I know this is not "sewing machine related" but....

I just posted an Album with pictures before and after doing a complete redo of a 1961 Craftsman 109 Mini Lathe.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/members/steveh-u85067-albums18283.html

I expected to use this to produce new screws for old machines, but it is not accurate enough for that. I will be selling this and acquiring a better thread cutting lathe.

There is a sewing machine in a couple of shots (for size reference) and if you look closely you can see some of the new Singer VS2 slides I am working on, so it is not completely inappropriate for here...

Jennb, I am hoping to get that Beautiful Willcox and Gibbs treadle unit packed up this week. I need the room....

I just modified the OLD singer treadle base that Laura was kind enough to re-home to me and got the White Model A installed and spinning. So cool. Of all of the machines I have this one has the least amount of resistance to rotating. it practically freewheels... Unfortunately I do not have the room to bring it in right now so I ended up removing the machine and covering up the base...frump....

Hi Steve.

Beautiful job on the lathe. I have a craftsman / Atlas 101 6x18 lathe and a Unimat DB200. The Atlas is a size larger and the Unimat a little smaller than your 109. Both of mine are probably considered "toys" by serious Machinists but they work well for me on small projects. Never cut any threads on the Atlas but I have all the gears if I feel the need. Which lathe are you looking to buy?

Jon

i have found the serial number of my Gritzner hand crank, thanks to the help of Mizkaki, and am now wondering if anyone has any idea of when my machine was made. The serial number is + 65414 7 Yes, there is a plus sign before the number and the 7 is a little lower and farther apart from the last 4 than the distance between the other numbers. I have seen a Gritzner that has a serial number of 1819892 on the web that 'they' date as C1907. I'm thinking that mine is a bit earlier than that. Do they actually have the + sign and are calling it a 1? The name plate on mine has Gritzner in a half circle at the top of the plate, Durlach curved up the other way at the bottom of the plate, with a spider, then TRADE MARK written below it, with only one word on a line. Does this help in identifying it at all for anyone reading this? Thanks for any help you can give.

Here is where Caroline S kindly posted my photos of my Gritzner hand crank on the vintage site. It shows a picture of the name plate of my machine. I had forgotten that the word PATENT was above the spider.
http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage...130994-53.html
Has anyone seen a Gritzner with this name plate?

Replied to in PM.

I keep searching for a vintage hand crank with no luck I also have a lovely model 27/127 that could be easily converted.... But still want a vintage hand crank for that. They sure seem hard to find. Do y'all know if the crank handles are specific to models, or are they interchangeable? Thanks for your help.

I just converted an electric to a hand crank. There are ones made in China that are pretty cheap on line for sale. They are relatively universal but the quality is iffy and they have "Made In China" on them in English and in Chinese. I spray painted over that though and it it was much better.
~Grant~

The machine has to have a raised motor mount that lines up perpendicular to the balance wheel. Some machines have them and some don't. If it is slightly off it won't work. And it is easier if you have a spoked hand wheel. I think that has been discussed on here somewhere... It would take a year to read all the old posts. Grant is right it is easy to find a hand crank copy. The ones I've had work just fine.

Cogito, Re-reading this, I realized that you had said Vintage. I guess that I should have asked first if you were looking for an authentic vintage part. Or a part that would go on a vintage machine.
The Chinese made ones work fine. A serious Hand Crank sewer would probably disagree though. Vintage pieces are hard to find by themselves. On line auction and classified sites would be the best place to start your search. Estate sales and garage sales as well as resale shops have turned up gems too.
~Grant~