Originally Posted by
barny
You can get lubricant "grease" at Singer. I don't know about the old oil. I usually keep fairly new stuff on hand. I'm now using Tri-Flow oil and lubricant. I love it. It is really good stuff.
Barny, you're still using Singer Lube for the motor right? TriFlow grease is synthetic. It's melting point is... uh well it isn't. Singer Lube has a low melting point which allows it to flow into the spots that the lubrication is needed when the motor warms up.
Originally Posted by
DonnaC
Foot Pedal: I used the machine for quite a while today. The foot pedal works perfectly at some times (in other words, I step on it and off she goes), and other times I step on it and nothing happens.
Donna, I'm still waiting for an answer to my question about the motor.
Does is growl when you step on the pedal but the machine doesn't turn, or is there no sound at all?
The Motor & Belt: When I used the machine for a while, the motor did get very warm, but not hot enough so that I couldn’t lay my hand over it without getting burned. I assume that sounds about right? The belt seems fine to me. It’s hard to tell if the belt is too tight but I don’t think so. Is there an easy way to tell?
The belt should be incredibly loose on a featherweight. It should be only tight enough that it doesn't slip. I usually test by making it as loose as I think it should be, then starting up the machine very slowly with two fingers holding the belt. If it's too tight, the belt will come out of my fingers and turn the machine. If it's about right, the belt will slip. THAT loose. Any tighter than that and the belt is wearing the motor out, and an artifact of that is the heat you're feeling.
These little motors don't like the kind of heat you're describing. Warm to the touch, not hot, not very warm. Usually if the belt is too tight, the motor will growl a little and need a little help starting, especially with the presser foot down, fabric under the foot and the needle in the down position trying to come up.
Originally Posted by
DonnaC
Sorry, I mis-spoke above and wanted to correct myself. I need the grease for the motor wells, which are not the same as the motor brushes. Nova says use only the Singer grease to fill the wells. Sew-Classic says use Vaseline because the Tri-Flow grease isn't the same as the old Singer grease. My head is starting to spin.
Would like to know what everyone else does.
This has been discussed many times here:
http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage...e-t228143.html
http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage...w-t204220.html
http://www.quiltingboard.com/search....archid=8813448
For whatever reason, the lube I've been getting here in Canada is still that brownish color. I know that it's getting harder to find in the US for some reason where the white grease seems to be showing up.