1923 Singer Model 66 Redeye Decal Treadle

I drove to Kansas City a few weeks back and got a couple of treadle cabinets and 4 other treadle machine heads of various makers and model types. Today's post will be of the Redeye that I'm hopefully going to put to good use.

The 'before pic' is here:

I had to put her in a different cabinet that had a foot pedal on it as this one does not have it. :-( I'm currently on a search for the pedal from a local person so I don't have to chase one down off of eBay.

Here are other pictures of this machine now: 

I had to add a spool holder, the felt, and a new belt. I'm still trying to get that belt tight enough to work. Now to get the presser foot unstuck so I can use the machine to sew a few things as a test. I'll also come back and use something on the wheel for the rust. So excited to see something locked up and not moving to get to this point. YAY!

My biggest help for getting me more active in this adventure of rehabbing old machines lays with this wonderful Facebook Group of Enablers: 

Vintage Sewing Machines

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VintageSewingMachines

Buyer Beware -- Craigslist Stoopid People and Sewing Machines

Okay, so today's been one of those weird days where some of us Vintage Sewing Machine Addicts dig through Craigslist ads in our area.  So we find an ad where some person proclaims a RARE sewing machine that really isn't all that rare. So as a crazy test to see if the moron... um... poster is really on the ball, we sent an email to ask a few questions.

Here is the ad BEFORE it is edited:

Then the emails and questions abound and we get this: 

So needless to say this machine was NOT made in 1874. It is actually from 1924 and 35,000 of them were made. If you pay some nutcake $150 for this, then you are paying way too much and are being ripped off. It is missing parts, it is NOT reconditioned, it is NOT original. It is a treadle and one of many that Singer made MILLIONS of. It is NOT handpainted. So no matter what some people tell you in order to get money from you, please do research and ask for Serial numbers, a front view of the machine, an open bobbin cover, and cabinet/case that they might come in for storage. For all you know the irons on this treadle may be broken, missing parts, cabinet may be damaged beyond repair, or whatever. DO NOT pay more than these machines are worth. Please use common sense as you try to add a much loved machine into your home when you are starting in using sewing machines as decorations or as a needed appliance into the household.

Minnesota Treadle Machine Without Cabinet

I picked up several machines and a couple of treadle cabinets about a month ago. My goal was to learn a little more about how to clean and repair machines properly. The hardest thing with any sewing machine so far on dating has been with non-Singer varieties of machines. So all we can do is find the history of a Sewing Company or the catalog companies that sold these machines to get a guestimate on when they may have been created.

Minnesota - Front before cleaning

Minnesota - Back before cleaning

So after reading how to use sewing machine oil to clean so that I wouldn't wipe away the decals, this is how they turned out:

It's just the first part of the cleaning stage. This machine is super smooth and quiet. I can't wait to find a cabinet to put it in and see how it works. :-) So more to come at another time.

Davis Vertical Feed Treadle Sewing Machine NVF

WOW! It's been a month since I typed up and published a page on here. I'm still here and busy as heck with several sewing machines that I am servicing, parting out, or working on purchasing. So for the next few posts I will do separate posts for each machine. I am the owner of way too many sewing machines now, BUT the good thing is that I am also working on learning how to properly care for neglected machines so they can possibly be used again. So on with the blog and this new to me OLD machine. Please note that these are the 'before' pictures. I haven't started cleaning and preserving the machine or cabinet yet. If anyone has any hint on the year of this machine by the serial number, please post a comment.

Front cabinet

Cabinet back 

Cabinet opened and head in table

New Vertical Feed by Davis - Front

New Vertical Feed by Davis - Back

Serial number 3740054

Look! No Feed dogs!

Left side cabinet

As with any of my machines, they are always for sale. If you see something on my blog and want to purchase it before I dive in too deep, just post a comment or message me.

My research links for this Machine:
ISMACS link to Davis VF Manual

An Old Singer 128-13 Sewing Machine in Combination Table

My first antique sewing machine renewal project.

