Singer 15-91

I've been looking for a Singer sewing machine with a potted motor for a little while now. I passed one up on Shopgoodwill.com a few weeks back because the bidding got too hot. Someone wanted it badly, and I didn't feel like fighting over it (or paying more for it). So when I lifted the lid on a sewing cabinet at a local Goodwill this past weekend and saw this (for only $30), I felt I'd lucked out.
I wasn't exactly sure of the model (I have a lot more vintage Kenmores than Singers) but I suspected it was a model 15-91. And I was right. Just in case you can't see through all that dust, the serial number reads AG787409. According to the two letter prefix list of serial numbers on the Singer site, this one was made in 1946.

It's not the cleanest machine in the world, but I've been partial to extra dirty machines lately. I want to get some restoration experience. And nothing gets you quite as familiar with sewing machine parts as having to give a machine a good, detailed cleaning.

Just look at all those cobwebs on the underside of the machine. The case was full of them too, as well as a heavy blanket of dust, and some long dead spider egg sacks. I took the whole thing outside on a mild, sunny Monday morning, and brushed it all out. A light wind was blowing in just the right direction to keep all that stuff from getting in my eyes or up my nose.

Here are some more before pictures.

Is this one heck of a thread tangle, or what? That must have been the last straw, but it wasn't difficult to remove.

The paint job does have some pin pricks in it, but for the most part the decals appear to be in good shape, though dim. There is a bit of rust also. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how she cleans up.

And remember that large box that sat inside the case, next to the machine? This is what was in it.

 

It's a buttonholer with the manual included. This type doesn't use templates. There are a few adjustments on the side that dictate the buttonhole size--I'll figure that all out later.  

Cleanup has already begun. I'm cleaning the parts that I can while I wait on some Kroil and a proper screwdriver set. I've got some stubborn screws that need loosening before I can look at the motor, and clean up the outside of the machine. In the meantime, I have plenty to keep me busy. 

New Home Model NLR: One Dirty Machine

I just picked up this machine yesterday. It's a round bobbin rotary model.

You can probably already see how dirty it is, but just wait, there's more.

Just look at that chrome on the hand wheel--hardly any silver showing through. It's mostly a dark, sludgy brown. And I'm quite sure that those yellow metal parts should actually be silver.  By now, you may have noticed the greasy appearance of the black finish. The entire machine is positively caked with a greasy substance.What could it be? My first guess would be that it was stored in a smoker's home. There is a very slight odor, but it's not nearly strong enough to justify the gunk all over the machine.

Ironically, the box of rotary attachments that came with this machine are in pristine condition. They're silver, shiny, free moving (not a speck of rust anywhere), and appear unused--not a scratch to be seen on any of them.

Here's a view of the back. I just love the retro look of the light, though (from what I've read) this type of sewing machine light likes to get very hot. That lighter patch on the bed of the machine under the motor is the model number and serial number. It reads NLR117455. I still haven't tracked down a manufacturing date, but this model is very close in appearance to the more known model NLB, which was manufactured from approximately 1941-1953. Again, ISMACS to the rescue with the full manual. This is the first manual I've ever seen that details every piece of the tension assembly, should you ever need to adjust or replace the check spring (scroll down to page 8).

And this is the strangest motor pulley I've every seen. That's because it's covered in masking and electrical tape . . .

. . . I'm not sure why, since the rubber doesn't have any flat spots, and it's not dried out. The motor housing sits very close to the body of the machine. Maybe the tape was added to make more space between machine and motor? I guess I will find out as I clean this machine up and get it running again. In the photo on a right, a bit of electrical tape is still on the pulley, and the set screw is removed. Again--very dirty, and very greasy.

Here's a closeup of the .7 amp motor, and you can see just how close it sits to the body of the machine.

Here's the faceplate. I'll get into threading in a later post. I'll have to remove this to oil some moving parts, but again, the manual is very detailed in this respect, and will guide me through it. Why can't all user manuals be this way?

And here is the famous New Home Light Running greyhound trademark. Overall, this machine is filthy--and I love it, because, under all that filth, the machine looks like it's in remarkably good condition. I can't wait to share before and after photos in another post!

New Home Light-Running Treadle: An Introduction

I've long been fascinated by the beauty of treadle sewing machines. Seeing one in a fabric store window has always been a treat. Who wouldn't admire all that ornate detailing? I was in no big hurry to find one of my own . . . until I saw one in action on an episode of Victorian Farm.

