OurWorkBench, thank you!! I will try that! So far I haven’t been able to get the “red” knob to move, twist, or pull in or out. I’ve been afraid of breaking it but I’ll see if I can clean it a little and get it to move. And thank you for your insight on backstitches!

[QUOTE=OurWorkbench;8389279]That worked like a charm! Thank you so much!
I thought I had read somewhere that some Japanese ZZs needed a separate foot for straight stitches (which did not come with my machine). I’m so happy it was such a simple fix!

You are most welcome. I'm glad it worked for you.

There are some machines that work better with a straight stitch foot and needle plate. Some are what are considered left homing machines. Those would need a special straight stitch foot and needle plate. One can tell if it is left homing by seeing where the needle comes down if set for straight stitching. If it comes down on the left side of the hole of the zigzag plate then it is considered a left homing machine.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.

Here’s my baby. Still need to get some accessories together, but the zig zag and zipper foot get me through most things. Been working on expanding the foot collection beyond the two and add a straight stitch plate to the arsenal.

Welcome, Victoria. Nice looking machine. I have one similar, but takes cams. Have you noticed any J_A or
J_C numbers on yours? It looks like it is a high shank like my Miracle. Also does it have some letters like MZB or numbers like 231 on it?

Attachment 625726

Also, I'm curious what is the screen type thing that has legs/feet on the left of the machine?

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.

It is a model MZB, J-A-16. I'm assuming High Shank, from what I can tell. Measures 1" from the bed to the set screw.

Oh, ha ha ha... that is my cell phone stand. It's a FM radio/Bluetooth speaker. I can slide my cell phone in there and listen to music while I'm working on paperwork. It also looks pretty cool when you're watching videos. Just slide my iPhone in it and start a streaming. It will also answer calls hands free. The battery lasts forever! It is super cool on it own, but add the cell phone in there and it looks a million times better. I use it in the office, in the shop, and on camping trips.

Neat holder.

Do you have a manual? I found one at https://www.tardigradeoutdoors.com/b...sewing-machine That also has pictures of that person's machine and attachments that came with.

My Miracle is a JA 16, too. It also has a JC 2.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated with off-site link(s)

I do have a user's manual. No Service Manual (but that's probably going to be an impossible task). I'd been just going through the machine with the "that can't be right" checks. Despite the lack of information, I've been able to fix the Drive Wheel Disengage, Timing, Thead Tensioner, Presser foot tensioner, and rewired the motor. I'm still looking for the "real replacement" drive belt. I am thinking maybe a 13 would get it done... I know the one that's on it is just way too long. My current project is the feed dogs. They operate just fine for normal, but don't drop for silk or darning settings... but she will eat projects like no one's business. I have a feeling that she's going to be getting a whole new wooden travel case shortly... I don't think I've owned a machine that felt this bullet proof, and it matches the paint on my 56 Nash Metropolitan. ;)

I've been trying to figure out what feet I can run with the left homing needle... that's pretty much a pain in the rear and quite difficult to see where the needle hole is and/or if the foot is designed as a zig zag from most websites. I did find a website in the UK that claims they have the presser feet for the MZB. And they did say they have the straight stitch foot, which is awesome. Just need to locate a new plate for straight stitch to go with it. I'd rather not go overseas to get them, but beggar's can't be choosers.

Hey lovely humans, I poked through this thread but it's so long that I may have missed if this question was answered already - what to do with my machine that doesn't have a little screw to release the clutch wheel on the handwheel?

I'm stuck dismantling this machine since I can't figure out how to get the handwheel off.

Here are some pictures - there is a little peg that keeps the clutch wheel from unscrewing all the way - the peg will move back a little, but seems to be connected to a larger piece that keeps it from moving or coming off. It's not threaded/there is no head to unscrew.

Also took a video just in case that's helpful too! https://photos.app.goo.gl/aiAdTxvvYw75G88z7

It kind of looks like you should be able to unscrew the chrome knob. It’s hard to tell from the pictures, but it looks that there’s a catch to stop the pin. If I had to guess, I’d say either the pin or the catch are spring loaded so you can negotiate it past the stop (if that makes sense).

That little flappy catch circled looks like it should be able to be pressed in to allow the pin to move past it.

