Sep. 1958 article - Eureka & Lewyt Canisters add Beating Action
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eurekaprince
Well-known member
Thanks for this Paul!!!
I’ll never forget what Consumer Reports said about Eureka’s Vibra-Beat nozzle in one report in the 1960’s:
“Much ado about nothing”.
(Apparently, the rubber rods that vibrated in the nozzle also blocked dirt from getting past them and into the air stream in the wands…)
I’ll never forget what Consumer Reports said about Eureka’s Vibra-Beat nozzle in one report in the 1960’s:
“Much ado about nothing”.
(Apparently, the rubber rods that vibrated in the nozzle also blocked dirt from getting past them and into the air stream in the wands…)
kirbylux77
Well-known member
Paul
Interesting article! Thanks for posting this. One thing I find interesting is that they make no mention of the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment that was introduced in the early 50's as a optional item that could either be used as a traditional carpet sweeper, or added to the hose & wands to add grooming action to the vacuum. This would have been the first advance to a canister having the beating action of a upright, & from what I understand was pretty effective for it's time.
Brian - Yes you're right about Consumer Reports and the effectiveness of the Eureka Vibra Beat nozzle. At least SCM Lewyt improved on the idea in the 1960s with their version of the Vibra Beat nozzle. Do you recall what Consumer Reports said about those Lewyt nozzles by chance?
If there's any discontinued vacuum attachments that should be brought back, that Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment is one of them. Absolutely brilliant idea! And one that I think, if the brushes were improved and it was made to move the brushes a little faster with the back and forth movement, I think it could be a viable alternative to the turbo brushes which rob the vacuum of the airflow while providing brushing action without the electrical connections required for a electric powerhead.
Interesting article! Thanks for posting this. One thing I find interesting is that they make no mention of the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment that was introduced in the early 50's as a optional item that could either be used as a traditional carpet sweeper, or added to the hose & wands to add grooming action to the vacuum. This would have been the first advance to a canister having the beating action of a upright, & from what I understand was pretty effective for it's time.
Brian - Yes you're right about Consumer Reports and the effectiveness of the Eureka Vibra Beat nozzle. At least SCM Lewyt improved on the idea in the 1960s with their version of the Vibra Beat nozzle. Do you recall what Consumer Reports said about those Lewyt nozzles by chance?
If there's any discontinued vacuum attachments that should be brought back, that Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment is one of them. Absolutely brilliant idea! And one that I think, if the brushes were improved and it was made to move the brushes a little faster with the back and forth movement, I think it could be a viable alternative to the turbo brushes which rob the vacuum of the airflow while providing brushing action without the electrical connections required for a electric powerhead.
eurekaprince
Well-known member
Interesting! I don’t remember any CR issue that addressed the effectiveness of the Lewyt version of the VibraBeat nozzle. What did Lewyt’s version have that was different in comparison to Eureka’s?
I do like that idea of a carpet nozzle with a manual carpet sweeper mechanism…seems like a brilliant concept!
So far, from what I have read, Sunbeam was the first to offer an air-driven turbo carpet nozzle, and Whirlpool was the first to offer a wired electrical motor driven power nozzle…..both in the 1950’s! And Miele was the first to try a rechargeable powered carpet nozzle about a decade ago.
I do like that idea of a carpet nozzle with a manual carpet sweeper mechanism…seems like a brilliant concept!
So far, from what I have read, Sunbeam was the first to offer an air-driven turbo carpet nozzle, and Whirlpool was the first to offer a wired electrical motor driven power nozzle…..both in the 1950’s! And Miele was the first to try a rechargeable powered carpet nozzle about a decade ago.
kirbylux77
Well-known member
Brian, from what I understand they used 2 rubber bands in the Lewyt copy of the Vibra Beat nozzle. So it stands to reason that the dirt would be able to pass through the nozzle better, thus resulting in better cleaning. As for whether Consumer Reports ever tested the Lewyt canisters in the 1960s after SCM bought the Lewyt name, let alone whether they tested the Lewyt copy of the Vibra Beat nozzle, hopefully someone sees this, has a copy of Consumer Reports from that era, and a Lewyt was tested. It would stand to reason the Lewyt copy would clean slightly better, for obvious reasons.
