Vintage Sergers
09-16-2014, 07:50 PM
#1
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Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Puget Sound Region
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Vintage Sergers
I've seen discussions of sergers in other parts of QB but not amongst our vintage selves. So, I thought I'd start one. For myself, I think sergers/overlockers/coverstitchers are very interesting machines and I'd like to learn more about them, the other sewing machines.
So what's a 'vintage' serger? Based upon what very little I know, sergers for domestic use didn't become available to the American public until the 1960s. These early machines were small, a bit primitive (some didn't even have lamps), and were heavy and reliable. These were Baby Lock machines made by Juki in Japan.
Like standard sewing machines, the amount of plastic used in design and construction of sergers increased in the 1980s and more so in the 1990s. (This may have had to do with prices of materials and steel-making as well as increased labor costs.)
Additionally, the differential feed feature became common to most models around 1990.
So, I consider a vintage serger to be one that was made prior to about 1990. Does that seem reasonable?
Anyway, here are my three 'vintage' sergers.
A 3-thread Baby Lock made by Juki (BL 3200) sometime in the early to mid '70s:
A very similar 4-thread Baby Lock 5180 (again, Juki) from a couple of years later:
And a Bernina Bernette 5-thread (probably Maruzen in Japan of Kenmore fame) from around 1987:
Prices for vintage sergers are all over the map but are usually higher than standard sewing machines. As expected, condition plays a role.
The BL 3-thread was $20 from a CL seller. The manual and long threading tweezers were included, as was the power cord and pedal. The machine runs flawlessly. It has a few dings.
The BL 4-thread was $46 from a thrift store. A bunch of attachments were included including thread cone supports, brushes, screwdriver, etc. and the power cord and pedal. No manual. The machine runs very well but has a small squeak whose origins I have yet to discover. It looks as though it has never been used; its condition is pristine.
The Bernette was $18, also from a thrift store. It was sold 'as-is'. Because the blade was in the upward position and the front door was ajar due to a lever not quite in its proper place, the interlock power switch made the machine appear not to run. Once this was corrected, the machine runs beautifully but the upper looper and needle bar need re-timing. It came with cone supports and a carry case, power cord and pedal, but no manual. I downloaded the manual for free.
The BL machines are utilitarian and basic but run very well. It appears that threading them is an unenviable task but not the tale of horror some tell. I like their smaller size and their looks: they look like small robots in a 'Lost In Space' manner, with their stripes and cute, knobby tension assemblies, I half expect their thread trees to begin spinning around looking for signals. I love the look.
The Bernette will never win a beauty contest (particularly with its ugly integrated handle) but threading appears to be easier and with a very good threading chart behind the front sliding door. The metal door enclosing the 5th thread assembly is beautifully done. It is larger than the other two machines, though no heavier and there is a large plastic piece in front. (I'm not yet sure what it's for.) This machine has DF, a newer feature in the late '80s. This machine is a bit of a project machine, as it needs work in order to be a usable serger.
************************************
Do you own any vintage sergers? Modern sergers? What are your impressions?
So what's a 'vintage' serger? Based upon what very little I know, sergers for domestic use didn't become available to the American public until the 1960s. These early machines were small, a bit primitive (some didn't even have lamps), and were heavy and reliable. These were Baby Lock machines made by Juki in Japan.
Like standard sewing machines, the amount of plastic used in design and construction of sergers increased in the 1980s and more so in the 1990s. (This may have had to do with prices of materials and steel-making as well as increased labor costs.)
Additionally, the differential feed feature became common to most models around 1990.
So, I consider a vintage serger to be one that was made prior to about 1990. Does that seem reasonable?
Anyway, here are my three 'vintage' sergers.
A 3-thread Baby Lock made by Juki (BL 3200) sometime in the early to mid '70s:
A very similar 4-thread Baby Lock 5180 (again, Juki) from a couple of years later:
And a Bernina Bernette 5-thread (probably Maruzen in Japan of Kenmore fame) from around 1987:
Prices for vintage sergers are all over the map but are usually higher than standard sewing machines. As expected, condition plays a role.
The BL 3-thread was $20 from a CL seller. The manual and long threading tweezers were included, as was the power cord and pedal. The machine runs flawlessly. It has a few dings.
The BL 4-thread was $46 from a thrift store. A bunch of attachments were included including thread cone supports, brushes, screwdriver, etc. and the power cord and pedal. No manual. The machine runs very well but has a small squeak whose origins I have yet to discover. It looks as though it has never been used; its condition is pristine.
The Bernette was $18, also from a thrift store. It was sold 'as-is'. Because the blade was in the upward position and the front door was ajar due to a lever not quite in its proper place, the interlock power switch made the machine appear not to run. Once this was corrected, the machine runs beautifully but the upper looper and needle bar need re-timing. It came with cone supports and a carry case, power cord and pedal, but no manual. I downloaded the manual for free.
