How does one clean a really bad smelling machine???
 

Hi all, I'm back with a new dilemma I have been wanting a 401A for quite some time and came upon one a couple of days ago so of course had to get it. Problem #1 she is very dirty inside and out (although I must say she really hums quite nicely). Problem #2 I hate to say this but it came from the smelliest house I have ever been in in my entire life, and therefore it smells so badly. Problem #3 it is extremely musty smelling as well. So to all my experts here please tell me how to remedy these problems. I will not post a picture of her until she is presentable, so you will just have to wait :). I am so excited to get her cleaned up and ready to stitch away, but more importantly I really need this smell gone. She also came with quite a few goodies, some extras that I didn't already have and am happy that the extra or shall I say the second needle plate is there as well as the original manual. I would appreciate specific information since this is not something I have ever had to deal with, my other machines have just needed oiling, internal cleaning and lube and of course we won't even discuss the drama with my beautiful 301, because that was just nightmarish although am kind of glad I went through it. Hopefully that will help me to some degree with this one :). Thanks in advance for any and all help you give.

I'd like to hear some ideas, too. I've been using baking soda on the oil felt of my 301, changed it 3 times as it pulled the icky stuff out of the felt turning into a brown paste which helped but I'm thinking of trying clay kitty litter as it absorbs oil & odor. The 301 case is in a sunny store room as we're not getting a lot of hot dry weather here in MN. My new 15 has some musty/smoky smell too but not too bad unless you get your nose in it. I think it will air out. I'll be glad to hear some other ideas.

Buy or make a new felt. Easy and no more odor.

Candace, that would be too easy. :p Actually, I did think of it and will probably replace it in the end. But the scientist in me likes to experiment.

For the inside of the machine I clean everything I can reach with denatured alcohol and cotton balls or soft cloth. Q-Tips for the small places.
As Candace said get rid of the old felt on the drip tray.

For the outside, I use Simple Green on a soft cloth and clean it good. The newer non black machines are painted with paint, not Japaning. I try to keep the alcohol off the outside though. Sometimes the alcohol with clean a streak too well and then you have a tie-died machine.

Leave it open let it air out. Clean the plastic case with what ever you want as long as it's not harmful to plastic.
Let that air out.
That's about all you can do; clean, clean, clean, and air it out.

A lot of the old odors in sewing machines is nicotine. But some is old oil. Some of the older oils were organic and when they get old, they really smell foul.


Joe

I have scrubbed several with Oxiclean then sewing machine oil. It did a good job. When you've done all you can do, seal it up with a bar of Irish Spring soap. One of the brothers from HGTV is advertising Tide with Oxi as a household cleaner. I think it would do a good job as long as you rinsed and dried it well.

I second the change the felt. I had a very oily funky felt pad in the bottom of my 301 and it was a musty smell. After I replaced the felt, the smell was gone!

Well I don't have the Simple Green but do have the Oxiclean so will try that also don't have the denatured alcohol only have 91% and regular. This machine did come in a cabinet but I opted not to take that because it was in really bad shape, originally I thought I could refurbish it but when I saw it up close and personal I saw that it was like a laminate and was peeling. Had it been made from real wood definitely would have taken it even though don't have space for one, I just really liked the shape of it it was sort of rounded where you would open the door to the drawers, it also had a small draw on the top left that you couldn't even tell was there. I took it out of the cabinet and surprisingly the foot controller and the cord are intact no fraying wires or anything. Just this horrific smell, everytime I go near it I feel like I can't breathe it's just so musty. I think I will let it air out a few more days, get as many hints as I can from you all and then attempt to work with it. I did just find out that one of the spool pins on the top (right) is broken off when I noticed that there was a cam stuck on it. I read on some blog to use a small drill bit and put a hole in it until it disintegrates but would rather not risk doing anything to destroy the machine.
Joe this machine is a 1956 401A aren't they all the two-tone or do they also come in the black?? I have never seen any but this color in this machine but I learn things from everyone here all the time.
Christy can I use any kind of felt, like craft felt or am I misunderstanding? Also do I change all the felt the drip pan and the spool pin felt or just the drip pan?

Maria,

All the 401s I've seen have been the same color. Never seen a black one.

Joe

I use craft felt or cotton quilt batting and tack it down with a few small drops of white glue. So far there has been no problem with either.