So here it is--my very first treadle!

And even thought the cabinet is in rough shape--this antique New Home is a beauty. As you can see, the finish has deteriorated. In fact, I can literally scrape parts of the finish off with a fingernail. It's darkened, crackled, and dirty, and in many places leaves the wood completely exposed and unprotected. I've already re-glued the coffin top, which had a massive crack in it.

These are the only accessories it came with besides the straight stitch foot, which came already attached, and which, for the moment, is stuck. That will get fixed.

There are a couple of extra long shuttle bobbins, and I love the little compartments in this top, center drawer.

And the drawer pulls on the six side drawers are very lovely.

 The machine itself is in decent shape. The decals are worn from use, there's some rust here and there, and the chrome on the hand wheel is almost completely worn away. However, everything moves freely, and after a belt replacement and a few drops of oil, it stitches just like it's supposed to. Here's a back view.

The decals on the back of the pillar are the least worn, and the colors and details can still be seen. I haven't cleaned them at all yet, and won't do so until I do a bit more research on how to clean without damaging or silvering them. I can only imagine how beautiful this machine must have been brand new. Now on to the practical stuff . . .

The "W" shaped contraption you see at the top is the tension spring--tighten the screw for more tension, loosen it for less tension. Simple. Effective. The disadvantage to this kind of tension control, however, is that it is completely independent of the presser foot. When the presser foot is raised, the tension spring is not disengaged, making it difficult to pull the work (and upper thread) out from under the presser foot without bending the needle. For this same reason, threading is a little less convenient on this machine.

Here's a closeup of the presser foot and needle bar. The presser foot screw is stuck, so it will get a dab of WD-40. When it comes to sewing machines, WD-40 is a big no-no because if left on the parts they can become more frozen than they were in the first place. Kroil is typically recommended in the Yahoo! sewing machine groups, but I don't have any on hand. Rest assured, I will get rid of the WD-40 by flushing the parts with oil once they have been loosened and removed.

Notice how the presser foot connects to the presser bar. So far, as far as I can tell, these are not easy feet to come by. They're the earlier style. The presser bar is completely round, the foot slides up onto the presser bar, and is secured with a set screw. Take another look at the picture of the accessories in the drawer above to see what the connecting part of a presser foot looks like when not on the presser bar. There aren't many feet for this machine that actually attach to the presser bar. Most of the accessories (almost all the hemmers and the tucker) actually attach to the bed of the machine with a thumbscrew.

Notice also that the needle bar is flat (interesting). The hole in the top of the needle bar acts like the check spring of a modern machine. The hook lower down on the face plate is the take-up.

Here you can see the bullet-shaped, vibrating shuttle under the front slide plate. It's still in good shape--no skipped stitches so far, except when I removed and reinstalled the needle. Turns out this machine takes longer needles than today's standard. One solution? Instead of pushing the needle up as far is will go (as is the usual practice) lower it a tad, tighten the screw, and give it a try. Repeat until you're no longer getting skipped stitches and/or broken top thread.

Here's a closeup of the bobbin winder--more on that later.

And below that, on the bed of the machine, is the stitch length selector--the higher the number, the smaller the stitch. This machine will do some seriously microscopic stitches. To get the smallest stitches balanced, you'll have to loosen the top tension. Adjust the stitch length by loosening the thumb screw and sliding it left or right as desired. This one was stuck.

 That's why the bar you see at the top of this photo is so nice and silver. I removed it and wiped it clean with sewing machine oil and paper towels. I also cleaned the channel it rests in with oil and Q-tips. The metal tab and screw that holds the bar in place should not be tightened all the way down, nor should it be terribly loose. Find a happy medium that keeps the bar securely in the channel, and yet allows it to slide freely. I also cleaned a lot of lint out of the shuttle area, the evidence of which you can see in the oil drip pan under the machine.

And here is a closeup of the hand wheel and clutch release (again, more on this later).

The serial number is printed on the front slide plate as well as a "Number of Cotton/Size of Needle" chart. According to ISMACS, the serial number dates this machine to 1891. You can see the New Home numbers list here.


Patent dates are printed on the rear slide plate, pictured below.

That's the end of this rather lengthy introduction to the New Home Light-Running treadle sewing machine. Threading and use tutorials will follow soon. If I've left anything else out, or you're having trouble reading any of the words on those ultra-shiny slide plates (which I had a heck of a time photographing without reflection), or if you just have some interesting historical or anecdotal tidbits for me, feel free to comment below!