Tell us your best new/unopened vintage find.

[fnelson487]

My First

A Hoover Model 53 from 1953. Found on Ebay in the original box. Won best original at the VCCC convention. Here is the first picture.

 

[fnelson487]

Here's The Box

And the ribbon. Also an original ad from 1953.

 

[fnelson487]

My Next NIB

A Kirby 519. You kind of wonder why they were never used!

 

[timborow]

Man oh man

What a beauty that AeroDyne is! I didn't know that Hoover was using that type of hose even back that far. They were ahead of their time. Seems like all other vacuums of that era had cloth covered hoses.
Fred, do you use the vacuum, or is it just for display?
Tim

 

[fnelson487]

That Hoover 53 Aero Dyne Is the pride of my collection

There is a story behind this one. It was packed with the original waxed paper and rubber bands around the cord. I think that someone gave this to his wife for Christmas and she didn't think much of it. She packed it back up and put it in the closet in her air-conditioned kitchen and there it stayed for almost 50 years. When she died, the nephew found it and realized what a treasure it was. I do use it every once in a while, but would hate to scratch it or cause any deterioration. It is mainly for show. One of my favorites!

 

[fnelson487]

Here's The Ebay Listing

I kept it. It is one of those rare finds. Here's the description.

 

[fnelson487]

'53 Aero Dyne Pictures

Here are the pictures.

 

[gansky1]

That's incredible, I've seen and used the cleaner, but hadn't seen the ebay pictures.

That poor woman and her broom - it makes you wonder...

 

[brettsomers]

Mr Nelson

didnt you also win a super original 700/800 style Hoover upright off eBay, with you being the only bidder? with all the tools and papers and original, pristine bag? what ever happened to it? David

 

[jakins]

Kevinpreston8

I used the westinghouse had to redo some of the seals as they shrank from no use. Kevin I am the person you got the American Kitchens Dishwasher from.
John

 

[harold]

Two of my best MIB finds have been mixers...

Robert, where did you find the Sunbeam Mixmaster Model 12??

 

[kevinpreston8]

Jakins....

When the heck am I finally going to remember your screen name!

Apologies...

 

[Unimatic1140]

Robert, where did you find the Sunbeam Mixmaster Model 12??

At an estate sale, $15

 

[hoover1060]

I have two machines like this

The first is a Singer PowerCompact model E-9. This came from ebay, new in the box, and I probably paid more for it than I should have. I've only run it a couple of times, its too nice to fill with dog hair!!

 

[hoover1060]

#2

This was a present from Chad(Programcomputer)

This is my favorite of the Convertibles, model 1060.
I entered this in the same "Best Original" contest as Fred N's Hoover 53, and Fred won.
This is from later in the 1060's run, 1968 or so...
You can tell when you move it that its had zero use!

 

[wmlask]

Sunbeam Model CG Waffle Baker and Grill

Found an unopend Sunbeam waffle iron at a yard sale for $5.00. The woman said it was a wedding gift and she disliked waffles so she put it away in her linen closet.

 

[timborow]

Electrolux Floor Cleaner

I know you have all seen the Electrolux 3 brush floor cleaners. I don't really know the model numbers for them. Anyway, I ran into a guy this weekend that owns a little appliance repair business. He said he took one of these, still in the box, as trade for his services to a lady's appliance. She bought it when she purchased her blue 1205. It was never opened, and had been in her attic all these years. I just wonder what made her decide to get it out and see if someone wanted it. He gladly took it. I am going to his shop this week to see it. Tim

 

[veg-o-matic]

My best ones were a Hoover Floor-A-Matic that I use and love, a Sunbeam perc that was probably a wedding gift, and my GE Superblow hair dryer.

veg

 

[mixfinder]

Toss Up

In 1992, I drove past a garage sale, thought I saw it, drove on thinking it couldn't be true and then U turned and went back. Sure enough, there was a Sunbeam, model 10C. The lady got it for a wedding present and said she broke the handle before she was ever able to use it. With a broken handle, but otherwise MIB, I got a Sunbeam Model 10C for $5.00. I was using it as the daily driver, 4 kids, company, wedding cakes, catering etc. I knew I shouldn't work it so hard and put it some place to preserve it. I polished it up, put it on display in the store where I sold kitchen kitch, with a ridiculous price tag of $500.00 thinking it would just sit there, for the enlightened to enjoy. I was gob smacked to learn a collector from Japan bought it. Funny how we would give a $1,000,000 to be able to lick ourselves, but seem to have no trouble what so ever, kicking ourselves!
The second most amazing find was a Frigidaire Flair, circa 1963. A bachelor, lived with his Mom on a farm. Shortly after buying the Flair, the mom died. The son never cooked. Other than occasional use of the small front burner to heat water or Cambell's soup, it was just like new. The larger oven had never been used and still had some items taped in place from the original delivery. It was an amazing stove in absolutely PERFECT condition. Sold it to the new buyer, when we moved.
I found a NIB model 12 at Hardware store on Yesler, in the late 80's and a NIB Sunbeam perc at an estate sale in 1991
Kelly

 

[tomturbomatic]

treasures, boxed and out in the air

I found a CORY vacuum brewer in its original pink box at a thrift shop, a couple of Silex brewers in the box and a basic GE from the late 30s with the electric table stove, unopened at an estate sale. At an Atlanta yard sale in the 80s, my brother bought a brand new in the box C30C Coffeemaster that had been a wedding present that was never used. I have a C50 in the box. In the late 1980s, I was at a small, sad Sunday morning flea market between Sarasota and Bradenton where an elderly couple had a table with stuff set out in front of the little storage building where they kept the stuff packed away the other 6 days of the week. I bought something choice from the table and then walked around and looked up into the shed. Up near the top was a Presto electric Dutch Oven box, still sealed. I asked how much it would be. They said $10, if I wanted it, so we got it down and it was perfect. Earlier this year, I bought its sibling, a matching electric skillet new in the box. I found one of the rarest coffee makers I had ever read about brand new in the box, a Revere stainless steel 4 cup electric dripper from the early 1960s. Since I was in my teens, I have checked out old hardware stores for housewares and found many treasures, brand new and dusty. I guess John, Robert and I will always remember stumbling on the old appliance parts store in Rocky River, just west of Cleveland, while we were looking for a Goodwill store that we almost gave up trying to find. We hit the place like a tornado and when they let us behind the counter, the old owner was laughing and smiling with appreciation as we sat on the floor amidst dusty boxes and bins, held up knobs from the early 50s and called out to each other the brand and appliance they were for.

These finds were satisfying, but none of them produced the great excitement of the day John and I were driving down I-85 to Atlanta in the 1980s when he happened to look up to the top of the hill on the right and said, "Frigidaire washer." It took two attempts to get to it, but sitting on the loading dock of a moving and storage warehouse was the WCI58 I had wanted for so long which they said we could have for free because it did not work and all that was to blame was a wire off its terminal on the motor. It was not new and had seen a lot of use and some abuse, but it was one of the sweetest finds ever.