Newly Acquired Eureka Freedom Cord Free

[vacmaster]

Today I made the trip to a local sew & vac shop with the intent of searching for any machines that would qualify as rare, NOS, or otherwise collectible, and I’d say that what I found fit the bill quite well. The store was one of the largest that I’ve seen, occupying multiple suites of the commercial building within which it is located, most of which had display windows full of machines from the 2000s on up, with the odd machine from the 80s or 90s mixed in. The most significant outlier was this Eureka Freedom Cord Free. I immediately asked that the machine be taken out of the display so I could look at it, and upon first glance it appeared to be sun damaged from having sat in the window for so long, but upon closer inspection it turned out that it was just a very thick layer of dust, which had actually protected the machine from sun damage for the most part. As is the case with most other collectors who own one, my machine is missing the battery and the charger, but I am lucky enough to have a spare bag for my machine. Aside from the thick layer of dust which wiped away with little effort, the machine is in stellar cosmetic condition considering it’s age, and appears to have been used very little. The brush roll is nearly spotless, and the motor felt very smooth when turned by hand. Now comes the journey of trying to get the machine to run, which I’m sure will be difficult, though not impossible. Regardless of operational status, I’m very happy to have found the machine, and look forward to trying to make it operational. If I do get it working, I’ll be sure to share a video of it.
-Justin

 

[thevacomaticiec]

Enjoy your new toy and find .

 

[kirbyclassiciii]

Vacmaster

Justin,

Such an impressive find! I too wish I could actually hear one running!

~Ben

 

[fan-of-fans]

April 1989

That is so cool to think they had a full size upright back then that was cordless. And it has the traditional F&G belt and fan setup, but in a modern exterior.

 

[dysonman1]

The belt was just a rubber band. I bought one brand new in 1991. The motor turned so slow it had a hard time picking things up. As the battery discharged, the motor turned slower and slower. For such a very expensive vacuum (at the time) it sure was a disappointment.

 

[blackheart]

oh wow

You don't see those very often! I've heard some places like interstate batteries might be able to rebuild some battery packs so maybe they'd be able to help you get it running.

Looking forward to the videos if you get it running it's a unique piece!

 

[hoover300]

You could probably string together some 9 volt batteries and try it. That setup won’t last long, but it will work temporarily.

 

[huskyvacs]

If you have a photo of the battery pack, I'm sure a Batteries Plus store can make you a pack that is similar. It will likely be in a shrinkwrap style dongle pack (like for an R/C car), but it will get you by for now. If you can find an actual battery pack, you can then get that rebuilt, and have a fully functional machine. You definitely do not want to jury rig anything on a vacuum as rare as this.

That is an impressive store for them to have the real estate to keep 30+ year old vacuums on display!

 

[fan-of-fans]

I'm sure batteries have come a long way in the past 30 years. I wonder if modern lithium ion batteries like used in electric weed wackers, mowers, etc could be adapted to this and give it a more stronger run time.

I wonder how bright the headlight on this would be? It must use a flashlight bulb or something very low wattage.

 

[vacmaster]

Thank you all for your replies, I am currently looking into how I can get the machine powered up. I am considering the custom battery pack build, but I’m also thinking about buying a power adapter with the same output as the original battery (12v, 55w, correct me if I’m wrong) and finding a proper way to temporarily connect it to the battery contacts. On the topic of the rubber band like belt- luckily it seems to have aged well as it’s holding tension from what I can tell, and it’s not dry rotted. Again, I’ll be sure to update you all with any advancements, but rest assured I’m dead set on getting it running.

 

[suckolux]

Was this similar to the Westinghouse?

 

[vacmaster]

Are you referring to the Westinghouse Unplugged?

 

[suckolux]

Maybe, just remember it was probably around that time

 

[bvac6]

This place says they have a battery pack. Might need to verify.


http://www.sweeper-city.com/eufrbapn57.html

 

[vacmaster]

The Westinghouse Unplugged is probably what you’re thinking of, and the answer to your question is no, they’re not really similar at all. The Westinghouse was based off of the Fantom Wildcat, and was on the market about 15 years after this Eureka was. Both however, were ahead of their technology’s time and didn’t remain on the market for very long. Also, I’m currently in contact with the vacuum store that claims to have the battery, and am in the process of seeing what I can do to get it in my hands. I’m almost certain that the battery will be non operational, but I’d still like to have it. However, $90 is a bit much to spend on what likely will be a brick, so I’m still on the edge about it.

 

[vacmaster]

Update

Unfortunately I’ve not made much progress in terms of getting the machine powered up. The machine doesn’t provide adequate information on the rating plate about the output of the battery for me to feel confident in trying to connect a power source, so I decided to take it apart. Partially to search for more information, but also just because I was curious! I took a picture of a few parts I found interesting so I could share them here. The handle release is one of the only metal parts on the machine, and the majority of the pieces are held together without screws.