Originally Posted by
buslady
.... It is a Wheeler & Wilson, we think from about 1850-1870.
Originally Posted by
Charlee
.... a "lowbed" saying that the numbering system of these early models was somewhat unreliable...From what I can see, this is from at least the early 1870's, maybe earlier...and will be a curved needle machine.
I found one similar to it a month or so ago, in worse shape than yours, and I’ll be waiting to see what else Charlee finds out about it. From what I’ve learned, they’re called a “Low Bed Rotating Hook Machine”. It makes a lock stitch and has a bobbin. There was a “High Bed” too, I believe, but I don’t know much about either one of them.
Try to watch for the important little “fiddlies” that it should have, like the glass insert in the presser foot, and the skinny little “bagle-shaped” bobbins. Charlee’s right, it takes a Wheeler & Wilson curved needle. The bobbin winder is inside of the box on the left. It’s the left end of the main shaft under the machine, and the bobbin fits on the right end to sew. The machine takes a wide flat belt that’s located about midway across the stand and machine from left to right. The fabric being sewn moves from left to right across the machine to sew.
CD in Oklahoma