Stuck Feed Dog Knob/Buttons???
 

I'm taking apart one very ugly broken clone. The best use is for parts and maybe a bit of info.

Feed dog drop knobs are found on top base right side of machine or maybe on the pillar. When it works right, you turn the knob or press the button and the feed dogs drop. How cool is that? BUT some times that knob or button gets stuck and won't budge.

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Feed dog drop buttons.

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Let's try to understand how it works. You turn a knob or press a button and the feed dogs drop - right? Well some times the knob won't turn or the buttons won't push. What do you do? Why is it stuck?

Understanding how it works may help. The pin holds the two chamber pieces in place and the feed dogs come up. When the pin slides out of the chambers/cylinders the feed dogs drop. When it gets gummed up with dried oil it doesn't want to move so people think the knob or buttons are stuck.

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Feed dogs will be dropped when this is open.

IS your feed dog drop knob stuck? Well it seems like it anyway. This part under the machine is what no doubt is really what is stuck - see all that dried up brown oil? It will need some kind of cleaning and possibly some heat - then rock the knob back and forth to get the pin in and out of that shaft.
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There is the pin - I pulled it completely out so everyone can see it - note all the dried oil. The dried oil keeps it from moving.
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knob from derelict clone I'm pulling parts from:
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This picture probably should have been at the top. Anyway it is a picture of a good feed dog drop pin in it's chamber and feed dogs should be up for normal everyday sewing:
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So now the feed dogs are dropped. The shaft should look like it has come apart:
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(This is not the derelict machine - this is a good one...)

I'll try again later to post another picture of the derelict shaft - I think the ones here are a bit too fuzzy.

Ok so pictures have failed some how. I'll try again later - I'm not done... LOL Maybe I'll even start the whole mess all over on a new thread later.

The only one I had that was stuck was the shaft on the knob itself was rusted tight. That was a strange one though and the only rust found on the machine.
Rodney

Some one was crying tears of frustration because the sewing machine wasn't doing what they told it to do so they let the tears fall on that knob and forgot to clean it off and it rusted. I've never seen one with a rusted knob. Just dried up oil on that shaft and pin. I have seen rust on the knob but not such that would make it not turn at all.

Miriam,
Remember a couple years ago you told us about that free Kenmore on CL here in Springfield? Well that one had the feed dog pin and parts seized solid. It took Tri-Flow, lots of heat, and some tapping with a hammer and wooden rod to coax it to move. There was some rust in there. No idea how the rust got under the bed in that spot, but there it was.

That dried oil in Miriam's pics is why we use and recommend Tri-Flow oil so much.

Joe

Tri-Flow or Kroil seem to flow into the cracks better than anything. Not only does that pin have to go in and out but the parts of the shaft the pin rides in have to break away from each other when you drop the dogs. Shaft minus the piston. Kind of exaggerated opening so you can see it - the two chambers have to ride on that piston the dogs can break away when the tapered end of the piston is in line with one of the chambers.
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They do not all look alike - this is another clone - lots of really bad dried up oil. That machine still has a frozen needle bar.
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There are machines that have different feed dog drop mechanisms. Some of the older Singers just use a thumb screw under the machine to drop the dogs.

The thumb screw for the Singer 301 is right next to the bobbin - big thumb screw with a slot - at least on mine. The feed dogs actually break away under the machine. I can't think of any other machine that drops from the end like that. There are some more modern machines the feed dogs drop from the front of the machine near the bobbin.

Yes, I do have a clean machine... Feed dogs are up - piston is out
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You can not see the end of that piston - the piston is pulled in and the dogs will drop - the taper of the pin keeps them from dropping too far - see picture above of the pin removed. The taper of the pin will allow for that silk setting, too.

thumb screw under the machine (Singer 201) drops the dogs - same with some of the Singer 15s and others
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Miriam I've always called that the feed dog bullet. I use 90% rubbing alcohol for cleaning innards /unders and it has never taken me more than a few drops and a few minutes to unstick one of these. The alcohol works so much faster than oil because it dissolves old oil and gunk almost so fast you can watch it work.

