Aww, c'mon….just treat her to a new vacuum cleaner…( you could then divert the broken one for the workshop…)

How about making a wheel from alloy, more durable than wood and easier to machine than a steel one?

Edited By John Rudd on 23/10/2018 15:27:41

The first question in maintenance is is it worth repairing?

I'd look online first for a replacement wheel. I'd be surprised if you can't find one – millions fell out of that mould, likely.

A piece of Delrin 73 mm diameter would not be cheap, or a plate of it to cut a wheel out of. To get the "collet" style fastening of the old wheel, you would probably have to make the centre in one piece and the wheel from another, with screws thru the webs to join them. Kind of complex and probably expensive for material, and not a great way to fasten a wheel anyway, they did it like that originally for el cheapo manufacturing.

Maybe instead you could fit a tight fitting hard wooden bung glued into the spigot, and pass a steel axle through it. A new wheel to run on said axle could be turned up from aluminum or PVC tube to form a rim and a wheel centre of steel or aluminum or PVC glued and/or pinned to the rim. If you used a bolt with a nylock nut for the axle, no way Her Honour will be losing that one!

Good luck.

Geoff

If you know the model and number of the cleaner then you could try looking here. They not only stock current machine spares but also some for older models that are now not available from the manufacturer.

Martin

Geoff,

Right with you on returning things to a useful life, instead of the Kleenex mentality of "scrap and replace"

After all, we are supposed to be Engineers (comes from the same Greek root like ingenious)

Does the wheel HAVE to be "plastic"? I'd rather make one out of Aluminium, and run it on a steel axle secured (possibly threaded) to the housing with an anaerobic.That should outlast the rest of the machine!

Howard

With ESpares showing 34 pages of Electrolux wheels and most of them costing less than a tenner, was it really worth while?

Nice job Geoff – and looks smart. I think you should do the other side too!

I once had a little Sharp milling machine which had aluminium handles – and every time I used it my hands would be absolutely jet black. I guess this was mostly down to oil and grease on the skin, but I would be mindful of the potential of the bare aluminium leaving a mark on light coloured carpets.

.

+1

MichaelG.

Good Work Geoff!

You have the satisfaction of having made something that may not be available: Will work as well, if not better , than the original: will probably survive far longer than the original.

Oh the Job Satisfaction!

Especially after being told "You won't get one of them. Haven't been available for years"

Years ago, the local Austin agent told an ex colleague "You won't get a replacement for that broken clutch slave cylinder push rod for your A35" I wonder if he went back and showed the one that we made up? Only a bit of welding and filing involved.

The downside? Probably the better wheel will result in something else failing. At least you know what to do when the one on the other side breaks!

People like us are no good for today's "Kleenex" Society. We like Trigger's broom, three new heads and only two handles.

Howard

Fat fingers again!

Edited By Howard Lewis on 06/11/2018 17:58:38