Thank you bkay! I'm going to keep at it. It is definitely worth the time to get these machines working again!
Originally Posted by
bkay
I've not had the "pleasure" of working on a 201 that is locked up, but did free up a 401 a couple of years ago. I used kerosene (unscented lamp oil from Walmart) and 90% alcohol to free it up. It was obvious that it was dried up oil, though. I would stay away from the alcohol with a black machine, though. I used strips of old t-shirts, twine, cotton balls, q-tips and anything I could find to clean away the gunk in any place that moved. I soaked up my excess kerosene with paper towels under the joint. I used forceps to get into the places I couldn't reach. All and all, it took 3 or 4 cleanings before everything freed up. Then, I started with oil.
Good luck.
bkay
edit: I have a gorgeous 15-91 that is locked up to do soon. It looks like it's never been used.