Hi, my mother passed and left this sewing machine/ table. It says Montgomery Ward Model-R and 115V. I can't find the cord or figure out how to make it go back into the table? Is it good basic machine? Hard to find parts? Etc. Don't know anything about sewing so any info appreciated, thx.

Does anybody have any information on this Fleetwood Model 302?? I can't even find a picture of one like it online, so I have no information at all about it currently aside from them being made in Japan from the 40s-60s. Picked it up at Goodwill for $40, seemed like a good deal for something so heavy! 😅 This thing is no less than 50lbs, I'd swear by that! Found a couple codes on it, but they didn't bring up anything either. And never in all my years have I seen a sewing machine with a "darn" option, I'm not even sure how you'd use that. 🫪 So hopefully someone can help me out with my "mystery machine", hehe. 😁

Recently, I visited my local sewing machine repair shop. The owner was surprised when I asked about a Singer 401a. He had one on his shelves, and just gave it to me. He explained that he gets them as trade-ins, but the resale market is not worth his time.

He started explaining how sewing machine technology has progressed, and gave me a demonstration of a few of the machines he had designed, working with manufacturers. The modern machines were very well-behaved, with consistent stitching and smooth feed. He explained that feed dogs had progressed, as well.

So, that leads to my question. Do you prefer vintage sewing machines to modern, and, if so, why?

Thanks.

My partner and I picked up these two antique machines. I picked up a New Home with Hamilton Beach home motor and he picked up a hand crank singer 15. Both were $15 each! And we believe they came from the same home/collector as we see evidence of some upgrades and fixes already done to them. Example - the Singer 15 came with a hand crank and an updated/modern motor.

My partner showed me how to clean and rewire the motor on the New Home but other than that they're both in great usable shape! It's a clunky beast. lol

I would love to find a hand crank that works with the New Home and I also need a new foot (current one is broken but still works). Hand cranks aren't proving easy to find, so far. :(

Hello all! I am fairly new to sewing, my grandparents gifted me a singer 347 and I adore it! But I’m having some issues and I’m pretty certain I can fix them myself but not sure how to go about it. SO the tension dial (little disk with plus and minus on it) broke so I ordered a replacement and also the whole tension assembly just in case something else was broken. Today I get them in the mail, and replaced them. But now my top stitches are so loose and I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. Maybe I placed the 3 thread discs in the wrong order? They all look identical though so I’m not certain. Any help is greatly appreciated. Pics to show how cute she is 😭

So this machine has been sitting in the basement which is a very humid environment. It does turn on, it runs, but its like it struggles with starting. I couldn't catch it on video but the little rod coming out of the motor hub will turn by itself and not move the rubber band thingy. I have no idea about machines but id like to fix this one and learn how to mantain it. When it turns on, the hub will get kinda warm id say about 80-90 degrees(? Not to the point of burning me but i can tell it gets hot. Also the pedal was making some weird sounds like electricity sounds, like how a tesla coil sounds like but then it just stop sounding like that it also gets a little warm. The motor hub kinda smells like burnt so does the pedal(? But idk if its just normal or a product of humidity or something. Does anyone have any idea why it struggles to run and what i could do to fix this?

As it says on the tin. Has anyone used a vintage buttonholer on a Viking Colormatic 6000 series ? Because it would be immensely helpful for me and make my life easier as a disabled sewist than having to fiddle with a manual 4 step buttonhole. But before I drop the cash or damage my machine, I wanted opinions.

Hi Everyone. I purchased this hand crank sunlik machine the other day but I can't find much information about it or the company online. Only that it's made in Japan around the 50s/60s, called the Golden Swallow & is basically a copy of the Singer 15. I find it interesting that it's made in Japan but has a Native American on the trade mark stamp. If anyone has anymore info about the company/machine that would be great. It sews beautifully. Thanks

My mother in law has given me this mammylock ML-4 machine, its been running smoothly for a while but I am having some issues with it and need a few replacement parts. I have tried googling this machine so many times but can barely find a thing about it apart from 2 photos of it, I do have the machines original manual but there isn't much about any of the parts in there. Does anyone have any information about where I could get replacement parts for it, or any information about the machine at all!? I can find things about the ML-303 and 604 but nothing on this one, it seems to be elusive/doesn't exist!

I want to make keyhole buttonholes and am planning to get a Singer/Greist #1 buttonholer for my Singer 201k. Has anybody got one? Do they make decent buttonholes? Any advice welcome, thanks.

