Sigh -- why do I buy from eBay?
 

My 301s arrived this week, one yesterday and one today. I'm reminded of why I should be more skeptical about eBay. Both machines worked great according to their listings, and I can't get the hand wheels to turn all the way on either of them! I'm going to oil and add lubricant but beyond that, I'm a novice. Should I take it to my local repair guy who charges me $45 for a tune-up if oil and lubricant don't solve the issue? 😢
Ila

Sorry you are running into problems! I prefer not to buy online because I just don't trust what I'm going to get and many times a person doesn't have any resources to resolve the problem.

In most cases, oiling it will do the trick. Let the oil sit overnight and see how it goes.

Hi Ila!

I hardly know anything about vintage machine's, but I picked up a Necchi BU Mira and they are apparently very picky about being oiled. Well mine had sat unused for 10 years but had worked up until then. The needle was in the down position and I couldn't turn the balance wheel at all. I started oiling it Friday, by evening I was able to turn the wheel enough to remove the needle. I added more oil and went beyond where the manual showed to oil it. The next day it was turning but still stiff. I oiled and turned wheel at the same time. Finally Sunday (think it was Sunday, might have been Monday) it was moving really easily!! I tried it with the motor and it worked for the first time, but after a minute of running it seized up and when I turned the wheel it was smooth then stiff. I let it sit over night and it did the same thing the next day. I decided to oil it one more time and today it worked!! I'd say clean it really well and then oil it and see what happens. But keeping checking back on it :)

Ebay is convenient but lack of service on items that are supposed to work is one of it's problems, also bad shipping. I'd contact the seller and perhaps they can help out on your problems or if ignorant offer a partial refund for a servicing. Get ebay involved if the seller is not helpful. Oiling and cleaning sounds like a good idea.

Jon

Bought both of my 301's thru e-bay and didn't have a problem. Sorry to hear of your trouble but I'm very hopeful for the oil to do the trick for you. Don't give up! Those are wonderful machines.

Check for thread jams in the bobbin area too. If you didn't get a manual you can download one at Singerco.com
http://www.singerco.com/support/inst...manuals/search

Definitely do contact the sellers and Ebay, maybe before you make any changes like oiling the machines. If they said they work(work means you can actually sew with it) and they don't then the seller either wasn't truthful or to give them the benefit of the doubt they were damaged in shipping. Either way it's on the seller to make it right.
When I buy something like a sewing machine online it's always with the assumption that it doesn't work and I pay accordingly.
I'm very sorry you got burned and I hope it works out. Please keep us posted.
Rodney

REMINDER: Those 301s thread right to left and needle goes flat side toward the needle bar or away from the machine. When you set the needle, it has to have the curve side next to the hook.

I'm so sorry you are dissappointed. I buy like Rodney, always assuming trouble ahead even if the seller says "working". I've too much experience at this point and understand that "working" means something very different to everyone from actually sews to I can move a part.

I would check first the needle is in correctly, the bobbincase is seated properly and there are no thread jams. If that doesn't solve the problem contact the seller.

From there I would tell you it's time to stop being a novice. :D It's fun and very rewarding to learn how to get these wonderful machines up and running. 301's are definitely worth it too. I hope it's something simple but we are here to help if you have to go a little deeper.

Yep, I got burned on a machine from eBay too. "Works great"...noticed right away that when I spun the hand wheel it felt really weird. Plugged it in and pressed the pedal and all that happened was a horrible grinding racket. Nothing moved, and it sounded like a garbage disposal full of rocks. "Works great"....yah as a door stop.

Then I got burned again on the same machine...took it in for repair, was told it was done. Asked about why it was so inexpensive, they just shrugged. Brought it home and foolishly didn't test it. Months later my main machine is in the shop (different shop); plug in the ebay machine...still grinding. Apparently I paid $150 for them to lube a broken machine. Couldn't find my paperwork either. At that point I just gave up. That machine is now a "decoration". *grmph*

Harsh. I know there are good repair shops out there but when I read these horror stories it sounds like a bunch of them are even shadier than the bad car repair places out there.
$150 and all they did was lube it? It takes about 5 minutes if a machine is in good shape.
Rodney

If you're going to buy vintage or older machines you need to learn how they work. What makes them tick. How to diagnose their ailments. What is their foibles. Many of them are susceptible to thread jams, those are easily cleared if you study how the machine works. Not every problem is oil related. It is fairly easy, these old mechanical machines are not that complicated. People who choose to remain uneducated about these things are easy prey to the shysters and crooks of the world.

As for ebay sellers you almost always need to figure the seller is going to say whatever he / can to hype the machine.
You can't take them at their word. If they are honest, great. If not, you'll be forewarned.

I'd bet both the 301s in the OPs post are thread jammed. Easy fix. Just study the instructions all over this forum about it.

Joe

When I bought my 401 at an estate sale, I asked if it worked. They plugged it in and used a very thin piece of see through cotton. I pulled my "heavy denim test kit" out of my purse and told them to let me try it. It sewed like a knife going through melted butter and was purring like a kitten. I paid $150.00 for it and do not regret it one bit. It's in a desk cabinet. Not what I was looking for but. I can put it down and use my other machine on top. I have a board the length and width of the cabinet to balance the weight of my other machine. Posting this because if you go to any sales where there is a machine to try out, take a "denim test kit" with you. Mine is just a 6x6" square of denim. If it passes the denim test you should be good to go. I did make sure first see that the stitching for the fabric and the bobbin case (free of lint) were in good shape before. Light denim shows light and dark thread. Love that machine. DH uses it too.

