Converto-Vac

[vacbee]

Hello all!

If anyone's interested, I'm going to be listing a vintage vacuum for a friend on eBay sometime this week.
Converto-Vac VU10 in original box, never used w/paperwork.
Basic unit only (no attachments)

Auction Only-no direct sale.
preview

http://img188.imageshack.us/img188/1876/westinghousepq8.jpg

 

[skip]

Is this the same one from Last year

Hi just curious is this the converto vac from last year that you wrote to the yahoo groups about. that it is your friend's late fathers from has vac shop? Just wondering

 

[westytoploader]

The "twisted" brushroll on the Westinghouse looks an awful lot like the Vibra-Groomer I, except with cutouts in the beaters to accommodate the baseplate. Interesting...wasn't this before the VG I's time?

 

[brettsomers]

i think the Vibra Groomer, as it was called (*vibra-groomer I* didnt exist as a name until the Vibra-Groomer II was created), was introduced by Eureka between 1970 and 1974. i think it was Eurekas first ball-bearing brushroll. the Vibra Groomer and the dial-a-nap and rugulator really closed the Eureka/Hoover quality gap in the 70s.

 

[vacbee]

10 day auction
9.99 start

http://cgi.ebay.com/Converto-Vac-Ne...oryZ1400QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[brettsomers]

let the bidding-circus begin!

 

[hooverwheelaway]

Oh boy...

I can hardly wait!

 

[brettsomers]

lol!

 

[hoover1060]

now here's something that should go high...

a truly rare cleaner, and instead we have these meatsticks fighting over Hoover stuff that most of us ALREADY HAVE!!!

How many people have Converto-Vacs?

 

[brettsomers]

Just looked at the listing, as of thursday afternoon, the auction title does NOT include the word *vacuum* or *vintage* in the title. its also listed in a non-vacuum category.

 

[westytoploader]

Good luck Skip!

The Converto-Vac looks very ahead of its time, IMHO; clean-air, 2 motors, convertible from upright to canister. What I'd like to find out is what were the disadvantages that made it so unpopular? I'll admit, it does look like a fairly heavy machine and I could see where that would pose a problem on shag. What did CR have to say about it?

--Austin

 

[skip]

Very high reserve

He must have an extremely high reserve on it. I have bidded on it and my bid is very high and I didn't hit the reserve. the current bid is 415.00 but my max bid is much more then that. Oh well

 

[skip]

Austin

Westinghouse came out with the converto vac to compete against the Hoover dial-a-matic but the converto vacs were not very good at cleaning or performing verey good. For some reason Westinghouse never could built a true lasting vac why I don't know. The mobile-aire and the converto vacs had alot of problems for some reason, the funnt thing is with both vacs the brown ones were the high end models and the blue ones were the low end models. I have been told that the converto vac was made from 1963 thru 1971, But here where I'm at I have never seen one or maybe my memory doesn't remember any of them.

 

[hoover1060]

$510 and the reserve is not met...

There's a seller who could keep their machine, I would not pay that much for that even if Betty Furness herself delivered it!

 

[hooverwheelaway]

Who's Betty Furness?

 

[skip]

Reserve

Hey Jeff I bet the reserve must be 1000.00 or more.

 

[skip]

I'm out of the running

Well I'm happy to report that I'm no longer in the running for this converto vac as a special angel has found me one that is the better model and alot cheaper so all i can say is the best man will win

Skip...

 

[frontaloadotmy]

that's good

Skip. Be sure to post a pic.

 

[skip]

Thanks Darrell

This is the one that I'm getting here

 

[seamusuk]

$898!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Someone must REALLY want that!!!!!!!!- will it get to 4 figures before its done????????

Seamus

 

[seamusuk]

Skip

If I was you id be pretty relieved lol!!

The one you are getting looks very nice

Seamus

 

[skip]

Thanks Seamus

Yes Seamus A big relief as I was making a loan to get the one on ebay and I Talk to a few vac friends and they told me that it wasn't worth Wh at I was willing to pay for it. But that's to show You how bad I wanted a converto vac. and like i say my angel came to my rescue

 

[brettsomers]

how wicked of you Skip. i imagine the current bidders on the ebay converto seeing the one ur getting and SEETHING!

 

[hoover1060]

wicked?

I'd say its pretty Shi**Y of you to drive the price up like that and then drop out...

 

[skip]

Jeff

Man you are wrong for that statement and if it's any of Your business to begin with notice a bidder has as they say taken up my position on the bidding so no if you think about it I didn't drive it up as even without me bidding It still will go SKYHIGH anyway and who's to say what my max bid that I still would have won and to be honest things change day to day

 

[hoover1060]

probably not wrong

Go for it Skip, IF you're serious, but be careful about how much you brag, you can still be outbid.
I haven't heard the fat lady singing on this yet.

 

[skip]

Jeff

Jeff your missing my point. this is what's going on now. A collector has one the brown one I have been after his for quite sometime. We have from time to time tried to negitate on his. when this converto vac came out, It didn't look like We could reach an agreement on his, So he emailed me the link to this one and yes I was very serious about getting it and He even wished me good luck on the ebay one and promised not to bid against me. Well yesterday out of the blue We finally reach an agreement on his converto vac, so now he's going after the blue one now, so that's where it's at now. Jeff this deal i made with him is alot less then what I would have had to pay for the ebay one in fact I had made a loan to get the ebay one but it's just better for me to go the route I took. Jeff I'm the kind of person If I want something bad enough I would do what ever it takes to get it even to the point of getting kinda in a rut to get it. I'm not lucky like most of You guys going to estate sales and finding nice vintage vacs. especially since katrina there are none to be found that are worth anything. It'super rare now to find any vintage vac here now.

 

[hoover1060]

Skip, seriously...

if you don't want the ebay one then retract your bid.

thats only fair for the others who do want it.

It will also regulate and maybe help reduce some of the greed(and JUNK) thats rampant with ebay sellers these days.

pretty soon nobody will be able to buy anything on ebay

 

[sikiguya]

Retracting bids

He is not allowed to retract his bid per eBay's rules.

You can retract a bid or a Best Offer for the following reasons:

You make a typographical error and enter the wrong bid amount. For instance, you bid $99.50 instead of $9.95. If this occurs, enter the correct bid amount immediately after you retract your bid. If you do not place another bid, the retraction will be in violation of eBay's policy and could result in your suspension. Please review the retraction guidelines if you need to retract your bid.

The description of an item you have bid on changed significantly after you placed your bid.

You cannot contact the seller. This means that you tried to call the seller, but his or her phone number doesn't work, or that you have tried emailing a message to the seller and it comes back undeliverable.

There are people all over eBay who have bid on items but end up finding the item somewhere else after they have been outbid. Many times, I have seen items driven up in price by people who want an item but then they find a newly listed one on eBay to bid on or just decide that they don't want to bid any higher. It looks like Skip REALLY wanted the vacuum as he was going to take out a loan to buy it but ended up making a deal with someone else who was going to bid "to the max" for hte blue on one eBay. It's no crime and it doesn't bother the person who is evidently bidding and selling the brown one to Skip.

 

[brettsomers]

Heather

all good points. skip bid in good faith, he simply doesnt want to bid any higher.