AlvaStitcher,
Make sure that your needle is in the machine with the flat to the right and threaded from left to right. A 15x1 needle is the correct size for the White Rotary. When I got my White Rotary I had to clean inside where the needle goes, there was old gunky stuff in there. Once it was all cleaned up the needle went all the way up.
The hand wheel turns away from you when sewing.