Originally Posted by
katballou
Hello all,
Newhere and I think it's great that you are helping people new to vintagemachines...I have always wanted one because I remember my grandmother using itto make all her quilts. That is until she broke down and bought an electricone.
Anyway, I finally got one and I thought it was a really good deal because ofthe one's I have seen on the internet and how much those were and the conditionthey were in...WOW...
My machine is a white and the last patent date is 1913 (I think) is in reallygood shape and I believe all the parts are there and I even got a box ofattachments...lucky me...
Well thecabinet it came in is not so lucky to have survived the 100 years it’s beenaround…looks like someone had left it out where it could get moisture in the woodveneer and is cracked, peeling and moldy. My hubby has some veneer that looks like the same as what’s on themachine, but my question is…would it be better for the value of the machine tojust clean it up and fix it or are there just so many out there that I reallyshouldn’t worry about lowering the value of my machine?
I haveno plans on selling it, I just want to put it in my sewing room and maybe tryto sew something on it (but not a whole quilt)
Sorry,if this is a repeat question, but with almost 4000 posts I don’t have time togo through them all.
Thanksfor any help and glad to be here.
Kat
Kat,
If you are buying that machine for yourself forget the financial value. Other than insurance it's really just a waste of time worrying about it. When repairing the wood, you have a lot of leeway to work with. Last June my SIL in Indiana gave me a Singer treadle machine and cabinet. Whoever gave it to her had used it for an aquarium stand. The veneer on the hinged top cover was falling off, the ends of the cabinet were separating from the wood underneath and cracking as well.
I used a hack saw blade and worked Elmer's Wood Glue Max between the separated areas then clamped them down real good. I was able to save the deck of the cabinet.
There were also many other places where the veneer was separating from the wood beneath. Those I put back together with a plastic credit card used to push the glue between the layers and clamps. Clamps are your friend.
I decided to replace the veneer on the hinged top lid rather than repair it. I believe that was a mistake in this instance. Had I simply glued it back down I could have sanded it and filled in the few missing pieces and the end results would have been no worse than the veneer I used. Possibly better.
I wasn't trying to "restore" the cabinet, but to refurbish it back to functional condition while still retaining it's old appearance.
I think I succeeded for the most part. As soon as I'm finished I'll post a thread on it.
Joe