singer click click
 

miriam I may need your sledge hammer! been working on a singer stylist 834. it clicks and I have found why just not a way to make it stop.
you will see that the feed dogs rub against the needle plate that makes the needle plate lift and flop back causing the click click. the owner had that magnet guide stuck to the plate. when I told her the problem, now she remembers why she had that magnet there.. to hold the plate down and stop the clicking. she also had a needle hit the needle plate quite a few times.
I have pulled this apart, cleaned, oiled and still cannot stop the rubbing and click click. I thought the feed dogs needed to be adjusted, no can do.
any ideas?

Did she replace the feed dogs at some point? Lint under - looks clean - thread wrap somewhere out of sight? Everything looks assembled correctly except that little button that holds the whole mess down (oil it like you are my little Wilbur)- double check with a manual. Maybe pull everything out and reassemble? I might have a set of dogs that fit that somewhere in my junk. It looks like a needle scar on the throat plate - needle hit and maybe hit hard. Bent needle shaft? Is there a sprung spring down there somewhere? You have nothing to lose by taking things apart and putting them back together - great learning experience. I can always lend you a sledgehammer if things get out of hand. I hope you didn't pay much for that machine. Joe or Candace probably have better advice than I do. Not my favorite machine.

There should be an adjustment under the bed for the feed dog height. You'd have to find a service manual to be sure what to adjust though as I have not messed with one that new.

Joe

Follow where the feed dogs attach, down and under the machine. There should be a linkage that you can adjust under the machine. It just may be very hard to get to. I've had several machines that the feed dogs either scraped against the back of the plate or banged it rather hard and that adjustment to the linkage was key. I've never worked on a 834 that I remember, so the service manual that Joe recommended would be handy for you to have if you can get one.

Check for a broken/missing plastic thrust washer at the left bearing of the upper shaft (inside). If missing, the upper shaft will have too much end-to-end slack in it.

CD in Oklahoma

I can verify what CD says about that plastic thrust washer. I've replaced 5 of them on lower series machines.
I did not however realize they'd affect the way the feed dogs worked.

Joe

Yay, plastic! :<

LOL ... I think they're actually a nylon, but that's not much better.

Joe

What do the plastic parts look like?

Miriam,

The plastic / nylon / whatever thrust washers look like this:

Original one, cracked as usual:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]460860[/ATTACH]

Replacement one, new:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]460861[/ATTACH]
The collar with the set screws usually needs to be reset to keep the main shafts end shake to a minimum after replacing the bushing.

Joe

Where did you buy it, Joe? I've never had a cracked one, but I don't work on many Stylists.

I avoid them, too.

I learned a long time ago that leaving a magnet consistently next to any metal part of a machine will eventually throw off the mechanism. My son had trouble with his computer. He would have couple bottles of beer at the computer and had a bottle opener with a magnet on the back attached to his cpu. Cost him lot of money. Could be that has been the problem. Since it wasn't fixed right in the first place. Enough magnetism drawing the needle over to click.

Magnets effect electronic devices and computers (specifically hard drives and memory) which use magnetism to function.

Not much chance they would effect a mechanical device with the exception of collecting metal filing/shaving/dust in a location near the magnet.....

The Gauss (scale of magnet power ) necessary to move a needle is pretty intense. Only a "rare earth" magnet or an electromagnet would have that kind of umph

good try though!

oh thank you all for responding. today was a long work day for me. I will try everything.
thank you and I will let you know what happens.

Those I've used I bought from the LSMG. However Sewing Machine Parts has them> { http://www.sewingpartsonline.com/sea...=singer+163990 }
I think there is two sizes, but I'm not sure. All five I have used have been the same.

Joe

Thanks for the info.

today is the day. I am going to fix this click or she(a co-worker) can find her machine in a snow bank. we have lots of snow here in wisconsin. I have my 2nd cup of coffee at my side.

so I took it apart for the umteenth time.

candace, I see the feed dog adjuster spring but cannot get to it. someone has removed the bottom of the machine and put the screw in crooked and tightened it. now it won't budge.

joe, I had the top off twice and it is a chore to align it up to get the screws back in. but I remember looking at that 'nylon' washer. it had a little piece of plastic on it so you could grab it to replace. I did not see any cracks so did not go further with it. just oiled everything.

I put on the other needle plate for straight stitching ... no clicking. needle clears the whole fine and the feed dogs do not rub.

in taking off that needle plate, with the light just right I seen something on the right side of the feed dog. took my little screwdriver and scraped it across ... there WAS a little burr on the feed dog. took it out one more time and scraped it vigorously with the end of my little screwdriver. ... put it back in and NO MORE CLICKING. got out my dremel and wire wheel and ran it on the little burr spot. smooth. I checked the needle plate where it should have been rubbing and it was smooth BUT there was a spot that was discolored. this must have been the spot where the feed dog was rubbing.

the clicking singer is NO more. this machine is going back to its owner and not via a snow bank.

sat back and finished my cup of coffee!

thank you everyone for your suggestions and help.

It feels so good when you win one!!! Yippie :thumbup:

Congratulations! Glad to hear you got it fixed. Now I'll add burrs to my things to look for on noisy machines.

Joe

That feeling is what keeps me seeking different machines. It is so gratifying to get one back to life.

been thinking about that feed dog today. the burr is gone but it still looks like it sits crooked. should I suggest the owner buy a new feed dog or new needle plate?

wilburness,

Test sew on it first and if it sews straight, it's not broke. If it doesn't sew straight then wory about it.

Joe

it sews straight. I had to adjust the tension. I sewed many many straight lines to make sure it would not start clicking again. ok I will not worry.
thank you