Thrift store Dial A Matic!!!!!
- Thread starter kenmore81
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electrolux~137
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Wow, very nice!! Is the handle still good and tight, or has it worked loose like most of them tend to get?
portable
Well-known member
Just sweet
that's a real cutie. It looks perfect. Another great find!
that's a real cutie. It looks perfect. Another great find!
hoovercelebrity
New member
Ooooh...
That's in nice shape! I think I gave my 1120 Dial A Matic away after using it in my "window display" at the North Canton 2008 convention. Such a pretty lineup! One of my favorite color schemes!
Here's a picture of my display form 2008...
That's in nice shape! I think I gave my 1120 Dial A Matic away after using it in my "window display" at the North Canton 2008 convention. Such a pretty lineup! One of my favorite color schemes!
Here's a picture of my display form 2008...
aeoliandave
Well-known member
Love colour matched sets. Do we call these Peach and Taupe?
Dave
Dave
hoovercelebrity
New member
I don't know exact dates...
But I think 1967/1968/1969... or thereabouts. I have heard on more than one occasion that in 1968, the model 1120 was the unofficial 60th anniversary machine for the company (in 1968). And it was, I believe, the last Dial A Matic without the height adjustment lever.
But I think 1967/1968/1969... or thereabouts. I have heard on more than one occasion that in 1968, the model 1120 was the unofficial 60th anniversary machine for the company (in 1968). And it was, I believe, the last Dial A Matic without the height adjustment lever.
In That Pic ...
I also see a Floor-A-Matic, a Handivac, a Suitcase Portable and a Swingette. All of these have the Flamingo Pink accent alongside their Seal Greige/Taupe main hues. The FAM was first introduced in 1967 while the Swingette came out three years after. The first Suitcase Portable dates to 1962.
The original Handivac replaced both the U.K.-made Lark stick vac and the Dustette in 1966. The 1966 Pixie, originally a variant of the Dustette, also shared the Handivac body, just as the former Pixie and Dustette shared motors.
Sometime in the mid '70s, the Handivac name appeared on a pair of new hand vacuums, one colored red and the other gold. The red one, the Handivac I, was aimed at casual users while the gold one, called Handivac II, had more attachments as well as power. These two vacs, both of which were discontinued in the early '80s, put an end to the Pixie name.
The original Handivac (which served as a replacement for the Lark stick vac) was renamed Quik-Broom. In 1975 the Swingette became the Portapower.
~Ben
I also see a Floor-A-Matic, a Handivac, a Suitcase Portable and a Swingette. All of these have the Flamingo Pink accent alongside their Seal Greige/Taupe main hues. The FAM was first introduced in 1967 while the Swingette came out three years after. The first Suitcase Portable dates to 1962.
The original Handivac replaced both the U.K.-made Lark stick vac and the Dustette in 1966. The 1966 Pixie, originally a variant of the Dustette, also shared the Handivac body, just as the former Pixie and Dustette shared motors.
Sometime in the mid '70s, the Handivac name appeared on a pair of new hand vacuums, one colored red and the other gold. The red one, the Handivac I, was aimed at casual users while the gold one, called Handivac II, had more attachments as well as power. These two vacs, both of which were discontinued in the early '80s, put an end to the Pixie name.
The original Handivac (which served as a replacement for the Lark stick vac) was renamed Quik-Broom. In 1975 the Swingette became the Portapower.
~Ben
hoovercelebrity
New member
That color is definitely not Flamingo Pink.
It's orange, alright. The color name that's on the Spec-Sheet for the Model 858 Constellation is "Pumpkin combined with Taupe". While the color looks very close to the oragnes on the rest of the cleaners, it may not be the exact same color.
It's orange, alright. The color name that's on the Spec-Sheet for the Model 858 Constellation is "Pumpkin combined with Taupe". While the color looks very close to the oragnes on the rest of the cleaners, it may not be the exact same color.
electrolux~137
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Well as I live and breathe, if it isn't John Young!! Good to see you here -- and btw I have apparently have an old email address for you. I'll see what you've got here in your profile.
electrolux~137
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Yep John, I did have an old email address -- it's fixed now! 
eurekastar
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Very nice find! The motor may have a date stamped on it. I found one a while back and had to take it apart to clean it and get rid of all the decaying foam (which really stank it up). The motor had "April 1968" stamped on it. I think it is an 1118. It is orange/taupe with automatic height adjustment.
