Originally Posted by djw
I have not sewn with the older singers since I was a kid. Please, tell me what makes them so great?
There are several reasons to try out these old machines. Most of them have a straight stitch that beats any machine made today. The reason for that is that these machines were not made for zigzag stitching. The needlebar can not be pushed to the side when you sew through heavy seams or materials like that of a more modern machine. They have no plastic parts to wear out and cost hundreds of dollars to replace, no computer boards to burn out, etc.
Asthetically, they're (IMHO) a prettier machine. I love the deep black with the elegant gold trims. The cabinets, while they may have been "cheap" at the time of their purchase compete with today's "fine furniture". Most of the furniture made today does not have the craftsmanship or care in it's manufacture that these old cabinets do.
A treadle machine? Oh my! There's a certain kind of comfort that evolves from the sound and rhythm that goes with running a treadle. Nostalgia abounds.
Don't get me wrong, I have my modern Janome (not top of the line, but a nice machine!) and I love it. There are some things that I don't want to do on a simple straight stitch machine. But when you need a workhorse that will power through several layers and not have an issue, you can't beat one of these old black machines!!
It all boils down to personal preference, I guess. Of the 12 machines that I have now (I got rid of six that I won't fix/use) only 3 of them are less than 10-15 years old. Three are treadles, the rest are electric machines with the youngest being a late 70's Kenmore that belonged to my mother. (The others are all Singer, except for the Wheeler & Wilson treadle)