I've tried it but just can't get it to move enough - and I've nicked the paint on the wheel with my efforts :(.

But yes I do think that's, in theory, how it is supposed to come off maybe? I just can't get that pin to move backwards enough. Is it possible the pin is attached some other way - like as a clamp around the wheel shaft or something? I notice when I push the pin backwards, it moves more than just the pin - it moves a c-shaped piece of metal attached to the pin that curves around the wheel shaft, but I can't see it very well.

Any ideas for getting that pin to move? If I press on it with a screwdriver, then the screwdriver is in the way and prevents the catch from moving past it... but it's too small and difficult to move with anything else?

I am kind of at a loss without seeing it first hand. Mine just has a set Screw on the face of the Small chrome wheel. Perhaps slip a small dental mirror back there and something may present itself. There are a few people on here with a bit more experience than I have that could jump in.

Thanks so much - yeah, it's so tricky. I've never seen a machine without that little screw on the face of the chrome wheel! I have a video that shows it a little better if you are interested - https://photos.app.goo.gl/aiAdTxvvYw75G88z7

I newer saw a lock like this. It is intriguing, because you think that there must be a simple solution. I would try to push or pull on these pins one at a time and in many directions. I wish you good luck.

so true! I'm still looking for the solution - I'm sure when I get it apart I'll look back and it will have been such a simple thing!

My sister found this on FB marketplace, it was a true "barn find" with three others, free. It's missing a few parts, bobbin case, tensioner parts, maybe more, but the needle does move ever so slightly with the handwheel. The second picture is after wiping off the layer of dirt.

Very nice! I bet it’ll punch through saddle leather like a freight train when she’s back up and running. ❤️

Kenmore 158.19130
 

I would be gratefull, if somebody got a manual for a Kenmore 158.19130.

It seems to be one of the few zig zag free arm machines with needle threaded from left.

https://www.quiltingboard.com/attach...1&d=1596829177

I couldn't find any free ones, but did find https://www.sewusa.com/Sewing_Machin...ion_Manual.htm and https://manualsoncd.com/product/kenm...uction-manual/

There may have been some on ebay, too!?

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated with off-site link(s)

Prinzess Freiarm Automatik
 

Thank you for your help OurWorkbench.

I think, that very few machine types got this combination:

Zigzag
Free arm
Needle threaded from side

A guy on another forum claimed, that his Kenmore got it. Now later he admit, that the needle is threaded from front. I did found drawings here: Sears spare parts site on Kenmore 158.19130 - https://www.searspartsdirect.com/mod...6BpGtIWU11VHdk
Unfortunately the drawings state, that needle is treaded from front. Therefore this manual do not interest me anymore.

However I found a Princess machine here, and it have been sold in Germany as "Prinzess Freiarm Automatik". The site claims, that it was manufactured in Japan. Most likely the machine was sold to other parts of the world too. You see more pictures of the machine here, and that the hook pass right of needle:

Naehmaschinenverzeichnis with Princess machines

You need to go to the website to look for the pictures, because they are copyrighted. I have tried to look for other pictures of it via Google, but I did not succeed. Have you seen this machine before?

Necchi did make some free-arm machines like that. This is a video, that show this mechanics:
Video of Necchi Supernova free arm mechanics

I'm glad whoever thought it threaded from the side with a front loading bobbin got it figured out.

Granted, there may be very few of them that have that needle orientation. You have to look at the bobbin location, Indeed, the front loading would have the needle orientation from front to back. I have a few Necchi free arm machines, but they all have the front loading bobbin.

If you note the location of the bobbin on the pictures of the machines (Necchi & Princess) that you linked to they both have end loading bobbins and would be threaded from the side.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.

Barn find update. I posted a picture of this machine a few weeks ago. The inside of the machine was worse than the outside, I won't say what I sprayed all over the inside to make some of the dirt and dried crud go away. It's a sad commentary on my observational abilities that it was on the workbench at least 3 days before I even noticed that the thread take up arm was broken off... The fix: a cotter pin wired to what was left of the arm and then covered with JB Weld, which I then had to sand down so it could move inside the cover. The existing part is actually riveted to the next part inside, plus I figured there is not a replacement arm anywhere in the world. The needle position adjustment lever was bent such that the needle floated around when cycling the machine, fortunately I was able to get it out and bent back. The thread tension release lever which operates off the presser foot lift lever was bent inside also; I could see how the needle position lever could be bent, but not this.

