What can you detectives see from this?

[panasonicvac]

When we used to have our old cabin back in 1995, we had two vacuums before. Our first one, my folks bought from our local vacuum store and they couldn't remember what it was but they did say it was green and they said it was either a Sharp or a Panasonic. We've only had it for about a year after we got our cabin remolded in 1996 because some electrician wired in one of the outlets in wrong during the remodel so one day someone went to using it, it fried up vacuum. Unfortunately it couldn't be fixed so we ended up replacing it with a Panasonic MC-V7387 that we also got from our local vacuum store which I already have one of.

So last week, we went through looking at our old videos from 1996 and I spotted something in the video that looks like the vacuum we had before it got replaced. I couldn't see very close to it so I can't tell exactly what it was.

What do you guys think it was? It looks like a Sharp to me but I'm not exactly sure so I'll just leave it up for you guys to decide. Here are the best pictures I can get to show to you guys (It's in the center). If you know what it is, I would also like to know the model of it.
It was bought in 95 and it was green (It looks blue because of the color quality of the VCR or maybe it's just me). It could be either a Sharp, a Sanyo, or a Panasonic but it's for sure not a Simplicity or a Riccar. And it has a big yellow sticker on front that shows like the features it has on it. If anything helps, I would be greatly appriciated because this is something I have been trying to solve for a VERY LONG time. I really don't care about looking for that vacuum but just information is all I want.

 

[vacman117]

I would say it's most likely a Sharp Twin Energy, especially given the yellow sticker. I believe all of the Sharps came with the big yellow sticker on the bag cover that explained all of the features. From the looks of it (very hard to see though) it could possibly be a big wheel model?

Hope that helps

Chase

 

[starryblues4u]

Sharp Twin Energy

is that I would say.

 

[myvacsrock]

Looks like

One of these navy blue ones if you ask me.

 

[panasonicvac]

Well I asked my dad again, he said it was a Sharp and it was still green. Anybody knows what green sharp models were sold during the mid 90's? I watched the video over and over and I can tell the yellow sticker is just as big as the one in "myvacsrock's" 3rd pic so perhaps it could be that model because it almost looks green but we'll see. Thanks alot guys and I appreciate the help!

 

[airway77]

Sharp Twin Energy

That machine really REALLY looks to me like a green variation of the navy blue Twin Energy machines in pic #2 of myvacsrock's post. My aunt owned either a black or dark maroon one from the mid-90's until she got a rebuilt Kirby G5 in 2003 (which has since been replaced with a used Electrolux Genesis), so it wouldn't surprise me if they offered a green variation somewhere in the run.

I have ALWAYS wanted to find a Twin Energy like that one.....I have never seen another one until I saw this thread. I remember being fascinated by it as a kid, it was quite the contraption compared to our Kenmore and my great-grandmother's RCA Bambi. I also loved playing with my grandmother's 1994 M&S/Filtex FX675A and it's accompanying VM380 PN (both of which I own now....she HATED the central vac)...

 

[panasonicvac]

I did some research

These are the only ones that I can find. Airway77, it might be possible because I did noticed when I was watching the tape, the cord was either wraped up on the left side like that model or it could be that someone didn't wind up the cord very well. I will post a video of the tape to see if that's any better.

 

[panasonicvac]

Alright so here's the video (It's better if you see it in full screen). This video was actually really the tour of the whole place after it was remolded back in 1996 (about when the vacuum got fried) but this is all I can show to you.

 

[kirbyvertibles]

i'll bet when it got fried it probably just blew the fuse. All these Sharps used like buss fuses you'd use in a car.

 

[panasonicvac]

Kirbyvertibles

Oh this was way much worse than just blowing a fuse. As far as I been told; The vacuum was sparking pretty bad and it shut off. It couldn't be fixed because it got melted on the inside where the motor was at (which that's what the vacuum repair guy told us). It clearly wasn't the vacuum's fault so we had to have the electrician fix the outlet because it got wired in wrong and he also bought us a new vacuum.

 

[airway77]

Sharp Twin Energy

Panasonicvac,

To me, it really looks like it has the "front wand holder" design by the profile of the machine. The profile is very distinctive, as there isn't really any design like it elsewhere.

They seemed to have three separate upright lines, all offered in black/dark maroon, navy blue, (possibly) green, and red:

1) The "Panasonic-esque" line (they definitely look like something from the Panasonic design team) with the curved base-mounted headlamp (or lack thereof on the budget models), single dirt path with rear-base hose port, and interchanged metal and plastic handles. These machines were also sold in varying forms for heavy-duty commercial applications (and the commercial line screams Panasonic in all aspects).
See Image #1, 3, and 4 of myvacrock's pictures above.

