Sweetpea46

I am replying to my own post....I did not purchase the machine! I decided on another FW made in 1946.

Sweetpea46

Stephanie,
Can you tell me what you mean by you "do not cover my feed dogs" and how do you release all the pressure on the foot? Thanks!

k9dancer

Covers were made for the feed dogs on the FW and many other machines. I have these covers, however using them takes up a little space over the feed dogs, so I do not use them, nor do I use a business card or anything else over my feed dogs. Instead, by setting my stitch length at zero, it sort of negates the action of the feed.
On the top of the machine, right over the pressure foot, is a screw. By turning the screw anti-clockwise, the pressure on the foot is lessened. Do not remove the screw; rather, keep turning it until the quilt sandwich can easily move under your darning foot.

k9dancer

When was the last time you had it in for a service?

katier825

Looking at them side by side, I do not see a difference. I'm not really sure what you mean about part being too wide. Can you explain it better?

Mary O

I have a featherweight,my sewing repair man suggested not using a walking foot on her.Too much strain on the machine.Just use her for classes......

Candace

Look at the width of the feeddog teeth on the walking feet. The one from April's is the only walking foot I know where the width of the walking foot is narrow enough to engage the FW feed dogs. The ebay one is too wide. Yes, it will fit your machine and yes, it will move some fabric, but it won't work in conjunction with your FW feed dogs to move the fabric in the manner walking feet are supposed to. Walking feet are supposed to match the width of the feed dogs in your machine. Also the one from April's matches the shape of the FW feed dogs and the other one does not. Maybe someone other than Aprils carries that brand, but I've never seen it elsewhere.

littlesurfer

Jenny from sew-classic.com has a walking foot that fits the Featherweight.

Candace

Yes, but again, the one sold on her site is wider than the FW feed dogs. The Jenny site one is modified so it fits the machine, but still doesn't mesh with the feed dogs. April's is the only one I know that has one specifically that fits the width of the FW feed dogs. I have no affiliation with the April site...just a heads up to those who are looking for a FW walking foot that does what it should.

All of the other walking feet on the market "fit" the FW but they don't actually work as they should..except for the one on April's site:>

Does this make sense or am I just yodeling in the forest? LOL.

katier825

I see what you are referring to now. I had already ordered the one on ebay, but it is returnable. If it's not right, I'll get the one from April's site.

I have seen differing opinions from people about whether or not the Featherweight can handle quilting. My gut tells me yes because they are still going strong after 60+ years. Would today's machines last that long? I seriously doubt it! They are built so well, they probably could handle it, maybe not for extended periods of time, but for the few hours a week of quilting I do, it's probably fine. I have sewn with mine for 8-10 hours on the weekends and never had a problem. I do keep it oiled and frequently remove lint. Anyway, I did email April and ask her opinion on the subject. She says she agrees with me and she has used hers for quilting many times. I'm sure there are many people that want to preserve the condition of their machines. I didn't buy mine as a collection piece; I bought mine to be used, and it is a pleasure to sew on it! For me, it's more of a workhorse than a delicate piece of machinery. But she's a beautiful workhorse! If I ever work her to death, I will surely replace her with another one.