Oh, dear. I think I'm going to have to find me a clone in some jazzy paint. I just love the look of these teal ones. They remind me of Christmas ornaments.

Meanwhile, I'm please to announce that the Mercury does make some pretty good stitches by my just putting the needle in flat side to the right and threading from left to right (only using the hand wheel so far because of the bad wiring). The fact that she sews is amazing to me because I've had little experience with taking tension thingies apart. I had to take it off because someone had trapped the little side thread guide spring under the L shaped guide. It may have been that way, with the spring under stress, for more than 10 years. There are no numbers on the tension, so I just turned it until it looked and felt about right, another bit of serendipity because these discs are rusty as all get out. (New ones are on the way.) Anyway, here are some pictures as she looks newly acquired. I think she looks a little better in person than she does with the flash, but I may be biased. The last picture shows the cover with the flap open, revealing the funky little drawer.

I just bought an Ambassador from 1958. The original owner's grandson has been lugging it around since the mid-70's. For $25 I got a nearly perfect machine with wiring in excellent shape, the original "tortoise" case, my favorite style of foot controller and grandma's sewing basket full of yarn, thread, thimbles and the owner's manual. Count me as a happy camper!!!

Annette - you have to post pictures when you make a post like that! We're curious.

Congrats on the cool find.

Darren

Hey lets not talk about how much or how little we spend on these machines - what ever you got it for is a whole lot less than it would be worth in the dollars spent on it when it was new. I see the clones in all kinds of conditions. I have yet to have one for parts. They are good machines - easy to use and easy to take care of. I think they are right there on the top of my favorite list for straight stitch machines. End of rant.

Here they are!![ATTACH=CONFIG]440906[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]440907[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]440908[/ATTACH]

There were precious old sewing scissors, very cool thimbles, a monogrammed pin cushion and a curious business card. It was for a Croatian radiologist (love my DH Army experience paying off). So many questions unanswered... This sweet machine is Featherweight sized and easy to tote and use. I won't be sewing much until that motor quits sparking so much.

The pics and comments on this tread are the reason this Ambassador came home. I know that these machines are dependably quiet, solid, and incredibly hardy stitchers. They are also affordable!!! I've converted some of my "gotta be new" sewing friends to these clones. And, I can afford to give them as gifts!

Is it typical for the motor/light plugs to have no cardboard protectors?

Older plugs come that way. I cut circles from cereal boxes for the cardboard covers. Works for me and have had no problems with the plugs.
Chris

seems like if the plug is in a case it has a cardboard back and if it is a cabinet no cardboard or is it the other way around??? I've seen both.

Yes the machines are very affordable. But it would be nice for once if we didn't have one up man/womanship about how cheap they find them. Prices can vary from one part of the country, one condition to another and from one person to another, from one machine to another. I would prefer not to ever talk about prices on QB I think anybody can say anything about how much or how little they spend. Keep it simple that way nobody feels bad when they didn't get accessories, a cabinet and an original manual, etc but spent $5, $10, $50 more than someone else. The machines come up at very reasonable prices all over the country if a person watches. Some of them come up serviced and ready to use for reasonable prices, too. There are a lot of forums where you do not talk about prices at all. I think it is a good idea.

I would not recommend putting cardboard in there as a replacement as it is flammable. The old plugs had a piece of asbestos that looked like thin cardboard there but often is lost along the way. I would recommend new replacement plug ends that are non polarized that you can get at a hardware store that are easy to install and are much, much safer.
~G~