Vintage Singer Machines

[hutch--]

There is not much to go wrong with an early singer industrial so I would be inclined to give it a scrub and oil all of the moving parts then try it out. If the motor and clutch run OK it may be worth tracking down needles and bobbins on the internet. They were rarely ever fancy but usually produced good quality stitching.

[Henry Hall]

What model is it?

[sewbriquet]

The paint has all but come off and there's a plaque on it with 96k41. I can't see any other identifying marks except for Singer - Manufactured in ? It could say Germany but the letters have come off. It really is a  beaten up thing but I do know my mother used it for 50 years for up to 10 hours a day and she said it never missed a beat.  I have other machines which is why I've hesitated to have it serviced.

[Schneiderfrei]

You can find a lot of Singer information online.  try googling that number with the word singer.  There is a data base somewhere that will tell you where it was made and when, you will also be able to find a manual.  Don't pay for one, there should be a free access somewhere.

[Henry Hall]

The ISMACS datebase is here. Yours is in that list part way down. It's the only K model among the 96 range (K means it was made in the Kilbowie factory in Clydebank, Scotland).

In my opinion the Kilbowie factory outstripped the Elizabethport factory for quality by the late 1940s. The Singer 15s they produced there in the 50s are second to none.

[Greger]

You can always ask around who to ask to come take a look at it. A tune up can do wonders for it.  And ask them how to use it. As your skill catches up to its speed you will find the domestics slow and boring, and a waste of time. The domestics you keep will be for the other stitches. Even some of them you might replace over time. Some domestics are rather expensive; so, what is best to buy? If your mind works faster than the domestics sewing machines why be held back?

[sewbriquet]

thanks everyone for your advice. I will definitely get it looked at. I know my mother loved it and she hated using my domestics. She referred to them as toys. I guess I'm a bit intimidated, and there's only one way to overcome that. Now I need to find someone who will travel to the Blue Mountains (Australia) to take a look at it.

[Futura]

This may be common knowledge, but in case anyone is using a modern domestic machine with plastic innards, do not use petroleum based products for lubrication! The majority of shattered plastic gears I've seen were due to liberal misuse of regular sewing machine oil. Use silicone grease instead. Or, get an all-metal machine.

[Henry Hall]

This may be common knowledge, but in case anyone is using a modern domestic machine with plastic innards, do not use petroleum based products for lubrication! The majority of shattered plastic gears I've seen were due to liberal misuse of regular sewing machine oil. Use silicone grease instead. Or, get an all-metal machine.

I didn't see this before, but yes it does complete misery to non-metal gears. I used to use a Singer 900 series domestic for light sewing and the gears under the feed dogs are either all plastic (resin) or resin around a metal hub. One day the horizontal gear just crumbled away in use.

[hutch--]

This basically makes sense yet it seems to vary with the type of plastic. My old Elnas have one plastic gear under the bobbin housing which is a 90 degree bevel gear, the gear that runs on it is a precision steel gear which is a common approach but it definitely needs to be oiled regularly. What I use is Singer sewing machine oil mixed with a teflon additive designed for car gear boxes and it works well on a machine that needs to be oiled regularly. On any of the metal to metal gears I use the teflon additive directly as it is somewhere between oil and light grease in viscosity and sticks really well to double metal bevel gears.

[Schneiderfrei]

Does anybody know whether Wahl shaver oil is any good?

[Futura]

I didn't see this before, but yes it does complete misery to non-metal gears. I used to use a Singer 900 series domestic for light sewing and the gears under the feed dogs are either all plastic (resin) or resin around a metal hub. One day the horizontal gear just crumbled away in use.

I have to ask, was that 900 series machine a "Futura" with a wind in place bobbin? I only ask because I collect its electronic cousin, the 1000. I've got a couple parts machines where the hook drive gear had crumbled.

[Futura]

This basically makes sense yet it seems to vary with the type of plastic. My old Elnas have one plastic gear under the bobbin housing which is a 90 degree bevel gear, the gear that runs on it is a precision steel gear which is a common approach but it definitely needs to be oiled regularly. What I use is Singer sewing machine oil mixed with a teflon additive designed for car gear boxes and it works well on a machine that needs to be oiled regularly. On any of the metal to metal gears I use the teflon additive directly as it is somewhere between oil and light grease in viscosity and sticks really well to double metal bevel gears.

Interesting! Do you notice any problems on your Elnas' plastic gears?

[peterle]

One of my Elnas is an older Supermatic, tan colour and with knee lever instead of a pedal. I had no troubles with the gears yet.
The other one is a younger one from the seventies, an Elna SU automatic. Most probably the same model as Hutch shows in his test video. Once the nylon gear under the bobbin drive was broken. It was easy to replace, only took me about 30 min ( and 35 euros for this single gear...). I´ve read somewhere this gear was designed as a weak spot to prevent further damage when the machine is slamming.

[hutch--]

> Interesting! Do you notice any problems on your Elnas' plastic gears?

What I usually do if I have not used one of the Elnas for a long time is to spray WD40 through the entire bobbin assembly to make sure its free, clean up any excess then oil all of the normal oiling points in the free arm. I use a mix of Singer sewing machine oil with an automotive teflon additive and it has worked really well, the machine smooths up and runs faster when it is fully oiled. I probably over service it but it only take about 5 minutes to take off the top and bottom plates and oil everything that moves so its no big deal and if I want to do a run of things I need it keeps the machine running at full speed with no other problems.

Most breakages come from things jamming AND trying to run the machine while it is jammed. Mine are a bit fussy about getting any threads caught in the bobbin casing and if it happens, immediately stop and untangle it. I have 2 as new Elnas with the cams and a couple of spares if I ever need parts but you try hard never to break anything on a machine that is near 50 years old.

peterle,

Mine are the slightly earlier models called a SuperMatic, the SU is only very slightly different in the knobs and the internals are the same. I picked up the 2 very good ones from ladies in the country that has them from new and took great care of them.