Cleaning and repairing the Shellac clear coat on Vintage sewing machine heads
12-06-2014, 12:23 PM
#322
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Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Huntsville, AL
Posts: 2,609
Originally Posted by jmabby
I've been working on the shellac procedure, I had a difficult start. I was working too fast (as Glen said) and putting on too much linseed oil producing bubbles. Thanks for all the help, the machine looks like it will be beautiful. I had to walk away from it for a couple of days and read over Glen's tut about 3 times. I can't believe how good she looks. I was so proud, showed her to a friend (non sewer) she said "Why would you waste your time doing all that work when you have a $1K machine in the other room"? No use trying to explain, she hates anything old, but she does like me as a friend, and I'm older than the machine.
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12-07-2014, 08:55 AM
#323
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Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Minnesota, Land of 10,000 Lakes
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Originally Posted by Glenn
Glad you got the hang of it. I knew you could do it. I want to see before and after pics please.
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12-07-2014, 09:07 AM
#324
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Somewhere
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Originally Posted by jmabby
It will be a while. I have one more coat to put on, then I will put her back together. I want to wait a couple of weeks thinking if I put the pieces together too soon they may stick onto the machine.
12-10-2014, 04:56 PM
#325
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Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Northern California
Posts: 141
Hello Everyone, I'm new here! I enjoy quilting AND VSM's. Hubby just kindly drove me into the nearby state to acquire this little Singer 12, and I'd love to get her as pretty as she can possibly be. I've read Glenn's advice on repairing the shellac finish, but just want to query if that is appropriate for a machine of this age (we're thinking 1882). If regular SMO isn't cleaning the worst of the grubby bits, is there anything else that is safe to use?[ATTACH=CONFIG]502031[/ATTACH]
12-10-2014, 05:15 PM
#326
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Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: San Lorenzo, CA
Posts: 5,361
1st, welcome to the Board!!!
2nd, Welcome from a fellow Californian!
I am a person who only collects machines from the 19th century and I would strongly suggest that for the painted parts you only use sewing machine oil for cleaning that one. It looks to be in very nice shape and would probably shine right up.
Glenn's cleaning solution would work very well on the wooden parts.
congrats, those Singer 12's are great little sewing machines. (I have several variations)
Also you can post the serial number from the stitch length adjustment plate (the larger of the two numbers) and we can tell you when it was made.
or you can look it up yourself here
http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mach...l-numbers.html
2nd, Welcome from a fellow Californian!
I am a person who only collects machines from the 19th century and I would strongly suggest that for the painted parts you only use sewing machine oil for cleaning that one. It looks to be in very nice shape and would probably shine right up.
Glenn's cleaning solution would work very well on the wooden parts.
congrats, those Singer 12's are great little sewing machines. (I have several variations)
Also you can post the serial number from the stitch length adjustment plate (the larger of the two numbers) and we can tell you when it was made.
or you can look it up yourself here
http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mach...l-numbers.html
12-10-2014, 05:37 PM
#327
Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Northern California
Posts: 141
Originally Posted by SteveH
1st, welcome to the Board!!!
2nd, Welcome from a fellow Californian!
I am a person who only collects machines from the 19th century and I would strongly suggest that for the painted parts you only use sewing machine oil for cleaning that one. It looks to be in very nice shape and would probably shine right up.
Glenn's cleaning solution would work very well on the wooden parts.
congrats, those Singer 12's are great little sewing machines. (I have several variations)
Also you can post the serial number from the stitch length adjustment plate (the larger of the two numbers) and we can tell you when it was made.
or you can look it up yourself here
http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mach...l-numbers.html
2nd, Welcome from a fellow Californian!
I am a person who only collects machines from the 19th century and I would strongly suggest that for the painted parts you only use sewing machine oil for cleaning that one. It looks to be in very nice shape and would probably shine right up.
Glenn's cleaning solution would work very well on the wooden parts.
congrats, those Singer 12's are great little sewing machines. (I have several variations)
Also you can post the serial number from the stitch length adjustment plate (the larger of the two numbers) and we can tell you when it was made.
or you can look it up yourself here
http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mach...l-numbers.html
12-11-2014, 08:15 AM
#330
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Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: San Lorenzo, CA
Posts: 5,361
Originally Posted by Ellpea
SteveH, thanks for the welcome! I just looked up the serial number (1775033), so she seems to be from 1884. In looking for the number I needed to use a flashlight (that plate is pretty grubby), which pointed up lots of scarring in the finish. And what looks like clear coat in some places and flaked/worn away in others. Do these machines have shellac?
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