Oil, oil oil!
I know most of you are aware of this, but for newbies, here's a reminder;
Enjoy your vintage ladies, use them like they were meant to be used, but don't forget to oil them often. I was FMQ with one of my 301s yesterday when she froze up. After I stopped panicking - the needle was jammed in the quilt and wouldn't move, I tore the machine down, oiled and lubricated it and she now is sewing perfectly and as quiet as can be. How did this happen? I oil AnnieRose - the one I normally use after every quilt, but this is her cousin, ErinRose, who has never been used much here. I should have oiled her when I switched machines. Lesson learned and all is well. Why is AnnieRose in timeout? I had to replace the tension spring and must have not done a good job because she was balking at the embroidery thread I was using to FMQ - getting loops on curves.