J Miller

How far back do we have to go to get away from the plastic gears. The 730s on up I think have them, but what about the 600 series or before?

Joe

Tink's Mom

Mom has a 930 so I'm interested in knowing this...I thought that this machine had metal gears. What a shame that they ruin a wonderful machine with plastic gears.

Candace

Joe, the 600 series has nylon gears. Any machine after the 600 series has them also. It's my earliest one, so I can't say anything about the models before the 640 etc. All my vintage Berninas have them.

miriam

I've been a bit afraid to use mine because of the plastic gears

Mitch's mom

The gears are probably made of Delrin. It is a very durable polymer that is not prone to cracking or sudden failure. If your gears are yellowed they are probably nylon which does yellow over time. If they are a slightly opaque white they are Delrin. I would not hesitate to use a machine fitted with Delrin gears.

Candace

I use mine all the time. If I have to replace one every 40 years or so, I'm o.k with that.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage...d-t246653.html

Littlebearquiltingboard

Me too. I would hate for them to break. I wish I could buy a brand new "old" Bernina!

Littlebearquiltingboard

Typing that has made me realise that I am being silly and I should use them as often as I want and not worry about "what ifs". I feel I ought to use my new Bernina because it was expensive and I shouldn't use the old ones in case they break, but what I should do is use the one I like the most and not worry about anything else!

J Miller

I have decided I don't want a Bernina any more. My wife has a 930 and it has too many plastic gears in it for me. Great machine, but if the mechanics were all metal it would be an exceptional machine.

Plastic, nylon, delrin ..... all the same; it's not steel and will eventually break.

Joe

Candace

True, but many of the manufacturers use them or have them in the vintage machines and it's not brain surgery to replace them. As my dad's wife says, "Mais Fica!" More for me!