mac

Ooops! A steal, sort of...

Went to an estate sale and found a Featherweight. It wasn't in the best condition, but the case was in better condition than the ones that I owned. It had 4 of the feet that go with the machine. It is a 1935 machine, the wiring was a mess on the foot peddle and when I plugged it in, it wouldn't sew. I used my own foot peddle and it still wouldn't sew. I asked the lady, who was asking $175.00 for the machine, if she would take less. If the machine was running, $175 would have been a fair price. After much hemming and hawing we agreed on $95.00. I took the machine and ran.

I called two sewing repairmen that I knew and they said that it was a good deal, because the parts alone would sell for more than I paid. However, a new motor would cost about $112.00, plus labor. I figured that it would stay in my closet until I had the money to fix it.

Before I put it away, I thought that I would replace the felt pad, clean and oil the machine so it wouldn't be so smelly once I got around to having it fixed. I plugged it in one last time and lo and behold the machine worked. Now I feel sort of guilty for getting such a big break on the price under such false conditions.

Here is my question, finally: It looks like someone tried to clean the machine with turpintine or another strong chemical, because you can see a smear of gold across the black paint. Does anyone know what I should use to see if the smear will come off? I thought of using carnuba wax, but I'm waiting for other suggestions before sealing it with the wax.

Thanks for help.