I was about 7-8 years old (60's) and my mother wouldn't let me or my sisters near her electric sewing machine. She knew we wanted to sew on a machine, so when she was at an auction and one came on the block, she got it for $3.00. We learned to sew on that machine. It had a great stitch. I made a lot of clothes for myself. It was part of the bedroom furniture. 3 beds, 3 dressers and the sewing machine. I think I used it more than the others. When we moved on to our own homes, my mother got 2 or 3 more. Then she moved to a small apartment and gave one to each of us. My younger sister got the one we learned on(we drew straws).I got a different one. I have never tried to use it. It has a long bobin and I feel I need to learn a new tool. The old dog new trick syndrom. ---- When you start to use it, remember to turn the hand wheel to make it go forward and work the feet at the same time. Once you get it going it should be smooth. You will probably need to use the hand wheel to position any beginning and ending stitch.