I'm so happy you got that! I think you would be looking long and hard to find another that nice!
Rodney

Me too now. Was pretty nervous about having paid so much for it - I know it was cheap.

Here's what the head looks like now:



I've got a lot more where those came from too. She's very photogenic. Actually, she looks much brighter and prettier in real life. I can't believe what a work of art this machine is. I've cleaned and lubricated the mechanism and she's definitely ready to go - very smooth.

that is beautiful... So jealous! :thumbup:

The MOP almost looks like an Egyptian key pattern in places. I'm more in awe every time I look at it. It's closer to being jewelry than it is a tool.
Rodney

I forgot to ask: What did your wife have to say when you told her? I think mine would forgive me one like that if we had the cash.
Rodney

Absolutely beautiful.

Cari

Mouth-dropping open gorgeous! I have a question about the MOP machines as I have never seen one in person. Is there an indention in the metal where the MOP is laid or is it so thin that it is nearly flat and shellacked over?

My understanding is it was imbedded in the japanning while it was still wet and baked in when they cured the japanning. Then the whole thing was sanded and polished, decals applied (or hand painted depending on manufacturer) and finally shellacked. It was a very labor intensive process. Care to imagine working all day sticking bits of shell into wet paint that stinks like tar? I think the results were worth it though.
Rodney

She was a lot less unhappy when she saw it (I had it cleaned before she got home from work).

Your understanding of the process matches mine. The MOP is in the Japanning and is baked in.
The amount of work was (I believe) in the slow sanding process to make it all perfectly smooth.

In the day documents show that the average was 20 hours per machine to hand block sand them smooth.

The process is that you add the MOP first, (we used a drop of paint to stick it down) then japanning was applied, then sand, and sand, and sand, and sand....

My first attempt I used MOP that was too thick and the paint would not set up that thick effectively, when we tried thinner bits it worked out great. I have a basic black Singer 12 parts head that was given to me because it was sand blasted clean resulting in massive pockmarking and the like. I am working on refinishing it using the MOP process. Pictures will happen once done (and working)