manicmike

Wow! He's very good at this. The photos and explanations leave nothing at all to chance.

miriam

Rain's whole website is wonderful! He used to pop on QB once in a while, too.

amcatanzaro

I have to take the bobbin area apart on my 201 today. I'm using Rain's blog.

My 201 is making me cry, I think the thing is cursed. I get it running fine for about 100-200 stitches and then something else breaks. For all the money I have sunk into this one (and my hopes and dreams as well) I could have purchased a completely refurbished one.

oldsewnsew

Don't cry, it'll be okay. It senses your despair and is just messin with ya! One problem I recall when I was still interested in working on these, was the bobbin case has this little retainer springy thingy around the outside that was a little misshapen and would eliminate most of the clearance to the needle. I'm sure Rains' blog depicts the criminal. It would sporadically break the thread. Good luck!

manicmike

Keep on it Anastasia. There must be an underlying problem, because 201s are very simple machines, built like tanks, and 99.9% of them are reliable.
Fix your problem and you'll still get tears, but they'll be tears of joy.
Nearly every 201 I've bought (more than a few) have had thread nests and huge bunnies under the bobbin case and feed dogs.

Rain's blog makes it impossible to misunderstand the process, so let us all know of your success.

Just out of interest, what do you mean by "something else breaks"? Do you mean thread or hardware (e.g. the motor)?

amcatanzaro

I was having a bad day with it, obviously. I'm less moody about it now. I wish it was as simple as broken thread.

Started that it didn't have a foot controller. And it did have a lot of dead spiders. And it didn't move at all.
I've fixed the tension uh, three times? It's finally right. That was me, I couldn't read the diagram on the adjusters manual. I finally found someone's pictures that saved my visual brain.
It was still running slow so I took a looksee in the motor again, when I did that the wiring crumbed. Grant saved me there. Somewhere in the process I took the top parts of the bobbin case. I replaced them correctly (or so I thought).
I get it all back together, I FINALLY get the bobbin winder to function (though it's still slow). I thread it up and get it going. Everything is fine for ohh, IDK, 3-4 pieces I'm working on. Then there is a huge clunk and the bobbin case is in pieces again.
From Rain's blog I assume that when I reassembled it I didn't get the final click from the finger latch. It's sticking out in a way that makes me think there's something (like thread) in there. I'm not sure. Due the fact that it's not super fast like everyone talks about 201's being I assume there is something dragging I haven't located yet. I need to get the bottom part of the bobbin case off and check in there as well as check that finger thing out better. Right now I'm hung on the fact that I don't have the right tool to take that center screw out. I have nothing that fits.

It gets frustrating for me since I have zero local sewing machine resources short of Joann's and Hobby Lobby. And they don't count. Every time I need something I have to order it, then when it shows I don't have time, then I have time and I find something else wrong and I have to order it again. Lather rinse repeat.

Tammi's been super awesome for me too, she's been giving me all kinds of support. It's slow and I'm getting there. It did work for a short time, enough that I love it to pieces and I will win.

amcatanzaro

I got the screw off! I didn't strip it! Win for the night!

One spider (very small) found.

oldsewnsew

I ran some tests on quite a few of my SM's, including 15-91's, 201's, FW's, a couple Kenmore's, etc, using a phototachometer. My 201 wasn't nearly the fastest. It didn't feel like there was any significant drag. My 1934 FW was nearly the fastest, which totally surprised me. My 2nd 201 is awaiting brushes, which are worn down to nearly nothing.[ATTACH=CONFIG]467090[/ATTACH]

manicmike

Well done Anastasia. Yes that central screw is always very tight. Glad you got it off - practically impossible to strip, everything on the 201 is really tough, reinforced or specially hardened in some way.
I know you probably already know this but here are my most likely candidates for slow motor:
1. Tight belt (or is it a potted motor? We never see those in Australia)
2. Dirty armature (the thing the brushes rub against).
3. The foot controller
4. Brushes worn out (I've never seen this in any SM motor)

2 and 3 are probably about as likely as each other, but 3 is easier to test for (use a known good FC).
Armatures can get dirty when people oil the motor (hence Singer saying "NEVER oil a Singer motor" about a billion times). I'm sure you wouldn't be surprised, although if they oiled the motor why the heck didn't they put some on the sewing machine?

At least it was a spider and not another gremlin

amcatanzaro

Thank you for that Jim. It moves at a fairly healthy pace, I just never feel like it's really really fast. Maybe my expectations are too high.

Mike, thank you for the think through!
1. Potted. I never seem to see belted ones. Maybe we should have an exchange program.
2. and 4. I sent the motor to Grant and he cleaned it/rewired it and he said the brushes were in good shape.
3. The foot controller is a new electronic one. This machine didn't come with one and my 15-91 had a destroyed one. They share.


I was up until 2 am last night but I think I have her licked. I need to restack the tension one more time but I think and hope I have the rest of the left over problems addressed. I did have her sewing, we will see how it goes today.