Surprise gift!

[fantomfan57]

I was given an Electrolux 1205 this afternoon. Came with an extra gray woven hose. It was a gift as the owner thought it was too cumbersome, did not want sell in on Craigslist or send it to the landfill. She had rescued it from her daughter's garage thinking she would use it.

I looks like it was very well taken care of. I have not tried it out as I was working on reassembling my Vita-Vac and cleaning a Lux 5000.

Just thought I would share.

 

[real1shep]

Awesome.....

one of my favorite machines. Looks like you got all the basics except for the matching upholstery brush. I wish someone would take umbrage and give me a vacuum...gawd knows I've spent a small fortune on buying 'em.


 


It's true, the modern cleaner person does not want to lug around a well-built canister...their loss is your gain. I use the HEPA 'Perfect' bags in all my vacuums from the G onward. Everything gets filtered that way except the dust from your motor's brushes.


 


If you wanna polish the metal bits, Mother's Mag Polish does and exquisite job on all Electrolux machines.....followed by a good car wax. Enjoy!


 


Kevin

 

[electrolux137]

~
~

Nice! That's a beautiful machine. I'd love to see a photo of the extra gray hose...

 

[real1shep]

Yeah....

me too....although it's probably a 'leaker'. If the motor's good, it should wind down for quite a while after you shut it off and pull at least 65" of WC.


 


Kevin

 

[human]

Nice machine...

...and generous friend.

I've got a pair of 1205s and I really like them. One I've had for almost 13 years and the other one I rescued from my parents' attic this summer. Those old metal Electrolux canisters are really hard to beat. I'm sure it'll clean up great and serve you well for years to come.

Word to the wise: That 'T' shaped handle on top is the one really weak part of the machine's design. I highly recommend that you lift it by the shorter part that runs across the front and not the longer part that runs down the back. The one from my parents' attic had pulled loose at the back years ago and eventually snapped off. Replacements usually don't come cheap, either.

 

[real1shep]

I think the....

handles break sometimes because they come loose and flex too much. One of those issues to attend to immediately rather than later.


 


Kevin

 

[fantomfan57]

Thanks Kevin, Charles and Edgar...

Kevin, I did not think to wax the parts after polishing, good to know.

Charles, I will add a picture of that hose as soon as I get done and open the box again to inspect the 1205.

Edgar, thanks for the handle advice..does that mean you need a handle? I might have one.

 

[real1shep]

Yeah.....

I learned the hard with collecting knives. If you polish them and don't oil them, they will lose the luster once put away and some time passes. Since you don't usually oil the metal on vacuum parts, using a good auto wax will help preserve your hard polishing efforts.


 


Kevin

 

[human]

Thanks for the offer. I lucked into one on eBay for $7 shipped, right after I got the machine home. That prompted me to go ahead and tear the machine down, give it a proper cleaning and fit it out with an electrified vinyl hose, wand and Power nozzle, which it hadn't had before. Originally, it had not had a power nozzle so with all that, it's now working better than ever.

 

[luxkid1980]

Those are great machines; hefty and well made. To me, that's what a canister vacuum should look like!

 

[fantomfan57]

Charles & Kevin...

Here is the gray hose attached. I just tried out the vacuum, strong suction, sounds wonderful and it really is in great shape.

The blue hose leaks some, so I will be resealing it from inside as soon as Texas' weather settles down.

The gray hose looks normal, it may have a slight leak going on.

On another note, I will experiment with slightly heating the weave on the outside of the woven hoses once I have resealed them....to soften the roughness.

 

[lux14]

Heating the weave on the outside.

Hello there......I have sealed the inside of the hose with Plasti Dip successfully. I have never heard of heating the outside of the weave to give the exterior of the hose back it shape......or improve. Am I understanding this correctly?? Do you use a hair dryer?? What does the process look like. You have a beautiful machine! I have a 1205 as well that I really cherish!!!! Thanks so much! Richard.

 

[fantomfan57]

Hey Richard....

This is just an idea...I have not done it yet. I am going to as an experiment on a really roughed up hose. Some of these hoses have distorted fibers, bulging loops and even abrasion damage. My thought was to carefully use a heat gun...carefully so as to eliminate fraying (like burning the ends of a nylon cord so it won't unravel). This may or may not work. I will let you know.

 

[lux14]

Thanks so much!!!!

 

[real1shep]

I'd wear some clean, smooth leather gloves and as you use the heat gun, occasionally clamp down on the hose with your hands. I doubt just the heat will completely restore the weaves.


 


Kevin

 

[fantomfan57]

Leather gloves.......

Thanks, Kevin. This is going to be a delicate process used on a rough hose.

 

[real1shep]

Or maybe better yet, some really thick rubber/silicone gloves for the ultimate smoothness. I'm just thinking that you don't want to 'imprint' anything from the glove texture onto the weave as they are reforming from the heat gun.


 


Kevin