..it sews stitches, including zig zag. I'm not quite sure how to operate the pattern selector, there's a "shift" indicator on the right end of the stitch width adjuster, I tried it a little bit and it appeared that it was making the indicated pattern, but it takes a lot of thread which I didn't have.

The sticker says "McGuire Automatic" but there are two screws on the front holding nothing, which I assume held the original badge which McGuire removed.

Now that I know it sews I will have to clean it up some more and get it in a case or a table.

JoeJr. I just wanted to share my admiration to you for what you just did; it’s amazing to me!

Makes you wonder what on earth happened to have the machine get so beat up!

Japanese badged sewing machine skipping stitches
 

I'm new to this forum. Thank for accepting me. I have a Japanese badged machine with a "keystone" badge. It's a clean machine but the bobbin winder has issues. I did finally get it to wind a bobbin. It is skipping stitches. I have cleaned everything, found a vintage class15 bobbin, and put a new universal needle in. It purrs like a kitten and will zigzag without skipping but skips on the straight. Any help would be appreciated. I tried uploading some pictures but they failed.

Welcome to the Board!

I recently finished cleaning up the ZZ machine in the picture, and was having stitch problems although a little different from yours. Someone prior to me had removed the needle stop screw in the needle bar (I think to cheat the needle height a little bit trying to solve the stitch problem).

Check the needle height, meaning make sure there’s no crud up in the slot for the needle and that the needle makes it all the way up to the stop;

That fixed my problem on straight stitches, but not running ZZ. Based on someone telling me once that on ZZ the timing has to be backed off a little I started looking for how to adjust the timing. I wasn’t really seeing anything obvious so I started loosening screws, beginning with the one circled in the second picture. This did not allow me to adjust timing but what it did do was allow the shaft and bobbin case housing ( single arrow) to shift back and forth (double pointed arrow), and to rotate, as noted in the third picture. This did not allow the hook itself to be adjusted.

Having this screw loose (which I may have in general) most importantly allowed shifting of the entire bobbin case housing and hook distance relative to the needle.

Once I figured this out I had to adjust two things:

1. Position of the bobbin case housing relative to the feed dogs (top marks in picture 3). I didn’t notice the positioning of this when I first loosened the screw in question, so I had to look at another machine to get an idea of where the housing should be positioned relative to the openings in the feed dogs for the needle to come through.

2. Hook distance from needle; Picture 4 shows the hook/needle (on a non ZZ machine) distance, the hook has to come very, very close to the needle, as in the picture. This took a little bit of fiddling because I was adjusting this distance as well the position described in #1 at the same time and then trying to get the screw tightened when I thought I had it. Once I had the hook where it needed to be the machine sewed well, both straight and ZZ (although I had to back off the upper tension to get the ZZ stitches looking nice, which hasn’t been an issue on other ZZ machines).

I believe with the machine in my picture someone loosened this screw and the hook was too far away from the needle, or it came from the factory that way, such that it couldn’t properly pick up the thread loop on the upstroke, and was thus skipping stitches both straight (when initially tested) and ZZ.

Take away for you: check the hook distance from the needle, both in straight stitch and ZZ, and if it’s too much consider adjusting it.

Ok I will try that. I watched a few youTube videos to help me understand. thanks for the help.

I was off on one of my bunny trails and thought of you when I happened across this web page - https://vintagesewingmachinesblog.wo...heir-remedies/
Joe gave you a lot of good info. I'm a little more cautious (sometimes, LOL) and try other things first.
When I first read your post, my thought that it just might that since you had trouble winding the bobbin that it may not be evenly wound and manifests the skipped stitches at the places the bobbin is uneven. Another thought I had was that if I remember correctly the zigzag works better with the tension is set differently than straight stitching. When I was skimming over the above link, I also noticed the two needle plates- one for straight stitching and one for zigzag. There is a thread here recently about how much better a machine does straight stitching while using a straight stitch plate.

