I just inherited my mom's singer 301A and had a wonderful time taking it apart and cleaning it up. I found a serial number on the motor which is not visible without taking the bottom off of the machine. Is this the machine serial number or the motor serial number? And can you tell what year it was born from the second picture?

Thanks

No, that's not it.. It's stamped into the base of the machine.

That looks just like my mom's machine that I am using now, it was made in 1951.

The serial number is stamped in the frame of the machine on the bottom under the bobbin end. Most of the 301s were made in early 1950s. Mine is a 1951 also. Love that cabinet...the cabinets are not that easy to find. You can easily take the machine out of the cabinet to use as a table top...there is a latch on the bottom to release it. They have a plate on the bottom and feet (that can be replaced if yours are hard and cracked) so it can be portable. Mine didn't have a cabinet or a case when I got it.

Congrats on a 'new' machine and getting it all cleaned up. 301's are wonderful to sew on and sound so pretty doing it.

It's on the bottom of the machine, directly below the bobbin case.

CD in Oklahoma

I love mine and I was lucky enough to get it in a cabinet but not the desk type like yours. I love sewing with a machine in a cabinet again. Enjoy.

My understanding is that the 301's and 301A's cannot be dated specifically.
This website explains: http://singer301.com/dating/default.html

Dayle

I have a 301A that was purchased in 1956. (I needed to make some maternity clothes.) I had a cabinet custom made for it that looks like a nice large desk. A piece of the top comes out, and the machine set into that cavity. I got the machine with a long flip-up table at the left end that works very well for changing bobbins. I loved that machine and the size of the desk for sewing. Then in the 70's I bought an "advanced" machine that could do zig-zag. (BTW, I could have gotten the 301A with zig-zag for $40 more, but as it was, the machine cost one month of my teaching salary.)
Now I've gotten the 301A out of its storage drawer in the desk, and I still love it. It does an excellent job.

Keep your eye open for the 301 folding table. It looks much like the featherweight table, and came in 2 versions of cutout to accommodate the long bed and short bed machines.