Converting a machine to hand crank
 

Is this possible? While searching for my hand crank machine, I've found a good amount of machines that look like they should be hand cranks but don't have the crank. Can you put a hand crank on a machine that's never had one?

It depends on the machine. Send a PM to Mizkaki (Cathy)...she's a WIZARD at it! :)

For Singer machines, you have to check that there is boss in the casting to accept the screw for the hand crank. Generally this is on the side just under the balance wheel. It is possible to drill and tap a hole also to accept the hand crank. I don't know but I am sure that other machines have a similar set up.

Can someone post a pic of the actual wheel on their machine? I can't find a detailed pic of the actual hand crank.

As quilt addict said you have to have the motor boss. The motor boss is nothing more than a hole in the casting just under the hand wheel.

Original handcrank machines had a spoked wheel that the crank attached to - however - you can notch a solid wheel to accept a handcrank. Personally, I wouldn't notch a solid wheel but to each his own in that thought process.

I converted my Singer Red Eye to a handcrank but my Red Eye had a spoked wheel and the motor boss hole. I was lucky enough to find an original handcrank but there are imported handcranks available from Sew Classic: http://shop.sew-classic.com/Hand-Cra...lt-SCMI604.htm On that page you will also see a replacement spoked wheel. You can also zoom in on the handcrank to get a good look at it.

Also on that site are directions for notching a solid wheel to accept a handcrank: http://blog.sew-classic.com/2009/05/...ack-again.aspx

Shari

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x75Pywf723s someone hand cranking a FW - not very efficient though

http://www.treadleon.net/sewingmachi...k/fwcrank.html
I think what they did with the wheel would work for any hand wheel.

You need not only the motor mount boss but it has to line up with the center of the wheel.
My 319 has the boss but it is not lined up straight with the center of the hand wheel so it will not hand crank.
I have a Singer 66 redeye I hoped to HC - no motor boss - it merely has a tapped hole to hold a motor. The shaped part is not there and it goes at an angle rather than straight up and down - so that won't hold a HC.

here is another type of HC only one revolution per crank though.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/FEATHERWEIGH...46235745492338

Close up pics of handcrank
 

Here are a couple of close up pics of the motor boss hole (just below the spoked wheel in the picture) and an attached hand crank. I love the little "clinkety clink" sound of a hand crank sewing machine when you are cranking it :)

Just to let you know how much fun a handcrank can be: We visited with our son and family recently, I brought 3 of my 'girls' with me included my Red Eye handcrank. Our little grandsons (ages 2 & 4) cranked the sewing machine when I did the straight seams on book bags that I made for them.

By popular demand, from our grandsons, I have to bring the Red Eye back when we come to visit again. :)

Shari

I made my Singer 128 into a hand crank. I followed Sew-Classic.com on the details. My DH used a hacksaw to cut the slot for the hand crank. It works beautifully.
Good Luck on getting yours!

Hi CABBAGEPATCHKID, WOW, THIS IS TRULY A BEAUTIFUL MACHINE, I AM PRESENTLY TRYING TO RESTORE A MODEL 66, THE GRAPHICS ARE ALL GOOD EXCEPT THEN ONES ON THE FLAT BED ITSELF, AND I WAS ABLE TO COMPLETELY DISASSEMBLE THE MACHINE, AND BUFF ALL OF THE NICKLE PLATED PARTS BACK TO THEIR ORIGINAL SHINE. BACK WHEN THESE MACHINES WERE BUILT, SINGER WAS NOT USING CHROME PLATE, JUST NICKLE PLATE, AND IT IS VERY BRIGHT, BUT NOT "WHITE BRIGHT" LIKE CHROME, ALL OF THE IMPORTED REPRODUCTIONS I HAVE FOUND ARE CHROME PLATED, AND JUST LOOK TOOOO NEW, UNREALISTIC ACTUALLY. ANYWAY I FELL IN LOVE WITH YOUR HAND CRANK MACHINE AND HAD TO COMMENT. DOES ANYONE KNOW OF A TRICK FOR CLEANING THE HEAD WITHOUT REMOVING THE GRAPHICS? ANY ADVISE WOULD BE APPRECIATED. Duane Hampton planeshavings42

Barbrasue, wish you would post a picture of your model 128 converted to hand crank, would love to see it...planeshavings42 Duane Hampton

There's a really good post about spoked wheels by Rain in his blog:
http://vssmb.blogspot.com/2011/07/lo...eels.html#more

If you find a machine with a spoked wheel and a motor boss, the repro crank is all you need. That would be the easiest.

I have an old red eye with no boss - I made it into a 1 x 1 ratio HC for my grand daughter. She has some vision problems and this is much easier for her. I got the part at NAPA.
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I am very interested in this thread.

WARNING: Moronic questions may follow; I am the Novicest of Novices!

So, not having seen in person a hand crank, I had envisioned that one would simply attach a nice handle to the wheel, to enable it to be turned by, um, hand. But it was illustrated on this thread that this will pretty much mean one complete crank rotation per stitch. Hmmmm. Is that correct?

It was also mentioned that one need a spoked wheel; could someone kindly tell me why one needs a spoked wheel?

What is a "motor boss"? (Told you I know almost nothing...)

Finally, one of the photos shows a more complicated handcrank mechanism which seems to drive the handwheel with a belt, thereby presumably giving a more effective number of stitches per hand-crank rotation?

I would like to learn more, as I aspire to convert my latest rescue into a hand crank. Perhaps. ;-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9DAZTh8744
Here you go. Generally three stitches per crank rotation. They're great for children to learn sewing (all the old children's machines were HC).
EDIT: Motor boss is the raised bit the motor is mounted on and can slide up and down. Cranks are mounted on the same boss

The shuttle machines make a lovely handcranker.

