Well, I never!

[aeoliandave]

Okay, almost never. Find a vacuum in such pristine just out of the box condition, that is...

While at work this afternoon a crew colleague told me about a green spherical vacuum cleaner he saw at Sally Ann on Monday. I headed over after work at 5 hoping the store was still open but not expecting to find it still there...but it was...and oh, my goodness gracious sakes alive in the mornin'...

 

[aeoliandave]

Good Lord, was this vacuum even used?

The following pictures are un-doctored. All I did was vacuum out the burst bag contents and wipe a dry towel over its surfaces.

Look how clean the base ring is inside.

 

[aeoliandave]

Priced at $19 I ain't gonna quibble.
Thoes dark marks came completely off with magic Eraser. Looks like it had a coffee spilled on it and wiped off - washed right off. Only flaw I can see is the light horizontal scratch across the hose bezel plate's Hoover Bug badge.

 

[aeoliandave]

INSIDE!!! need I say more?

 

[aeoliandave]

Hey come on, it's Dave....of course I'm gonna say more...

As mentioned the paper bag has burst and there was no premotor filter cloth, but the spring band is still there. On startup the motor blew out the remaining dust and it runs superbly.

What model is it?

The circa 1975 Canadian Burlington Ontario made Hoover Constellation Model 888. The tail, if not the docked, end of Constellation production until the 'new' TTI Connies.

Has this 888 even seen use?
Well, by the condition of the floor ring, not very much. I do remember seeing these at Consumers Distributing here in Stratford when I first arrived in town in late 1974. But of course I knew what the original swiveltop Constellation was and at the age of 21 I would and could never afford to buy a brand new vacuum no matter how discounted the price. But I did like the green. LOL

Since this Connie was found here in Stratford I fully believe it was bought here at ConDist at that time, was loved and used a few times then forgotten in a closet until the time came 35 years later for house contents to be disposed of in the usual Salvation Army Thrift Store donation manner.

The 888 was by that time a bargain Connie sold through Consumers Distributing with less than a full complement of accessories and tools, a shorter electric cord and a slightly shortened DuraFlex hose.

 

[aeoliandave]

Doug Smith posted this page excerpt in 2007, from the Consumers Distributing catalogue. What year was that, Doug? 1975?

 

[aeoliandave]

Mine came with the wands, floor tool, crevicetool and brush. I scrounged in the bins and came up with some more white tools and a black upholstery nozzle.

I have a sorta bashed up 888 up on the bedroom Connie Tower but this one will replace it on display.

 

[texasflute]

Wow! That looks brand new after a clean-up! I'd say it was a good day at the Sally Ann for you. I never find anything good at the Sally Ann nor the Goodwill.

 

[aeoliandave]

One thing I cannot explain and can only speculate about...

The hose connector and rubber boot on this 888 are from a 1959 Garland Green Model 87 - the one with the Electric hose feature.

It is not a DuraFlex hose with the single copper wire tho - you can bet I checked...LOL The wire you see is a single piece used as a twist tie to secure the hose.

The connector shows no tell-tale signs that screws had ever entered those posts, either. But you would have to use the 87 rubber boot to cover the protruding support moldings for the electric contact blades. Possibly this was old stock being used up in Burlington as the end of the Constellation run was closing in...

 

[aeoliandave]

Naturally I had to get a comparison picture of the hose coupler for my Model 87. You can see the electric contact blades. Also differing in the hose construction, the DuraFlex has a bare wire coil with the vinyl hose sheath laid over it - as in, the coil can be peeled easily away from the jacket.

The 87 electric hose has a single insulated strand of copper wire running parallel beside the insulated coil with the vinyl sheath then coated inside to bond the three hose elements together so they cannot separate.

Hoover Connie Experts please chime in and comment...

Dave

 

[hoovercelebrity]

The hose connector and rubber boot on this 888 are from a 19

I believe that Constellation hoses that have that connector are the same as the 87.

I'm too tired to go check all of my Constellation hoses.. but I'll check and report back in the morning.

~Fred

 

[aeoliandave]

Eagerly awaiting your survey, Fred.

It's the square box shape on the end of the rubber boot I'm most curious about - all my Connies with that type of non-rotating connector have a regular tubular boot and no protruding posts on the modified plastic end. I did check and in fact the post supports have been eliminated from the mold so a special boot is not needed. The square key is only on the section of connector that enters the vacuum. Such as on this Canadian Model 438...

 

[collector2]

Hey Dave:

I've run across quite a few Connies with the old hose connectors and boots on them. It must have depended on what they were running at the factory at the time.

As far as the picture I dont have the date as it was clipped from a catalogue in the 70's and not dated.

Which also reminds me - ANSWER your emails!!!!!!

Doug

 

[hoovercelebrity]

Yup...

All 8 Constellation hoses I have, and some spare ends and boots in my parts stash are all the style that have the holes to accept screws that hold those terminals in place on the model 87.

Maybe it's a US/Canada thing. Perhaps Hoover in North Canton was too "thrifty" to change or make a new mold -- which is a rather expensive thing to do...

Maybe your hose was replaced? Maybe by the time that cleaner was made they were sourcing some of the parts from North Canton?

Interesting mystery, indeed! In fact, I never knew the other type of hose end (like you took a picture of) even existed until you just posted that picture.

~Fred

 

[aeoliandave]

An anomaly never noticed until now?

How strange that all 5 other Connie Canadian hoses I have, except those noted, have the plain tubular boot and modified connector.

Here's another one peeled back to show how the connector has been modified to eliminate the screw posts & blade support ramps to accept a plain boot. I assure you, and you can see that the connector base has not been cut or trimmed after the fact but popped out of the mold this way. To a bean counter I suppose this represents a cost savings of plastic matter used by the injection machine for each connector.

Maybe it is a Canadian Hoover factory 'inovation'?

I will speculate that Hoover North Canton fully intended to continue development and implementation of an electric hose across the Constellation and Canister lines but stopped production of the feature with the 87 (influenced by the Lewyt Big Wheel Electronic debacle?) and yes, opted to not make a new connector mold for cost and possible future re-issue reasons. Possibly the new connector mold had been outsourced to the newer Canadian Factory located in Burlington but never adopted in the USA.

Oh, the fascination with details...

Dave. Last week of work and the Vacation period begins Nov 9.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

It does look

amazing. Are you planning to "swing by" Pittston again over the holidays?