Thank you, I appreciate the offer.

No, I don't have a foot yet, I've got to order one, do you think I ought to wait till I get one? But as my DH just said when I told him I fixed it: operator error! I had taken the bottom cover off and was just beginning to try to figure it all out, when I thought, you know, it was the needle, suppose, just suppose..and so I took the needle back out, reseated it (correctly this time, I presume) and it seems that was it!!


But if you feel like doing a tuteriol it wouldn't hurt. There is a site or two that show exactly how the needle and the scarf are supposed to be related...but then they don't tell you how to actually do it.

Ditto for me.
I would love to see a tutorial on the timing of the 301. Any info I can get, I like to have available as I'm usually having my problems at the worst times.

You really shouldn't be FMQ'ing without a foot. Not only is it not safe, the foot supports the fabric and needle so that you don't pull and bend the needle, causing it to break on the feed plate...as yours did. There are needles on the market with just a spring. I have one and don't use it. Really, you need a proper foot. They're only a few bucks. Glad you figured it out, though if your needle hit something that hard to unseat it, you probably need a new one.

If you join the vintage Singer yahoo group there are tutorials and photos of this. Lots of info. on all the vintage machines. It's where I look when I need help with one of my vintage Singers. I'm not going to re-invent the wheel if it's already available for free on the net;>

I know they're not expensive, just hadn't gotten around to getting one...and wanted to play:o It was a new needle that I hadn't gotten pushed in far enough..or maybe in my haste to insert it it went in backwards? Hard to tell...

If i ever get to NC from TN I'd love to see your 401.

Free motion quilting foot for the 301
 

I have 2 301 machines, tan and black. I would like to purchase a free motion foot for quilting. Where do I buy it? Does it have a spring?? Cost?? I love my tan 301 because it is so smooth and purrs like a kitten. The black one sews well also but my tan one seems much smoother.

Thanks, Peggy

sew-classic sells a inexpensive metal foot that gets good reviews. My metal and plastic one came from april1930sshoppe, $18.95 with free shipping. I really like it - when I took a class at my LQS, the instructor liked it better than the ones they sell for straight shanks. I don't think they carry a slant, though they do have other slant feet. There is an original on ebay now for about $18.

I got a plastic one from Sew Classic - I didn't like it all that much - felt funny to me

Does yours make a clicking sound? That's my only complaint about the plastic one. It seems to work fine, but is noisy.