Do some machines have a grease catcher?
 

I am working on a White 651 which appears to be the same as a Pfaff 239, but that's another question. ;)

Underneath and in the back behind the bobbin area is a closed box that looks really oily. I am imagining all the excess oil pools there because of the looks of the thing. Am I supposed to DO something with this? If the machine is tipped over does it wash throughout the machine? :shock:

It looks like it may even have a bit of felt or something inside. I have wondered about the 221's and the 301's too. I've heard something about replacing a felt if they are stinky. Is this a similar thing?

Christy,

That is a gear box. It will be full of grease. There will be a pair of gears in there .

Cathy

Do I do anything with it? Does it ever need the grease replaced? Hmmm now I want to learn more about this thing. Most machines I have not seen a "gear box" on. So what are these gears' jobs?

Christy,

From the picture it looks like that is the hook gear and the lower left horizontal shaft gear. The lower shaft gets the power to the hook via these gears. Yes, you should check the grease in that box. It sometimes needs to be changed or topped off.

Look at the colour of the grease. If it's darkened and solid, I'd be changing it. You can get "gear grease" which might be the right stuff but I use "HTB" (high temperature bearing) grease, which may be overkill but none of my machines seem to mind. I just happened to have HTB in the house anyway (for the car). Don't use Singer motor lube, which will melt and run out when warm and leave the gears to grind each other into filings very quickly.

There is nothing sadder than lint and threads stuck in there because there is no cover - ask me how I know.

OK, great! So put that on my list of things to check! Shoot. Just when I thought it done and ready for a good polish. :)

I would be grateful for a bit more direction. Maybe some good brands of grease to look for? How much grease am I going for? Do I fill the whole case? Oh, and do I just un-screw the 4 screws on the bottom?

Would white lithium grease be ok? http://www.lucasoil.com/products/dis...id=14&loc=show

Maybe Tri-Flow grease, or Super Lube. I'd open it up and see what is going on in there first, though.

I've heard of lithium grease drying up and turning hard. Tri Flow or another light synthetic grease are better choices, you can get by with Vaseline too though I'm not sure of long term results.
That box is what Cathy said. There's a set of bevel gears in there to turn the corner to the bobbin hook.
It' will make perfect sense once you open it up.
Rodney