The Regina Housekeeper that I had actually seemed solid to me...at least better than today's mass-market stuff. It did not, however, deep-clean carpets very well.
The Eureka Boss, on the other hand, deep-cleaned carpets VERY well, but was not built to last. The Hoover was even worse, particularly the bag assembly.
A friend of mine had the Dirt Devil red upright, and I'd have to say that was the worst of the bunch...burned out quickly and NOISY!!
But these were ordinary, everyday upright vacuums for everyday working people (like me). And, as mentioned, the Housekeeper was revolutionary in that the above-floor cleaning could be done instantly, without much muss or fuss with attachments. I felt the Kenmore/Panasonic and Sharp Twin Energy efforts that followed were indeed much better made...but had the Housekeeper not set the standard for simple-to-use above-floor cleaning, those machines would never have been introduced...
Perhaps a year or two later, the Fantom machines hit the market. They were marketed aggressively on TV and had (expensive replacement) filtration devices and bagless technology that previously had never been offered before (and yes, I ran out and bought the Fury and the Lightning!!)
The Fury wasn't so hot, although the Thunder was a great vac, if unwieldy. The Lightning canister, I still use. I would not have replaced my disappointing Eureka Oxygen tiny-bagged canister with a Kenmore Iridium if I hadn't been very impressed with how the Lightning performed!
