vintagekitchen
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The Sears vacs wait patiently in line..
Pics From The Vac Shop
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vintagekitchen
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A wee Connie, hiding behind big brother...
vintagekitchen
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You name it, I bet Jim has it..
vintagekitchen
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Silly Wash Wizard, trying to blend in with the cool kids over on Electrolux alley...
vintagekitchen
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Those uppity GE's always did think they were above Electrolux...
vintagekitchen
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Last one guys, look at all the options..
vintagekitchen
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Ok, thats all the pics for now. I will post some pics of the ones I brought home in another thread.
It was an awesome trip, and between Jim and The Lost Boys I had no worries at all for a place to stay, not to mention the food and entertainment. I would be willing to go back just for fun, even if it wasnt for all the vacs, but the vacs certainly make it all the more tempting...
It was an awesome trip, and between Jim and The Lost Boys I had no worries at all for a place to stay, not to mention the food and entertainment. I would be willing to go back just for fun, even if it wasnt for all the vacs, but the vacs certainly make it all the more tempting...
vintagerepairer
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Great pictures. It reminds me of the shop I had, except of course I had UK cleaners. I have no idea why, but I never considered that Vax had been sold in the USA. Maybe because I've not seen it mentioned before. Would you mind suggesting how well received Vax was in the USA? And what is the idea of the Wash Wizard? It looks like a white Vax from the 100 range.
vintagekitchen
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Vax and Wash Wizard
Truly, I know nothing at all about the Vax. I had never seen one in person before. Jim can probably add more about ts reception, since to my knowledge it wasn't sold in my area. As for the Wash Wizard, I believe it was a carpet shampooer/shop vac type set up, as best I could tell. There were so many vacs to look at that I only gave it a cursory exam before moving on.
Truly, I know nothing at all about the Vax. I had never seen one in person before. Jim can probably add more about ts reception, since to my knowledge it wasn't sold in my area. As for the Wash Wizard, I believe it was a carpet shampooer/shop vac type set up, as best I could tell. There were so many vacs to look at that I only gave it a cursory exam before moving on.
vintagerepairer
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Thank you for that. The Vax in the UK was a carpet washer, really it was the first of it's kind for domestic use. So much so, a good deal of the in the 1980's carried the slogan "The only one that washes" around the recovery tub. This was of course before other manufacturers bought out their own 3-in-1 machines. Vax was very well relieved in the UK. They were very big news, and were bought by many people, including those who had always had upright cleaners.
rugsucker
Well-known member
the place of which we do not speak
Kevin,Good job with pics.I couldn't have done better and as you didn't see me operate anything more advanced than a Roadmaster wagon with woodgrain you will understand.---Bagintheback,"All vacs & parts for sale"?Let's say MOST need a new home.(to repeat-The dumpster is 50 ft,the scrap yard is 1 mi,where are you?)This works best if someone,such as Kevin,drives up with a large cargo space and relatively small amount of currency.But would consider anything to get what you want to where you want it.---Vintagerepairer,The orange VAX appeared in early 90s and was marketed to vac shops who seem to have had little interest and Sears who carried it for a time.I remember walking through local Sears and seeing VAX cleaning solution on closeout table at reduced price.It then reappeared as the red Dirt Devil Cyclone.My white is labeled Wash Wizard by Vax and know nothing more.My opinion is it looked to much like shop type vac and to complicated for average customer to switch bags,tanks and filters for different jobs.Also unknown unlike the also complicated Kirby which was known for quality and power.VAX trivia-The US Life magazine had article on M Thatcher when prime minister that had a picture of visiting daughter when house was being redecorated and shows orange VAX in middle of living room.-Also book on hot air balloons shows VAX balloon.