The BL machines are utilitarian and basic but run very well. It appears that threading them is an unenviable task but not the tale of horror some tell. I like their smaller size and their looks: they look like small robots in a 'Lost In Space' manner, with their stripes and cute, knobby tension assemblies, I half expect their thread trees to begin spinning around looking for signals. I love the look.
The Bernette will never win a beauty contest (particularly with its ugly integrated handle) but threading appears to be easier and with a very good threading chart behind the front sliding door. The metal door enclosing the 5th thread assembly is beautifully done. It is larger than the other two machines, though no heavier and there is a large plastic piece in front. (I'm not yet sure what it's for.) This machine has DF, a newer feature in the late '80s. This machine is a bit of a project machine, as it needs work in order to be a usable serger.
************************************
Do you own any vintage sergers? Modern sergers? What are your impressions?
Last edited by KenmoreRulesAll; 09-16-2014 at 08:03 PM.
09-16-2014, 09:15 PM
#2
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I think you're a little off on your dates. I don't think home sergers became widely available until the late 70s. I could be wrong. ManicMike knows a lot more about them than I do. But I think your 3 thread looks newer than mine and mine is from 1982. There are, and according to someone on WFI, always have been only around 3 factories that produce sergers. Juki, Babylock, The old Whites, Pfaffs, Brothers, and a few others I know came out of the same factory, they're pretty much all alike. I think mine did too.
It's a 1982 Consew Tuffylock model 94. IT. IS. A. BEAST. It's small but weighs a ton and will sew through anything. 3/4 thread. It's hard to thread but not that hard. What I don't like is if I want to only overlock the edge I'm supposed to remove one needle, which means re threading the whole thing. I just use all 4 threads and then pull out the chain stitch instead, lol. It came with the controller, the needle wrench and one extra needle. Found the manual on the Consew website. My thread stand was broken at some point and fixed by screwing a metal plate to hold it together but the metal is bent so two cones lean towards the others. A Seattle Goodwill find on Ebay for the princely sum of $12.00.
Cari
It's a 1982 Consew Tuffylock model 94. IT. IS. A. BEAST. It's small but weighs a ton and will sew through anything. 3/4 thread. It's hard to thread but not that hard. What I don't like is if I want to only overlock the edge I'm supposed to remove one needle, which means re threading the whole thing. I just use all 4 threads and then pull out the chain stitch instead, lol. It came with the controller, the needle wrench and one extra needle. Found the manual on the Consew website. My thread stand was broken at some point and fixed by screwing a metal plate to hold it together but the metal is bent so two cones lean towards the others. A Seattle Goodwill find on Ebay for the princely sum of $12.00.
Cari
09-16-2014, 09:28 PM
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 613
Oh!!I love your sergers they're cute and so compact, both of which mine is not. I know mine isn't what one would call 'vintage' but it was cheap and used and in my usual thrift stop. LOL For the princely sum of $75 *nods* yea... totally way out of my usual price range on this one. I figured that's a good price for something so... fussy. LOL
Seeing how my bernina dealer was selling used bernette sergers for roughly $250 or more. I got this singer serger, they don't sell this model any more. Well they do but without the little green electronic window. I don't even know it's age. Oh I had to 'borrow' the image from a french ebay listing because well it's in it's case for the night and I have a cat sleeping on me. lol
Seeing how my bernina dealer was selling used bernette sergers for roughly $250 or more. I got this singer serger, they don't sell this model any more. Well they do but without the little green electronic window. I don't even know it's age. Oh I had to 'borrow' the image from a french ebay listing because well it's in it's case for the night and I have a cat sleeping on me. lol
09-16-2014, 09:31 PM
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 613
Originally Posted by KenmoreRulesAll
I've seen discussions of sergers in other parts of QB but not amongst our vintage selves. So, I thought I'd start one. For myself, I think sergers/overlockers/coverstitchers are very interesting machines and I'd like to learn more about them, the other sewing machines.
So what's a 'vintage' serger? Based upon what very little I know, sergers for domestic use didn't become available to the American public until the 1960s. These early machines were small, a bit primitive (some didn't even have lamps), and were heavy and reliable. These were Baby Lock machines made by Juki in Japan.
Like standard sewing machines, the amount of plastic used in design and construction of sergers increased in the 1980s and more so in the 1990s. (This may have had to do with prices of materials and steel-making as well as increased labor costs.)
Additionally, the differential feed feature became common to most models around 1990.
So, I consider a vintage serger to be one that was made prior to about 1990. Does that seem reasonable?
Anyway, here are my three 'vintage' sergers.