Yes, smart, tessagin......especially in Texas. There simply are no old machines to be found for sale in Texas. I am always on the prowl for 99k's and FWs while I visit with my grandkids in Austin.

If an item from an eBay seller isn't as described, contact the seller first to establish how they react to these situations. Give them the opportunity to make it right. You may have to provide pictures, etc. If they don't respond as a good seller should, file a SNAD with eBay.

Keep working at it, you'll learn lots from this group, also think about joining some of the Facebook groups that have formed for folks like us that love our machines whether they are 301's, Featherweights, Vikings, Vintage - whatever!

Hi Joe et al!
Oh, I'm going to do my best to tinker with these, for sure! I contacted the seller for one of them, and she insists that it was working great before shipping. Anyway, I still want the machine. The poor thing looks like it wasn't loved. The finish is sort of pitted, if that makes any sense, and I half-seriously wondered if it had been through a fire! But there's no smoke smell whatsoever. I think it probably just sat for a long time. It'll never be shiny again, but I'm going to make it look as beautiful as it can. And I bought it to sew with, not to display.
The hard part seems to be figuring out exactly where it's getting stuck. It's when the thread take-up lever is going up, almost to its highest point. The rest of the circuit is really smooth. It just grinds at that one place so far (on the black one... I haven't even started working on the mocha).
Thanks, all, for the help!
Ila

If you pay by pay-pal and the person you bought them from won't work with you, e-bay will issue you a refund. You have a limited time to contact both of them.

I can't speak for Austin but in Houston I finally did find a 221 FW at my local goodwill store. In the case with two boxes of attachments, one metal Singer box and the original Green cardboard box; both crammed full. I found it for $39.95 too. A miracle of a find? Yes, I will admit it. I smiled all the way home and she purrs like a kitten !

Incredible score! Nice to know some deals are still out there for them.
Rodney

I've not had any trouble buying from e-bay. I would get in touch with the seller and let he/she know. If they don't solve the problem to your liking, get in touch with e-bay directly.

After reading everyone's comments about their disasters with machines from ebay sellers, I don't think I would buy one from there even if I had the money to do so. Good luck with your machine. I definitely would contact the seller and ebay because if they posted it as working good, then ebay will want to know about it.

I've bought 4 301's from ebay and they all have worked. I had a friend that had a Featherweight and one day it "just stopped working" and they put it in a shed. Asked her if I could take it home and look at it and oil and lube it. When I got it home there was such a thread jam in the bobbin area - got that cleaned out and oiled and lubed it and took it back to her and asked her please don't put it in the shed-use it and enjoy it!! Hope your fix is an easy one. The 301's are a great machine.

You are lucky that he charges only $45. Mine charges $89

There's a guy in Denver who has a vintage sewing machine repair business and he said he charges $20 to look at and tune a machine. He's an hour away from me, though, so I tend to wasn't too go to my usual guy.

ebay
 

first I would contact the seller no replay there contact ebay they will take care of this for you also I pay through pay pa the are great to getting the money back from the seller hope this helps

I'm so sorry you had such bad luck! I has a worse experience but I won't go into it here. I did have a good experience obtaining my 301 I know I took a huge risk but the notations with it were that it was owned by a sewing machine technician, it had been oiled and greased etc etc. I chanced it and now it's been my favorite machine! I do hope your machines only need a good cleaning let us know!

So sorry that you had this experience. I bought my 301 off of ebay and it is wonderful.

I have to laugh at the ebay descriptions of sewing machines. So many think it works if the light comes on and the needle goes up and down. I bought a "working" Necchi that was completely seized up. Since the shipping cost more than the machine I wrote it off as a lesson learned. Then my husband took it to his shop, and with a what have you got to lose attitude, began tinkering, and oiling, and cleaning, and oiling, and polishing, and oiling. You get the idea. After a couple of days of this treatment, I am the proud owner of a vintage Necchi that is shiny as a new penny and sews like a dream. I tested it on a leather belt, doubled over and it sewed right through it! Also went through 8 layers of denim. EIGHT! My point is, don't give up on it yet. It just may be a diamond in the rough, like mine.

Contact the seller and eBay. Tell them that they were supposed to work great and don't. I did that with a machine my husband bought me and the seller ended up paying to have it worked on just so I didn't post bad feedback.

I automatically assume the worst....that goes for any machine....sewing machine, car...whatever. Give me vintage any day...at least once you learn how it works, you've got more chance of fixing it than anything with a computer chip. Persevere and let us know how you get on....pics are also lovely.

I assume the worst, too. That way I'm not disappointed when things don't work. Yes vintage - then it CAN be fixed.

About 75% of my collection came from e-bay. After deciding on a machine, I look at the sellers rating and feedback score. You can contact the seller with your concerns before purchasing. A seller that does not list properly and basically tries to scam a person would not get 100% feedback. I also read the feedback scores, in particular the bad/neutral ones to see what occurred and how it was resolved. After a few bad experiences with FedEx on handling my purchases, one time I contacted the seller before shipping and requested that he ship the machine and the bentwood case separately. The additional charges was $12.00 more that way and I mailed him a check for the extra charge. Some times you can correctly pack up a machine, but, rough handling is to be expected and one can only hope for the best. If an item is grossly mislabeled, that seller would not get favorable scores. I seldom do business with a feedback score of less than 99.8%. I have had 2 issues with purchasing and both were resolved promptly to my satisfaction with a full refund from Paypal. :)


Soman2
The other Rodney
Ponchatoula,La.