Originally Posted by kwendt
Nancy... you can get a foot pedal for the the 66-6 off ebay. I ended up rewiring the old one, but then also bought a 'new' foot pedal with the 66 cord set - so that I can use it with finer control. I love best the knee lever operation, so I leave the old foot pedal in the cabinet hooked into the knee operation. But when I have the need to change out machine heads, I'll just plug in that 66-6 on the regular 66 cord/pedal and use it on the table. Works fine. On that backtack... I learned to start my stitching on a scrap piece, then holding firmly, sew onto the real project fabric (this makes tiny stitches, almost like a backtack, without bunching up the fabric). It works, and is now second nature to me. I LOVE my granny's 66-6 machine. No, it doesn't have reverse, but man, can I sew boat canvas with it!
Hmmmmmm, I have been thinking I should get the foot pedal and have DH wire it in. He is good at replacing/fixing the cords. I will also need DH to rewire the motor too as that cord it totally toast. I sure like the way my 66-1 sews so I know the 66-6 will be great too. I know, I am spoiled as I have the 15-88 treadle that has reverse on it, but I learned to turn the stitch regulator down to stitch in place when I wanted to lock something with my Free Company treadle. That worked great! I haven't tried locking anything with the Sphinx 127 that I am piecing with now to see if the same method will work with the Sphinx. The Free had a little knob that just slid up and down for the stitch length so it was very easy to change (worked almost like a reverse) to a nothing stitch to lock your work! Thanks for the hints on holding the fabric!
Nancy