near death kirby

anthony · Oct 26, 2021

My neighbours have been clearing out there garage ready for a new roof .I saw the familiar handle sticking out of a skip so i dug it out and its now in my garage awaiting some serious surgery .My neighbour tells me its not been used for at least 30 years .The machine is filthy and it stinks of wet dog .Its bag is full of wet dirt its in a sorry state but of course just as you would expect it fired up first time .I will do a nut and bolt strip down over the next few days .lets see what its like on the inside

anthony · Oct 26, 2021

a few more pics

suckolux · Oct 26, 2021

Good for you! That model is a favorite of mine, I would never want to be without one. Good luck with your restoration.

kirbyclassiciii · Oct 26, 2021

anthony

Anthony,

I wish you the best of luck restoring this machine!

~Ben

huskyvacs · Oct 26, 2021

I'd say that's in "great" condition. I've paid out money for ones in worse shape!

30 years in the damp I'd say the commutator and armature will need a good polish, fresh grease/oil blabla bla, she will be right as rain. The styling of the Kirby and its robust metal construction does protect the guts a lot from the weather and elements.

human · Oct 26, 2021

Too good to trash...

Even in that condition, it's too good to trash. Glad you saved it from such an ignoble fate. Keep us posted as you bring it back to its former glory. I have no doubt it will shine again.

lesinutah · Oct 26, 2021

Nice

That's a nice pickup. The heritage line is probably the best deep down carpet vacuum ever made in my opinion. Once your done with the bag the rest looks pretty good. It does have the white amodel fan which is really good.

KirbyCollector01 · Oct 26, 2021

Good Find!

That will clean up nicely and work well for many more years.
According to the Serial Number, your Heritage II was made in Powerplant #1 (Cleveland) in May 1987. And it was the 10,261st Unit made in power plant 1 in May of 1987.

hygiene903 · Oct 27, 2021

Congrats Anthony!

That's a nice find indeed! After you get it cleaned up and polished it will be absolutely beautiful! Can't wait to see the pics after you're done. Did you happen to ask them if they had the attachments for it? That would be like frosting on the cake!
Jeff

kirbyklekter · Oct 27, 2021

It is...

Definitely worth what ever it takes to get this Heritage back on the rugs again.One of my all time favorites from the Kirby Coral. I hope you will share your progress as you go along. Good save.

anthony · Oct 27, 2021

work in progress

Well guys i did a little more today. Most of the plastic is stripped off and has been washed .The bag has been turned inside out and vacuumed then hand washed to get the thick dirt off and then a machine wash .It nice and clean and smelling fresh ready to go back on. the fill tube has a split in it explaining why there was so much muck in the outer bag .The floor nozzle is stripped ready for cleaning .I will strip the motor tomorrow and have a look at the bearings and brushes .The fan is in very good condition [I think it must be relatively new ].My neighbour tells me the machine belonged to her mum who lived there before her .She also told ne the tools were in the attic and were thrown away when she moved in along with three other vacuum cleaners .never mind you cant have everything

human · Oct 27, 2021

I'd say you put in a good day's work on that machine. I think it's in better shape than it looks at first glance. I'm foreseeing an amazing transformation in its future.

suckolux · Oct 27, 2021

Nice, worth the save, nice work. You will be rewarded with a great machine. Favorite of mine.

texaskirbyguy · Oct 28, 2021

Wow - what a mess. However this is a great resto challenge abounds! They are no fun without challenges...

)
Any Kirby is too good to trash, as long as it is not physically destroyed.

If you get a good shine on that metal, then you are a polishing master! I have never done one this bad, but would love to see how you do. With enough work, it can be done. I think steel wool and/or fine sand paper will need to be used all over at first.

The fan in your last picture looks to have the blades all bent back, as if it was run a long time with an intake restriction (causes fan overheating). If they are indeed bent, get a new fan. If they are not bent, it might be just a distortion from the camera lens.

Keep us updated with your progress, and good save, BTW!

kloveland · Oct 28, 2021

Those Kirbys are real troopers! I just cleaned up a G4 in about the same condition! Kirbys are such excellent vacuum cleaners it is disheartening to see them in bad condition. I vacuumed the carpet in my sister's house she just bought and the G4 was still pulling up dirt after my Eureka ESP and Concept.

anthony · Oct 28, 2021

more photos

Did a bit more today stripping the motor down and scrubbing all the metal ready for polishing .Texaskirbyguy i think you are right about the fan its badly distorted .the bag was completely choked up with muck so suction would have been restricted possibly for quite a long time .I will get a new one. Anyone know an easy way to remove the two wires that go to the lamp in the head .I always have trouble with them .

kirbyclassiciii · Oct 28, 2021

anthony

Anthony,

The new replacement fans for these machines will be in black instead of cream.

~Ben

anthony · Oct 28, 2021

black ones

not available over here in the UK only the white one in fact most parts are hard to get but there are plenty of scrap machines on offer depending on what part you want

anthony · Oct 29, 2021

sanding and polishing

today i stuffed some fresh grease into both bearings .And then started sanding out deep scratches and gouges. I use an electric sander for the first sanding then I sand by hand with fine wet and dry paper.