eurekastar
Well-known member
This thread inspired me to take my DAM out for a whirl for the first time in a while. I'd forgotten about how heavy it is! But it is still fun to use. It's over 40 years old and there's still no handle wobble. I replaced the brush strips last year and it cleans and grooms the plush carpet in my house as good as ever! With the exception of some paint damage on the hood, it's still in great cosmetic shape too.
electrolux~137
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I clearly remember the first time I saw a Dial-A-Matic in someone's home -- it was at my high-school friend Mark's house in Annapolis, Maryland. I went over to his house one Saturday to hang out and of course went snooping for the vacuum cleaner.
The only one I could find was an old maroon tank cleaner of some type down in the basement, maybe a Bee-Vac or a Cadillac, I don't remember now. I knew it couldn't possibly be their main vacuum!
But I couldn't find a newer vacuum cleaner anywhere.
Then I finally looked in a closet in the dining room, and there it was! A brand-new Hoover Dial-A-Matic! Until then I had only seen them in stores and on TV. It was dark beige with a lime-green front cover.
I was dyyyyying to pull it out and use it, but by that time in my life, as a teenager I had "gone into the sweeper closet" and didn't let on that I loved vacuum cleaners. (Some people figured it out anyway ... maybe because that's just about all I talked about!)
I never did see his mom use the Hoover so I never got to hear what I sounded like.
Mark's dad was very eccentric btw -- a stuffy but congenial Methodist minister who spoke in a phony British accent! That was insufferably embarrassing to Mark because people made fun of his dad behind his back. Somehow, his dad never caught on that he was the subject of much snickering; and as far as I know, he's still peppering his speech with "tut-tut" and "all that sort of rot" and "I believe I'll have a spot of tea."
Seriously, I think his dad is an old queen, but that's another story.......!!
The only one I could find was an old maroon tank cleaner of some type down in the basement, maybe a Bee-Vac or a Cadillac, I don't remember now. I knew it couldn't possibly be their main vacuum!
But I couldn't find a newer vacuum cleaner anywhere.
Then I finally looked in a closet in the dining room, and there it was! A brand-new Hoover Dial-A-Matic! Until then I had only seen them in stores and on TV. It was dark beige with a lime-green front cover.
I was dyyyyying to pull it out and use it, but by that time in my life, as a teenager I had "gone into the sweeper closet" and didn't let on that I loved vacuum cleaners. (Some people figured it out anyway ... maybe because that's just about all I talked about!)
I never did see his mom use the Hoover so I never got to hear what I sounded like.
Mark's dad was very eccentric btw -- a stuffy but congenial Methodist minister who spoke in a phony British accent! That was insufferably embarrassing to Mark because people made fun of his dad behind his back. Somehow, his dad never caught on that he was the subject of much snickering; and as far as I know, he's still peppering his speech with "tut-tut" and "all that sort of rot" and "I believe I'll have a spot of tea."
Seriously, I think his dad is an old queen, but that's another story.......!!
That's a wonderful story, Charles. I think the DAM is my all-time favorite Hoover upright. My first encounter with a DAM was a model 1149 (which I still have!) that my mother got as a housewarming gift in 1972. The handle frame cracked and eventually broke apart years ago, so I used one from a donor 1157. It and a Kirby model 560 were the two vacuums we had in my home when I was a child. I recall my father bringing home a model 1100 he found in the garbage at some point which we used for a little while and later sold in a garage sale.
- Karl
- Karl
you all know that the "orange" one,
the first D A M was the first . It was introduced to America on Bewitched. There is a long, interesting story about Agnes Moorehead and the Hoover family.
the first D A M was the first . It was introduced to America on Bewitched. There is a long, interesting story about Agnes Moorehead and the Hoover family.
electrolux~137
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There is a long, interesting story about Agnes Moorehead and the Hoover family.
[pulling up a chair] - so let's hear it!
[pulling up a chair] - so let's hear it!
kenmore81
Well-known member
Wow
Nice pair Hans. I do like that Hoover color scheme, its one of my favorites too. I had the Constellation in the chocolate/orange, I do miss it. I wish I could find another and a non powerdrive DAM.
Nice pair Hans. I do like that Hoover color scheme, its one of my favorites too. I had the Constellation in the chocolate/orange, I do miss it. I wish I could find another and a non powerdrive DAM.
