Hello
 

I have a vintage 27-4 singer sewing machine. I have been trying to learn how to use it. I have tried to thread the bobbin BUT the bobbin keeps falling off. I notice that the spring part on the left side does not seem to have much tension in it. Can this be fixed??

Welcome to QB, drkaj. There should be a screw that can be tightened, but it might be stripped or the spring out of shape.

Do you have a manual? There are several free ones on the web.
https://res.cloudinary.com/singer-se.../268_27_28.pdf
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/12...Singer-27.html
https://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mac...ine-manual.pdf
https://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mac...-manual-bw.pdf
https://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mac...ine-manual.pdf
https://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mac...form-k-204.pdf

New shuttles are available
https://www.sewingmachinesplus.com/pd60-8327.php
https://www.sewingmachinesplus.com/BP7172.php
https://www.quilters-connection.com/...-x50808710.htm
https://www.vintagesingerparts.com/p...16315bba5&_ss=
https://www.amazon.com/Bobbins-Shutt...7QB11MWX&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/Shuttle-Bobbi.../dp/B0758JSTXL

There is a good page about shuttles at https://www.treadleon.net/sewingmach...vsshuttle.html

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Some additional info regarding reducing images at post #4 and images for the scroll and upload button can be found at #5 of https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...d-t312607.html

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Or simply - Make sure pictures are smaller than 2MB
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I have an android phone and when I tried to reply on Quilting Board while in mobile view None of the options for adding pictures was available. However, there is an option down at the bottom left of the page that is for Full Site when I tapped on "Full Site" It then looked like the way it looks on my lap top. So it would have the Red Reply and the Go Advanced options.

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Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated with off-site link(s)

A better description of the problem might help along with some pictures of whats happening. Do you mean that the shuttle (the boat shaped thing that the bobbin goes into) is falling off the carrier?

How about you? Are the experienced with these types of machine, or are you just learning?

Is it possible that you have the wrong shuttle, or do you know for a fact that it's worked in the past with that one?

Thank You. I do have the manual, I printed it .It is the bobbin winder itself and there is no screw to tighten. I removed it from my machine and any going tomsoak it in paint thinner to see if maybe it is gummed up inside. I read that tip somewhere.
the spring is inside the encasement and I don’t thin’ the end will come off t9 replace the spring.

(this may be a double response)

Ahha! You did say "winding". I need to pay more attention...

I think you've got it right, it's probably gummed up internally. Rubbing alcohol is another great crud cutter. Q-Tips work well for getting into the nooks and crannies.

Thank You!! I will try the alcohol!

Attachment 644832I am wondering if the end of this , circled in red, comes off so that the spring inside can be replaced?

So you must still be dropping the bobbin?

I've never even looked at disassembling the bobbin winder. But it went in, so it must come back out!

You're blazing new trails now (for me, anyway). I'll look at one of mine later today and see if anything jumps out.

Meanwhile, it might not hurt to verify that you have the right bobbin. Maybe the length is slightly off. I'll measure a couple of mine today and report back.

Thank You! The bobbins are the original ones that came with te machine. They fit good but just wont stay in when trying to wind the thread on. The tension on the piece circled is not strong enough to hold it in place. The spring inside of that piece is very weak. That is why I was wondering if the spring can be replaced. I cant get the end piece off , maybe because it is gummed up or maybe it does not come off. But I really agree with your statement ---"But it went in, so it must come back out!" I really hope I can get this fixed. I have looked online to find a replacement bobbin winder but cant seem to find any. I am nervous about buying off of ebay cause there are no guarantees.

Alcohol removes the paint. Kerosene is the best when dealing with painted parts. I buy lamp oil at Walmart. Get the unscented. It's on the isle with the candles. (Our grand and great grands used Kerosene in their lamps before electricity was common.)

bk

Yeah, I've seen that said about alcohol but haven't had that particular problem. I think that old japanning is pretty tough stuff. I don't use it over large areas, but rather small spots or unpainted parts (needle bars, rock shafts, etc). I use oil or the regular GoJo on large painted areas (how's that for opening a can of worms?) :)

Definitely something to be aware of, in any event.

