amcatanzaro

Another project that seems easy, but might not be. I want to install an assist hinge in the cabinet my 500 came out of so I can put my 15-90 in there. I'm going to have to drill some holes so I *think* I'm going to have to take the hinge apart.
Anybody have any hints on this? I'm coming up dry.

Sorry about the links, my pictures aren't uploading tonight.

This hinge (124450): http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Sing...-/261512156528

This cabinet: http://www.modagogo.com/singer-sewing-desk/

Macybaby

DH and I have done both- add a hinge where one wasn't. 401A came in the cabinet, we put a Pfaff 130 in it. And if you think Singers are heavy - try to pick up this girl LOL!!

and we've taken them out when we put the 401A in a cabinet that a 15-91 came in.

One word of warning you may also need to modify the front support. With ours, I have several cabinets and hardware, so we swapped them out.

I should have looked at your pictures - the lifts come in a few styles, and one has a bend to the base, and that fits in a specific style of treadle cabinet. Others have a flatter base and they fit easily in a newer style cabinet - typically one for an electric machine.

There was one angled base that we had to take apart to get at the screws, but most of them we did not.

Macybaby

Ok-looked at the pictures - the ebay listing is for the one with the bent base, so I don't think that is what you need for your cabinet - I'll go see if I can dig some up and take pictures.

Macybaby

If you look at most singer treadle cabinet, the tops are two pieces of wood screwed together, so the lift has a bend so it can be screwed to the lower section and the slant screws to the edge of the upper section.

If you look at this - see how the "top" has the main top, and then right around where the machine sits is a second layer of wood - that is what requires a "bent" base lift.



Here you can sort of see how it is mounted to the lower piece and the slant cut edge of the top piece. This is the style with the long spring instead of the short coil. This is also on a very old cabinet that a Singer D9 came in.
.


Here is the lift - showing the bent base.
This is the style with the short coil - which is more common



Cabinets for electric machines only have one layer of wood for the top - and the lifts have a flat base to attach to the bottom side of the cabinet top. These come in different styles, but the key part is the FLAT base.



BTW - this is the top that second lift belongs to - so it's a lot like the top of the desk you showed.

amcatanzaro

I linked the wrong hinge. I was annoyed I couldn't get the picture to upload. I have the flat hinge, not the treadle one.

Sorry I made you do all that work Cathy. You are correct.

Did you have to take the hinge apart to have the flat piece flush with the table?

Macybaby

I know we've had to take apart a few to get them off/on, but I also know that we've take off several that we didn't need to take apart (basically remove the screw that holds the coil). I've seen them in quite a few different styles, so I'd say you have to look at it and see if you can get that one screw in without taking it apart.

BTW - that was the only reason we had to take them apart - couldn't get at the screw that is under the knurled nut.

amcatanzaro

Thank you ma'am!

Macybaby

Was thinking about this on the way to work. I think on some if you put that blocked screw into the bracket before you go to attach it - you can get it all the way in and get a screwdriver on it, and then put it in place holding the bracket up so the screw stays fully seated, and then tighten it down. Once that one is in, you can easily get the others in the regular way. You can mark and pre drill the holes easy enough. One other thing we did - we put the cabinet upside down first - but there were two of us so doing that wasn't difficult. You may have to take off the dust cover to have easy access to installing the lift, and that is also much easier to do with the cabinet upside down instead of laying on your back on the floor and trying to reach up and get at the screws.