Why old kirbys are the best-- test!

[brandon_w_t]

So I wanted to see how good this kirby really was. I pulled out my Vax yesterday.

Here it is, a $60 vax X5. A TOL for a while.

Vacummed both rooms as well as I could. Did seem to do nicely.

 

[brandon_w_t]

And then I pull out the

BEAST! Kirby 518.

Now remember, this vacuum is 51 years old. The vax is less than 1 year old.


LOOK AT THE MESS THE VAX LEFT BEHIND!!!

 

[brandon_w_t]

another

shot

 

[briankirbyclass]

KIRBY - QUALITY, RELIABILITY, PERFORMANCE

 

[williamr1248]

Why old Kirby's are the best test

Brandon,
I love my Kirby but you know the rule in vacuumland-"the vac that goes last ALWAYS wins". I have had straight suction vacs pull piles of dirt from a carpet that had been cleaned by the best Hoovers and Kirby's.
When I first joined the club I was under the impression that nothing cleaned rugs like a Hoover or Kirby but this has been proven incorrect over and over again as I added new vacs to the collection-he who goes last always get more dirt. I guess if that were not true there would have been a lot less new vacs sold over the years,but it sure is fun to have the tests. I have come to the conclusion that NO vac ever gets all the dirt,it's just that some pick the dirt up faster.
A good example: I live in a house that is less than 3 years old and have thick carpets. These carpets have been cleaned with all tyoes of vacs. This week I got my new (old) Compact and used the straight suction tool and guess what? Test cloth after test cloth were covered with dirt,sand and grit that the Hoovers and Kirby's and Dysons had left in the carpet.
It is fun to use the test clothes.

 

[jdinstl]

Brandon...

....what Rob said is true...

BUT KIRBY'S ARE STILL THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

.....running and ducking from all the stuff being thrown at me by the Hooverites....

John

 

[kirbymodel2c]

True BUT!!

But what it still true is that kirby's especally the newer kirby's when they are set up correct do clean the whole of the carpet.

The way to show this is to kirby a small area of carpet with the dirt meter attached and keep pulling off filter pads till nothing comes up.

James

 

[jdinstl]

Careful now...

...extolling the virtues of anything but a Hoover in these parts will get you beaten as you sweep as you clean. Tsk tsk tsk...

Heh....just ribbin' y'all!

John

 

[ohio_tuec]

Oh, Kirbys do a marvelous job of cleaning rugs. I've come to find though the Sani-Emtors do only a mediocre job of CONTAINING the dust. I'm sure if someone did a test with an ultraviolet light and the vacuum running, you would see millions of dust particles being spewed everywhere. Speaking of straight suction, I wonder how much dirt my Ohio Tuec could pull out of the rug after going over it with a Kirby Sentria?

 

[jdinstl]

That depends...

...on the condition of the gasket on the Sani-Emptor, which, after oh, 50 years or so...might be slightly worn!

But that isn't what matters. What matters is, does the vacuum look totally cool and retro, and does its motor sound brutishly tough? That's what's important! Who cares about the suction?



John

 

[tristar]

Emptor Gasket

Even with a crummy emptor gasket, a Kirby will spew less dust than a Hoover Convertible! That's the only machine I have ever used that I actually had to dust AFTER I vacuumed.

The truth is that if the gasket is in good shape (new ones are still available btw...) and the bag is well washed and rinsed with some fabric softener to puff up the fibers, they will leak very little. If the bag is cared for, you can even pop it during use and it won't belch dust. If they're well cared for, the Kirbys are actually great.

 

[ohio_tuec]

Yes, you've got a point there, bottom-fill Convertibles leak something terrible. I started using an F&G bag in my model 61, and it seems to work better. Personally, I think the bottom-fill was a terrible design, as the cleaner always has to "fight" the old dust. So you mean to say you can get em-tor gaskets for the old rectangular 500 series? I hate polishing one, using it once, and seeing a film of dust all over the motor housing on the emtor side.

 

[tristar]

emptor gasket

Yep. You can still get them. All it is, is a piece of felt. You just glue it on there. You can get it from the store "Vacuum Needs" on eBay (username cleaner48). I put one in my 561 and no problems since.

I personally find the Convertibles (top or bottom fill) have some major design flaws. But since I know a LOT of people on this site love them, I won't go into it! I will say that the Eurekas of the same vintage are designed MUCH better, albeit a bit cheaper. Still....they've lasted this long, so they must have done something right.

 

[methodistbill]

Eureka F & G

Do Eureka F & G bags have a fill tube that's built into the bag?

 

[ohio_tuec]

Indeed they do, which is why I think they're superior to the "bottom fill" Type C Hoover bag. I even installed one in my Air-Way Sanitary System!

 

[jdinstl]

"Vacuum Needs" on eBay (username cleaner48).

...I've dealt with Vacuum Needs a number of times, and he is one awesome seller. Definitely the first place to hit when you're looking for parts.

John

 

[kirbysthebest]

I will always agree that Kirbys do an excellent job. There is also the old saying, "The vacuum that goes last loses."

I will support the last/loses to a point. If I vacuum with all vacuum A has got, and then go back over with vacuum B. I would expect some extra dirt being picked up because the machines are not 100% efficient. However, when you pull piles, and piles after another machine it kind of tells me that Machine A was just a waste of electricity and elbow grease.

The old Kirbys and newer bagless machines are good at showing the "see how much I picked up"

 

[cb123]

Why bother buying new garbage, when the cheap Chinese plastic is already worn-out, with the under insolated wires already sizzling; the open ball bearings already seizing, even before they get scoured by dirt. And all of this, even before you first plug the hotshot in. When, of course, you can buy a very nice, vintage vacuum, more than adequate, which is tried and true and most probably will even out last you. Fifty years ago, they really cared about how they put things together - not so much nowadays.