Cari

I'm sure a solvent would work, Cari.

I'm fighting a different problem with the feed dogs on my old White zigzag. It's basically a 15 clone with zigzag, no decorative stitches. I have the pin moving freely, it was stuck at first but the parts the pin holds together still aren't moving so the dogs still aren't dropping. It's been a couple days since I've had the chance to attack it. Maybe the oil has had a chance to work now. The hook assembly on this one had a lot of rust and was stuck too. It could be parts closer to the feed dogs are rusted where I can't see it. I'll take a look a bit later this morning.
It seems like I always get the strange ones.
If a machine has been maintained and stored properly these problems don't come up as much or as severely. I like the looks of the White but it wasn't treated well in the later parts of its life and I'm paying the price for that right now.
Rodney

Miriam, I am still a newbie to this vintage obsession I have. BUT I have to say this is one thing I have taken apart and cleaned. so I knew what you were talking about. you just gave me a pat on the back and a boost to my knowledge. thank you. thank you. I feel GOOOOD.

great tutorial with pictures

I would pull that rod with the bullet thingy off the machine and then try cleaning it with solvent. Is it missing a spring???

I fiddled with it a bit more. The spring loaded part is supposed to turn freely on the shaft. That part was stuck with a bunch of dried oil. I loosened up the screw that clamps the whole assembly to the shaft and slid things back and forth on the shaft and cleaned out all the old oil I could get to. Alcohol is a good solvent for the oil but be very cautious of which machines you use it on. Alcohol and black japanned machines don't go together. This is a painted machine from I'm guessing the late 60s that I'm working on.
The feed dog drop is working now. I have up and down just fine but the middle setting for delicate fabrics doesn't seem to be letting the feed dogs drop from the up position. I have a little more adjusting to do but the big problem is solved.
I learn something new with every machine I tackle.
Rodney

I should shoot a picture of the feed dog drop under my Pheonix 82 - it is totally different.

I acquired an old Kenmore with a stuck feed dog knob.

I looked underneath it and someone had disabled the dropping feature by installing a cotter pin in the linkage.

I couldn't understand for the life of me why anyone would disable the feed dog drop.

Maybe she had 8 kids and the 4 year old thought he could make all the knobs work. After the hundredth trip to the repair shop the OSMG took it on himself to make sure it didn't recur.

I've seen many Japanese machines where the rod was connected at one end by a cotter pin, so probably it was normal.

Cari

Well if it isn't the cotter pin check the piston and see if it will fee up. It usually isn't the lever or linkage... But just in case, oil it, too.

Naphtha helps dissolve the dried oils some times I alternate with alcohol.

Rust....cat pee. Just sayin'.

I've seen it.

Miriam, I can't thank you enough for posting this! I am still learning about my beautiful vintage babies and I hesitate to take anything apart (unless my hubby is sitting right beside me) for fear of breaking it or not being able to reassemble it correctly. Your tutorial will help, the feed dog screw on my 15-91 is getting very difficult to turn, so I guess I need to try to clean off any dried up oil. If you hear loud weeping, you will know I somehow managed to break it and will be asking for help...
Thanks again for doing this!

If that was a newer machine, I would be worried. I'm thinking you could have Wilbur come over and baptize that screw with tri-flow and let her set overnight. Then get a big old tool and crank it - it should free up. I've not had problems with those old ladies - usually the Later ones. Then get those parts cleaned up. I had a really old Singer 15 that took a lot of cleaning - I don't remember what it finally took to get the cruddy oil off but the part freed up fine. It was an early 1900's treadle with badly dried up crud. The house must have been heated with kerosene or coal. Then somebody years ago oiled it a lot and all that old oil must have still been there. But not a spot of rust. I'd rather see dried up oil. Once that machine turned it was wonderful. My neighbor lady's sister bought it.