Bought an old Sewing Machine

[Mike313]

Some time ago whilst out with a friend, visiting one of his friends, we were stood in his garage having a chat. The garage was crammed to the rafters with all manner of stuff and he was having a bit of a clear out. I happened to notice a 'box with a handle' in the corner and asked, 'Is that a sewing machine' vaguely remembering one my mother had (50+ years ago). 'It is', he said, 'And it's yours for £15'. He assured me it was complete and working so I bought it, not because I needed a sewing machine but because I thought it was beautiful thing.
It is a Singer, handwheel-operated, table-top model and, as far as I know (checked serial number on-line) it is a No. 128. The instruction book that came with it is entitled Nos. 127 & 128.
I thought, here is a project for when the evenings grow longer, and even if I just knock up a few stuff-bags I will recoup the cost plus have the pleasure of making something for myself.
Now all I've got to do is ..... learn how to use it!
I tried a local womens' sewing group, but none them had ever used an old machine, in fact they all had electric machines. My next step is to trawl YouTube for a 'how-to' video.

Here are two pics, first is the carry-case:

[/URL][/IMG]


... and the machine itself:

[/URL][/IMG]

 

[birchwood]

Where in the south east are you? I could show you how to use it.

 

[Mike313]

Hi Birchwood, I'm near Brighton.

 

[ged]

That is an absolutely splendid find, but fifteen quid was daylight robbery! It should have been a lot more than that!

It's not so common to find one which still has the instruction book, that's a good sign.

Everything OK underneath? No rust problems? Looks good on top.

 

[Mike313]

No rust that I can see. The handwheel turns very smoothly. Heres a pic of the underside:

[/URL][/IMG]

 

[chas brookes]

very nice looking machine

 

[Macaroon]

Not often you see the decals in such good condition on these machines - that's a beauty, and it's obviously been well cared for. Years of use left in that one.

You should be able to find yards of instructional stuff on the 'tube, the basic principles of sewing are the same whatever machine you're using, and the individual characteristics of your machine will be covered in the handbook.

Good luck with your new adventure and let us know how you get on with it

 

[ged]

No rust that I can see. The handwheel turns very smoothly. Heres a pic of the underside: ...

Yup, that looks great.

I was a little concerned that you said it was in somebody's garage, but either it's a very dry garage or it hasn't been in there for long, or even both!

That's a really, really wonderful find. With proper care it will outlast the both of us.

 

[NoName]

super nice, that is a beauty
yeah get some help
I bought a pfaff 130 some weeks ago but never managed to get a proper underthread. I spend 4 hours on it..... I prefer sewing by hand So I ended up giving it to a female neighbour... got some nice sweets cackes as a gift back

 

[fishfish]

you tube mate.
a mate of mine is an expert in vintage machines,uing,repairing and history,look him up on face book his name is eric: https://www.facebook.com/groups/188504471481738/?fref=ts

 

[Mike313]

Thanks fishfish and everyone else for the comments.

 

[sausage100uk]

Just get the right needles and you will be away. Mine is good for cloth, canvas and light leather. There is something almost meditative about the smooth tick and click when you use these old machines. Looked after they shouldnt ever wear out, mines a hundred years old and is smooth as silk. 😄 (mine was 15quid too!)

Sent from my LG-D802 using Tapatalk

 

[gonzo_the_great]

I brought a mid 60's, domestic machine a few years ago. Think it was three quid off ebay, as the text said that they just could not get it to sew.
Quite a heavily built thing, from the pre-plastic days.

A friend was over visiting and we started tinkering with it. By midnight (and a bottle of scotch later) we had sorted out where someone had assembled it wrongly and got it going.
It was at that point that I exclaimed "Do you realise that we, two middle aged blokes have just spent the whole evening playing with a sewing machine!"
My friend corrected me.... "Ah, but there was the key word.... Machine!"

But the advice as already given, get the right needles for the cloth and the thread size. Get good thread, cheap stuff can be quire hairy under the magnifying glass. The key seems to be, getting it to leave that little loop under the cloth, as the needle retracts, which the bobbin carrier can hook into.
But there is loads of info/videos out there.



Jules