2) The Sharp-exclusive retractable headlight design, which is what I believe to be the design of the machine in question. These machines usually touted the retractable headlight as a "feature", even on the budget models. This was the next step up from the low-end "Big Wheel" line. They had the front wand storage and a diversion valve to switch between floor and tool modes on the back (where the hose port is on a Panasonic and Design #1). These machines were only sold as residential units; QVC sold several variations along with the typical extra goodies for "Special Value" offers.
See image 2 of myvacsrock's pictures above.

3) This design looks to have either coexisted with or replaced Design #2. It is a weird "hybrid" of the two previous designs; it has the diversion-valve attachments and retractable headlight, but has a metal handle with over-handle hose/wand storage and rear attachment storage. This appears to be the Premium Line from Sharp, as they were the priciest of the bunch and even the budget models came standard with variable-speed motor controls and (at the very least) Allergen Filtration. These also only sold as residential only; some versions badged as the "Pure Power: Twin Energy Edition"; suggesting a beginning of the migration away from the original Twin-Energy lines.
Consult Google for images of these .

Designs 1 and 2 balanced the price point scale, middle-tier models often using Design 2 while Budget and Commercial models used Design 1.
Design 1 Budget Models lacked headlamps and attachments altogether (but Panasonic JetFlo/Riccar 8900/Simplicity 7 Series hoses work...I think).
Design 2 Middle Tier Models offered a little more; standard headlamps and the diversion valve tool setup, along with the foot-operated brushroll control.

Both Designs coexisted in upper-tier configurations; both brought the brushroll control, variable speed motor controls, and headlamps to the table as standard equipment. The Premium Upper-Tier Design 2 Models offered "Dirt Detective" Automatic Motor Control systems. Design 1 versions offered "Library Quiet" for quiet operation. The consumer was able to pick out the feature set they wanted, and that dictated which Design Series they received.

Design 3 occupied the Upper-Tier rung of Sharp's ladder in succession of Design 2. They came standard with all of the features above; with "Dirt Detective" saved for the Premium Model. Library Quiet only remained for the Design 1 Commercial Models; the residential models were dropped from what I can tell....


Dang, that was long.

If any of this info is incorrect, feel free to correct me! I won't get it right if you don't tell me if it's wrong!!

 

[panasonicvac]

Airway77

No you are totally right on what you said about each of the designs Sharp had offer because I looked at it on google images However I am just not familiar with Sharp or I'm not a huge fan with them and that's one of the reasons why I wasn't interested in looking for that Sharp we used to have. If it was a Panasonic, then for sure I would be interested in finding one.

I'm going to now try to see if my old buddy still has any records of when we bought it and what model we actually got (I highly doubt he does still). If all else fails, then I'm going to show the images to my folks to see if they remember which one we actually got.

 

[airway77]

Sharp Twin Energy

Panasonicvac,

The Twin Energy lines (especially Design 1 above) feel, sound, and perform like a Panasonic. I honestly wonder if Design 1 machines were badge-engineered Panasonic machines....they are SO similar in all aspects.

If you find one for the right price (in good condition), it is worth the buy. Designs 2 and 3 don't seem to be as common, but they also clean very well. I can recall my aunt's Design 2 Twin Energy performing well. It also sounded just like our Panasonic-made 10 Amp Kenmore budget-model upright we had at the time so I can't help but wonder if Panasonic had something to do with those as well...

Overall: Great vacs, neat designs, well worth the buy if in good condition!

 

[panasonicvac]

Sharp vs Panasonic

Airway77, Sharp's main competitive Japanese brand was Panasonic so they made their own vacuums similar to Panasonic but they added a few features like speed controls and dirt sensors so people would be more interested in the Sharp than getting a Panasonic. Sanyo, who was also Sharp's and Panasonic's competitive brand also did the exact same thing to their vacuums as well. Sharp discontinued their vacuums around like at 2003-04 because they were more focused on selling like their TV's and other products than their vacuums, I was also told before that they didn't sell their vacuums that well so that's why Sharps are really hard to find now. Sanyo also did the same thing as well but I don't when exactly they dropped their vacuums at (my guessing early 2000's) and they are also really hard to find as well (except the Panasonic branded Sanyos you can still grab). And now Panasonic announced that later this year they are also discontinuing their vacuums and all of their home appliances as well.