Last night was her first full night at home. I was just too tired to work with her. But I did order Featherweight 221 Perfect Portable book. I really don't want to mess around with it too much till I read this book. I am scared to death of ruining something. But I did load up the bobbin and she sews so nice! I do have a question. First...there is a 1/2" chip in the black body paint on the front center edge. Then someone who worked on this in 1984 put a sew & vac decal on it. So..should I just leave the paint alone or would this have to be reapired? Also, how would you remove the decal?

Personally I would leave the decal alone, unless you are going to have her repainted. Don't be scared of her, Featherweights are very basic machines. Just be sure you keep her oiled. They sew like a dream. I use mine all the time. What are you doing to name her? I have a black one I named he Irene and a white one I named Zita. Zita is Italian for Little Girl. I chose that because the white ones are even smaller than the black ones.

I would leave it alone it is part of the history of the sewing machine.
They sew very nice.

Oh yes a name! My sis had a dog who passed two weeks ago Sun. she was a beautiful almost perfect dog our family loved named "Sadie" . Hence, my featherweight's name.

You'll love your new FW. There really isn't much that you can do to break it. They were made to last!!

I highly recommend Dave McCallum's book "The Featherweight 221 and I". It costs $35.00 but is worth every penny....it has been so helpful to me plus he has good instructions on fixing the chipped area on your machine. I also have his video but I have used the book a lot. Here is the link:

http://www.featherweight221.com/fwrx...ructional.html

i also have the other book, that you mentioned. It's interesting to read because it tells the history of the 221's but Dave's book is more of an owner's hands-on type manual. His writing is easy to read and understand and his illustrations are large making it so easy to "see" what he is talking about.

[quote=cabbagepatchkid]You'll love your new FW. There really isn't much that you can do to break it. They were made to last!!

I highly recommend Dave McCallum's book "The Featherweight 221 and I". It costs $35.00 but is worth every penny....it has been so helpful to me plus he has good instructions on fixing the chipped area on your machine. I also have his video but I have used the book a lot. Here is the link:

http://www.featherweight221.com/fwrx/store/instructional/instructional.html

It's $30.45 at Connecting Threads. http://www.connectingthreads.com/boo...I__D44853.html

Jory

Be sure to post pictures on the Vintage Sewing Machine Shop and Pictures links. We love to drool and envy other people's machines!!

PS: Although I do have a little black FW myself. Now I would like a white one....

I might touch up the paint if I thought it may start to rust. Maybe try some kind of oil to remove the sticker, it shouldn't hurt the finish if you wipe it off well :D:D:D

I think it was Billy (Lostn51) who recommended using Testors model paint to touch up sewing machines. You can get them at hobby/model shops, or Michael's also have them.