The "Birthday Connie"

[air-waycharlie]

Back in January, a small group got together in Milwaukee to celebrate Helen's and Ida's birthday.

I've been meaning to post pictures of the wonderful gifts I received by the attendees for some time. Here is my stunning new Hoover Constellation in polished aluminum or is it stainless steel? It is so lovely that I only look at it and have only used it once after it arrived.

I can't bear to get that power nozzle or hose dirty! The tools are virginal and the bag is still nearly untouched by crud. I know this may seem silly to some but I will wait until the right time to break it in.

Here it is assembled.

 

[air-waycharlie]

Isn't that just grand? The art deco spelling of "Constellation" is a nice touch. The attachable tool caddy is handy too.

The red Hoover emblem on the front of the handle is very nostolgic also. These have been a real winner for Hoover----somebody was on the ball!

 

[air-waycharlie]

The turbo nozzle up close.

 

[air-waycharlie]

I received a great piece of vacuum history from Jeff Parker but since it is an older machine check out his gift on the vintage forum.

 

[danemodsandy]

On The Ball:

Yes, indeed! I find it a little strange that the only part of the Maytag empire that has revived a worthwhile classic design is Hoover, which is now in the hands of the Chinese. It's not like Whirlpool has put centre-dial Maytags back into production, or has revived the classic Amana Radarange.

I wish more companies would do this- break out the moulds and tooling for their beloved old stuff, instead of coming out with more and more and MORE new gar-BAJH that breaks down quickly. Hoover has combined the classic Henry Dreyfuss design of the Connie with new technology and materials that actually improve on the old machines (though I think a real power nozzle is called for, not just a turbo brush).

Somebody ought to tell Aerus to wake up and smell this particular brand of coffee- people still love the old metal-bodied machines, but sales of their current plastique models dwindle year by year. Putting the G back into production would be an excellent start! Hard to believe that their machines have been plastic for almost twenty years now.

Even when companies manage to come close to their former quality levels on their new products, they seem to eliminate all personality from them. TriStar is the example- their current machines are well-made*, but they are blah-looking compared to the old "pig" design.

* Note to TriStar: NO machine in that price class should come with plastic wands and tools. Period.