New to QB - New Featherweight Owner
 

Hello Everyone!

I just purchased a 1938 Singer Featherweight and plan on cleaning her up and using her as my primary machine. I signed up on the Featherweight Yahoo Group and Cecilia recommended that I also come over here to say hello.

I just got my baby and have not cleaned her up yet. She needs a serious spa treatment but I think she will be fabulous when finished.

I took a ton of photos of her, with lots of closeups of problems to fix and filthy areas to clean. I also took close ups of her very rough case, and her "mish-mash" of random accessories. So as not to bombard the board with a bunch of photos, I started a flickr page for those who are interested in seeing my dirty girl. Here is the link for those interested: https://www.flickr.com/photos/126621717@N06/

I would be interested in any comments, observations, or advice on cleaning and restoring my new baby. I want to take my time and get her set up the right way, but I also can't wait to sew all kinds of fabulous things with her.

Thank you in advance and I look forward sharing and learning with all of you!:o

Welcome to the board! Your case looks much better than both of mine. I get to replace latches and handles as well as glue/replace/whatever the fabric covering.

Welcome to the board, and congratulations - your Featherweight is in lovely shape! I also liked the Flickr page. For reference, I think that was about the right number of pictures for people's tastes around here. :)

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome. Jennifer23, good to know about the picture count!:thumbup:

Hopefully, I can start getting my baby cleaned up today. I have people here putting insulation in my attic so part of my house is "blocked off" for now.

I will add some "after" pictures once I get her cleaned up.

I heard kerosene is good to use on really filthy spots. Is that true? What do you all use to clean your babies?

Welcome aboard! We usually just use sewing machine oil. It won't harm the finish and is usually all that's necessary. I haven't tried kerosene. Maybe others will comment on it.
Rodney

Welcome from NC and congratulations on the new acquisition. She actually doesn't look too bad for her age. Seems like the handles on those cases are one of the first things to go bad. Guess it's from all the handling. Good luck with her.

Welcome to the QB - can't help you on cleaning your Featherweight because my DH bought me one a couple of years ago and it was in perfect condition and had a spool of thread on the top and bobbin thread and I just plugged it in and it PURRED and sewed perfectly!!! Lucky me.

Kerosene is the safest way to clean her... NEVER use ANYTHING containing alcohol.

Congratulations! Looks to be in good shape. And to have attachments and anything else. Great photos by the way! ANd Welcome to the board! We learn so much from each other and welcome your input!

Glad to have you aboard. Noticed some old lubricant in your collection. Please don't be tempted to use it. It is so old, it might not be good for your machine. We like Triflow lubricant from Sew-Classic.com. They have whatever you need to service your great new friend and ship quickly. Their prices are goodt and many at QBers use their products. Jennie will be glad to help you with your quest. I order all my maintenance things from them and have been very happy.
Also, noticed some of the bobbins aren't for your machine, but they won't fit. Otherwise, your attachments are really great. You did very well in amassing an impressive collection. Keep up the good work

I forgot to mention the FW bobbins are thinner than schedule 66 or 15 bobbins and they have round holes in the top and bottom. The solid bobbins are the ones, not for your machine. You can get FW bobbins from Ebay. I bought 100 and have been winding what seems like forever, so I don't have to stop in the middle and wind one, interrupting the piecing process. I got mine from MannySaler on Ebay and the price was reasonable. FW bobbins are metal and not plastic. Your solid bobbins look like schedule 66 and one looks like a 15. Jump in folks and help me here, as I can't make out exactly what she has for sure. Many of you are more experienced when it comes to bobbins. I do know there are bobbins that have the same configuration and appearance as FW bobbin that won't fit.

Welcome to the QB and vintage group, ApronandThimble. Congrats on getting a lovely FW.

I checked out your pictures and she seems to be in good shape. I certainly have seen some a lot worse. I own 5 FWs ranging from 1947-1958 so I'd like to make a few suggestions, if I may.

I have never used kerosene on any of my FWs or other vintage machines as well. It might be just fine but I've only used SMoil. A lot of us here use tri-flow oil. Others don't use it because it is a synthetic oil. You will have to be the judge. I would suggest viewing Muv's video on cleaning up vintage machines. You'll find it near the beginning of the Vintage page. She's cleaning up a much older machine but the principles are the same. There are some tutorials on cleaning up FWs on utube. That might help, too.

