Private-Label Kirby Cleaners?

[kirbyclassiciii]

As I was visiting my Facebook group "Kirby Vacuum Group USA," James Brown (kirbymodel2c here) just showed me his latest vintage Kirby find: a rebadged Classic 1CR sold as the Cimex C40.

Unlike other 240V Kirbys before 1981, this Classic 1CR variant had the usual 2-speed motor, and its bag was a simple golden cloth bag with no logo patch on the front of it (kind of like what Kirby used for late rebuilds of the 1CR and Omega 1CB).

This leads me to ask: while I know Kirby made cleaners for Cimex for sale in the UK (where Mr. Brown is from), were there any private-label Kirbys sold here in the USA?

~Ben

 

[oreck_xl]

I can think of three off the top of my head...

The American Lincoln Super Sweep, the SuperVac180, and the Janitronic

 

[TheSpiritOf76]

I was going to say the same thing as....

Oreck_XL did, but if you ask Kirby, they claim that that they didn't make any private labels, or knock offs. Those were made my Scott and Fetzer, NOT Kirby...lol...Which is obviously mincing words because Scott and Fetzer IS Kirby..lol...


 


Ben, I would love to see a pic of the Cimex C40.

 

[kirbyclassiciii]

TheSpiritof76

Jae,

Not the best of quality, but here's a Facebook video of that machine:
https://video.fsnc1-1.fna.fbcdn.net...=d2ffcbb0de3d4eafe0eff8c44e55ec70&oe=5902AC2D
(credit to kirbymodel2c)

~Ben

 

[bvac6]

One for sale in UK, with pics!

http://https//picclick.co.uk/Cimex-c40-vintage-hoover-382001244105.html

 

[kirbyclassiciii]

bvac6

Brad,

That sale is over, and that unit is likely the one James had just bought!

~Ben

 

[repairman]

Mr. Mom

I wonder if Scott & Fetzer made Stanley vacuum for the movie Mr. Mom or if the vacuum was custom made for that movie. The light looks different and it sounded like a Hoover Convertible.

 

[craig_1982]

Blimey not seen Mr Mom in about 30 year's I remember watching it as a little boy and for a time afterwards giving me nightmares, we had a similar looking Heritage Kirby I used to think it was going to have a mind of it's own, chase me around the house and suck me up just like the one in Mr Mom, it does look like a modified Kirby Classic in the film I suppose a few aesthetic changes wouldn't have been too hard to achieve for the film.

 

[kirbykleankarpet]

Hm, this is something I did not know about. I never knew Kirby made knock-off vacuums. Learn something new every day!

~Tim