Originally Posted by
quiltingweb
[ATTACH=CONFIG]348074[/ATTACH]Moving this over from another thread...advice from there "Get an old but clean mascara brush and check first for clogged up stuff - lint, broken needles, dried up grease and oil, etc. Get some Triflow oil - put one drop on anything that remotely moves. Jiggle it as you oil. Muv has a great video on the sticky:
HOW TO CLEAN UP and use a vintage sewing machine - videos by Muv and Fav Her tutorial should be enough to get that machine serviced. That machine's exterior looks to be in good shape, you do not need Glenn's tutorial. Your machine looks like it runs on a treadle. Some of those machine's also have a little wheel to drive the balance wheel. Sometimes those get a flat spot or die. It looks like it needs a bobbin winder tire. This can further be discussed here:
Vintage Sewing Machine Shop.....Come on in and sit a spell which is also on the sticky. "
It does run on treadle. The treadle moves VERY smoothly. When I disengage the hand wheel, it moves very smoothly, but engaged, it won't budge. I've been looking for the reason and I'm thinking that one of the gears won't move. Needle is stuck in the down position and bobbin case won't move either. I've oiled everything, let it sit over night. Still stuck. Still looking.
Sounds like you can not turn the machine by hand at all. Try taking the needle out - take out the bobbin. What have you already done to the machine? Did you use sewing machine oil or Triflow to oil it? Did you open up the bottom of the machine and oil down there? Did you open up any access holes to the top and end? Pay special attention to the parts that look like wrenches or forks - if those gunk up there is no moving. How much dried up oil can you see inside the machine? I like the Triflow because it will loosen up the old dried oil. It is not the oil that you can see that will gunk it up. It is the oil dried in the cracks between moving parts - sticks like cement. Heat will help some, too. I like to oil a drop and then attempt to rock the machine just a little any movement that will get the Triflow into the cracks will help. You need to oil all of the potentially moving places - look at another machine as you go if necessary. I also turn machines upside down and on end to the get the oil to go into the cracks.