacuum had they kept the clean air patent and built a Dial-A-Matic II. It's a quieter machine, has better filtration, and I find the suction port on the back of the machine so much more convenient for tool conversion. The Concept isn't a bad machine (I do have a few of them), but if given the choice, I would choose the Dial-A-Matic in a non power drive version. As for the Elite, well, it may not have been intended as a replacement for the Convertible, but ultimately that's what wound up happening. Not many early Elites still exist because of the flimsy build quality. I'm sure Hoover loved it though, since they cost less to produce than the Convertibles.