As for posting pictures, my response is:
We like pictures. In order to post pictures on Quilting Board, you will probably need to reduce or compress the picture to a file size that is smaller than 2MB. How to post images can be found at https://www.quiltingboard.com/attach...020-01-17-.pdf
Don't forget to scroll over to the far right to find and click on the "Upload" button.

I have found that only the big red "Reply" button or "Quote" work to give me the paper clip icon to work for adding pictures.
https://www.quiltingboard.com/attach...p-location.jpg

Some additional info regarding reducing images at post #4 and images for the scroll and upload button can be found at #5 of https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...d-t312607.html

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated with off-site link(s)

Japanese badged sewing machine skipping stitches
 

[QUOTE=OurWorkbench;8485286]I was off on one of my bunny trails and thought of you when I happened across this web page - https://vintagesewingmachinesblog.wo...heir-remedies/
Joe gave you a lot of good info. I'm a little more cautious (sometimes, LOL) and try other things first.
Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
Not affiliated wit

Thank you for all the good links. I studied them and was helped a lot. In the end I got brave and took apart the tension unit and found that it was put together incorrectly. I cleaned and put it back together correctly and it helped a lot with the tension issues but it was still skipping stitches. At that point I decided to take Joe's advise and check the timing. After watching several YouTube videos and rereading Joe's comments I could see that timing was off. On the underside of the machine I loosened adjustment screws in three places. I was then able to adjust the distance between the needle and the hook, which was too wide. I also then adjusted the height ratio between the needle in the lowest position and the hook. It took adjusting a couple of times but it worked and the machine no longer skips stitches.
I uploaded a pic of the stitching before and after. The before are the rows on the left and the three rows on the right are the after.
Thanks everyone for your time and help. I will move on to the bobbin winder issues but that is for another day!

Not only do we like pictures, we like success stories!! I'm glad you figured it out and were able to get it working properly.

Did you find a a manual for this? Looks like my SewMor 700

I never did. I found someone with the exact same machine, with a manual, on pinterest, but I'm not on pinterest so I asked another sister to contact this person about getting a copy, nothing ever came of it it.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/75927943696912357/
Here's a Sewmor version for sale maybe? If you're on pinterest you could ask the person if they have a manual.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/385339311852978479/

Joe, you might try https://www.quiltingboard.com/attach...achine-770.pdf it looks pretty close

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.

Thanks Janey!

I picked up this machine at a local charity thrift store. I'm not quite sure what "hygiene" has to do with sewing machines, and I profess complete ignorance as to the difference between "electro hygiene" and "non-electro hygiene", maybe they just ran out of badge names.
It does sew, now, and when I step on the gas it wants to vibrate across the workbench.

Maybe get the cabinet from bkay https://cdn.quiltingboard.com/images/smilies/wink.png Being in a desk/cabinet would probably help.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.

Saying good bye to this machine. I bought it at an auction for $7 because I needed a new foot pedal for my own Remington. It came to me as needing a new belt and the case is rough but other than needing a cleaning, it's in pretty good shape. Even has both feet and the bobbin case! All I had to do was pull out the power plug in thing from the one case and put it into the other case and I was done in 5 minutes.

I've been hemming and hawing for about 6 months because I love that two-tone paint and it is a nice machine but I'm going to offer it to my sewing repair guy for free. If he doesn't want it, it goes on Craig's List. Maybe it will be art, maybe it will be restored, maybe it will be a boat anchor :( but I thought I'd share it first.

So my repair guy has a guy who has a guy... The two-tone Universal will end up being fixed up with a new case and everything needed and sent to Ukraine. He agreed the machine needed mostly cleaning and that his guy would be thrilled over my donation. Heck, even the light worked with what looked like a recent bulb, all parts (except for the foot pedal and power unit...)

When I first got into these Badged machines, I loved them because they are so mechanically sound and easy to work on. I'd pick them up, buy the missing bobbin case or whatever, and donated them to an organization that connected recent immigrants with machines -- many of whom were (in my neighborhood) Ukranian. Is funny how it all comes round in circles.

That is neat, that it will be outfitted and sent to be used. I wish I could find some new cases that don't cost much for some of my machines.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.