Singer 12 New Family bobbin winder mystery
 

I stayed off Craigslist for about 6 weeks. 3 days ago I thought I'd take a look..... and yesterday I went and picked up the cutest little Singer 12 of 1888 vintage, a hand crank with domed case, all in very nice condition. (Fork included as size reference :-).)

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We just can't figure out how to make the tire of the bobbin winder touch the handwheel! It's got to be ridiculously easy (so easy that there are no instructions in the manual) and yet we don't see it. HELP! please :o

I haven't been able to try out the machine since the NEEDLE CLAMP is missing. Anyone have an extra one in their drawer of accessories? I understand that there are a variety of needle clamps. Any idea which one is meant for a 1888 New Family?

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Lastly, when I was researching "Singer 12" on this board, I came across a comment I made in March regarding 'ellpea's' newly acquired Singer 12:
"So Lovely!!!

A very beautiful machine!

For some reason part of my post didn't show.... (same problem yesterday and I gave up)

Here's a close-up of the bobbin winder set up:

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No matter what we do, there remains a gap between the tire and the hand wheel. The winder is shown at a bit of an angle - it pivots around one screw... it can be more parallel, but no closer to the wheel.

On Needlebar it says: "

http://needlebar.org/cm/displayimage..._display_media

The one on my 12K works when you swivel it. Does it not swivel to the hand wheel?

Sews, I drooled over that machine for a while it is so pretty, just couldn't afford another one or a place to put it! Lucky you, enjoy!

Like manicmike said, you twist it side to side to make contact. If it wont' turn, it needs lubrication.

Manicmike - do you mean to say that it swivels towards the handwheel basically at a wide arc? No, it is not possible to do that. We have removed the whole unit and put it back in its place and there is just no way to get it any closer to the handwheel..... The screw behind it, the one that holds the cover in place. seems to interfere with that.

Assuming it was possible to push the whole unit towards the wheel, what would keep it in place?


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It requires two things to work. press on the right side to cause it to swivel till it is in line And the bobbin needs to be in (as shown) to make contact. You must maintain pressure for it to work. It does not "lock into place.

I Struggled with my first 12 manual winder until I realized the bobbin was shorter then the others (it was not a Singer 12 bobbin, but fit into the shuttle anyway). once i put in a correct one it moved the rubber portion further right, and viola! I am curious about yours because on mine when the bobbin is in, the little silver collar to the right of the wheel is more depressed into the housing.


Also looks like you are missing the needle clamp on this Beauty.

Now I'm picturing that all one needs to do is pull the spring loaded part to the righthand side, insert the bobbin and it will automatically line up with the edge of the handwheel. But that is not how this works here ... the bobbin is already in place and the unit is extended as far to the right as it will go with that particular bobbin. The bobbin is the same length as the one that is inserted inside the shuttle, so it's not too short to allow for a connection.

When I bought the machine. I thought all it needed was a washer to lift up the winder, but the screw that holds it in place does not allow for additional space. In fact, if it is not screwed in tightly, the machine won't function properly.

Thanks for the responses!

Thanks Steve --- Looks like we addressed the bobbin length issue at the same tiime. Interesting that yours fit into the shuttle though it was not the correct one. The 2 that came with the machine are slightly different (and I have a few others that came with the 28s) so I'll switch things around.

Before you matched things up properly, was the distance between the winder and the wheel as large as in my case?

How can you identify a correct Singer 12 bobbin - other than by trial and error?


Yes, the needle clamp is missing -- I wonder if someone gutted a 12 and has an extra.

We found a 12 needle clamp in England, so I think I'll go for that one. I have to assume that even though there are different types of clamps, the Needle Bar itself remained the same, and in that case any Singer 12 clamp should fit???? (Can you imagine the difficulties we would have trying to fix up these old machines without the internet????!! Interesting how going forward helps us go back :o )


So, the way I see it, you need 3 hands to get a bobbin loaded:
hand 1 -- press the winder against the handwheel and keep it there
hand 2 -- turn the hand crank
hand 3 -- guide the thread back and forth to load he bobbin

???