09-03-2013, 09:53 AM
Hi Patrick and welcome.
I only have experience with the Challenger. I have used this machine almost exclusively for ten years. I bought it used and it still works great.
I am a part timer myself and looking to "retire" into full time carpet cleaning some day.
I recently added 10 inch wheels to mine and it now performs similarly to an orbot except I have a shower feed instead of spray system.
As far as the machine goes, it's bullet proof and I think the company is up and running again, but they have been on again off again for a few years so I would call and find out for sure if you're interested.
For residential it is about as good as it gets for an orbital machine with regard to weight and performance and durability.
For commercial larger jobs it is pretty slow going. About 600 square feet per hour or so unless you convert to wheels down which brought mine up to 1500 sq ft per hour using the shower feed.
All that being said, if I were starting out I would seriously consider the Oreck with wheel kit for an all around quality machine. The price is about the same as a standard Challenger and much more versatile out of the box. No alterations needed. It is also easy to add a shower feed tank to the Oreck which I personally like better than a spray system for large commercial jobs.
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I only have experience with the Challenger. I have used this machine almost exclusively for ten years. I bought it used and it still works great.
I am a part timer myself and looking to "retire" into full time carpet cleaning some day.
I recently added 10 inch wheels to mine and it now performs similarly to an orbot except I have a shower feed instead of spray system.
As far as the machine goes, it's bullet proof and I think the company is up and running again, but they have been on again off again for a few years so I would call and find out for sure if you're interested.
For residential it is about as good as it gets for an orbital machine with regard to weight and performance and durability.
For commercial larger jobs it is pretty slow going. About 600 square feet per hour or so unless you convert to wheels down which brought mine up to 1500 sq ft per hour using the shower feed.
All that being said, if I were starting out I would seriously consider the Oreck with wheel kit for an all around quality machine. The price is about the same as a standard Challenger and much more versatile out of the box. No alterations needed. It is also easy to add a shower feed tank to the Oreck which I personally like better than a spray system for large commercial jobs.
Sent from my iPhone