So I found a CMS 1000

[broomvac]

Thanks cam2s and AmwayClearTrak! In a way, I actually think it would be nice if mine were one of the later versions like yours so I could have the option of using one of the replacement parts from WMJ should I need it in the future. It turns out there is a lot different about my early CMS 1000 compared to the current version, rendering many of the new parts incompatible. Cyclone, bin, hood, hose, motor housing, suction switchover valve, belt, and more I'm sure.

I wonder why the later models don't have the ring around the inner cyclone? The ring appears as though it would help prevent debris from entering the inner cyclone. Perhaps the design was changed later due to patent infringement.

I noticed that the inner cyclone is actually pretty efficient in my CMS. After vacuuming up all that dirt, I found only an imperceptibly thin coating of fine dust on the foam. Not a single large particle or strand of hair made it to the filter.

 

[panasonicvac]

My best guess was that they probably did changed the cyclone due to that patent infringement like you said.

I wouldn't technically say that I like these vacuums, I just find them so interesting and fascinating. Especially those YouTube videos that I've watched from Happy Carpet Cleaners. I still know the story behind these but I would love to find a CleatTrak one of these days, I've been after one of those for a long time.

 

[ben23]

Here in Sydney, Australia, my dad bought a CMS1000 (one of the last ones) in early 1991 as the vacuum for his carpet cleaning business (a franchise of Electrodry Carpet Cleaning, the Aussies among us will remember the brightly coloured Ford Econovans (rebadged Mazda E series vans), at a time when pretty much all the other franchisees were using Kirby Legend II and early G3 machines.

The customers loved the fact that they could see what had come out of their carpet during the pre-vacuum, even when they had already vaccumed it. He also loved being able to switch to the on board hose to clean crevices and skirtings without the relatively longer process of removing the floor head from the Kirby and fitting the above floor hose.

We had the machine for a while, the power cord was replaced with an excessively long length of orange heavy duty flex due to failure of the original cord, and the power switch failed, so he simply bypassed it and turned it on and off at the wall.

Eventually the motor must have failed somehow as it kept tripping any RCD protected circuit it was plugged into (GFCI for the US) and it got tossed out. This would have been in the mid 00s.