How to center the needle position on a White?
 

Ahhh so much information available for Singers! Not so much for Whites. I have this cute little pink machine up and running and I want to try out the cams today but the needle position is slightly off to the left and I don't want to break a needle. Does anyone have a serice manual or experience with a White 6477...or maybe any White that might give me a clue?

OK slight change. I found how to center the needle but cannot see anything to adjust the presser foot. Now that the needle is lined up well the pressure foot is too far to the right so my zig-zag position is dangerously close to hitting the left side of the plate.

Some pictures please?

A needle slightly left of center may not be a problem, it could be an 'illusion'. The needle grows as the size gets larger. This growth is on the front of the needle, not on the scarf side. If the growth is on the scarf side it would hit the hook. If the bobbin is on the left of the machine and the machine threads left to right, the growth is on the left/ front of the needle and it will look like the needle is off center. If the bobbin is in front of the machine the growth doesn't show or make the needle appear as off center. Singer machines that have the needle scarf to the left and thread right to left will look off center, but to the right.

Hope that wasn't too confusing,
Cathy

Here is a photo. I hope you can see well enough.

The needle is flat side back.

your machine has the bobbin in front and threads front to back. So basically what I described doesn't apply here. However, that needle looks cock-eyed, not perpendicular to the needle-plate. Is that it's centered straight stitch position?
edit: That is also not slightly off center, as I was discussing in the previous post. Is this a left homing machine?
Cathy

interesting mrs sewnsew. Because I had A White ZZ very much like yours as an avatar. look at my profile pictures and u can see it. It was my nemesis ZZ wouldnt set right no matter what. I had a factory service manual.
I may be wrong but I think you have a left homing needle psn when SSing

The presser bar goes through the casting with no method of adjusting left to right. Usually you can only rotate it.

Cathy

on my 764 the needle bar pivots from one side to the other. You can adjust needle psn a little by adj actuator rod. However if you set it to ss in the middle, ZZing will drive it into needle plate. Do you still have a SS needle plate for this? I'm betting the needle hole is left of center.

Nope! I do have a straight stitch plate and the hole is centered.

Mizkaki, it appears you are correct. Well, I guess that explains why the needle was set just to the left of center. It must've been to co-ordinate with the presser foot. I haven't had trouble with the needle hitting, but it is so close it's scary and I am a little OCD about wanting everything to line up neatly. :o I guess I will adjust the needle back just a scooch and call her good! It's looks like i have done all I can do!

I'm glad you figured it out.

Cathy

Just a thought: If you put the L-C-R or L-M-R lever ( however it's labeled) in the center position, and the needle is to the left, it could well be out of adjustment. I have had two like that. Neither were Left homing machines. One a Dressmaker 7000 was a royal pain in the ...... sit down part to get adjusted. Like the one mentioned by the poster above, that machine never worked like it should.
The other machine was a wee bit off and a good cleaning took care of that. Something was sticking.

As for left homing machines I have two of them.
One an Aldens that has a L-C-R lever. You can sew a centered SS with the machine "IF" you leave the ZZ needle plate on it.
If you put the SS needle plate on it, you must move the L-C-R lever to L or the needle will bite the plate.

The other is a Domestic that does not have a L-C-R lever. It's a pure left homing machine when on SS.

So like you mentioned your machine has a centered hole SS plate. Pretty much makes me think somethings out of adjustment.

Oh, there is no way to adjust the pressure foot shaft that much. But you can have the wrong foot on it. Some of these feet are dedicated Left Home feet. Others are just a bit off in specs and don't center up exactly.
Got to pay real close attention to details.

Joe

Wrong foot is a possibility. I found another to try on her and see but it's soaking for a good cleaning first.

Seems like most of the old Japanese zzers are left homing. You can find out real fast if you put a straight stitch foot on it. I have an old White zz I've been fooling with lately sews left. Nice machine though.

Our Riccar ZZ is a left homing.

Again, I might be mistaken, or not have read everything correctly, but in this picture, it looks like the presser foot is askew of the need plate. Maybe an optical illusion, but perhaps you're presser bar, is not clamped straight ahead. Or maybe it's the needle clamp. or maybe neither

That's correct. I found I can get the needle centered, but the presser foot is off center. There isn't a way to correct the position of the foot-at least none I have found so far.

Ok now I am wondering what IS a left homing machine?

A left homing machine is when you take if off zig zag the straight stitch is toward the left of center. I'm thinking the early Japanese zig zag machines are mostly left homing. Later maybe or maybe some companies made some that have the option of left, center or right. Some are centered. If it is left homing there is nothing you can do but live with it. There are left homing straight stitch feet. (see pic) The foot on the left is a left homing ss foot. The difference is where you screw them on and since the feed dogs are wide you will have some feed dogs with no foot over them although I have seen a ss foot that did cover the whole feed dog area. They are gone now so I can't shoot them. You will see other styles of ss feet. They do not always interchange. If your machine is left homing you need a left homing foot for ss. If it is center homing you need a center homing ss foot. zz won't matter what foot you use as long as it is the right length shaft. There are several shaft lengths the 3 most common are low shank, high shank and slant shank. If you have a low or slant shank machine a high shank may throw it out of needle bar timing if you try to use a high shank attachment - ask me how I know... Clear as mud yet? With the left homing machines, there are some zig zag feet that are easier to use than others. You may need to experiment and see what you like.
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Skimming thru my eyes saw "They are gone now so I can't shoot them. " and I thought uh-oh, she's gone from sledge hammers to firearms, hide your T & S's.:D

Mostly what I've seen with these machines is either they have a selector switch for needle position, which is an upgrade, or they don't and they are left homing. I only have one ZZ without a switch that is center homing and it's a Brother Prestige. If they won't center home, I'm in the process of getting rid of them, and replacing them with venerable old USA made SS machines. There is only so much room... well maybe if they have a really different paint scheme or style. no...no...no...

violence... you are so obsessed...

Some of the best machines are left center - just figure out how to use it.

if I look at eventually reselling some, quilters may be my primary buyers. 1/4" seam allowance and the complexity of the zig zag mechanisms themselves are a little bit of a deterence for me. And storage room means I should prioritize somehow.

I'm still pretty unclear. I learned to sew young and had one machine for most of my life and pretty much used one foot on it! Then I bought a serger and found it needed a repair...then another little ole machine that could use some fixin'...and it snowballed! Now I want to learn all the feet and the history and fix each and every one I see! :p

The pink White came with only one foot and it looked like the ones you have pictured except it has a slide and screw in the back. The width control on the machine is odd for me. You turn the dial which pulls a spring and then have to back it up by moving a stop over to keep the needle from going back to it's position. Is THAT what left homing is?

Oh and what is "T and S's"? :P

Touch and Sew the reference is to one I took out some frustration... http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage...y-t232536.html

oops...sorry...me and my big mouth.

if you put it in Straight Stitch setting and rotate handwheel, is the needle centered, staying to the left or (haven't see it yet) staying to the right?

Since the machine has a choice of L-C-R, if I have the C chosen the needle stays in the center. Is that what you're asking?

Yes it should stay in the center if you have a center position.

stitch width at zero, I'm thinkin, although it's been months since i sat in front of aZZ machine...

Yep. Stitch width at zero lol! Hahaha! I am just as bad. I tell myself I should use one to actually sew something, but then another one calls to me. :o