~
~
The diehard Electrolux nuts among us know that there was a very short-lived version of the Model LX, called the LXI, that was sold for only about six months in 1955 before the Model E-Automatic came out.
There were some significant changes in the LXI that set it apart.
(1) The blower-end cover was designed exactly like the rear end of the Model E and E-Automatic except that it's chrome-plated. A chrome "halo" for storing the cord was provided when the optional cord winder was not purchased. A small metal hook for attaching the cord is located on the top-rear-side of the machine where the halo is attached.
(2) The cord winder is the swing-open type, rather than the kind that comes off. (Thus, the halo and swing-open cord winder were first introduced on the LXI and not on the E.)
(3) There's a rear axle attached to the runners, with two rubber wheels. (Not to be confused with the after-market wheels that clamped onto the ends of runners as two separate attachments. The LXI actually had a separate rear axle for the wheels.
(4) The area where the bag storage clamp used to be was done away with; in its place is a large rubber caster that makes the machine glide along as if it weighs nothing!
Well, many years ago I happened to find a copy of a Model LXI manual in a used bookstore that showed, on two different pages, these design changes. Somewhere along the way it got lost and I've been looking for one ever since.
Whenever an LX manual came up on eBay, if it was the version with the silver-only side rails instead of the earlier, more luxurious version with the red and gold plastic insert, I bought the manual if it didn't go up too high.
Time after time it was a disappointment -- just the usual LX manual that I already have copies of.
Then last week one came up. For some reason I got the TWINGLE big time -- I had a feeling THIS WAS IT!
I paid for the manual and waited for it to come. Today was the big day. My hands were trembling so badly (and still are!!) that I could barely open the Priority Mail jacket. I finally got open ... pulled out to the manual ... turned to page 44 ...
OMG!!! EUREKA!!! VOILA!!! I =finally= found it!!
"What's the big flipping deal," you may well ask! It's because the first time I found an LXI in a thrift shop many years ago, sometime in the early 1980s before the Internet or any vacuum cleaner clubs, I thought I'd found some sort of design prototype as I had never seen an LX with these details. Eventually I found out about the LXI and how rare it really is.
Okay, so here's a shipload of photos. Hope y'all enjoy sharing this wonderful find with me!!
~
The diehard Electrolux nuts among us know that there was a very short-lived version of the Model LX, called the LXI, that was sold for only about six months in 1955 before the Model E-Automatic came out.
There were some significant changes in the LXI that set it apart.
(1) The blower-end cover was designed exactly like the rear end of the Model E and E-Automatic except that it's chrome-plated. A chrome "halo" for storing the cord was provided when the optional cord winder was not purchased. A small metal hook for attaching the cord is located on the top-rear-side of the machine where the halo is attached.
(2) The cord winder is the swing-open type, rather than the kind that comes off. (Thus, the halo and swing-open cord winder were first introduced on the LXI and not on the E.)
(3) There's a rear axle attached to the runners, with two rubber wheels. (Not to be confused with the after-market wheels that clamped onto the ends of runners as two separate attachments. The LXI actually had a separate rear axle for the wheels.
(4) The area where the bag storage clamp used to be was done away with; in its place is a large rubber caster that makes the machine glide along as if it weighs nothing!
Well, many years ago I happened to find a copy of a Model LXI manual in a used bookstore that showed, on two different pages, these design changes. Somewhere along the way it got lost and I've been looking for one ever since.
Whenever an LX manual came up on eBay, if it was the version with the silver-only side rails instead of the earlier, more luxurious version with the red and gold plastic insert, I bought the manual if it didn't go up too high.
Time after time it was a disappointment -- just the usual LX manual that I already have copies of.
Then last week one came up. For some reason I got the TWINGLE big time -- I had a feeling THIS WAS IT!
I paid for the manual and waited for it to come. Today was the big day. My hands were trembling so badly (and still are!!) that I could barely open the Priority Mail jacket. I finally got open ... pulled out to the manual ... turned to page 44 ...
OMG!!! EUREKA!!! VOILA!!! I =finally= found it!!
"What's the big flipping deal," you may well ask! It's because the first time I found an LXI in a thrift shop many years ago, sometime in the early 1980s before the Internet or any vacuum cleaner clubs, I thought I'd found some sort of design prototype as I had never seen an LX with these details. Eventually I found out about the LXI and how rare it really is.
Okay, so here's a shipload of photos. Hope y'all enjoy sharing this wonderful find with me!!
