Phillips P60

[beko1987]

Was it this that did not come wit ha crevice tool?

Have to say the plastics on the P60 are top notch, apart from one deep gouge on the side, the rest should machine polish out (if I bother). It looks like it could take being thrown around without too much bother.

When I put it back together I clamped the cord on another piece, since it was flattened where it was previously clamped. The cord is a sod to stay on, I end up looping it up and pushing it through the handle.

 

[jmurray01]

Well back in the early 80s uprights still had poor hose suction compared to cylinders so a cylinder was a good choice for thorough above floor cleaning.

These days uprights have as good hose suction as cylinders so that need has more or less ceased to exist.

 

[vintagerepairer]

No crevice tool, no dusting brush, not even the clip-on brush for the small tools. Such was the Philips way of doing it. You pay more, you get more. Some models like the P61 or P62 maybe had a plastic strap fitted to the middle of the cleaner so the user could coil up the lead and push it under the strap. I once serviced a Philips P80 (same cleaner but later grey & white version, with 1000watt motor) and the user had been storing a good deal of the lead by pushing it inside the cleaner through the hole it came out of. Most of the lead was still knotted up inside when I opened the cleaner. The mind does wonder.

 

[vintagerepairer]

Jamie you overlook a number of points. the suction power of the cleaner was only one factor. The convenience of a cylinder for a good deal of tasks can be worth it's weight in gold. My mother owned an Electrolux 504 which she loved, but soon bought an Electrolux 302 too for upstairs as there was a good deal of hard flooring up there. Whilst her 504 had good suction and a full set of tools (indeed the floor tool on the 504 was better than the one which the 302 came with), she still prefered pulling a cylinder round when cleaning with the hose for long periods. It was easier for high level tasks too as the cleaner could be stood on end for extra reach and was easier on stairs.

Modern uprights all have stretch hoses, which, when combined with lots of suction, are very difficult to use. To some extent I would say that although the power of modern upright cleaners has increased, the convenience of using the tools has become less so.

 

[madabouthoovers]

I wish the plastic Dyson used on the DC07 were top notch - I've never known a cleaner that so many different plastic parts become brittle and snap off or crack.
Funnily enough theres a philips cylinder on EBay now that I'm interested in, but dont know much about them though, Seller says its a T300 - any thoughts?

 

[beko1987]

That crevice tool looks like it's from a different cleaner! Different shade of grey (no gray jokes please...)

 

[jmurray01]

What about ? It seems logical for somebody to try and store the flex inside the cleaner...

 

[jmurray01]

That T300 has a Numatic floor tool by the looks of it.

As for the crevice tool being a different shade of grey (there are 50 different shades you know...) that doesn't surprise me. The crevice tool on my U800 is a different shade from the hose nozzle. That is cheap products for you, but none-the-less good performing.

 

[vintagerepairer]

Very funny about the grey Jamie. It is a genuine Philips tool, but not off this model. T300 was another cheap but good model. Again, downside was no usable space to store the lead.

They also had a major fault in the switch. Unlike the P60 style which had the same sort of heavy duty switch under the pedal as a good deal of other makes (Like Electrolux cylinders for example), this one has smaller, softer switch like the Vax 2000 style cleaners had. These switches were fine for a hand switch, but could not cope with the force of a foot. Add to that the hose which would frequently bang the huge foot pedal and thus press the switch off and on, as would knocking the cleaner against a surface when carrying it around, it added to a massive amount of wear on the tiny switch.

 

[madabouthoovers]

So you recknon that T300 is not all original then - I thought it looked a tidy cleaner and bidding starts at £17. Its in Manchester so I could drive there to get it

 

[vintagerepairer]

Sorry it was Beko who made the funny joke. Jamie the floor tool is a Wessel Werk, the design of which has been used on more cleaners than I could think of. Vax was the major one, but so, so many cleaners have had them. It is original for the T300 and was widely available as a spare part for all makes and models.

 

[vintagerepairer]

Only the crevice tool is not original to that model. But it still looks like an original Philips part. As I said earlier, people often bought the 'missing' parts.

 

[jmurray01]

By all means bid Steve, it is in good condition by the looks of things.

 

[madabouthoovers]

So what you are saying is that it doesnt have a cord rewind? not that thats a major problem, but its unusual for a cylinder not to have it. the seller doesnt say there is a problem with the switch, but I'm gonna keep my eye on the price and may go for it as I dont have many cylinders in my collection, and although its cheap and basic, its the condition that appeals to me. Does it have a 32mm or 35mm pipe?

 

[jmurray01]

I'd guess 35mm because that is what my U800 has.

 

[vintagerepairer]

No it is 32mm. I did mention this earlier. Philips used a 32mm tube with a spring loaded ball inside the tube. The 35mm on your upright Jamie is such because this model, as you know, is not made by Philips. It was made by a 3rd party and used by a good deal of manufacturers.

Whilst the Philips tubes are 32mm, they do not taper in the same way as an Electrolux for example does. The Philips is a straight end tube, using the ball to lock attachments in place. Because of this, one has to be very careful to make sure that any other 32mm attachments used are a good fit, as some do not allow much of the Philips tube to sit inside of it.

The T300 does not have a cordwinder. Though much later than the P60, it is essentially the cleaner which replaced that base model some years later.

 

[madabouthoovers]

35mm? thats the size Miele and Bosch use, so I'd have accessories that would fit that hose then - just another thought, is the wand plasic or black metal, as I'm just not keen on plastic wands. Any Idea how old the T300 might be? all these questions lol - Philips cleaners are a new brand for me, never had one, although I do have a Philips LCD 32" TV and thats been brilliant!

 

[vintagerepairer]

The T300 started in the early part of the 1990s. It had light grey plastic tubes and mains lead, but this was updated after a couple of years to dark grey, which is what we see here. As for sizes of tube, well I think you were typing at the same time as myself, so you may have missed my reply.

 

[madabouthoovers]

Thanks Benny for the info, and based on that, I dont think I will go for it after all, as I dont really like plastic tubes - metal is best for them. Sounds very basic and with the costs to collect it will mean nearly £30 for it assuming there is no other interest in it.
Might turn my attention to the Electrolux 522 thats in Preston, although it will probably sell for a high price in the end.

 

[vintagerepairer]

The Philips tubes were very flexible. Having said that, they rarely broke, mainly because the fittins did not taper into a tight fit. A good fit, yes, but not tight. The tubes also fitted deeply into each other, which helped. These machines were great for small homes and could last forever if bought as a second cleaner for jobs involving the hose.