FW Help Needed
 

My "new" FW, bought at auction for $75, is smoking from the motor. Does it just need to be cleaned or is this indicative of a bigger problem? Since it was bought at auction, I have no idea of the history of the machine (other than it was "born" on October 10, 1938 in Elizabeth, NJ) and how it was cared for previously.

It does sew nicely and aside from the smoking, I am very happy with my find. DH does not want me to use it until we get to the bottom of the problem.

This is my second FW (other is a Centennial that belonged to my Mom) which needs to be serviced as it has been years since it was cleaned.

Thanks for your help!

I just took a class on Featherweight maintenance. You can probably find a lot in the manual and on line on Youtube. As far as the motor, that is something I don't fool with because it is way out of my comfort level. I would take it in to be looked at. Let us know how it turns out.

My DH is an electrical engineer, so he'll be the first one to check it out! Don't know if this is a mistake (LOL) or not!

Will post pictures of the new "baby" as soon as I can.

Thanks for the help. I have a manual as well as the FW 221 book (purple cover).

Well that is lucky! I'm sure your hubby can fix it for you. we are the least handiest people on the planet we think. I do manage to clean and lube my machines but anything beyond that is for the OSMG who is a young woman with green hair!!!

may just be dirty and running it for 5 minutes or so at full speed will clear it out, but first check that the carbon brushes have plenty of life left in them. The other possibility is that someone has put oil in the lubrication ports and the motor will need to be opened and cleaned to remove it. Once clean, use original Singer motor lube (not the stuff they sell now) or Petroleum Jelly in the grease ports. You can spend big $$ on Nova Montgomery's or the Featherweight Shoppe's new motor lubricant, but it isn't necessary as Singer recommended PJ when they quit making the original motor lubricant.

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Okay...the pictures are of my new "baby". Still haven't had DH look at it, hopefully this weekend. I'd like to be able to take it to my guild meeting next Tuesday.

I think she's (he's?) mighty pretty, but then I am biased!

Someone may have put oil in the motor by mistake or it is just dirty. Anyone familiar with motor brushes and cleaning same can take care of this for you. After all it has been here a long time and needs a little TLC. Not much else will last as well as these machines. You will be glad you got her.

If you'll go here https://singer-featherweight.com/blo...vicing-manuals you can download the service and adjuster's manuals. Be sure you get all 3 files. The info there on keeping your 221 running well is invaluable.

DH looked at machine today. We tried petroleum jelly to lube motor...still smoking. He says the brushes look good. He is planning to look closer at the motor sometime next weekend. Glad that it doesn't seem toooo bad (or so I think).

Just being low on lube won't make it smoke. It needs to be opened up and checked.

Cari

The motors usually turn out very well when cleaned and greased. You have the version I like the most, with the art nouveau decor on the plates and gold decals (well, they are all very nice). The chromed parts clean up very well with a metal polish, so does the needle and pressser bar. For the body I have used resin type car polish, even after cleaning it lifts up dirt and shines up. Be a bit careful with the decals, but with polishing once or twice a year or so it is more protected.

Thanks for all the info! DH is going to take motor apart and give it a good cleaning...hopefully this coming weekend. He said the brushes and armature look good from what he can see, so fingers crossed it just needs a good cleaning.

Mickey2: I gently cleaned the machine using mild dish detergent and water and dried it well. Looks great. Some minor dings, but seeing how old she is, nothing horrendous! Decals are all intact. Machine actually looks barely used or extremely well cared for. Got her for $75 at auction, so I am doing the happy dance. I will keep in mind the car polish and chrome polish (I always use Simachrome - used it on my motorcycle chrome).

Take off bottom cover and oil her there too. Check the belt position also that it isn't rubbing or too loose.
Hope I'm not coming across too bossy!
Hugs, and Stitches!!

You got lucky. You should never use water or water based products on a sewing machine.

Cari

The cloth I used was barely damp. Machine had mold and mildew on it when I took it out of the case, so I wanted something a bit "stronger" to clean it. Had to pitch the case as there was no saving it, no matter what I did. Tried for months to get mold/mildew out (charcoal, dryer sheets, mild washing [damp cloth only] - nothing worked). Had broken handle and no locks, so I thought it just wasn't worth keeping. (Also, corners were so banged up the outer fabric was ripped). Bought a vintage case in pristine condition on e-bay for $30 plus $10 shipping. My girl is happy in her new house.

Shellac in good condition can handle a wipe with a damp cloth. Before the days of microfiber or artificial leather, they recommended a well wringed up piece of goat or lamb leather for cleaning shellac furniture like a table top. Waxing and polishing have always been recommended too. As long as it's not flaking off or top layer on decals are worn off shellac can handle a careful cleaning. S'ewing m'achine oil is often recommended as the gentlest way about it, but as long as it's in good condition a damp microfiber cloth should not affect shellec. A resin type car polish will further lift up dirt and grime, leave a protective film making it shine like almost new. Since it's in such a good condition to start with it should be an easy job, it just takes a bit of care and time. Dings can be improved upon, but is a bit more work.

It's amazing what you can do to an old damaged case though. As long as all parts are there it's well worth a bit of time and effort to piece it back together; glue back lifted veneer, replace a few screws, reupholster it, etc., but with a lot of parts missing parts I don't know if they can be tracked down that easily.

Cari, my son was a SM mechanic for 14 years. There are times when there is no other alternative but to wash the machine -- of course, you remove the motor, but he's washed a lot of machines in a Purple Power of Simple Green solution. Of course, also, the machine must not be wet when the motor is re-installed and plugged in.

Congratulations on your new FW! I love the faceplate - it's gorgeous. I have 2 but both have the straight vertical lines - not nearly as pretty as yours.

Next time you have an issue with a case, try this link before giving up on it. I had success with heat getting rid of that moldy smell. https://www.facebook.com/groups/Vint...achines/files/

The title of the doc you want is calledHow To Rid Your Featherweight Case of Odor.docx

Thanks for the link for cleaning the case! I was bad :( too many missing parts and too many issues to save. It turned out cheaper for me to just replace the case with a "vintage" case. I could find the parts on e-bay, but would have cost more than the entire case. Will definitely bookmark the document, as I am constantly on the look-out for FW machines.

I actually own two now. One is a Centennial model, which was my mother's machine. It has been "living" with my aunt for the past 50 years (my mom only used it once or twice), but I can have it anytime I want it. I know it has tension issues, and the power cord needs replacing. (Someone replaced the foot pedal cord with a mint green cord years ago! I want to put it back with a black cord the way it originally was. I believe the power cord is black, but the cord into the pedal is green. Why oh why did they do this???)

Thanks for all the suggestions! I will definitely get some car polish and make my gal all shiny and sparkly!