Grounding Vintage Sewing Machines
06-08-2014, 04:54 PM
#42
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Originally Posted by Jamesbeat
I did a search and found quite a few posts about people getting mild electric shocks (often described as a 'tingle') from their machines. That seems like a valid enough reason to add a ground.
This kind of risk could almost be eliminated by a periodic visual inspection of the wiring, but there are some wires on my machine (for the light) that can't be visually inspected without removing them from the machine.
They are routed through the casing, and there are large sections which can't be seen with the wires in situ.
This kind of risk could almost be eliminated by a periodic visual inspection of the wiring, but there are some wires on my machine (for the light) that can't be visually inspected without removing them from the machine.
They are routed through the casing, and there are large sections which can't be seen with the wires in situ.
The fact is that the most dangerous part of operating and maintaining a sewing machine is usually the operator. You can't tell me that people don't notice a fraying or damaged cord when they're wrapping it up, or a broken connector, or... in most cases they see it and choose to deal with it later.
Yes, I personally had one of the old "servicable" Singer connectors that had come undone and I needed to tighten the connectors inside the main connector. That's the one that made me sparkle because I lacked an appropriate amount of sleep prior to the job but more often I find it's the wiring we can see at fault. It's what gets bent and wrapped and coiled and tugged.
There are a few spots sometimes, usually from poor planning on the part of the manufacturer, inside the machine where some abrasion can happen, and I agree, those should be checked out and checked on. I still think ATF is more of a hazard to little bodies than a well maintained vintage sewing machine.
Originally Posted by manicmike
James, your mother wears army boots! 
(just tryin' to be funny)
(just tryin' to be funny)
Originally Posted by Cecilia S.
Manicmike, careful there before hauling out the ammunition- weren't you once caught, by your daughter, wearing pyjamas and holding a Featherweight on a bathroom scale?
Originally Posted by Jamesbeat
Photos or it never happened!
06-08-2014, 05:01 PM
#43
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Location: Brisbane, Australia
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Originally Posted by Cecilia S.
Manicmike, careful there before hauling out the ammunition- weren't you once caught, by your daughter, wearing pyjamas and holding a Featherweight on a bathroom scale?
06-08-2014, 05:08 PM
#44
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Originally Posted by ArchaicArcane
K,.. I totally never got the army boots thing. My teen years were the early 90s. Lots of us gals wore army boots...
06-08-2014, 06:36 PM
#47
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Location: Springfield Oregon
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Originally Posted by Jamesbeat
Appliances with exposed heating elements aren't grounded, because this is a special case in which a ground can actually increase the chance of a shock.
06-08-2014, 06:42 PM
#48
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Location: NY, USA. Originally Birmingham, UK
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Originally Posted by oldsewnsew
How so? A short to ground should trip the breaker, i.e. the cabinet, through a ground wire. So what about coffee pots, irons, hair dryers, etc. Stoves have exposed heating elements, and in this country only got a real seperate ground wire, after the national code was changed. Many dryers aren't grounded still.
06-08-2014, 07:25 PM
#50
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Location: Brisbane, Australia
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Originally Posted by Jamesbeat
Because sometimes people stick forks in toasters while they're plugged in. If they're also touching the case (likely) and it's grounded, then they become the short to ground...
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