LilRedRocker

I've just pulled this machine out of the barn where it has sat for nearly 40 years. The decals are still very good, but the chrome and insides are awful. I've applied sewing machine oil and got a few things loose, but some are still frozen. I won't be able to work on this for at least a week. If I spray PB Blaster in the inside and let it set, will it hurt it? This was my mother's machine and I learned to sew on it. I have the cabinet and irons. The guys that got it out of a very bad position in the barn chipped one corner of the top. The irons have Hudson on each side.

Any advise will be appreciated.[ATTACH=CONFIG]520765[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]520766[/ATTACH]

J Miller

LilRedRocker,

Very carfully remove everthing that will come off. Faceplate, inspection cover, needle plate and bobbin cover, bobbin case, stitch length plate, then FLOOD it with oil. From your pics there's no where near enough on it. Once you get the plates off you can flood the insides with oil, then the under sides. Once you get the face plate off saturate everything in there, especially the needle bar.

On the exposed part of the presser foot bar remove the foot and the thread cutter and scrub the bar with OOOO steel wool soaked in oil. Do the same with the needle bar. You want to get the rust off so it isn't ground into the head as the bars move up and down.

Remove the hand wheel and belt cover too. Makes it easier to clean. The hand wheel will probably be glued on by old oil.

Here is where Tri-Flow oil comes in handy. It will dissolve the old gummed up oil much faster than regular sewing machine oil.

You might still have to use something like PB Blaster on some parts, but it should free up with soaking and cleaning. Just don't force anything.

Joe

J Miller

As for the plated parts; face plate, inspection cover, tension parts, levers, Evapo-Rust - but don't soak it too long, 4 O steel wool, and perhaps a wire brush on a Dremel tool. Then follow that with chrome polish. I'm not great at the plated parts. There are those here that are though.

For the machine I'd start with cotton make up removing pads saturated in machine oil. Stay away from harsh chemicals.

Grant15Clone, SteveH, are two who can work miracles on machines like yours. Perhaps PM them.

Joe

LilRedRocker

I know it doesn't have enough oil, but I have to put it away for a few days so dd and sil can paint my kitchen. I have taken the flywheel off and the bobbin winder/cover thingy. The covers on the stitch length came off and I finally got the presser foot and needle clamp off. I've always been afraid of messing with the tension, but in this case, it has to be done. I've squirted a lot of oil on the inside and I know it isn't enough. I'm also afraid of using a Dremel with a wire brush. I'm waaay too sentimental about this thing and I'm just glad that the decals are mostly OK.

Rodney

Don't be afraid of working on tensioners. Tools for Self Reliance has an excellent repair manual/tutorial for rebuilding old sewing machines. Tensioners are one of the things they cover. Take pictures as you disassemble things and keep parts groups/ sub-assemblies together as you go. This will help you come time to put things back together.
You'll also get all the advice you need from here.
Your machine looks pretty bad now but I think you'll be surprised at how well it will clean back up.
Rodney

LilRedRocker

The other problem I have with the Hudson is that it is 3/4 size. I have always hated the cherry veneer cabinet and since I had a nice oak singer cabinet that I thought I could put it on the Hudson irons after I had cleaned everything up. Wrong! The machine that came in the oak cabinet is a 15-88 - way bigger than the Hudson.

Farmhousesewer

3/4 treadle cabinets for Japanese Badged machines are versatile, so please do not be so hasty to want to change it out.

I agree, the greatest resource for you is Tools for Self Reliance. Refer to Singer 15. Although Japanese Badged machines actually have improvements over Singer 15s, that is the model they are based upon.

The tension is not an area that should give you concern. Even f you make a mistake, there is not much that can go wrong, and easily fixed. We are here to help.

greywuuf

I can understand your frustration at not "liking" the cabinet, but man as was mentioned a 3/4 treadle ( you mentioned irons ) is soemthing I would LOVE to have an a bit rare in itself.

LilRedRocker

greywuff, I just have never liked the cherry veneer and I also don't like the fact that you pull the top of the drawers out, not the drawer itself. If you need to get into the left hand one, you have to clean off the arm (I guess that is what you call the top when it is opened), raise it back up and pull the drawer top out. I didn't know the 3/4 treadle bases were rare, in fact I didn't even realize it was a 3/4 until I got it home.

The next time I'm at my property I'll try to make a picture of the cabinet.

miriam

That machine will clean up just fine. Take your time. If you need to, you can swap out parts, even the tension - or the whole plate - they are so readily available it isn't funny.