The second generation New Home (Free) takes a needle that is just a tad shorter than the Singer 15. The older New Homes take a different needle.
It would be very easy to shorten a 15 needle to fit -
If you are looking at Boye commodity cases - ISMACS says that the very first cases had a different numbering system. I've read conflicting info on this, but it seems it was only a short period of time and then they are all the new numbers.
However, so far I've found one seller on eBay that had items with the OLD numbering system. Boye came out with this around 1906 - it is NOT for older machines, they may be different. ISMACS makes it sound like it was only a year or so before the new numbers were in use, another site said it was 15 years, but I lean towards believing ISMACS.
I've only been researching for the machines I own (or plan to get)
The numbers are shuttle/needle - btw bobbins have the same number as the shuttle they fit. YOu will almost always find the NEW numbers- very rarely the OLD ones
Old . . . . . New
1/2 Domestic 7/8
7/8 Household 1/2
This is before White got Domestic in 1925 - The Domestic needle and shuttle are very distinctive so it's easy to tell them from the Household.
3/4 Davis 9/10
9/10 New Home 3/4
I've got a very late made Davis VF - and it takes 15 needles so I don't know much about the longer needle for most Davis machines.
New Home was taken over by Free in 1927 and moved to IL shortly after that. From what I've seen - New Home machines after that time are Free with only slight differences. I don't think the new NH take the same needle as the older NH - but I'm not sure as I don't have an older NH to check (yet).
5/6 National 13/14
13/14 Standard 5/6
I don't have an older National VS - and just got the Standard. So I've not really compared the two yet (since I do most of that by laying the items out side by side)
11/12 Singer 15/16
(also Free - and some Domestic as they made some machines that were copies of Singers before going out of business)
15/16 White 11/12
This one is about the easiest to tell apart The White needle is significantly longer than the Singer, the shuttle has a pin in the middle (only one that does) and the long bobbins are hollow in the center.
Last edited by Macybaby; 01-03-2014 at 04:45 AM.