Kevin,Good job with pics.I couldn't have done better and as you didn't see me operate anything more advanced than a Roadmaster wagon with woodgrain you will understand.---Bagintheback,"All vacs & parts for sale"?Let's say MOST need a new home.(to repeat-The dumpster is 50 ft,the scrap yard is 1 mi,where are you?)This works best if someone,such as Kevin,drives up with a large cargo space and relatively small amount of currency.But would consider anything to get what you want to where you want it.---Vintagerepairer,The orange VAX appeared in early 90s and was marketed to vac shops who seem to have had little interest and Sears who carried it for a time.I remember walking through local Sears and seeing VAX cleaning solution on closeout table at reduced price.It then reappeared as the red Dirt Devil Cyclone.My white is labeled Wash Wizard by Vax and know nothing more.My opinion is it looked to much like shop type vac and to complicated for average customer to switch bags,tanks and filters for different jobs.Also unknown unlike the also complicated Kirby which was known for quality and power.VAX trivia-The US Life magazine had article on M Thatcher when prime minister that had a picture of visiting daughter when house was being redecorated and shows orange VAX in middle of living room.-Also book on hot air balloons shows VAX balloon.
vintagerepairer
Well-known member
Rugsucker, thank you for your information. Here in the UK we were not at all accustomed to using wet & dry cleaners to clean our homes in quite the same way that we did with uprights and cylinders machines. Because of this, Vax did very well to break down those barriers with their new machine. The size of the cleaner was enough to put people off now that I reflect on your comments, and yet whilst a good deal of people will have bought something smaller in the fullness of time, there were many who used their Vax as a dry vacuum cleaner until the very end.
It was the idea that one could wet-clean carpets one's self which really got people excited over here. Vax cleaners sold and sold and sold again. From about 1983 until 1995, Vax were still 'THE' cleaner which people wanted. Whether Vax knew that people would very quickly bore of such a facility I don't know, but it was very hard work to Vax-clean carpets, not to mention a messy procedure which needed lots and lots of time to prepare the room, prepare the machine, execute the cleaning, dispose of the dirty water & clean the machine, and restore the room to it's regular state. It was the novelty of such a machine which 'sold' it, and Vax had the ultimate back-up plan built into the cleaner; you could use it as a regular dry vacuum. This mean several things and I will mention a couple if I may, one, anyone who was sitting on the fence over the purchase of a Vax could be easily persuaded that the fact the cleaner could be used dry would mean they were certain to gain their moneys worth. Two, you would be less inclined to lend it out to someone if it was your only vacuum cleaner, unlike a shampoo-only machine which would often sit in the cupboard for months -if not years- on end, waiting for someone to borrow it off of you.
The Vax cleaners were well built and their only fault was that the hose on a good deal of the 121 models was very poor. For me, that was a huge bonus as I sold many replacement hoses. But the cleaners were very rugged and many of the other brands which competed with Vax were a pale imitation in my eyes.
It was the idea that one could wet-clean carpets one's self which really got people excited over here. Vax cleaners sold and sold and sold again. From about 1983 until 1995, Vax were still 'THE' cleaner which people wanted. Whether Vax knew that people would very quickly bore of such a facility I don't know, but it was very hard work to Vax-clean carpets, not to mention a messy procedure which needed lots and lots of time to prepare the room, prepare the machine, execute the cleaning, dispose of the dirty water & clean the machine, and restore the room to it's regular state. It was the novelty of such a machine which 'sold' it, and Vax had the ultimate back-up plan built into the cleaner; you could use it as a regular dry vacuum. This mean several things and I will mention a couple if I may, one, anyone who was sitting on the fence over the purchase of a Vax could be easily persuaded that the fact the cleaner could be used dry would mean they were certain to gain their moneys worth. Two, you would be less inclined to lend it out to someone if it was your only vacuum cleaner, unlike a shampoo-only machine which would often sit in the cupboard for months -if not years- on end, waiting for someone to borrow it off of you.
The Vax cleaners were well built and their only fault was that the hose on a good deal of the 121 models was very poor. For me, that was a huge bonus as I sold many replacement hoses. But the cleaners were very rugged and many of the other brands which competed with Vax were a pale imitation in my eyes.