Back of case - Before

 Case Front - Before

 Case Right Side - Before

 Case Left Side - Before

And then the machine table:  Before -

After

This little machine is the 3/4 size machine with electric and the light. The Singer 128 Model is the electric and more 'new-fangled' version of the Singer 28. It has a vibrating shuttle in it instead of a regular bobbin that most of us are used to sewing with. I don't want to plug it in until I get the wires covered that run from the machine to the little covered box on the side. The plug that goes into the machine and plugs into the wall is in pristine condition. So after this machine is cleaned up and the wood is repaired and a solid piece again, I'll plug her in and see if the light works or if the motor still works. 

A little background checking for this machine were found with these links: 

How to identify Singer Sewing Machines made before 1950 that don't have model numbers on them

The Combination Table this machine uses

Singer Sewing Machine Serial Number Database

Singer 128 Manual

Singer 128 Service Manual

A History/Biography Lesson on Isaac Singer (neat read)

Polishing Nickel plated parts DIY

Re-birth of a Vintage Japanese Branded Sewing Machine

Okay, I did another garage sale thing yesterday and brought this baby home. Her cabinet is in bad shape and she is a little dusty with quite a few cobwebs. It's another Japanese Branded Sewing machine where many badges of all different names are put on a sewing machine. This one has embroidery cams to make designs while stitching. So first things first we will take it out of the cabinet and fix the leg that has become unattached. Then the machine will be totally cleaned and re-oiled. Then we'll put her back in and test her out.

For those of you hitting google trying to find these machine manuals and parts, it is a tough ride. We rely on one another to post the information we find to save us days or even weeks of research. So anyone looking for the Coronado, manual or info... go to the Singer website and type in W231 for the manual in the manual search page. Apparently I have a White machine after all.

A big thanks to Yahoo Group - vintagejapansewingmachines for the information I received so I can get done with this latest venture. :-)

The FREE manual for this machine can be found HERE

I Think I Want to Fix up some OLD Sewing Machines

This past Saturday I went out to the local citywide garage sales. I ended up bringing home THREE older sewing machines and only spent $2.00. NOT A TYPO! I bought one and two of them were free. The one free one needs just a bobbin case... $6.00 or so. The other freebie was an OLDER Dressmaker model in a cabinet that someone threw out at the curb. I'm spending gobs of time online trying to find what parts will be needed for which machine and joined even more Facebook & Yahoo Groups to find information on all of these since Google hates me and just wants to sell me more sewing machines or manuals. :-(

So everyone knows that the blog will be kind of quiet for a bit while I dig up some info. I'll try to feature each machine I have that I plan on working on for the topic of a post. I figure if I can learn to fix bicycles when I was a kid... what will it kill me to learn how to DIY a few sewing machines? LOL! Famous last words I'm sure!

So keep your eye out on the following players:

JC Penney Model 7057 Cat Number 868-4698 (I need to take a pic and will post it later)
It supposedly has a bobbin tension issue, but I'm going to clean it and check it out when I get a bobbin to fit it as it isn't the 15 style/size of bobbin.

Manual can be found here: http://www.singerco.com/uploads/download/1278_4538.pdf

Montgomery Ward UHT-J 1934 

 

All this baby seems to need is a bobbin case so as soon as I find one for the best shipping price AND price, I'm getting one.

Then I have the oldest machine that needs some major TLC

Dressmaker

This poor baby was thrown out to the curb and will require the most work so far to get her all fixed up. I need the shank, feet, bobbin winder tire and some bolts to attach it to the hinges in the cabinet so I can put it away. The cabinet has some paint splatter on it and I will work on getting that off as well. If anyone reading this blog post today has any GOOD resources for any of these machines or sellers of parts... please comment with info as I'm getting angry at google about this search stuff. I even used the UK version of google to get away from the eBay sales and nonsense things. I know there are free tutorials, manuals, and low cost parts out there. I just don't want to dig through 100+ pages to find it all.