Did I ruin my machine?
 

Today, knowing that I was going to try out the ruffler and practice for a Christening gown I'm working on, I oiled my Singer 301. So, I'm looking at the instructions, take off the bottom, drip oil all over, take off the top, look at all the arrows, and when I'm done I take a closer look at the written instructions.

Do not ever oil the gears. Oops. I oiled the gears. You are supposed to use "lubricant", which apparently is a different species from oil.

I did set up the ruffler and try it out. What do I do?

i'm not an expert either, but if i were you, i would try to wipe the oil off of the gears (turn them by hand and gently clean off what you can with something that won't leave lint behind) then add lubricant to the gears.

both of above answers are correct. I rehabilitate SM and use oil to often the gunk under the hood around the gears. when I'm finished I put more axle grease on the gears. (men have their toys, so do I.)

Singer lube is getting harder to find. Jenny has it at Sew Classic, and most shops should be able to order it, but you may have to buy 6 tubes at a time (minimum order for most dealers, here in Canada at least, so YMMV)

This is what Singer recommends for the gears. It's thicker, stays in place, and doesn't "liquify" as fast when it gets warm, hence why we also use it in the Singer motors that require it.

That said, I've heard of people using all sorts of grease on the gears (the motor must have the Singer lube, so it doesn't hurt to buy it and use it for the gears too) - TriFlow's grease product, Vaseline, axle grease, etc.

And no, you didn't ruin your machine. :) You just aren't finished the maintenance.

i was just reading on a site of a person's experience with the mess Vaseline can make in machines because it melts and puddles. i think i'd stick with the lubricant.

I don't think I'd ever use it personally. I've heard of it, but I don't think I've ever had a "Grease emergency" where I'd need something that quickly. There are so many good greases out there for gears that there's not a lot of reason for it.

I wouldn't mind seeing the site you mentioned...?

Go to Sew-Classic and buy a tube of TRI-FLOW grease and oil. Lube the gears with the grease and everything else with the oil. The T-F grease is superior to the Singer Lube for gears and works wonders on them. You should also pick up a couple tubes of the Singer Lube for the motors that use it too.

You didn't hurt the machine but the oil you put on the gears will not lube them for long.

Joe

I agree with the replies. It will drip, but will clean up. Then get some lube and put on the gears. I have supplies at my website if you can not find locally: www.thequiltgal.com. Singer lubricant is the same for all the Singer machines, Featherweight 221s etc that require lubricant.

I went to a sewing machine repair shop to get some grease one time and the 90 year old repair man told me just to use machine oil but maybe he was just out of grease that day...

Maybe he was senile and had lost his memory too.

Joe

good posibility

If you have a General Motors dealer near you go to their parts department and ask for a tube of Super Lube. It will run about 6.00. It is thick, white, and has a melting point of 450* as a bonus it is food safe so you can repack your Kitchen Aid mixer motor with it. I use it on all the machines I clean up.
Now - to ease your mind about the oil on your drive gear. The motor on a 301 is internal so it makes it difficult to get to if you want to repack the grease with fresh. If a little bit of oil works its way down the shaft into the grease cup on your machine all it will do is soften that 50 year old grease and give it some more life. You might find that your machine works a bit easier. Don't do it again, but you didn't kill your machine.

Oh! Thank you all! I'll be better, honest I will. I'll never do it again.

My machine was cleaned before I bought it, nice shiny gears, so I can't delude myself into thinking I'm cleaning the gunk with the oil. I love this machine. Maybe I should name it?

of course she needs a name!

Tammi, I wasn't sure i could find where I read that about not using vaseline, but wahoo, here it is. Look 25% or so down the page to the tips from Sept 2012. I don't know anything about this particular person, but if she's teaching Featherweight Maintenance classes at Houston's international quilt festival, she must know something.

http://www.novamontgomery.com/singer...-the-month.htm

Ahh! See I've read that. She's talking about never putting Vaseline in the motor. 100% true. We were talking about the gears top and bottom of the machine itself.

Singer motors must always only have Singer Lube. no substitutions. That's what I said in my previous post, but it bears repeating.

Mitch's Mom,... I get my super lube from an "Industrial Supplies" place. Where the GM dealer is also probably getting it. I pay about $4 a tube, and that's Canadian dollars, so I'm guessing it would be about $3 for you.

The added benefit of the Super Lube is that like the TriFlow Grease, it also has PTFE (teflon)

Can you check your tube and let me know what the GM part number is? It's a lot easier to just quote a number than ask for a product.

Joe

Joe, I can give you the UPC code on it, as long as it's the same. My tube has a "Canadian Food Inspection Agency" disclaimer on it, so it may be different. 082353210305

The part number that I bought it by at Gregg Distributors is: 21030, which is the 7th through 11th numbers in the UPC code. 3oz tube. It's also the same number they show in their price chart below, but other than buried in the UPC, it's not on the tube.

http://www.super-lube.com/multipurpo...se-ezp-82.html
http://www.super-lube.com/files/pdfs...ce%20Sheet.pdf
Their site has a lot of info on it, once get over their layout.

ah, good to know. i didn't see the distinction!

I live in a very rural area, but I went to the dealer who is 15 miles away. They have Super Lube, but it is a spray can. They could not even find it to order for me. But, after looking around in the back they came up with a large tube of "Super Lube with PTFE", that looks like the right consistency (kinda like white vaseline) and has teflon. We figured it would be okay. It is 3 oz, was ten bucks, and enough to lube a hundred machines for ten years.

Now the tension is messed up.