Thanks for all the good input. In watching vids of sewing technique, I see a LOT of pressing going on. I read about clothing presses and in looking for an Elnapress (the one that kept getting mentioned), I found a Singer Magic Press on eBay and although I've only used it once, it appears to work very well. It gets very hot. While trolling CL, I finally did find an Elnapress so now I have two. Both are dry presses. I read that the steam presses have lots of problems and I just use a spray bottle. The Elna has a built-in spray feature from the handle. I haven't tried the Elna yet.

But I will need a good hand iron. I may try the Black & Decker digital that everyone talks about. I want it to be heavy so it gives a good press w/out too much effort and I want it hot. And no leaks. So I need high wattage and I don't want the controls under the handle so I can't see them to adjust while I'm using it.

My favorites have been oldies that I use with a spray bottle. Finding the right spray bottle can be challenging too! I require lots of mist, without big droplets, and an easy pull. Too often, they wind up leaking big droplets in places I don't want them!

How about one of these?
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Steve, now that's an oldie. Do you recommend it? What is the lever at the bottom of the handle? Is that an example of what is called calrod(?) iron? (Not sure if that's correct.)

it's electric, temp adjustable, and the lever moves so that the handle folds down for storage...
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My Rowenta is not my favorite. I don't have any problems with it spitting but it does shut off randomly.

Steve, thanks for the info and the picture. It reminds me a bit of the Monopoly iron. I doubt it would get by the TSA. Or sadly, maybe it would.

Yeah, I'll not buy another Rowenta product. This is my second bad experience with them.

Here are the presses I mentioned above:

Singer Magic Press 4:

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(The cloth board cover was in the laundry when I took the photo.)

Elna Elnapress 'Pinkstar':

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The Singer appears to be heavier duty (heavier, clunkier, sole plate is firmer on the board, sole plate rocks back and forth to allow for ironing uneven items). Has a few dings but it's in good shape. Gets blisteringly hot and could do serious damage to an errant hand. Watch out! $21 + $10 shipping.

The Elna appears to be BNOS. I don't think it's ever been used and it was still in its original packaging. $30.

I've only tried the Singer so far. It's very fast. I took it over to mom's house and she did some linen napkins and a tablecloth in record time. She did linen on the cotton setting because it's so hot. I got it for pre-pressing because I don't want to sew wrinkled stuff.

Do folks not like these machines? I had to do some digging and there are some on eBay but I don't know anyone else who has one. Maybe these were a fad. It's probably just easier to fire up a hand iron because taking this thing out of a closet and setting it up every time would be a pain. You almost have to have a dedicated space for it. It does a great job, though. If you do a lot of ironing you might want to check it out!

I have one of the Singer pressers. I used it all the time before my son left for collage & my husband died. I used it especially for jeans & kahkis. It is quite heavy and I would use it for pressing some of my fabric if it wasn't for the weight. It stays in the storage room mostly now. You can cover a lot of material with one.

I have one of these too. Only use it for fusing and it scares the heck out of me with its heat creaking noises but works well.

Hi Dawn,

The records from the Canadian Singer plant were lost when the factory shut down, so there's only vague date info available (your serial number corresponds to 1948-1954 manufacture). If you post a picture, though, people could probably identify the model and tell you more.