Any Old Sewing Machine Collectors here?

[Classic Finn]

Just wondering if there are any Old Sewing machine collectors here?

I received 2 Oldie "Singer" ELECTRIC sewing machines free of charge and was wondering if these can sew thicker canvas type material? Such as Awning or etc.

One for sure we know is an industrial machine and the other we dont have a clue, however both run on normal household current.

Im not sure wether to plug them in to try to see if they will run or not.

1st off I know basically nothing of electrical to start. And sort of leary of plugging them into the socket. Any suggestions?

I,ll get some photos posted so you can see what they look like. Maybe to help identify the year ?

I know the industrial machine is a Singer 306K Made in England

Also I dont know anything bout sewing or machines even though the wife knows how to use one and she,s quite a talented sewer.


Classic Finn

[SandyD]

I have an old Singer featherweight and it will sew anything. These old machines were used for fine sewing and anything the farmer dragged into the house that needed repairing. Just have a lot of needles on hand if they break.

The Singer 306k is an industrial strength sewing machine used for leather and should do the trick.

[dreadcptflint]

It depends on how old they are. My mother's machine was a Singer out of the sixties and would have difficulty going through thick denium. My grandmother had a much older machine and it could punch through almost anything. The trick was to go slow on the heavier materials until you got the feel for it. You will definitly want a few extra needls on hand if you want to do canvas.

[starleen2]

I have an old singer 31-15 made in the 30's. It was originally made for tailors, but WILL sew though leather+ I can still get parts and needles for it! It doen't have a walking foot -, so it sewing old school style

[Classic Finn]

Here are a couple of pics of the Oldie Singers that I am wondering about.
These we received for free so the price is right. Now only to find out if we can get them to work. On the 306K there are a lot of extra needels which I,ll try to take photos of soon.

The 1st one I know nothing about except it does need a new electrical cord and it looks like it has a missing belt?



This one below is the Model 306 K. Is this an industrial machine?



So have we received somthing of value or just simply unique or just antique? So what can be sewn with these? Anything teardrop related?

Thanks in advance for the info on these.

Classic Finn

[starleen2]

Those look like two solid machines -- Do a google search and you'll come up with forums that will teach you how to put these machines in "time" - usually it's an improper needle depth that causes the problem. I had to search a while until I found mine. Not much can make a singer get out of time. If it's just loose or loops from the bobbin, it could just be the thread tensioner. If the thread is being "RAKED" rotate the needle slightly

[martha24]

Heikki,
Old Singers are wonderful machines.
For doing some basic sewing they are hard to beat since they are made out of metal and are made to last. I have a few myself.
The two main machines I sew on are a Singer 401a and a 101.

The one pictured on top is a real beauty. I just love the decals. I wish someone had given them to me for free.

They absolutely have value, but as to a dollar amount I couldn't say. There are many people if they heard someone had gotten either one of the machines for free would be looking like and wishing they had such luck.

Looks like from what I generally saw the 306K should sew about anything.

To help you find out more about them, date & place they were made etc. the Singer web site is great. This can be found by checking serial number. I would be curious to know about your oldest one.

http://www.singerco.com/support/serial_numbers.html
manuals are still available, not sure what is available in Europe.
http://www.singerco.com/support/model_number.html

There are some articles on this blog that might be useful to you on sewing machine repair/inspecting older machines
http://blog.sew-classic.com/categories/Sewing%20Machine%20Repair.aspx

interesting site
http://www.geocities.com/possumjim/xhtml/collect_sewing_sing306.html

Yahoo also had a vintage singers group that might be able to answer questions too.

Also I don't know how many people sew in Finland, but I have a sewing machine repair man that works on older machines, gives them a good cleaning/tune up etc. and can explain how things work etc. Maybe there is such a person in your part of the world.

[SandyD]

Wow ~ that first Singer is a beauty !! If she were mine, I'd definitely get the cord upgraded and find whatever parts you need to get her running. I have a local man too who fixes anything Singer. He also carries a good supply of belts, bobbers and needles for my featherweight but I've also found specialty accessories on E-bay.

Good Luck and update your pic when she's all ready to go.

[Wild Bill]

My wife is a quilter and sewing machine collector, I find them at estate sales all the time. No one seems to want them and I have purchased many for 10-20 bucks each. She has at least one commercial machine and perhaps 2. I do not know how to get a picture to the form or I would take one and post it. I am still learning. They are larger than the ones designed for private use. They also have double needle set ups. I will hunt one down and try to take a picture of it. The are also so heavy you can hardly lift it. They are all stored except for her 1952 singer Feather weight. I have never bought one that did not work. We still have my Grandmothers foot treadle operated one and it still works well!!! Try and buy something made in China today and see how long it lasts!! Bill