Aeoliandave - Dave Kerr from Stratford on here - has posted in the past some posters about the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment from the early 1950s that would have been a optional attachment for the 2nd Lewyt tub canister that took a bag, the one that replaced the models 40 and 44 that infringed on the Filter Queen patents. I believe either Doug Smith or Dave Kerr may actually own one of these nozzles as well. I will see if I can find the thread on it later, and some photos. But I wholeheartedly agree with you - it IS a brilliant idea! A shame they didn't keep that design and Lewyt or other manufacturers slowly work on and improve it over time. In this day and age where we see homes of all kinds switching to hardwood floors and area rugs, the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment would be perfect IF they could improve the brushing action and make it work better with each forward and back stroke. It would be a great addition to many cheap straight suction canisters, like the Simplicity Jill/Riccar Sunburst, Eureka Mighty Mite, Numatic Henry canisters, Miele C1 straight suction canisters, etc., and I would think greatly improve their performance compared to a airflow-robbing turbo brush.
As for Miele, yes they did try the Accu Nova battery powerhead, and from what I understand the main issue that made it bad was the battery pack not lasting long. Of course that isn't a issue years later, but the way I look at it is, the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper Attachment would take away the electronics that can go bad and do the job simply and effectively with little to wear down or break. Having said that, their limitation would be is that it would be most effective on low to medium pile carpets - on thicker rugs, full size battery powerheads like the Perfect Battery Powerhead and the battery powered version of the Wessel Werk EBK360 would be much more suited and ideal.
Aeoliandave - Dave Kerr from Stratford on here - has posted in the past some posters about the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment from the early 1950s that would have been a optional attachment for the 2nd Lewyt tub canister that took a bag, the one that replaced the models 40 and 44 that infringed on the Filter Queen patents. I believe either Doug Smith or Dave Kerr may actually own one of these nozzles as well. I will see if I can find the thread on it later, and some photos. But I wholeheartedly agree with you - it IS a brilliant idea! A shame they didn't keep that design and Lewyt or other manufacturers slowly work on and improve it over time. In this day and age where we see homes of all kinds switching to hardwood floors and area rugs, the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment would be perfect IF they could improve the brushing action and make it work better with each forward and back stroke. It would be a great addition to many cheap straight suction canisters, like the Simplicity Jill/Riccar Sunburst, Eureka Mighty Mite, Numatic Henry canisters, Miele C1 straight suction canisters, etc., and I would think greatly improve their performance compared to a airflow-robbing turbo brush.
As for Miele, yes they did try the Accu Nova battery powerhead, and from what I understand the main issue that made it bad was the battery pack not lasting long. Of course that isn't a issue years later, but the way I look at it is, the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper Attachment would take away the electronics that can go bad and do the job simply and effectively with little to wear down or break. Having said that, their limitation would be is that it would be most effective on low to medium pile carpets - on thicker rugs, full size battery powerheads like the Perfect Battery Powerhead and the battery powered version of the Wessel Werk EBK360 would be much more suited and ideal.
canisterman
Active member
I have
One of the Lewyt push sweeper attachments if i can find it, its just a small carpet sweeper with a red plastic brush , they came with a model 55
One of the Lewyt push sweeper attachments if i can find it, its just a small carpet sweeper with a red plastic brush , they came with a model 55
kirbylux77
Well-known member
Thanks Paul. To me, it's just a good common sense idea that, with a little modern engineering, could be a ideal solution to having a revolving brush on a straight suction canister WITHOUT the disadvantages of a turbobrush or without the electronics and battery of a battery powerhead. I am actually tempted to contact a few companies and see what they think.
Hans, if you can find it, I would love yo see a picture of the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment. Yes I get you, it may not seem like that much, but I think it was a revolutionary idea for it's time....and perhaps for the future.
Hans, if you can find it, I would love yo see a picture of the Lewyt Carpet Sweeper attachment. Yes I get you, it may not seem like that much, but I think it was a revolutionary idea for it's time....and perhaps for the future.
eurekaprince
Well-known member
I think the biggest challenge with a carpet sweeper attachment is that the brush roll ends up in the middle of the nozzle very far from the front edge. It would really need to have a very flexible neck so you could brush from side to side as well.
My thought is that the rechargeable Shark Swivel Sweeper from about 20 years ago could be modified as a rechargeable attachment for canister vacs. Somehow, they were able to make a rechargeable carpet sweeper that did not require a heavy cumbersome battery onboard. Shark should adapt that sweeper to be attachable to a canister vac’s wand.
My thought is that the rechargeable Shark Swivel Sweeper from about 20 years ago could be modified as a rechargeable attachment for canister vacs. Somehow, they were able to make a rechargeable carpet sweeper that did not require a heavy cumbersome battery onboard. Shark should adapt that sweeper to be attachable to a canister vac’s wand.
eurekaprince
Well-known member
Correction: that original Swivel Sweeper was not made by Shark.
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