Machine EM127527
 

I saw this machine on craigslist and after looking up this # I believe and I can be wrong that it is a 201K made in 1956. The pictures of the ones on the internet are set in a wooden type box, this is not. From the picture it does look brand new. What would this be worth. I don't think it comes with any attachments or feet. Thank you

Can you post the listing? Appraisals are a difficult thing. Too many variables. We can at least tell you if we think the price is in the ballpark though. Also keep in mind not every machine needs to be a steal. Sometimes a machine is worth a little extra just because you love it. There's also the fact that you have to pay a pretty hefty price for a new machine that even comes close to the quality of a good vintage machine.
The Singer 201 is considered to be one of the finest machines Singer ever made and is one of the few domestic machines that is actually suitable for commercial work. It would be a great piecing machine.
Rodney

My 201 cost $1 and shipping. The needle was put in backwards and it was advertised as unable to pickup a stitch. So cost can be low, but, I've seen them sell for over $400. They are worth whatever you can get one for. As Rodney says, they are considered one of the best and I concur. I love mine and wouldn't sell it for $400. If I was limited to only one straight-stitch machine, it would be my 201.

I recently paid $450 for a pristine 1937 on eBay. I loved it, wanted it, and had missed a similar one! I also, had followed the seller for quite some time and no hesitation buying from her. I paid a bunch and don't regret it for one second. Still, I would love to find one for a $1.

I do not know how to post a picture or link it to the advertisement. I really know very little about vintage machines, other that many are made to last a 2 lifetimes or at least one. When I looked up the # EM127527 it stated it was a 201K machine made in1956. Do the 201 K sit in the wooden box. This one has legs and does not. All the pic's on the internet showed them in the wooden box. thank you

Grace,

According to ISMACS { http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mach...l-numbers.html } that serial number indicates it's a 99K, 1 of 50,000, allotted 1-28-57.
There's nothing wrong with a 99K, but no way is it a 201 series machine.

As Rodney said, can you post the listing? Either the seller has the wrong number or misread it.

Joe

Grace,

Go to the add. Look for the white address bar at or near the top of your screen. Put the cursor on the very first character, then right click on it. A drop down box will appear. Click on "copy".
Then come to this forum, and right click again. Then click on "paste". That's all there is to it if you're using a computer. If your on a smart phone or a tablet or one of those other things, I can't help there.

Joe

Your posting that indicates you have a 99K, not 201K has me wondering what is going on with ISMACS. I looked up two numbers last week, one a FW and I forget the other, and mine that is a FW said it was a 201. What do you make of that?

There's a lot of room for error in reading the ISMACs lists.

For instance,
http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_mach...l-numbers.html

G2606143 is a model 27 with serial number allocated in 1913. My model 27.
Some people however will look my serial number up and say it's a 15 with serial number allocated in 1910.

This is NOT the fault of the lists.

When we go through the lists, some of us will stop at the first time we see that G2606 falls within a set of serial numbers. The first time that happens - it's a model 15. Some of us however will notice that the first time the first part of the serial number matches has too few numbers. G followed by 6 numbers but my serial number has a G followed by 7 numbers. Those who saw that will go further down the list and correctly identify the machine as a 27.

I've had automotive partsmen - people who work with long parts numbers all day every day - get these numbers wrong and argue with me.

What do you think I might have done wrong? I went back and looked at the number in the little metal stamped on thing-a-ma-jiggy , and I still read the same number. Are there two ISMACS numbers lists?

Joann,

Follow my example. That's why I gave the link to the G serials. Find me the model of my machine based on the serial number. I think I know what you're doing, but I need to see for sure.

ETA: Also, to clarify the problem with the serial number you're looking up - for the machine you've asked about - the 0 matters. Meaning that EM0127527 (which doesn't exist - but may look like it exists as a 201 with serial allocated in 1956) is not the same as EM127527.

If the machine has a white light switch near the bobbin winder, it is a 201. The light fixture is attached to the front and looks merged to the body. Mine sits in a cabinet.
99s however are 3/4 size machines and are portable, thus typically housed in a case of some sort..

According to the Singer site the serial number dates the machined to 1957.

Hope this helps.....

Sabine - if it has the white switch and the light, it's a 201-2 - potted motor. The 201-3 doesn't have that switch and the light is on the back. Singer didn't make identification easy!

201-2:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]515317[/ATTACH]

99K:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]515318[/ATTACH]


The 201 any -# is a full sized machine.
The 99 any -# is a 3/4 sized machine.

Joe

I should have mentioned last night too that 99s can also be found in cabinets. I've had more than one portable 201 as well. The Singer machines came in almost any configuration a person could ask for.

The metal plate on machine says 99K....doesn't it?
Mine is like that too with the big bulb behind it....

Ooops...read wrong picture here...my bad! Lol
My 99K is in a cabinet and sews so wonderful !