Downsizing indecision....
 

....and curiosity, too. I have a few vintage machines right now: Singer 201-3, 411G, 401, 221 and 128, Elna Grasshopper and Supermatic, pink and purple Brother Tingler, and 3 Japanese clones because they're just beautiful. After all the power outages this winter I'm putting some real effort into finding a treadle. So my question is, if you could keep a maximum of 3 machines what would you pick? Also, does someone have a favorite treadle for FMQ or for piecing? Favorite electric? Thanks everyone. This feels like an impossible decision!

I would keep the 201, it has become my favorite. Mine has the external motor with drive belt too, and it's in a small table. I need a freearm model and I like my Supermatic; the rubber drive pulley is now replaced by an aluminium version with O-rings, and it runs very nicely now. It has a lot of double layer cams for various fancy stitches I am keeping it.

The 411g sounds like a very nice machine too, but I have never owned one. Some have the 401 as a favorite, but it's hard to choose the flat bed over the freearm version. Do you use either of them? The build with all metal gears on these are a notch above most machines. A swing needle machine with various sitches is a must, as well as at least one free arm (The Supermatic has a more advanced cam mechanism, nice stitch quality and a narrow free arm, but a few plastic gears).

If you ever need a portable machine it has to be either the Featherweight or the Grasshopper. I guess it has to come down to which one you use, the accessories you have for them, and if you go for the the freearm or flatbed. A Feathweight carries a bit of prestige these days and it's very cute, but I don't know how practical minded you are this way.

I have to sell my second 201, it's just too many machines around lol

Lucky you, I collect brother machines and a Tingler is on my want list. You just have to ask yourself which machines you actually use the most and weigh that against which ones make your heart go pitter patter.

Cari

Hmm, I was just going to say that a pink and purple sewing machine is a definite need for me! But I guess Cari got there first ;)

I really like my 401 and my 221 - they are on my "keep" list if I ever get around to downsizing.

I have a Singer 66 Redeye treadle sewing machine from 1910. I absolutely love it. It very easily will free motion quilt as long as you have the old style. I tried all my low shank feet on it and they didn't work but with the one below you can sew right along and not break a thread.
Singer Low Shank Foot Embroidery Darning Foot #006016008

I absolutely could not resist that pink machine! It doesn't have the original foot pedal, but it's built like a tank. This one was so clean it looks barely used. Hope you find soon!

I was pretty happy to find that 411G. It does a chainstitch as well as a lockstitch and can also be treadled. It stitches beautifully. Actually all the vintage machines I have seem to make lovely stitches. I'm waiting for a replacement friction pulley for the Supermatic. Looking forward to getting it up and running smoothly.

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*** They are all nice machines. It would be hard to decide.
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Oh, I wish you were closer to me - I have a Singer 66-1 treadle that I need to get rid of due to space. It has the lotus decals and I would love for it to go to someone who would actually use it!

Downsizing - I'm trying to get from about 170 machines down to 125 or so.

As for the treadle, I have two, a Red Eye and a Singer 15-88. By far the Singer 15-88 is my prefered choice for quilting.http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...a-t161482.html

I'd keep the 201, the 221, and the third would be a toss up between the Tingler and one of the Elnas.

What a choice to have to make! If it was me, I would probably keep the 411G (it's a great, versatile machine) and the Grasshopper (cute and portable). I would get rid of the 221 (strong resale value, and not needed if you have the Grasshopper), and the 128 (Grandma indoctrinated me against long-bobbin machines). Then it gets harder to decide... I would probably choose the third based on looks, so I would probably keep the 201, but either the Brother Tingler or one of the clones would make more sense for most people on that basis. I just really like the look of the 201.

I'm looking for a treadle for the same reason - power outages. Unfortunately, long-bobbin machines were popular on the prairies much later than in the rest of the world, so it's hard to find a round-bobbin treadle. The search is part of the fun, though!

My treadle is a Damascus and it belonged to my Great-Aunt May. Before it was given to me I was looking at various treadles because I wanted to sew with it. This was before the internet but I wanted to have a pretty piece and I wanted to be able to use it. So I was looking for one with the book, any attachments and I could test. When I told my grandmother I was looking she asked me why I would want to buy one when she had 2 of them. Luckily for me, my family has always been the type to never throw anything away so the book for the Damascus was still there along with a few attachments. (It's from 1925.) She also had a Singer, which is quite a bit older, but no book and had been used by a neighbor from time to time to sew leather items.

As for letting other machines go - wow, that's a hard one. I had three 221's and thought it was a waste, so gave one to my sister and the other to my niece. (They sew and neither of my DD's sew.) Hopefully you can gift them to someone that will love and take care of them as you have.

Oh keep them ALL. You already have them, you hopefully use them. Why get rid of something you might want down the road. I have a 1910 Singer Redeye Treadle. Sylvie sews beautiful stitches. Found her on Craigslist for $200 which wasn't bad for my area. She was locked up tighter than a drum but I just started oiling the heck out of her and she was running in a couple of weeks. I sew on her all the time. There is probably a photo of her in My Machines in my albums.

Keep and just ADD the treadle.

LovelyL, I'm drooling right now, as I'd love to have that treadle machine but WA State is a bit far!

Hmmm. My friend says she is thinking of getting a vintage machine and wants to know which I would pick if I could only have ONE! Who would want to only have one? Three seems more reasonable.
I have been wishing for a 411 because it has good zigzag and is treadleable. But really, many vintage Zigzaggers can be treadled from what I've read. I highly recommend timquilts.com and his YouTube videos for free motion quilting on various treadle machines. He says a lot in his commentaries about the issues with different machines and why he is using the darning foot for each project he is demostrated. He seems to be mostly FMQ on his singer 66 treadles lately. I bought my White Family Rotary treadle ($40) for the big harp space (9+ inches) and I love the smooth balance of how it sews, but can't get top clamping darning foot. Tim has demonstrated using his WFR for free motion with several different work arounds, but I haven't tried them yet.
The Singer 15 is spoken well of, but the 66 has a larger harp size and there are many different darning/free motion feet that will fit either machine. I had a Standard Rotary treadle that was beautiful, but smaller ($55). Same issue with feet as my White. I gave her to my sister who was fired up by my treadle talk. I am still watching for a singer treadle base to put one of my 66s in. It is too much of a pain to try to jury rig a way to drop a singer into the bigger cut out on a white. I didn't check CL last weekend and missed a nice singer treadle for $25. There are so many treadle machines in SoCal craigslist, I can afford to wait for the cheaper ones;-)