Remove the bobbin and bobbin case and put a couple drops of oil right in the middle of the place where the bobbin case sits - it looks like a sealed circle. Run the machine for a few minutes to allow some oil to work its way down into the metal parts. Wipe up the excess. Replace the bobbin case and bobbin.

How are you doing? From experience I have found it takes a while before an old machine is run in again. First stage is a lot of cleaning and oling, then as the machines actually gets to be used there's lots of test sewing and yet a few turns with oiling and cleaning. Then, a week or two later chance is the machine suddenly is a supersmooth new favorite. When I bought an old Elna Supermatic it took me a couple of months to get any good replacement parts, this too is a model where fancy oils make a difference. The fondness for this model gradually increased as it went through the stages of cleaning and fixing up. You get to know it quite well along the way :- )

There are some videos for different machines. just Google and if nothing else, it helps to learn how to maintain. I'm no expert but I looked it up for the 401. Love how my machine runs.

Hi everyone! Thanks so much for all the help. I truly appreciate it. I'll ferret out some oil this weekend to see if that helps. Having watched the videos, though, I don't think mine is much noisier than those. I'll give it more chances to win me over. :)

What kind of noises are you getting? Are they 'clanking' noises from the bobbin case, or whirring from the motor/gears, or something else?

Just curious on your 404: is the main motor drive gear a white plastic (like nylon) or is it a red/brown fiber gear?
I have a 404 here that has a white drive gear where all other 300,400,500,700 series machines I have seen have the red fiber gear.

Hi, SingerCLA,
Sorry for the delay in responding. Mine has the fiber gear. And I've finally gotten my hands on some 30-weight oil (thanks, Janey!) and will see if that helps. The noise I'm getting is a high whine, sort of like the motor is having to work too hard. Everything moves much more smoothly now, by hand, and I admit that after using Featherweights for the last six months, the 404 might sound louder to me. It's a more powerful machine, after all.
I'm going to put the oil onto the bearing, as several people suggested, and oil the bobbin area, too.
It needs a new foot pedal -- this one has to be almost completely down to get the machine going. But I am not sure what kind of pedal to buy. Most of them that I see have the three-pin plug in the machine, and mine has two separate plugs. One with just two pins is at the bottom, and another is higher up toward the hand wheel. I don't think the machine runs unless both are plugged in.
Ila

If you have the brown or beige bakelite pedal it's nice to have with the machine though. They can be serviced or given a DIY tuneup, and they are better than their reputation.

Ila,
it sounds like it's got the typical whine for these machines. The drop of 30wt. will help quiet that down. For the cords and controller, you can buy the separate cords for the plug and controller, or you can buy the single unit like your Featherweight uses. The 404 will run either way. When I want to use my 221, 201, 301, or 404 I grab whatever cord/controller set I see first. A lot of people buy the electronic controllers from Sew Classic to use with their vintage machines. Myself, I like the button controllers.

Cari