Macybaby

I recently bought a set of antique hemmers and what I assumed was a holder for them. After being able to look it over, I don't think it's a holder.

I bought this hoping it would work with my Singer 12, but I don't think it will. The hemmers line up, but are quite a ways from the needle.



The marks on the hemmers, they are also numbered 1,2,4,5 (3 is missing)

"Chapin's Patent Feby 19, 1866"



This is the item in question - and maybe there are parts missing . . .



this end looks very much like how a tuckmarker looks.





The screw can be loosened and the bar slid back and forth, which would change the location of the tuckmark.



The end screw is mounted to the lower plate and fits through a hole on the upper plate. With the nut tight, the two pieces are tight together. Loosening it allows for a bigger gap at the open end.



The big question - what would come done to press the two plates together to make the mark?

SteveH

Correction: the stamped date looks like Feby 19, 1856, which looks to be the correct time frame for this inventor

https://www.google.com/patents/US214829
this patent references "The hemmers B and B do not differ from those long in use, one of the earliest of which was patented to Seth P. Chapin, February 19, 1856, by Letters Patent

https://www.google.com/patents/US14283
Here is a patent by Chapin on the correct day, but looks different

Heading home soon, but looks like some more research may find something interesting

Macybaby

Yup - I think I typo'd that - it's pretty clear on them all that it's 1856, and I remember thinking that predated my Singer 12 by quite a bit.

I get a kick out of the "FEBY" abbreviation!

Now to bookmark that patent site -