And a Bernina Bernette 5-thread (probably Maruzen in Japan of Kenmore fame) from around 1987:
The Bernette was $18, also from a thrift store. It was sold 'as-is'. Because the blade was in the upward position and the front door was ajar due to a lever not quite in its proper place, the interlock power switch made the machine appear not to run. Once this was corrected, the machine runs beautifully but the upper looper and needle bar need re-timing. It came with cone supports and a carry case, power cord and pedal, but no manual. I downloaded the manual for free.
The Bernette will never win a beauty contest (particularly with its ugly integrated handle) but threading appears to be easier and with a very good threading chart behind the front sliding door. The metal door enclosing the 5th thread assembly is beautifully done. It is larger than the other two machines, though no heavier and there is a large plastic piece in front. (I'm not yet sure what it's for.) This machine has DF, a newer feature in the late '80s. This machine is a bit of a project machine, as it needs work in order to be a usable serger.
************************************
Do you own any vintage sergers? Modern sergers? What are your impressions?
So what's a 'vintage' serger? Based upon what very little I know, sergers for domestic use didn't become available to the American public until the 1960s. These early machines were small, a bit primitive (some didn't even have lamps), and were heavy and reliable. These were Baby Lock machines made by Juki in Japan.
Like standard sewing machines, the amount of plastic used in design and construction of sergers increased in the 1980s and more so in the 1990s. (This may have had to do with prices of materials and steel-making as well as increased labor costs.)
Additionally, the differential feed feature became common to most models around 1990.
So, I consider a vintage serger to be one that was made prior to about 1990. Does that seem reasonable?
Anyway, here are my three 'vintage' sergers.
And a Bernina Bernette 5-thread (probably Maruzen in Japan of Kenmore fame) from around 1987:
The Bernette was $18, also from a thrift store. It was sold 'as-is'. Because the blade was in the upward position and the front door was ajar due to a lever not quite in its proper place, the interlock power switch made the machine appear not to run. Once this was corrected, the machine runs beautifully but the upper looper and needle bar need re-timing. It came with cone supports and a carry case, power cord and pedal, but no manual. I downloaded the manual for free.
The Bernette will never win a beauty contest (particularly with its ugly integrated handle) but threading appears to be easier and with a very good threading chart behind the front sliding door. The metal door enclosing the 5th thread assembly is beautifully done. It is larger than the other two machines, though no heavier and there is a large plastic piece in front. (I'm not yet sure what it's for.) This machine has DF, a newer feature in the late '80s. This machine is a bit of a project machine, as it needs work in order to be a usable serger.
************************************
Do you own any vintage sergers? Modern sergers? What are your impressions?
09-16-2014, 09:46 PM
#5
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Join Date: May 2012
Location: Florida
Posts: 1,585
I have a Baby Lock serger, I have no idea what its age is, I have a few "attachments" , including some screwdrivers, brushes, etc. The machine is a "beast" to thread, and is sadly, I think, a "plastic wonder". It works very well, and I really have no complaints -- it was free! One of the knives was broken, and my son (who worked on sewing machines for 14 years) fixed it! It doesn't get a lot of use because I really don't have room to set up all the machines I have! LOL!
Jeanette
Jeanette
09-16-2014, 10:22 PM
#6
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Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 613
Originally Posted by Jeanette Frantz
I have a Baby Lock serger, I have no idea what its age is, I have a few "attachments" , including some screwdrivers, brushes, etc. The machine is a "beast" to thread, and is sadly, I think, a "plastic wonder". It works very well, and I really have no complaints -- it was free! One of the knives was broken, and my son (who worked on sewing machines for 14 years) fixed it! It doesn't get a lot of use because I really don't have room to set up all the machines I have! LOL!
Jeanette
Jeanette
09-16-2014, 10:59 PM
#7
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Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Victorian Sweatshop Forum
Posts: 4,096
Originally Posted by foufymaus
Yay it's fixed!!! and yea, my serger rarely gets out of her case because sadly, no space. That and all that thread... my cat would have a field day! Let me tell you, just with one thread stand and a cone spool I've seen my cat stalk that. Never mind the 5 thread serger.
Cari
09-16-2014, 11:00 PM
#8
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Seattle WA
Posts: 138
Neat thread! I didn't even realize vintage sergers existed. My mom worked at a fabric store in the early 90's and bought one then. I loved that machine and had never heard of such a machine, I assumed they were new at that time. Never bothered to look it up 
Since I'm the only one that ever used it she gave it to me a few years ago, I love having it!!
Since I'm the only one that ever used it she gave it to me a few years ago, I love having it!!
09-17-2014, 05:20 AM
#10
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Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Puget Sound Region
Posts: 772
Originally Posted by Cari-in-Oly
I think you're a little off on your dates.
Cari
Cari
$12 for a tough little machine like that one is a great price!
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