When I was looking at your pictures, I noticed that it looked like thread was wrapped around the finger on your bobbin case. Any thread needs to be removed carefully.

So, ask questions, post pictures, share your successes and failures. We'll encourage you and try to help you when you need it.

I agree with Donna. Not all FW bobbins will work in the machines. New stuff is often pretty bad. My SIL bought some bobbins labeled FW at a well known box store and she thought she was having tension problems with her machine. She ask me to adjust the tension but when I changed the bobbin, everything was fine. It was the bobbin that was causing the yucky stitches. She threw out all the bobbins she had purchased and bought some from www.sew-classic. She hasn't had any problems with those.

Thank you everyone for the helpful tips!:)

Yes, that tin was full of some random pieces and duplicates. Those old containers of lube and oil are fun for nostalgia, but I would not dare try to use them today. They are over 75 years old!!

I know that a few of the feet are duplicates too. but one is slightly larger than the other so it probably does not belong to my machine. I guess I will have to go get a 201 or 66 to go with the other bobbins I have, :p. I mean I can't just let them go to waste! (I know, it's a slippery slope isn't it. lol)

I know that I need to take great care with the thread wrapped around the bobbin finger. There is even thread coming out of the top although the machine is not threaded. I also know that I need a new belt from the snag that is on it. I am happy that the foot control, power cords, rubber feet, and decals are all in good shape.

Did anyone notice the cardboard under the motor? Should that be cause for concern? Was that just done for shipping or could it be disguising a problem?

I think that I will name her Dorothy. Both of my grandmothers were named Dorothy (although neither of them sewed.) Dorothy was the 8th most popular female baby name in 1938 and my machine was born 1 year before The Wizard of Oz was released on film.

yes, I second this. Kerosene is safe especially on the decals. If I have my hand on kerosene I would rather use this on my machines than sewing machine oil for cleaning. And it will remove those oil gunk.

Congrats on your Featherweight.....she's a lot cleaner than I expected to see. Once she's up and running, you're going to love her!

Welcome from NE Ohio.

She is beautiful. Welcome to the board.

Congrats on your new baby! More info can be found in the vintage machine section on here. :)

Just wanted to say Welcome to the QB! What a beautiful machine and attachments! And what a find.....the original Singer Oil can. Even if you can't use the oil, it's a very good thing to have the can!:thumbup:

I noticed that cardboard under the motor also and wondered about it. According to Nova Montgomery's website, this is what she says about packing a Featherweight for shipping: "Cut small squares of cardboard to slide under the motor and fill in the space under the motor. This is to protect the motor and motor bracket and give them a ‘foundation’ if the machine gets a hard jolt in transit." So maybe it is good that it is there and someone did a nice job of packing? Hope so! By the way, here is Nova's website in case you want to learn more about your machine. She has a ton of great information. Enjoy your machine!

http://www.novamontgomery.com/featherweight-s.htm

Hi A&T. I wrote you a long reply with lots of detail on the Yahoo Group but it never got posted. Sometimes it takes days for a reply to appear and sometimes they never do. Wish I had copied and saved it.

Anyway, good luck with your machine!

David

Welcome to the QB from Pennsylvania, USA. Have fun.
peace

Welcome! You have found a wealth of information about FWs. singerguy sent us link that was great for unjamming the bobbin, and how to take everything apart and how to put it back together. I am still shouting tks to him.

I second the nova Montgomery website. She has tips of the month that are a very valuable resource. I learned so much by browsing her website.

Enjoy Dorothy.

One thing that I never hear anyone mention is be careful with the latches on your case. You don't want to just pop them open, they're old after all, but press the button with you hand over the latch and let it come up gently. You've got a very nice machine. Happy stitches. Gina

Like some of the others, I noticed the bobbins were not FW bobbins. I have had many problems with reproduction bobbins, so I would try to find some original ones on ebay or through one of the FW sites. There are several Featherweight groups on Facebook as well. There are several members there who sell vintage supplies for the FW. If you google FW supplies, you would find many to help you. Some of my favorites are April 1930s http://www.april1930s.com/ , Nova Montgomery and Featherweight Poppy http://www.featherweight-poppy.com/ . All very knowledgeable and dependable. Nova Montgomery has a wealth of information on her website as well. http://www.novamontgomery.com/. I've also purchased items from Diane Lowe at [email protected].