miriam

I picked up a cheap derelict sewing machine from the Goodwill Auction sight unseen....
It was dirty. I cleaned it.
It was smelly... Cleaning helped a lot.
It was not moving. (It does now) Does that mean it isn't derelict now???
no...
I decided to take the tension apart.
The spindle/post thingy was spinning around in the socket.
Stuff and thingies were not coming off like they normally should.
After a while, I got the bit pieces off the post.
The spring was sprung. ssssooooo not good...
So I thought I would pull the post it out and see if I have a spring that fits.
Well...
The spindles are held in by set screws or they screw into the socket.
I turned the set screw and metal came chipping out around the set screw... ARGH.
Eventually it came out. It took the right screw driver, Tri-flow and heat...
I started looking more closely at the socket. It looked a little knackered.
Well, someone must have taken a hammer and screwdriver to that socket and tortured for some reason known only to them.
Usually they come right out if you take out the set screw on the side or top somewhere... I guess that Egor character who worked on it never saw a service manual.
I found the set screw, got it out. Then tried to pull the socket.
Some of the metal came apart like a bad tooth filling.
Then I thought I would pull out the remains of the socket.
It crumbled some more. But the part that stayed in was stuck - very stuck.
REMEMBER I had all the set screws out.
Well that socket was toast... It had to come out
thanks to that Egor character with the hammer going nuts...
DH to the rescue. He got out a chisel and hammer... to no avail.
That puppy was stuck. We did a bunch of head scratching.
Then he got out the drill and drilled it out. The machine is now full of metal bits from that socket.
I'm going to need to check and see if another tension/socket will fit in the hole after I get all the metal out of there...
OK. So let this serve as a terrible warning:
TENSIONS HAVE SET SCREWS HOLDING STUFF IN PLACE.
READ THE SERVICE MANUAL.
READ IT AGAIN............
FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS.
Manual: http://www.tfsr.org/publications/tec...achine_manual/

DanofNJ

I did that at the beginning of working on machines with an old singer plastic...it was a disaster...I feel your pain and yes, reading the manual does help. Not all machines are intuitive, and some are just poorly designed and are not meant to be be fixed. None the less, you should be able to retrofix the socket, but it may not be worth the effort.

SteveH

stick with 19th century... hehehe

miriam

BTW I do have a 19 century Singer 15. Nice machine - Egor sand blasted the finish... The guy must get around.

Vridar

miriam

The first purple high lighted area says to take out the set screws. Read what I wrote:
The spindles are held in by set screws or they screw into the socket.
and
Usually they come right out if you take out the set screw on the side or top somewhere...

This machine was tampered with by EGOR and his hammer and screwdriver. My message is this:
LOOK FOR SET SCREWS! YOU DO NOT NEED FORCE TO REMOVE A TENSION

kiffie2413

I just have to say a big THANKS, for sharing your in this case "knowledge after the fact" with us "newbies to vintage machines people who say things that others may deem 'laughable or silly' when we really are asking a sincere question". I am enjoying learning about vintage machines, I have such great memories of spending lazy summer days with my grandma and great-grandma sewing away on their vintage Singers.
K

miriam

I KNEW before I started that there were set screws. Egor did not get the memo. I did not realize Egor had 'worked' on that machine.

miriam

ALSO NOTE:
It should NEVER be necessary to remove that socket with a hammer and screw driver or a drill.

Vridar

Sorry. Misunderstood. Should have known you knew what you were doing. Us newbies aren't so lucky. I thank you for you knowledge.