MarnieCat

I took my Singer 160 in today to a local chain sewing/ vac repair store. It's been making a bad noise when I press the pedal down all the way to go fast.
They took it apart, found a part that was loose, made some adjustments, and from what I can tell that issue is fixed.
I've also been having issues with the tension on the top thread. It will sew fine for a short while then suddenly become very tight.
After the first issue was fixed I was told that the timing is off and I should leave the machine with them for a tune-up. The price I was quoted was $179 after a $20 off coupon. I took the machine home and did not do the timing/tuneup because I thought the price sounded very high! Any thoughts? They kindly did not charge me for the tinkering and diagnostics.
Brand-new, I paid $200 for the machine.
I have seen that there are YouTube videos instructing how to adjust the timing yourself. Has anyone done it?

Prism99

If the machine sews, I do not think the timing is off. Usually when the timing is off, you cannot even make a stitch.

The tension issue sounds as if there is some dirt or lint caught in the upper tensioning mechanism. If you have some ***unwaxed*** dental floss on hand, you can do this: lift up the presser foot to release tension, then see-saw the unwaxed dental floss back and forth to clean between the tension disks.

There is no point in paying $179 to re-time a $200 Singer 160. This is the new "featherweight" repro machine that came out a year or two ago, isn't it? Once it's broken, I would simply replace with a Brother from Walmart. It would probably be better quality. I wouldn't attempt to re-time a machine like this. I believe people who re-time machines at home are usually doing it on vintage Singers, not the newer ones.

Craftnut

Prism is correct, if the timing is off the machine will not make a stitch, the threads won't lock together. I would floss out the tension discs like she said. Then check to be sure that the thread isn't catching on the side of your spool or cone, that is a common problem. When it catches, it won't advance through the thread guides, actually stopping the thread from moving for just a moment. Long enough to look like the tensions are tightening. The other place is to clean out the bobbin area. Lint can collect with machine oil to make gunk that looks like it is part of the mechanism, but shouldn't be there. Good luck! This Google Search has some good links.

quiltstringz

That sounds high. Around our area for a machine a tuneup (which would include timing I believe) is right around $100. I definitely would not spend even that on a$200 machine.

MarnieCat

The fact above is exactly the type of knowledge I was looking for by joining here! It definitely stitches, and for a short time stitches really well! Good to know, thank you, Prism!
I will try the unwaxed dental floss trick for sure.
It is indeed the black repro machine. I got it for Christmas at the end of 2012 and it has been perfect for me and the small amount of sewing I do.
Craftnut, I did take apart the plate, cleaned out all the lint, and oiled the hook race. This was the first time I had oiled it in a year and a half. I had read that a lot of newer machines don't need oil and for some reason foolishly assumed mine was one of those. I will be careful of the sides of the spools, thank you for that advice, and I will check out the link you posted!
quiltstringz, $100 or less is what I thought I would be quoted. $179 I thought sounded way too high.

Jeanne S

My LQS charges $80 for a routine maintenance and cleaning. If parts are needed that will cost extra of course. $179 sounds high to me.

cathyvv

I think your advice is solid, Prism99. You can get a nicely featured brand new Brother machine for $179, so if the Singer was $200 when purchased two years ago, why pay almost $200 to have it serviced.

With regard to oiling a sewing machine - I have a HQ16 that only requires oiling in the bobbin race. All the other potential oiling spots are well greased. My guess is that oil may drip on computer boards inside our fancy, modern machines and cause the boards to die an early death.

citruscountyquilter

That does seem really high to me. I've paid in the $65-80 range for a tune up. My daughter-in-law had an inexpensive Singer that the bobbin case area had some issues. She bought the machine at JoAnn's. When it stopped working she had to send it out to be repaired to a place JoAnn's uses. The repair estimate she was verbally given seemed reasonable. When she got the bill it was nearly what the machine had cost initially. Within a few months after getting it back it broke again in the same place. The 90 day warranty that had come with the machine had expired and there was no warranty on the repair. I found a good used machine for her which was better quality and she uses that now.

quilt938

I'm in Houston and it's usually around $100 - $140 for me. I think the last place I took it was $120 and that included a small part I needed replaced. Mine's a babylock - one with all the stitches I dont use - think he charges less for mechanical sewing machines - I need to find out because I have some vintage machines I may want worked on

Onebyone

I have an older Bernina. A cleaning and fix all problems cost $60 plus the cost of any new part. I have never had to have a new part and it's years old, a Bernina 1260.