Saved a Royal Dirt Devil 08100 hand vac

[human]

Yeah, I needed it like I need another hole in my head, but I stopped off it Goodwill on the way home from work this afternoon, and kind of like an active alcoholic stopping off at a bar, not intending to drink but doing so anyway, I found this dusty Royal Dirt Devil 08100 hand vac (black plastic) in its original, albeit beat up, box with all of its original paperwork and two unused style G paper bag liners, along with one installed that was pristine on the inside and dusty on the outside. It was only $8 and I figured it would be worth that for the brush roll, if I ever needed one for one of my metal Royal Prince 501 handhelds, so I bought it.

I tried it out when I got it home an it was belching dust everywhere and didn't pick up a darn thing, just shifted stuff around with the brush roll. I couldn't see an obstruction from either the nozzle end or the nipple for the paper bag liner, so after I verified the belt was correctly installed, I got out a screwdriver and opened the machine up. What I discovered was a 100 percent blockage between those two ends, made up primarily of paper shreds. I dug out what I could with my fingers, blew the rest out with my air compressor, and when I put it all back together, the machine works great. I still like the metal 501s better, but it's still not a bad deal for the price of a hamburger. I'll post some photos tomorrow.

 

[human]

As promised, here are some photos of the Dirt Devil handheld. I'm not sure what earns it the 'Plus' designation on the cloth bag. When I had it apart, I noticed the manufacture date for the motor was November 1996, making this machine a late '96 model or possibly early '97. Although it has a bit too much plastic for my tastes, I have to say I do appreciate its accessible and repairable design, not to mention the fact that there's not a circuit board in sight. All in all, I'm glad I was able to save it from the bin, which is exactly where it would have ended up, given the condition it was in when I got it.