Vridar

Exactly!! Cecilia, I'm enjoying my coffee, how "bout you?

Cecilia S.

Busted. Totally busted. QB and the sewing machine ads are my morning coffee-reading. ;-) Also, I confess, often on work breaks as well! Terrible, that, eh? ;-)

Candace

I sell those that I don't bond with or have multiples of. Typically I make money but it works out to about $1 an hour. LOL. But, for me, I enjoy repairing and learning. I don't need to pay for classes this way. It's all hands on and learning by trial and error. I tell myself that if I keep one I need to part with one, and it just doesn't happen.

Redsquirrel

Very interesting replies. I will continue to try to get cheep old Singers fix them up and then try to sell them. I love rescuing them from oblivion as a door stop, or as horrible as it sounds.. a garden ornament. I guess its a hobby and selling them for a bit more than I paid will help me continue this hobby for years to come hopefully.

I don't have a basement, or big house, but I have this image of a room with refurbished treadles lining the walls and hand crank machines on antique desks and a group of women gathering together and sewing. That would be my idea of a great time.

Skyangel

I've only sold one, the Kenmore 117.959 that my sister gave me. Her MIL had bought it at a garage sale for $10, thinking my sister could use the cabinet for her plastic singer. After a complete cleaning and servicing, restoring the cabinet with the Howard stuff, and finding an online manual and printing it, I sold it for the grand amount of $35. I don't think there is much possibility for profit around here but you wouldn't know it for the prices people want. Space and time are going to keep me from accumulating many more. Except for the 301s that seem to keep finding me cheap - and I do plan to sell two of the 3 301s I have (but they will sell to the quilting crowd). Not that that will keep me from looking!

manicmike

Now I get it. I really only sold some because I ran out of space (no basement, can't use the roof, run out of friends' places), then realised that I'm quite skilled at fixing them. In Australia the rate of pay for everyone is enormous, so people are used to paying a lot more for a clean and service than elsewhere. The standard rate here is $90 - $130 for a service only for a basic machine, $110 being about average. I've heard of people paying $250 to get a machine serviced.
With all my machines, I clean, service and test them and even then it's hard to sell for more than I paid! The 99k is a good example. I paid $50 (considered it a bargain), it's almost in mint condition with the original accessories and I still couldn't sell it for $90 (less than the cost of just a service)!
So the best way to make money with these skills is to also offer to fix, clean and service. It's the same with cars: Better to fix them than buy, fix, sell.
What's it like where you are?

momto5

I have a total of 17 machines, a mix of old and new...FW, 99K, (2) treadled 128's, black 301, Janome 6600P, Janome 350E, Singer Futura CE-200, Bernina, Singer Confidence, Singer 27, Singer 99 clone, Singer Athena 2010, BabyLock and a couple more. I don't sell them because I don't want to, at least until circumstances force me to. And I definitely understand about the quilting remark...that's another thing people want you to do for little or nothing....doesn't matter if you have $300 invested in fabric, batting and thread...they want to give you $50! One of my favorite stories is about my CPA who wanted me to make him a double wedding ring quilt. He asked how much and back-peddled quickly when I told him...again, he charges $100 to do a very simple return...but doesn't want to pay for a labor-intensive product! So I guess the more the circumsatnces change, the more they remain the same...

trivia42

Blackberry, did you buy the little green spartan that's been floating on and off CL in KC for awhile? I've been wanting that machine every time I see it but I pass because I can't do another one right now.

Mornigstar

Gee, Redsquirrel I live in the Peterbough ON area and I would have loved to pay more for that 201 . I check Kijiji sometimes but I usually see the back of machines or ridiculous prices because it is an antique. The only machine I have wanted to finish my collection but use is a 201. Only saw it in black. What area are you --Canada is huge--???
The only ad I answered to Kijiji the owners never replied but kept lowering the price and my friends tried for me too and I would have driven 3 hours for it. A bummer.
Many ads do not say a model # or a serial number either.

Redsquirrel

I'm in Southern Alberta. People with a lot of money but don't want to part with it for vintage Singers.