Sunbeam Touch N Go

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funvacfan

Well-known member
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Jan 8, 2007
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612
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Picked up a real oddity today at the thrift! A very space age looking upright (kinda like a lightweight sweeper). It's 60's blue and actually has a beater bar.

The beater bar is only, maybe 5" long. The really neat thing is, I don't think it was used much (maybe twice). No scratches, original grey Sunbeam paper bag installed (just a bit of lint and hair in it). Oh...and a price sticker on the back that says $29.75 and a hardware store insignia.

Anybody heard of these? OK...who has sunbeam bags and belts these days?

Guy
 
Oh Guy, you don't want that dreadful thing I'm sure of it. Prolly full of cooties and who knows what anyways. So being the great guy I am and always thinking of others I'll be up Hamilton way this Saturday to take it off your hands gratis. No need to thank me I'm glad to do it.
 
Guy!

I have one of those too. In blue. Mine does not have a bag and i'm wondering what it looks like? Is it possible to snap a picture of it?

To ward off any Petes that may appear at your doorstep, leave a big cake, any flavor, and that should keep him happy ...for awhile! ;-)

Marty
 
I'd stop for cake!

Yes Pete, it is full of cooties! I didn't know other parts of the the world didn't know what cooties are.

Marty, thanks for the advice of setting out cake, it would keep me busy! I don't have a camara, so I can't take a pic. But...when I do get one, and learn how to use it, I will have a lot of pics to take!

Guy
 
I'd stop for cake!

Yes Pete, it is full of cooties! I didn't know other parts of the the world didn't know what cooties are.

Marty, thanks for the advice of setting out cake, it would keep me busy! I don't have a camara, so I can't take a pic. But...when I do get one, and learn how to use it, I will have a lot of pics to take!

Guy
 
Look at what I found

here in St. Louis at an estate sale yesterday. When I first espied it leaning against a wall next to a rake, I thought it was some kind of a lady-weed-whacker. But no! What we have is a genUine Sunbeam, model 601, Touch 'n Go Vac with rotating brush. I took it home and gave it the full beauty treatment including motor disassembly and cleaning. I was lucky that it still had a belt in satisfactory condition and a rather full bag in the housing. The bag had either worked itself loose or was never correctly installed so, before the beauty treatment, dust blew everywhere when I turned it on.

I salvaged the bag by cutting it open at the bottom end and dumping out the bulk of the dirt. Then I CAREFULLY turned it inside-out and vacuumed it clean. Then I soaked it down with Lysol spray and let it air dry. Then I turned it right-side-out, re-worked the pleats, folded over the open end and stapled it shut.

Some day next week I'll check one of my local, beautifully dusty and cluttered old vacuum repair shops to see if I can scrounge up some bags and belts.

Best to all,

Marty Kaplan

10-7-2007-09-02-28--marukap.jpg
 
That's the cutest little doodahd i've seen in a long time!

I presume it's dirty air?
 
Dirty as can be! Even so, there is no cooling fan on the motor. It is cooled by the exhaust air forced through an approximately 2 sq. in. fuzzy-wire-mesh filter (akin to that found on a Hoover Dial-a-Matic) installed at the base of the bag housing.
 
It's a shame you couldn't make the dirty air flow go through the motor like a fan :P that would cool it quite well imo, alas it would eventually clog up quite badly and, in a lovely bit of irony, overheat the motor.

Either way it looks like a nice clean, yet "chintzy" design..I wouldn't have expected anything less from 1970s Sunbeam :]
 
Eureka Whisk

Marty, I love your Touch 'n Go, and your resourceful solution to the bag problem. I found two of these wonderful little Eureka Whisks a few years ago. The first one came with its blue vinyl shoulder strap, a blue plastic wand, crevice tool, brush, upholstery tool, and a short white vinyl hose. It did not have the plug in the face where the hose goes, so I taped a piece of cardboard over it. That one, and the one in the picture here, have the original bags and filters in them. One day I did find an opened pack of bags, but since they are so hard to come by, they won't be used until they have to be. The suction is great.

10-7-2007-10-26-15--arh1953.jpg
 

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