Tristar CXL

[atrac]

I've been eying a Tristar CXL at the local Thrift for over a month and half now. They wanted $120 for it and compared to some of the other vacuum deals, that seemed high. Even the 50% off discount that occurred pretty much every weekend since its March 26th debut seemed high to me for it (!). I have always wanted a Tristar, but I persisted in my patience. I'm a deal whore!

Well yesterday I want back and sure, enough -- there it was. I decided to see if I could get it for less since it has been there "so long" (and a month and half is long for this neck of the woods). $30 later, I was out the door with it! No attachments, although it had the power head and two metal pipes attached. No Exhaust filter either. And the small power cable that attached from the hose to the canister is "pulled out" so that the inner wires are exposed. It still works, but it's a little unsightly (and possibly no longer UL compliant...heh heh). Some of the off white accents on the power hose are now yellowed (like an older beige computer gone bad under florescent lights).

I don't see Tristar mentioned THAT often on this forum -- although those that do swear by them. Is it an underdog, or just so obviously great that it doesn't need mentioning?

At any rate, should I replace that small power cable (both male ends?). I was considering cutting the plug itself in half so I could stuff the full wire back in (so it isn't exposed), the gluing it shut again. Is that effort even worth it or I should try to find a replacement cable?

Do I really need that exhaust filter contraption? It looks so odd to me....almost like it was an afterthought to a design that never considered that people would want HEPA filteration. Can I use it ok without it, or is my whole apartment going to smell like vacuum exhaust?

Thanks in advance for the answers and thoughts. I'll take a picture of it once I clean it up (just scuffs and blackmarks...it's in great condition!).

 

[twocvbloke]

The Tristar CXL is a pretty powerful machine, it's also pretty reliable cos it's so basic, there's hardly anything to go wrong, no power modules, no variable speed motors, no electronics, just a motor, a switch, a few wires and that's it...

As for the missing filter, yes, you can run it without that, but be aware that you may end up blowing pictures off the wall and ornaments off shelves, cos the exhaust, like the suction, is pretty powerful as it's also the blower port. You can buy replacement filters, but these severely restrict the vacuum, though you can improve them by taking a part of the filter out that restricts the airflow (more airflow, cooler motor), and there's also a HEPA prefilter you can use inplace of the basic sponge filter to improve filtration (supposed to be for the later models, but fits the older Compact and Tristar models)...

The "buttplug" filter pretty mush is an afterthought, cos the design of the tristar and Compacts had barely changed over the years, and as people got more concious of dirt in the air, they came up with that filter, then later the Filter Fresh2000 (smaller and less obtrusive, but more restrictive), so yes, they were afterthoughts for a tried and tested and very successful design...

The PN power cable between hose and cannister is pretty cheap to buy, so you'd be better off just replacing than trying to repair it, it's safer that way...

The parts are available on ebay or from Tristar's website (see link below), it's up to you where to get them...

http://www.tristarvacuumscausa.com/parts.php#3

 

[brandon_w_t]

Hehe. David said it all.


Congrats on an awesome find. The tristar CXL in my mind is one of the simplest, yet quite possibly one of the most powerful canisters on the market. I have had 3 of them in the past and loved em all.


I am kind of biased towards them since I grew up around its father, the Compact vacuums.



As for the exhaust, yes, you will even get a little more suction out of it without a filter, however, you can literally blow dry your hair standing over it! Very powerful blower.


Old compacts were never sold with filters, only air diffusers to make the exhaust power not so extreme.

 

[kirbykid63]

Great machines!!!

Easy to service attachments and hoses inexpensive and plentiful,I get them all the time here in Tucson most of the time for under $30.00.I like running the eureka vibra groomer power nozzles with this machine to get great carpet cleaning performance.As for a inexpensive electric hos replacement I recommend from hesco a AT-720 or AT-405,just install your ends on the hose and you are good for under $20.00

Richard
new2youvacuums

 

[twocvbloke]

My tristar (formerly a Youtube star appliance) has a 4-row vibragroomer 2 brushroll fitted (requires some modificaion of the end caps, mainly just filing out a space for the 2nd set of brush strips to fit), and the brush strips are the black & orange VGIII strips (with the stiffeners, unlike the VGII ons that don't have stiffeners), it is much better than the standard Tristar brushroll, though it is better suited to shorter pile carpeting, much like a Sanitaire, but on our hotel grade living room carpet, it does a great job...

