Hi again, I'll try and fix things where possible but that connector is beyond repair.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]401953[/ATTACH]
The foot controller is something that might need work. I forgot to check it but the motor is running quite slowly, but is normal with the other machine's foor controller. Initially I thought I'd screwed the motor up when I took it apart to check the brushes and armature.
Anyway, one big problem was that someone had re-timed it! I sighed and Googled the problem. The needlebar had the fix. It's at
http://needlebar.org/nbwiki/index.ph...g_-_Singer_319. I also took a few pictures to show this. I did bend a needle while testing it, and there are only two screws holding the bobbin assembly in place, not three.
Here is the left side of the machine with bobbin removed and a close-up of the timing marks:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]401956[/ATTACH]The needle bar did not align accurately at the bottom. I had to loosen the two screws holding it then, with a screwdriver against the top tapped lightly (it had to go down). I pushed it down too far and lifted it by levering with another screwdriver. Don't forget to tighten the two screws.
I turned the wheel so the second line was level and the bobbin holder was also not in the correct position. Loosened the two screws a little (they need to hold it lightly so you don't move it when you're re-tightening the screws). Here is where the bobbin holder should be:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]401959[/ATTACH]The needle aligns with the rear most hook tip. It really helped having a perfectly timed machine in the same room.
Putting the tension assembly back together was also a challenge. I started with the base (screw bit) and since I has already removed the whole thing, this had to be aligned to the same angle as the good one. I did this quite precisely by removing the end knob and putting a screwdriver in the little slot, then see where it points. With that done, I simply followed the instructions given by Singer:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]401960[/ATTACH]I was surprised to find this in the user manual. Extremely useful information.
After setting this, the machine now sews. I'm not sure why but it still isn't as good as the other, uncleaned one. The 'good' machine is very forgiving in that I can sit down without adjusting anything and can generally get a great stitch out of it. This one I had to fiddle with the tensions for a while just to get it to stitch properly. This reminds me, here are the bobbin tension instructions (I don't have 50 yards of fine silk, so had to approximate):
[ATTACH=CONFIG]401961[/ATTACH]
If you have any ideas about why it won't sew as well as the other one, I'm all ears.
Thanks
Mike