How do I stop the flaking???
03-10-2015, 04:39 PM
#1
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Colorado
Posts: 160
How do I stop the flaking???
Yesterday this machine arrived, complete and in working condition as the ad stated. I've always wanted a Jones Hand. It's a cool machine, but what's left of the lovely gold decorations on the base are untouchable. They want to be free.......and fall off if you so much as blow on them. The arm decorations seem a bit more tenacious, and I would be really unhappy if they also started escaping.
Any ideas about how to treat this to keep the arm looking good? There's not really much dirt on the arm, so if something could be sprayed on that would consolidate the gold, the arm could be masked off and treated. But I don't know what it could be. The gold is not normal decal gold; I'm not sure how it was applied.
OK guys, what do you think?
Dianne
[ATTACH=CONFIG]513178[/ATTACH]
Any ideas about how to treat this to keep the arm looking good? There's not really much dirt on the arm, so if something could be sprayed on that would consolidate the gold, the arm could be masked off and treated. But I don't know what it could be. The gold is not normal decal gold; I'm not sure how it was applied.
OK guys, what do you think?
Dianne
[ATTACH=CONFIG]513178[/ATTACH]
03-11-2015, 08:08 AM
#8
Banned
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: San Lorenzo, CA
Posts: 5,361
ok, be VERY careful... I have one too. (Mine arrived with one snapped foot, but i fixed it)
The goldwork are decals. They were originally covered with a coat of shellac, so Glenns advise is spot on. However, be careful not to get it on the seams where moving metal meets paint. I would use blue painters tape on ALL of the metal surfaces first, trimming the edges very carefully. then spray shellac, then let sit for about a week. Then you can attack the metal by using a compound like Brasso and a soft cloth (up to 0000 steel wool if really bad) to clean the shiny bits.
This is one of my absolute favorite sewing machine to use. stitches great!!! My favorite part is that it is the ONLY machine in my collection that the shuttle is driven by virtually the same mechanism as the needlebar, only mounted horizontally. BRILLIANT.
Congrats
The goldwork are decals. They were originally covered with a coat of shellac, so Glenns advise is spot on. However, be careful not to get it on the seams where moving metal meets paint. I would use blue painters tape on ALL of the metal surfaces first, trimming the edges very carefully. then spray shellac, then let sit for about a week. Then you can attack the metal by using a compound like Brasso and a soft cloth (up to 0000 steel wool if really bad) to clean the shiny bits.
This is one of my absolute favorite sewing machine to use. stitches great!!! My favorite part is that it is the ONLY machine in my collection that the shuttle is driven by virtually the same mechanism as the needlebar, only mounted horizontally. BRILLIANT.
Congrats
03-11-2015, 11:28 AM
#9
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Colorado
Posts: 160
Steve, thank you for the cautions and information! I am so glad to have found someone who owns and uses this machine, and finds it to be a good stitcher. The mechanics of it are fascinating.
My husband, who works with antique brass microscopes, is dubious about spray shellac, and notes the difficulty of masking off all the working parts. He wonders if brushing on thinned shellac might be better. I'm thinking Glenn's method by hand, if it comes to it, might work on the more stable decals. It's going to be a case of trial and error, probably, to determine what will and will not work on different parts of the machine. Ones offered for sale are often missing most or all of the gold on the base, so possibly for some reason they are less well attached.
I have an equally old Sellers fiddlebase handcrank which came from the UK about 2 years ago. Lots of gold decorations, which tended to flake easily if touched. According to my notes, I applied a thin coat of sewing machine oil on the surface, gently, nothing else. Today that machine seems quite stable. The oil might have helped, or change to a much drier climate.
Needles. System 332, 29x3 SY 3741 according to information online, but the shaft on the size 120 Schmetz needles I purchased is thicker than the needle that came in the machine. It cannot slide by the shuttle. Will getting size 100 or 110 needles work, or have I got the wrong type altogether? The new needles look like the older one except for the thicker mid-section.
With care I have started polishing up the hand wheel and it is coming up nicely. Are there are problems removing the cloth plate? Do you tip your machine totally upside down, (as per manual from Needlebar) to oil the underside?
That's all for now.....many thanks,
Dianne
My husband, who works with antique brass microscopes, is dubious about spray shellac, and notes the difficulty of masking off all the working parts. He wonders if brushing on thinned shellac might be better. I'm thinking Glenn's method by hand, if it comes to it, might work on the more stable decals. It's going to be a case of trial and error, probably, to determine what will and will not work on different parts of the machine. Ones offered for sale are often missing most or all of the gold on the base, so possibly for some reason they are less well attached.
I have an equally old Sellers fiddlebase handcrank which came from the UK about 2 years ago. Lots of gold decorations, which tended to flake easily if touched. According to my notes, I applied a thin coat of sewing machine oil on the surface, gently, nothing else. Today that machine seems quite stable. The oil might have helped, or change to a much drier climate.
Needles. System 332, 29x3 SY 3741 according to information online, but the shaft on the size 120 Schmetz needles I purchased is thicker than the needle that came in the machine. It cannot slide by the shuttle. Will getting size 100 or 110 needles work, or have I got the wrong type altogether? The new needles look like the older one except for the thicker mid-section.
With care I have started polishing up the hand wheel and it is coming up nicely. Are there are problems removing the cloth plate? Do you tip your machine totally upside down, (as per manual from Needlebar) to oil the underside?
That's all for now.....many thanks,
Dianne
03-11-2015, 11:44 AM
#10
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Colorado
Posts: 160
Yes -- thank you everyone -- this is a beautiful machine, iconic in its design; but really not especially rare. I've never seen one for sale in the U.S. at a reasonable price, but U.K. eBay often has a few listed. Shipping is expensive, but if you want one and you are of a certain age, waiting for a Jones Hand to show up at the local Goodwill isn't going to work!
I've purchased several machines from the UK, and they were reasonably priced to the point that, even with shipping included, they were less expensive than the same machine offered in the U. S.
Dianne
I've purchased several machines from the UK, and they were reasonably priced to the point that, even with shipping included, they were less expensive than the same machine offered in the U. S.
Dianne
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