The main differences between mine and a domestic (I.E., original US spec) Tristar CXL is the 240v motor I fitted, it has tapered fins which give it a little bit more suction power for the same watts, and the motor is meant for a Henry, but works so much better in the tristar!!! The PN also has a 240v motor, but that works exactly the same as the 120v motor, just on 240v at 50Hz. Everything else, cable included, is as per it was when it lived in the US, I just use a home made US to UK adaptor to power it, so it looks like a 120v machine still, but has a 240v heart...

 

[atrac]

Thanks for the responses!

I realize that the "hose pigtail" is not actually male to male as I thought (based on the picture from the Tristar Website). The thing is, I can't get the "female" end (the one that goes to the hose) to pull out! I see why maybe it is already stretched. I have tried pliers and wedging it out with a flathead screwdriver -- the only thing I seem to be doing is making it look worse! Any advice on getting that out?

Also, it looks like I have to spend a minimum of $10 on the Tristar Site to buy that hose pigtail. I looked on eBay and there is a Filter Queen Princess Electric Hose Pigtail Cord that looks identical to my eyes. Does anyone know if it is?

Still trying to decide if I should be the exhaust filter or just use it as-is.

 

[twocvbloke]

Depending on the hose you have, the pigtail might actually be hard-wired, so, the more you pull, the more you're risking breaking the thing... :S

A lot of the pigtail wires are the same between brands, just be aware that there are some 3 wire ones, so avoid them cos they won't fit...

As for the exhaust, you can run the machine with it open, but like I say, it'll probably keep blowing things about, one cheap solution is just to get an exhaust diffuser (see link below), and couple it with a HEPA pre-filter dome (available on ebay for little money) and you're set...



http://www.tristarvacuumscausa.com/shop/cart.php?target=product&product_id=287&category_id=72

 

[atrac]

Thanks everyone for the responses. I ended up taking the "inexpensive" route suggested by twocvbloke and buying the exhaust diffuser and a dome hepa filter. They work great and I'm 100% pleased with my CXL.

I have one other question -- mine included the power head (aka "Turbo Cleaning Power Brush"). Now that I am actually testing the machine out, I notice the "Shag/Normal/Low Pile" switch on the top of it doesn't really do anything. I moved it back and forth and didn't notice any change. Is it a setting to reduce/increase suction, or is it supposed to raise/lower the brushroll?

I also noticed the bottom of said power head is missing one of the long screws that holds the plate on. Not terrible, but it's not perfect!

 

[twocvbloke]

What appears to be a height selector on the PN is actually a suction relief valve, it just opens and closes to reduce or increase the pressure on the PN being sucked down onto the carpet, it's a "floating head" design, so it just sits straight on the carpet and "automatically adjusts" itself to the carpet, but set it to the carpet height you have for optimal performance...

As for the missing screw, you might want to replace that, again the tristar website can offer the parts needed, a single screw could end up breaking with the uneven tension, though I think it would take a fair bit of rough treatment before that happened...

Also, check the top of the hood (comes away when you remove the screws) to make sure the screw hole isn't damaged (could be the reason why it's missing), if it is you would need a new hood top, but again, the tristar site has that listed...

 

[atrac]

Good point! I'll try my only screw in the other hole and see if it fits tightly. Hopefully it will then I'll just order another one.

Thanks again!

 

[twocvbloke]

No worries...

Like I said in my first post, Tristars are simple machines, they're very easy to work on, nothing fiddly, nothing fancy, just simplicity to it's best...

 

[djkain2007]

tristar cxls are beasts! i have one, i got it from brandon and it's in mint condition. i havent' used it in a while since i moved but it still works perfectly fine. combined with a eureka vg3 pn (which is on gmas elux olympia) it will thourouly deep clean carpets. the only flaw with it is that the gold paint on the cxl logo is starting to fade slightly.


btw... i have an extra tristar/compact hose laying around if anybody needs it.

 

[floor-a-matic]

Tristar hose

is it electrified? is it the one with gas pump handle?