Time to get another Fantom Cyclone XT I guess!

[fantomfan]

This has been the worst investment I've ever made on a vacuum. I bought it, not knowing that the motor was bad, on ebay four years ago for $70. By the time I found that the motor was bad, it was too late to return it. Also, the idiot seller totally screwed up the wiring in the circuit board. When switched to floors, he wired it so that the vacuum motor would turn off, and the brushroll motor would come on. $25 for the repair. Once I had a new (used) motor, I had it installed. $40 for the installation (I simply cannot do something like that yet.) Now, using it today, the new motor is now bad. The irony is, in the last 1 1/2 years since the new motor was put in, it has not been used for more than 2 hours TOTAL.(I didn't use it much so that this WOULDN'T happen again at least anytime soon) Now it is slowing down and smoking. I don't think that the carbon brushes could be replaced on this, but I could be wrong. The irony is the vac shop said it ran perfectly when installed (and it did run well until now.) It would probably be better to wait for another one to come along. I have over $150 invested in this sorry piece of junk to make it nice again, (I bought a new cyclone assembly for it 9 months ago to replace the old one) and it's all down the drain now. At least now I've learned from my mistake and will never do it again. It does have ALL of the tools, along with many good parts, so they should be useful somehow. I'm sure another Cyclone XT will come along, it will just take time. At least I have A Cyclone XT, functional or not.

 

[treetopguy2028]

Where do you go from here with the treasured trash?

I enjoyed you detailed description and I empathize with you for being sucked into the Cyclone.
It would be interesting if someone could afford to set up a "clearing house" salvage store for Fantom vacs. I have learned a lot by working on a Fantom Twister 700LX FM780. If asked to work on one again I know my terms would be stringent and make the onus of expense a required non-refundable deposit.

The first photo is the vac fully disassembled. The second and third photos show the OEM connector ruined by rust and the new Radio Shack 23-444 connectors spliced and crimped. The4th pic shows handle assembly next to motor assembly waiting for me to fabricate two twist-lock tabs for the bottom plate.

 

[fantomfan]

What a complicated machine!

I think that I'll just wait to find another one. Maybe take 2 bad ones and make a good one. I'm sure i'll find one eventually.

 

[treetopguy2028]

Complicated yet made to fit precisely together.

Hey fantomfan,
The farther I dug into the FM780 the greater my curiosity grew to determine where and how any stress point might have caused electrical surge to result in electrical intermittence. Even the agitator brush was multiple parts of which a spacer the size of my thumb had shattered inside itself not visible at first inspection. It's retainer, the end roller was firmly fastened with a stripped slightly bent long Philips metric screw which I matched at the local hardware parts drawers (Midwest Fasteners' line).

Once it was disassembled I put it on the white floor and shot the pic thinking this one is like a deck of cards the suits of which would be handle assembly, wiring, motion parts and the final components of handle and vacuum groups coming back together. If you read the thread I wrote for "Fantom Twister 700LX" you will see the two extra parts pictured below that were inside the motor when I removed the cover. After much study I could not find their matching fittings in the reassembly.
So once I get the twist-lock tabs (pic shows actual, prototypes and pocket knife for reality) made on my wood lathe (three pairs in dogwood or hard maple running three grain directions) I'll put it back together and vac the whole house. If no need surfaces for those two parts I will ask the customer, a good friend, if he took them out of something else in his sign shop.

This project has made me thankful for social security and my tree service business for income. The learning curve is hard to collect for but the knowledge is irreplaceable and will help for future vacuum work and other mechanical jobs I tackle. Speaking of tackle, enjoy the Super Bowl game!

 

[fantomfan]

Nice work!

We'll be watching the game!

 

[kirbylux77]

Mitchell

If I remember correctly, I do believe the Fantom Cyclone XT used the same Panasonic canister motor some Kenmore canister vacuums used, as well as the Dyson DC21. If you can locate a motor for one of those, which should be fairly easy to locate a NEW motor for either one, you could just pop in the motor yourself. However, it might also be a good idea to buy another used Fantom Cyclone XT & save it for important parts, like the circuit boards & power switch.

Rob

 

[fantomfan]

Great!

I'll look into that. Thanks!

 

[ctvacman]

There is

One listed on eBay right now. He wants a lot for buy it now but he has the make offer option too. The only thing I noticed was the bin belongs to the later model that used the peach coloring and the brush roll looks very used, ( the black paint is basically gone). Just thought I'd let you know.

 

[fantomfan]

Thanks, but I'm staying local!

My Current Cyclone was an ebay bust. I think I'll just wait for one to pop up in Upstate New York.

 

[ctvacman]

You should've returned it. Ebay has a good policy. But hopefully one shows up

 

[fantomfan]

Yes, I should have.

But, when I realized the motor was bad, it was too late. It was also 4 years ago, and I knew close to nothing about vacuum motors at that time.

 

[thevacuumman]

I have the Westinghouse version of the Cyclone XT except it's got a single cyclone. I think it has a good motor but I'm not %100 for sure. If it is I can send you the motor.

 

[fantomfan]

Thank you very much for the offer!

I think I'm going to wait and get a brand new motor for it. After that, I shouldn't have any more motor problems. I appreciate the offer!

 

[man114]

I have a parts one in the shed but I don't know if the motor is any good as the unit had no cord when I trash picked it. Unfortunately I can't get to it at the moment due to snow. They do take the same motor as a Kenmore canister from a while back.