Wow, y'all have been busy.
Some notes,
Nancy, have you tried a different brand metallic thread. When I have done decorative stitches with my Elna on Christmas tree skirts, one brand of metallic thread would be terrible and the next work amazingly well. It wasn't the machine.
Cathy, my FMQ foot on my 301 works great. I am on at least seven big lap quilts and as many table runners and never any problems. I can't overfill the bobbin or the thread slides out of the slot, but that's nothing to do with the foot. Mine came from april1930sshoppe. Now it looks like sew-classic carries it, too, but it' s the one in the $20 range, not the the other one at sew-classic.
Caroline, I like the green decals on your 15 clone. My Mongomery Wards has shamrocks which made me happy.
Problem - I removed the face plate on my Universal (turquoise White clone that looks like a Chevy dashboard) and it won't go back on correctly. There is a little flange of metal on the machine that fits in a slot cast in the faceplate. It simply will not seat. I'm ready to leave it crooked because I need some of its stitches. Any ideas? I also can't find the new belt I purchased, but you can't help me with that. I had the motor rewired and the other wiring looks good, so I'm ready to try it.