I agree, it went in, it should come out. However, it is not something that I believe was meant to be replaced as it was done at the factory with the equipment to press it in. Also the possibility of forcing the pin out could damage the pin as well as some other parts of the winder.

There have been some threads started about this problem and only one came back to say what was done to remedy and that one had a temporary solution, but in the end ended up getting one off ebay. https://www.quiltingboard.com/vintag...r-t243901.html The temporary solution was similar to the one on this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADqOgeTGrAQ In the comments below the video there was this response:
I think that something similar what may have been referred to at https://www.quiltingboard.com/vintag...g-t302483.html in the third post.
It looks like KenZ that posted https://www.quiltingboard.com/vintag...r-t264313.html may have gotten his fixed even though the thread goes on about some other things about bobbin winders and not specifically the spring for holding the bobbin in place. He did post a picture of the machine in at his thread https://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage-antique-machine-enthusiasts-f22/singer-127-sphinx-new-home-t265307.html but does not mention how got bobbin winder to work. Maybe it was just crud that got soaked out.

For the three QB links mentioned above, the opening posters have not been on QB for at least a few years.

I would caution that if you do buy another bobbin winder (as csharp did) that you make sure it is the same. From the parts list there were several different bobbin winders for the long shuttle machines. Some were meant for treadle machines and some for hand crank machines. Some were meant for low mounting and some for high.

I'm hoping that maybe just a good soak and maybe some forced air will clean it out enough to get it working as it should.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated with off-site link(s)

My known good bobbins measure 1.296", end to end. They fit tightly into the low bobbin winder and the machine sews with them.

I looked at the bobbin winder while I was back in there. One end or the other MUST screw on. If all else fails, I'd be inclined to pad both ends with some leather, clamp them in vice grips and ... gently ... try to unscrew, bearing in mind that they could be left hand threads.

In rehabbing guns, many people swear by a 50/50 mixture of acetone and automatic transmission fluid and soaking for a day to weeks to break frozen metal things apart. It needs to be in a sealed container because the acetone evaporates. I bet it'll eat every trace of paint.

There's a variant called "Ed's Red" which adds a 3rd ingredient. If interested, an internet search should turn the formula up.

According to luismaya7073 "...I tried to see if it unscrewed some how and it doesnt... " I tried some quick searches to try to find some other places to see if could find some more about, but was unsuccessful.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated with off-site link(s)

ok I will try that. Thank You!

I saw that after I posted. It seems the person is suggesting one end or the other is a slip fit. I suppose that's possible but it seems like a lot of trouble to precision fit those 2 insignificant pieces, when they could be threaded in no time. Hopefully the OP will figure it out and report back.

quote: "Yeah, I've seen that said about alcohol but haven't had that particular problem. I think that old japanning is pretty tough stuff."

More specifically, alcohol is a solvent for shellac. Shellac is the clear coat (Japanning) on the old black machines. Alcohol will remove the the clear coat on a black machine. Later machines (and modern machines) that are painted other colors do not have a shellac clear coat. You can refer to Glenn's post on repairing the clear coat on black machines at the top of this forum for further information.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shellac

bkay

Japanning is the black stuff under the shellac. Note that I didn't recommend bathing the machine in rubbing alcohol - I said some spill over won't hurt the japanning. By this point in time, any shellac is dried out drek anyway.

Japanning on metal is (in Singers case) a baked on finish usually made with asphaltum, turpentine, lamp black and some other stuff I can't remember. I think I saw an old Singer video where they were baking the coating on in multiple coats. Japanning was used extensively on industrial equipment exactly because of it's durability.

Frankly, I think the rubbing alcohol (45 to 65% water anyway) would evaporate too quickly to do any damage, even in larger quantities. 190 proof Everclear, on the other hand might be just the ticket to remove that dried out old shellac ... I think some experimentation is on the horizon.