Fixing vacuum canister

What about Velcro tape? I guess the correct term is hook and loop fastener.

Hook and Loop straps come in all sorts of lengths. Find one from this seller that is long enough go all the way around the machine.

Device a way to "permanently" affix the strap to the machine so that it stays attached when you unhook it. Double sided tape or...wait for it...hook and loop fastener. ;-)

If the canister latch broke, it's probably just plastic which means the vacuum probably isn't a very expensive one. I'm betting that after you get through fussing with all the repairs that don't last, you'll be buying a new one.

So save yourself the headaches and just get it now...

If it IS a quality unit the replacement part will be available

Or if it's plastic you can 3D print one at the local library free.

Maybe.

Some libraries charge a Base Price per job and then some $ amount per meter of filament used.

Of course, you also need the file which may not be easy for the average library patron to obtain or create.

On Tuesday, November 2, 2021 at 1:07:04 PM UTC-4, Marilyn Manson wrote: .

The OP has the old part, he can scan it with his phone. This just isn't a big deal anymore. Some Home Depots and Menards now have 3D printers, of course they charge but they'll probably also help you with the file.

The OP has a cracked latch, part of which I believe is still attached to the device. Scanning it in such a manner as to end up with a viable file for the 3D Printer may not be as easy as you imply.

My point is that you are making a lot of assumptions. Not all libraries provide free 3D printing services, not all parts are easily scannable.

We don't even know what the "part" looks like. The latch on my vacuum is built into the door and the case of the machine. I don't think I could 3D print either "part" at my local library.

You could just duct tape it closed.

Or you could embrace technology and look at new ways to solve a problem. We never want to be too old to learn new things.

Years ago when my children were in elementary school I learned how not to fix a lock. The children were dropped off by the school bus and somehow nobody was home to let them in. Not being helpless victims, they decided to solve the problem by picking the lock with a twig, which of course failed and jammed the lock. I was a bit irritated but had to applaud their attempt to be self reliant. When I got home I used my key on the back door, and disassembled the lock on the front door. Not carefully enough though - don't try this at home, the pins fall out in a pile, if you find them all then putting them back in the right slots to match the key cuts is not a trivial problem. They learned something, I learned something.

I guess you chose to ignore my closing comment. Interesting.

... or to accept a different point of view.

Good point!

Maybe.

The ?latch? on my Kenmore is molded into the plastic case and door. (known as the ?dust compartment? and ?dust cover?.) It?s not really a latch, as in a ?part?. The door just flexes a little and hooks onto a protrusion on the case.

Both parts are no longer available. If the door was cracked (and available) it might be possible to replace it fairly easily, but if it was the case that was cracked, the entire unit would need to be dismantled, probably down to the last screw. You?d basically be rebuilding the entire vacuum.

I?m not saying that I have the same model as the OP, just that if my ?latch? was cracked, I wouldn?t be able to simply buy the latch and replace it.

I just looked at my Kenmore cannister vac.

The latch is a separate piece of stiff but flexible plastic with an edge that fits into a hole.

It could be replaced with a new part but on an old vac I probably wouldn't bother. It's basically a square 2x3 inches. It's designed to snap into a slot but I'd just cut a square out of an old laundry detergent bottle or similar, hold it in place with a couple of 8x32 bolts.

There isn't a lot of stress on this part, and actually the velcro solution, if it's shaped like mine with a split handle, would be the easiest.

Another solution that would work on mine, since the handle is split, just drill through the handle, add a 10-24 bolt and wingnut, call it done.

Why wouldn't you 3D print a replacement?

I could. It wouldn't be difficult to draw in a 3D program. But I don't have a printer at home, so i'd have to print at the library, and I'd get in the queue with middle school kids printing Pokemon characters. The part on mine is so simple it might not be worth the extra effort except for bragging rights.

The advantage of 3D printing the part for mine is that it would snap into the slot and not need to be attached. If I cut a piece of plastic off something in the recycling bin I'd need to bolt it in. On the other hand I'd be done in ten minutes, and it would take me that long on the computer to draw it.

The more complex the shape, the more advantage I see in 3D printing it.