Which Treadle is easier to learn on?
 

Hello,

I am new to this board and am thinking of buying a treadle. I found two in my area for $75. Which one would be eaiser to learn on?

This one:

http://detroit.craigslist.org/okl/fuo/3582316879.html

Or this one?

http://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/atq/3517177484.html

Is there anything else I need to be aware of?

I currently have 3 Featherweights and my Grandmother's Singer 15-90, plus a newly acquired Good Housekeeper that I scored for $25. :-)

Gail
Novi, Michigan

I think that they would be about the same, as far as working, and they are both beautiful machines, but I would go for the second one, 1, because the first one has part of the shuttle top missing and I'm not sure how available it would be for replacement, 2, because the first one is a shuttle bobbin and not sure how easily those are to come by.

Gail,

Welcome to the forum.

OK, as far as learning to treadle neither is better or easier. Treadling is all in the rhythm of the feet. You've got to develop that rhythm so you can keep the machine rotating without having it stall and spin backwards.

The machine with the missing slide plate is a model 27. The plate and bobbins are available from Sew-Classic and other places.
The cabinet is in really decent condition as well.

The red eye is a model 66-1 with back clamp feet. Those are not easily acquired although they are out there. The cabinet is in much worse condition and will need work . The pealing veneer will catch your fabric, chip off, and just in general look like crap.

If I had to choose between those two, I'd get the Model 27 and look for a later 66 head to put in it.

Joe

I have two treadles; a Singer 27, with shuttle bobbin and a Standard with a round bobbin. As far as treadling action, they are about the same, with one exception. With the Standard, you push the handwheel AWAY from you, unlike the Singer which is like every other Singer when it comes to the handwheel. Since both of your ads were for Singers, that shouldn't be an issue. The shuttle bobbin takes a little getting used to though. It doesn't hold as much thread as the round bobbins.

I would go for the Red Eye 66. as another poster mentioned the firs tone is missing stuff. I have a Red Eye 66 and a 15 (newer model) I have also threadled on a 201. I like the 201 and 15 better then the Red Eye but just slightly.

Just to elaborate on my previous comment a bit;

It's a lot easier to service, clean and replace those few missing parts on the machine head than it is to redo and refinish a treadle cabinet.

Joe

Maybe I should just buy both? LOL. Seriously, thank you all for your input and insight. I keep going back and forth on whether I really want do to this or not.

Joe, I love the 66 red eye, but you are right, the cabinet is a mess and I have never tried to refinish any type of cabinetry. I wasn't sure how easy it would be to get parts for the 27 as I did notice the missing slide plate and wondered it the shuttle was there or not.

I am just developing a love for these old machines lately.

It would be nice if you could test them both - then buy the one you like the best. But I agree with the idea if both are equal to buy the one with the prettier cabinet. The belts are everywhere - very easy to find and put on. It would be very tempting to buy them both if you have the space for them. My grandmother didn't sew (she had two, one belonged to her mother and the other to her aunt) so my grandfather put a finished board on top of them with a curtain around the edge and then put them in bedrooms to be used as vanities. Fortunately my grandmother gave me one and my aunt still has the other, which she still uses as a vanity.

If you bought both, you could put the 66 in the better cabinet and then work on the others as time, funds and inclination strikes you.

Here is a thread I did about a treadle I was given that had been used as an aquarium stand. It was seriously damaged and took a lot of work to repair. I'm still not 100 % finished with it as it's out in the garage and it's too cold to work out there now.
{ http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage...e-t204377.html }

It took me over three months of work off and on to get it this far.

Joe

If you get them both the two machines are interchangeable in these cabinets. The 66 will be easiest to learn on. The 27 is like the 66 except it has a vibrating shuttle. Both of the machines are very easy to treadle and to maintain. Parts are easy to get for both of them. I would get both of them but I have them both already and sew with them. the 66 is my got to machine.
Skip

What a wonderful problem to have! Like Joe, I would buy both and put the 66 in the better cabinet. The 66 will handle heavier fabrics than the 127. (I have both.) The 66 is more of a workhorse. Plus, I'm not fond of that shuttle bobbin even though I did learn to sew on a 127 treadle. Decals on the 127 are excellent, as is the cabinet, and that's worth more. It's also reasonably rare. Decals on the Red Eye (66) aren't bad. Parts are easily available for both.

