WoW I'm impressed!!! I have one I opened up - a gear fell out - different gear though.

The procedure should be similar to remove and install the new one.
Let us know if we can help. Blessings! http://www.quiltingboard.com/images/icons/icon7.png

This just happened to me today. I was so proud of this estate sale find. It was sewing along perfectly and it just stopped. I looked inside and the lower of the two plastic gears is shredding. Glad I found this thread. I'm willing to give it a try. Thanks for the information.

Would you believe I found ANOTHER one for $7 and it has the same problem? At least now I know how to fix it.

Looks like you have done some hard thinking on a 457 stylist. My problem is hand wheel hard to turn. Lubricated still no help. Gear in good shape. Everything is turning in the hook assembly but I wonder if some thread is wound up under assembly. Any thoughts. Told a friend I'd could probably fix it for her. Also I was wondering as I don't know the machine but the thumb wheel that you select zig zag or blind stitch turns all the time when I turn hand wheel. Is that normal.

I had one machine that had thread wrapped around and around and around the handwheel shaft. I discovered it when I took off the hand wheel. I can understand, from the placement of the bobbin winder on the machine how it would happen. I'd say just keep checking for gunk or thread or lint.

I've learned to look for something simple before you start tearing stuff apart. Your advice things true. I did pull off the hand wheel. I need to look a little closer though as the winder is right in the path.

Closer look and that wasn't it. Dang I am stumped. Why does it turn so hard? Not sure what to do to isolate the tightness.

You want to be very careful. If anything gives when those machines are tight, it will be the plastic gear. You will need to be sure to use Triflow oil and put a drop on anything that remotely moves. Give it a few minutes then turn the machine upside down or side ways or the other side - in other words, reposition the machine a couple times - You will need to oil way up in the inside of the machine - anything that remotely moves will need a couple drops of oil. Be patient - I've had one that took a month of setting to get the oil to penetrate into some little stuck up joint. Very gently try to turn it after it has set awhile. I say gently because of the gear. If you want to tackle changing the gear someone wrote some instructions and posted one QB somewhere how to do it. It isn't all that hard looks like. It is the dried up oil in some remote part that you can't see is your problem - not the stuff you can see.

I've got a can of tri flow and I will try systematically hitting rotating points. The machine sat for a long time so it would only make sense.