let's go over this again

Upholstery tool reviews:
Your favorite-
Your 'Not' favorite.

1. Ihave a hydramaster DRI master- I like. The flow trigger went out, so it sits.
2. So I use my back up- pmf with the plastic head and internal spray jet. Works OK+. To much suction and the water spray dosnt hit fiber to well, then I have to do more passes. 

Havnt tried any others, so no bad reviews to give.

I had the pmf metal with internal jet and external jet, I like the external jet better but too much water overspray, bad if the sofas are sitting on wood floor, internal jet like you said it's just okay.
I have drimaster I, I like that for curvy chairs, it just turns really easy and clean edges really well, tried drimaster II I think ? Dave has that, it turns okay, not as easy as the first drimaster but the head is bigger, so it covers more areas thus faster cleaning.
The one I'm using day in and day out now is sapphire tool, cleaning result is about the same with the drimaster, both of them are jetless, turning the corners not so good, and I found out that they have 2 different kinds of rebuilt kit, RV4 and RV4N, I'm guessing the "N" stands for "New" ? That's the one for my tool, I would recommend to get the rebuild kit along with the tool if you decide to get one, they last about 18 - 24 months for me before they start to leak.
The conclusion, Sapphire is best in speed, Drimaster is best in curves and edges, pmf external jet is best for very soiled couch, pmf internal jets hmmm I wouldn't use that, lol.
I have a used sapphire tool if you want, need a rebuild kit ( not leaking but I jimmy rigged the rebuild kit that doesn't really fit well in it ), so the trigger valve is really high before it hits the valve and the water is released, it works but you can't lock the trigger because of it, I don't like to lock it anyway because I usually set the pressure a little higher so it will flush more, $ 300 plus shipping ( may be around $ 50 to Washington ? ) and it's yours.

Sapphire tool is still winning the battle for me. I haven't found anything better yet. The hose isn't the best quality, but the tool itself works well.

The only advice I would offer for it is to upgrade the needle valve. The original one is very touchy and tends to open up while you clean causing some over-spray.

I noticed the old version of it is touchy ( needle valve ) but the newer version is a lot stiffer ( not too stiff that makes it hard to turn ), but it's stiff enough so that it won't accidentally open or close by itself.
I'm curious if anyone have tried the rotovac version of the upholstery tool ? I still regret not getting the demo unit from the expo in Vegas for $ 300, I could've bought it and just sell it if I don't like it, it looks somewhat solid just reviewing the looks of it. Not as solid as the sapphire though, and the price is also not as "solid" as the sapphire, I can't believe it's over $ 500 already, plus taxes it's almost $ 600, makes me rethink if I should sell my sapphire.

If you shop around, you will find that the Sapphire has dropped to around $450 since they introduced a clear version for a little over $500. That is still a little high for an upholstery tool unless you use it a lot (like theaters and even chairs), but it is must if you do.

Good to hear about the improvements on the needle valve. I bought mine when right after they came out and they had to recall the hose due to it separating from the head too easily. I was too late for the recall and was the second owner so I was stuck with it.

Anyone know somebody that sells a compatible hose?

I just went ahead and ordered a 10 ft whip hose from Joe to replace the one on my Sapphire. I had to order a new filter and few other things anyway. If you haven't checked out his site lately, it was pretty smooth and free shipping. Pretty nice.

I think I might try running dual inline filters when it arrives to see if I like that better than the "Y". With the soil loads I have been seeing, running tow independent filters at the same time might not be a bad idea.

I didn't see sapphire tool for $ 450 anywhere on the web, the cheapest one I see is on eBay for $ 494.
And yes any 10 feet gray 1.5" vac hose should work just fine instead of paying "bend over and let me @&$! you" price from Sapphire.
Now, the solution hose is a different story, their price is not that much different than my local hose supplier that I've been shopping at because their prices are ridiculously low for almost any heavy duty hoses, not sure why the sapphire solution hose is almost as expensive there too, may be it's just because it is too small and need to be able to handle heat and solutions / chemicals.

I don't recall where, it was a quick google search for that $450.