I brought my current 127 back from the dead, where it had been for 40 years. Even though I often work on machines, this 107-year-old machine still doesn't give the best stitch, although it now runs reasonably well. What I will probably do, since I'm not in love with the 127 but am in love with the cabinet, is to buy the following Janome zig zag treadle head, put it in the cabinet, and be able do do some real sewing during power outages.

http://www.allbrands.com/categories/...ttonhole-dropi

I think the 66 would be easier to learn on because the 127 has a shuttle bobbin. Other than that, they are about even in the learning category.

I've had the same experiences with my 127 and 66s as cricket_iscute mentioned. The 66s will handle thicker and heavier materials that stall the 127. My 127 will be relegated to light duty sewing when I find a cabinet for it.

Joe

I have a 27 and a 66. Treadling is the same on either. I like the 27 for piecing, since I can fill several bobbins at once, and am less likely to run out. The bobbin in the 66 is round and holds more thread than the long shuttle bobbin. Both sew beautiful seams. I think I'd get both and swap the heads out until you get the urge to work on the "bad" cabinet. Good luck and happy treadling!

I resisted temptation yesterday due to higher priorities on the home front. I had had an issue with my longarm that had required my pulling the mother and daughter circuit boards out and shipping them for repair. We also discovered that my mag collar needed to be replaced. So this was the weekend, I put it all back together again.

This was the first time I had to disect my longarm and it scared the pants off of me. Once I got past that, it was actually fun and I learned a lot. I must be more mechanically inclined than I thought. Cussing and swearing was involved but I got it all back together, running, without any missing parts or extras either.

I want to call on both and see what I can do. I like the idea of putting the 66 in the cabinet for the 27 and then working on 27 and the damaged cabinet when I have time. For $75 each, I can easily afford to do fund my new collection. I am thankful for a great job with disposable income for sewing toys, collections and notions.

Thank you to all for the great idea of biting the bullet and purchasing both. I am sure you will be hearing a lot more questions from me as I work through this process.

I keep telling myself that I don't need a treadle but kept looking on Craig's List anyway. I just contacted the seller on this one. Waiting to hear back. For $30 how can I go wrong?

http://detroit.craigslist.org/wyn/atq/3620395385.html

QuiltFaerie,

That's a good useable machine and cabinet. You can learn, use and enjoy that one.

I should know, I have two of those, a Franklin, and two Singer 9W-7s. :D


Joe

Thanks Joe. The other two I found were $75. The one cabinet was a mess but the machine looked good. The other one, the cabinet looked good but the machine was missing parts. This one seems like the best of both worlds and is less than half the other two.

Heck, if it doesn't work out, I could always relist it on CL for more.

I am still waiting for the seller to contact me. It might be a few days.

Gail

Is the shuttle bobbin the long one .? I am trying to learn more about these machines as well which bobbin is harder to find the round or the long ones. Thanks

I have a Singer 66 Red Eye like the one you are looking at except it's in a different style cabinet. I can tell you I love, love, love mine! So relaxing to sew on and in no time you will get the pedal down. My advise on that is don't try to muscle it like a bicycle, just let it gently rock up and down (go with the flow). When I started out I guess I was trying to get speed and kept cutting the pedal short of a full swing.

In my (N)ot (S)o (H)umble (O)pinion, the Singer 66 is the best machine for general all purpose use ever made. Singer got the design down pat on this one.
From the 66 through 66-18s and up they are simple, sturdy, and not at all finicky.

I have a bunch of them and they are my favorite straight stitchers bar none.

Joe

I have to agree with Joe the Singer 66 is the best machine for general sewing. I use it for everything. I use my Grandma's 1916 66-1 and love it. easy to maintain and repair but it has never given me any problems. It is easy to learn to treadle also so smooth running.
Skip

If they are still available, I would buy both of them!

AAaaarrrgggghhhh. I contacted the lister for the $30 Singer 66 twice and never heard back from them. No phone number listed just a reply on CL. Talk about frustrating. Every time I look at Craigslist, the listing is still there. I think I have 3 hairs left on my head.

Gail

Gail,

Forget them. If they really had any couth they'd have pulled the add if they sold it. At that price I doubt it lasted very long.

There are other treadles out there. Just keep your eyes open and you'll find one.

Joe