I bought one at a garage sale recently for $15. had her plug it in and it seemed to work. got it home and the feed dogs appeared to be working but didn't move the fabric. My boyfriend took the plate off and lubed it and it works fine. he also downloaded a manual from the internet free. i just would spend a lot on a machine at a sale like that without plugging it in. Maybe take a scrap of fabric along to test it on, and having the manual is great