People griped about the Chinese repro handcranks feeling notchy and annoying, not smooth. I opened mine up and put grease in there, either the Singer grease if I had some or red grease or white lithium grease from the auto parts store.

This one has one revolution. The usual HC has 1 revolution and 3 stitches. The 1:3 turns backwards. This one turns toward me. It did not need a machine boss. The machine does not have a boss but someone did drill a hole and tap it for a bolt - the regular Chinese HC will not fit - it needs the raised area to work the Chinese HC.

Hi Miriam, I'm hoping you are still subscribed to this thread! I am trying to hand crank a singer industrial machine which has no motor boss and this looks ideal but I can't find the part anywhere, do you have a link I can look at please and is there a tutorial?

It's a "suicide" knob for a steering wheel, that may help in finding them. Start by checking auto parts stores. Or find yourself a vintage tractor that has one and take it off.

Curious? Why would a person want to hand crank at 1:1 on an industrial?

To improve arm wrestling skills.

Because I have no other choice! She's the size of a 15 and I don't have room for a treadle. I'm also missing the special bracket that helps mount them on a table top. They aren't that common round here so i don't want to drill and tap for a bolt, and I'd need to buy the motor boss bit (which are available but expensive)
I am also just a teensy bit of a masochist ;)

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That helps a lot Macybaby, thank you :)

Oh, I get why to make it a handcrank, it is just that the 3:1 that you get from an actual handcrank makes it SO much easier to sew with.

So that machine has the spoked wheel, (which the regular handcrank would connect to to operate) but no motor boss.

There are a couple of options I see.

One is you could make it a portable electric. If it is a 15 base, then a case would fit. Making a bracket to mount the motor to the case not the machine would not be too difficult

The other option is that some makes of machines used bed or base mounted handcranks. one of those might be able to fit

the last is the wheel spinner. You may have to buy them online. they are not legal on cars in several states so not many parts stores do not carry them (at least around here that is)

Thanks Steve!

I'm not sure about the exact size, i'll have to measure the pins and the base. There was a bracket that was supposed to be part of the machine that helped it to bolt into a table but i might not need it :) I do have a spare motor hanging around, so i wonder how that could work! Getting the bases here is tricky, might have to buy a trashed machine and part it out

I have seen some of those for sale, i don't know how to calculate what measurements need to fit for it to work, any ideas? :)

They are legal here in Australia afaik, sold in tractor parts shops and also as mobility aids for driving cars :)

I'm starting to thinkt his might just work! Trying to source some 128x4 needles from the local industrial machine shop.

Very cool looking machine! What does that machine do? I walked into NAPA and asked for a steering wheel spinner or a suicide knob. They said those were illegal for a car. So I told them I wanted to put it on my sewing machine and they found one but told me to ask for a tractor steering wheel spinner knob. Tractor supply also has them. BUT I saw one I thought I would mention. Someone welded an auger handle onto the clutch knob of an old industrial - the guy was sewing alligator hides with a treadle but he wanted the option of hand cranking it to get more torque. The advantage is you could remove the clutch knob and put another one on it.

I had an old industrial that size and it just had a little motor added onto it on the back. It was kind of portable... There are any number of ways to add a motor. You could just build a wooden frame to set it in. In fact you might mount a motor to The frame. Is that some kind of pin tuck machine? It would take for ever to do much by HC with that...

It sews 5 rows of chain stitch, it will do shirring if you hold your tongue right, and that's what I'm hoping to do! It will also do pin tucks with a special foot but I don't have one.

I also think I've got the needle size wrong!

I saw someone doing that with featherweights, welding a window crank to the clutch knob. I've measured and it turns out my hand crank won't fit because the finger isn't long enough, the spoked wheel is pretty far back and protrudes in the middle which gets in the way, so my current plan is buying a base, and making a bracket that will hold a motor. The base of the machine will fit a standard singer base lengthwise but its narrower than my 99! Will have to put some scrap wood in the base to prop up the front of the machine :)

Wow. Sundresses? A good wood worker could get you set up pretty nicely with a base. A HC would be handy if you wanted to set up at some festivals or craft sales...
What I saw was not the same thin as the window wonder winder guy. It was the handle from an auger - think hefty. It was welded right across the clutch knob. The clutch knob and its handle. could be removed and it could go back to normal.

are those FW clutch knobs welded or do they just have a tapped hole to screw the window winder?

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See if my crude drawing helps.
The knob went out as long as the hand wheel. The bar was welded to the clutch knob. Clutch was removable. It would be nice if the other end kind of went between spokes. Clutch knob cannot be exchanged if it bends down between spokes it would be impossible to remove. It could be welded already on the machine in that bent position but couldn't be loosened. Done deal...

Ohhhh maybe it is a screw on the featherweight.
I'm thinking if I put the hand wheel on backwards and put a bracket in the base to screw the hand crank to, it could work...

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That's a fantastic idea, but might be problematic on this machine - no clutch knob! (no bobbins to wind either lol)

Ah yup that won't take a weld very neatly... You might just have to put a small motor on or a suicide knob but I have my doubts about making the knob go on backwards and having everything work.

Yep I'm going to try and put the hand wheel on backwards then bolt a crank to a bracket on the wooden base, I think :) thanks so much for your knowledge, as always!

I plan on making a portable handcrank for my treadle machines. I know it should mount to the back of hte machie, but if I rotate it sideways, I can mount it to a board (or other support) that lines up behind the machine, and still have the crank hook correctly into the flywheel. I want to make something adjustable so I can use it with any of the treadles, since I'm also making bases for them so they can all fit into the same treadle base. I don't have room for a lot of bases, but I sure have a lot of machines.

I'd love to see photos when you're done! :)

Cathy did you ever make that universal HC? I'd love to see what you came up with.