I rigged this up to wind my featherweight's bobbin more easily, but it's so fast (and kinda fun tbh) Im going to wind all my bobbins like this now

I recently inherited a Singer 115 treadle machine that is in excellent condition! This machine is beautiful and spent decades in my husband’s grandma’s basement before we brought it home. I’ve never learned to use any kind of sewing machine but I’m trying to learn to use this one. It definitely works and I have successfully sewn some practice stitches. But I’m having trouble really getting the hang of it and having some issues I can’t figure out how to fix..

I’m hoping to find some folks who use one who can help me! I’ve found some videos of people restoring old machines like mine, or demonstrating how to do a few basic things, but I can’t find videos of using it or how to troubleshoot issues. Anyone out there?

i unfortunately cannot find alot of information about this sewing machine but everything works which is amazing!! i got it for 15 dollars at the thrift, i still need to clean it and and have it serviced. just thought i would share it, im so happy i found this theyre going for 40-150 on ebay so i am grateful i found it when i did. if you have any information about the machine or any tips and tricks i would love to see it. :)

Picked up this teeny wee cutie this weekend and I love it! Anyone any tips for keeping her in shape?

Please excuse how dirty it is, this is shortly after I picked it up from the previous owner.

I’ll be transparent here and say I bought this machine knowing it may or may not work, and saw it as a repair and learning project, but it seems that it’s only issues are either the belt/motor, and some minor rust, which is not a strong worry at the moment.

My main focus is the belt/motor issue, I cannot tell if the motor is too weak, or the belt is too loose. I’m just looking for guidance on if the issue is a belt or motor problem, and what to do after diagnosing. When I put it in bobbin mode, the belt and motor perform and move just fine, but when I put it in the mode where it should stitch, the belt will not move unless I put extra pressure on it, which is why I suspect it could just be loose. (I’m hoping that’s the only issue..)

First time vintage machine owner, so I appreciate any oncoming feedback, thank you in advance! I had photos taken too, but I can’t post a video and photos in the same post unfortunately.

Hi, I just bought this vintage sewing machine with which the seller provided me with bunch of cams. As you can see, the mechanism seems to have problem because it’s frozen and doesn’t follow up my cam.

I don’t have much knowledge on sewing machine so I don’t know if there’s a missing part, or machine too dry, or there’s some other settings that I didn’t pay attention to
I’ll add more pics and vids in the comment in case that’s helpful

Any info or contribution is much appreciated, thank you guys in advance !

Hi, it's me again and my many questions on the way to restore a vintage Elna Supermatic to working condition. (Hope I'm not too annoying!)

So, I replaced the rubber motor pulley with 3d printed version (this one, the pin hole needs to be made a bit wider, otherwise it will crack; I used a heated awl to achieve the right diameter). Then I started tuning the machine using the service manual and quickly discovered that, - alas! - the shuttle hook timing is off.

The manual is very clear about how to fix it, but I wasn't able to unscrew the screws I was supposed to unscrew despite using penetrating oil, a heat gun, and lots of swearing in every language I know. The screws are simply too brittle, and the metal easily chips with the smallest pressure.

Finally, I was able to unscrew the oil screw (a central one) and remove the shuttle hook (I wanted to check the pinion anyway). The pinion was very dirty but no signs of wear (it's still dirty on the photo, I removed all the gunk that I could remove with tweezers and q-tips and I was going to use rubbing alcohol to clean it thoroughly but I ran out of rubbing alcohol).

But I still cannot move three screws that have to be loosened in order to adjust the shuttle hook timing in relation to needle. I.e., to make the machine pick up bobbin thread and make neat stitches instead of tangling the needle thread around the shuttle hook in a totally inappropriate manner.

Also, both three screws in question and the central oil screw are in really bad condition, and I'd prefer to replace them, but I wasn't able to find any for sale anywhere. I have a pdf with Elna's parts list but the quality os low and I can't read the description or figure out the corresponding parts number.

Tl;Dr

1. How to remove these screwed screws from the shuttle hook, preferably without drilling them out? Solved thanks to u/Minituo!
2. Where to find suitable new screws?

UPD: I found a much better quality Elna Supermatic parts guide (it can't be downloaded for free but can easily be viewed) and apparently I need Oil Hole Screw #710061 and Conical Screw M3 #714020. I couldn't find any of them for sale, but conical M3 sounds like something standart that should be available?

Thank you!

I really need some help. I just received my grandmother's old Pfaff 229 but there was no pedal! Does anyone know a generic modern pedal that could work in its place?

I bought this today for £45 and it's gorgeous, the man at the vintage shop said it was maybe 130ish years old but wasn't sure, I'm gonna do my research a bit but also wanted to outsource to the community as to some tips for restoring her a bit.

I want to get her all cleaned up, she appears to be running smoothly however her sewing ability is yet to be tested.

If anyone knows any info on this machine I would be very interested to find out more!