original vs reproduction hand crank
 

Hi everyone,
On the old Singers, how can I tell if the hand crank is original, or a reproduction?
Thanks!
Ila

the arm that extends out from the machine to the gear box has a prominent casting seam on the reproductions. Some are so visible they look like it was broken and glued.

From what I've seen, the craftsmanship of the new ones leaves a lot to be desired. they also don't have decals to match the machines, and the originals did.

originals may be worn, dirty and rust - but under all that you an tell they had a nice original finish and were sanded smooth. New ones look like they were sand casted and painted with not much in between - very rough metal finish under the paint.

Other than cosmetic differences, the original is smoother. Like a Singer! But, I have an after market on my 115 and it does the job the same as my Singer on the 127.

The decals on the reproductions is usually garish, a gaudy gold mess. The originals are machined to perfection, but all the repros I've used worked just fine.

Just as a side note:
Back about 8 years ago when I started buying the reproduction handcranks, they didn’t have any decals on them. Just glossy black. I still have one on my old Singer 66.

Later, it seems like they stared adding a few decals, and then eventually added more decals and the Chinese writing.

CD in Oklahoma

New HC's have a black plastic handle. One's I've purchased have been fair quality, not bad value compared to originals which are dear.

Jon

Wouldn't the original Singer HC's have Singer or Simanco part numbers on them?

Joe

One thing to take away - the new ones do work - are readily available at an affordable price.

Original Singer hand cranks (just that part ) will often sell for $50- $100 on ebay - depending on condition, and they don't come up all that often.

I've had a few reproduction HCs for the most part they are very good - I got one that squacks a little - the gears don't quite line up.