What's up with the motor in my Electrolux 1205?

[mjhoshaw]

Greetings all, today I took delivery of a very clean 1205 with original PN-2 and an airtight original electric hose. When I powered it up the brush noise was awful - this motor screams! I thought oh great, I have work to do, so I took it apart and found what's shown in the images. It's stamped MADE IN USA and the fan housing is screwed together like every 'lux motor I've worked on. I brought the motor up slowly on a variac and it runs smoothly with no bearing noise. There is very little sparking at the brushes. The commutator has no visible wear - the motor looks nearly new and is just a bit dusty. When I spin it by hand, it is absolutely quiet with no brush chatter. Is this an OEM replacement motor, and are all of them this loud? If it is an OEM replacement, I can't imagine the branch office letting it go back to the customer this way. I've owned 1205's before, and they did NOT sound like this.

I will appreciate any insight. I have ruled out that this is a high-RPM replacement motor. In free air it runs at about 17,000 RPM, pretty much the same as the original.

Joel

 

[jo]

This is not the original motor. Originals were all metal construction. This is clearly a later replacement by either Electrolux/Aerus or a generic vacuum store.

 

[madman]

Ensure brushes move freely. It's still a high speed motor, it'll scream no matter what. Also, make sure the fan blades are very clean. A little dust will unbalance it, though that won't really make a screaming noise. It could still be a bearing noise. At 17k rpm, a tiny imperfection will make it scream, but you may never notice it by turning it slowly. You could remove the brushes entirely, and spin the armature by hand, you can feel a bad bearing usually.

 

[mjhoshaw]

Problem solved itself

I knew it was a replacement because I've serviced original 1205 motors. I thought it could be an Aerus replacement because 1) a generic motor wouldn't be made in the USA, and 2) the fan housing is screwed together like the 'lux motors of old.

Nothing seemed amiss with the motor's operation, so I was prepared to live with the noise. But first I put it on the bench and ran it for an hour at 80 volts. The noise went away, so I assume that the brushes weren't properly seated. Maybe some dirt got in there from the prior owner using Big Box brand bags. Back together, this cleaner sounds like a 1205 should sound, and I have a sweet machine to use.

Thank you for your replies.

Joel

 

[mjhoshaw]

Actually, no it didn't, and I want to share my diagnosis

The problem came back today, along with the motor not coming up to full speed right away. Been there, fixed that - it's a sticking brush. My model L did the same thing when I first had it. I also noticed today that the wind-down took longer than usual. Hopefully my posting this will help someone else with the same problem.

On a related topic, my spray cleaner of choice is CRC QD Electronics Cleaner. It quickly removes all grease and dirt, and absolutely doesn't harm insulation.

 

[madman]

#calledit

 

[mjhoshaw]

Yep you sure did

'nuff said. Thanks!