kezzali

I found this girl at my local antique store and I'm not sure if I should purchase it for $50. I'm a new quilter currently using a used Brother XL-3030 that my mom gifted me in college. My Brother doesn't like it when the fabric gets thicker and I'm not able to do a few other projects that require a bit more power either.

It looks like a red eye Singer 66 electric sewing machine in a nice travel case. I looked up the serial number at it said it was made in 1919. It's missing the cord and foot pedal, so I don't know if the motor works. They are asking $50 for it, but I'm not sure if that is worthwhile or not since 1) I don't know if it works and 2) it's missing parts. It looks to be in pretty good condition. Hand cranking the wheel(?) results in a smooth movement of the machine. A nice person a reddit mentioned verifying the hook moves, but I'm not entirely sure what that means.

I have until tomorrow afternoon to make up my mind. I could try to talk them down too, but I'm not really sure what it's worth since I was told Singer 66's are pretty common. What do you think? Thanks!

vanginney

I would buy it, but I have learned over the last year how to tune them up. Love the decals! Hope all works out for you. If working it would be a great straight stitch machine. The missing foot & cord & tune up will add to your final price. Good luck.

oneday

look up sew classic web site, they have cord sets , motors ect....

66 redeye's may well be the most common, problem is finding one that looks as nice as that one. It looks like it's all there , less the cords..

guessing by the base that it has a dome top/bentwood.

The hook, turn the hand wheel and watch around the bobbin, you see movment , google singer 66 hook , you see what it looks like...

That has the old singer motor on it, there low power by todays standards, you will have to buy the cords and pedal for a few more $$ there are cord pedal, motor sets ,, giving you the updated type motor with as much as twice the power.. check the amp rating, I think the old motor on that is something like .46 amps , I see the sets with .90 and 1,0 amp motors. You may know this, that machine will pop right in a treadle or can be handcranked, you'll see those on that web site also...

foufymaus

I like it! It's pretty, and you cant beat the quality of the machine. Of course with something as old as this gal is putting in that bit of extra $$ will yield years and years of good usage. She was made to sew for years with a possibility of being there for future generations. If i were you, i would buy it. but thats me i love the old machined.

kezzali

Nice. Thank you very much for the advice. I'm going to see if I can talk them down a bit due to the money I will have to put in it, but I'm glad to hear that it looks like a high quality machine. I don't have room for a treadle right now, but I would love to modify it eventually. I've always wanted one of these old Singers

In other news, I saw a White Rotary at another antique store for $33 that HAD its cables/manuals in a travel case. I don't have any shots of that because the store was about to close, but I had never heard of that one before. Thoughts?

quiltjoey

I think the Red Eye is a little high in price as it apparently doesn't work in the condition it is in. I would look up the costs of foot pedal, new belt, motor, attachments, etc. to determine if I wanted to put all the extra money into it. I think you could find one with most of that stuff if you just keep looking. imho...

kezzali

You are right, quiltjoey. If the motor doesn't work it's going to cost more than the purchase price to repair it.

jlhmnj

Hi,

New and used motors, controllers, cords can be gotten fairly inexpensively on ebay or the internet sewing supplies like sew-classic. The expensive part will enter in if you have to take the machine in to be serviced. Many enthusiasts have tons of good controllers and motors from hand crank conversions. Good chance the motor is fine, like the machines they were built to last though check the little bit of wiring carefully. Never hurts to negotiate and hem and haw about all the money it will cost to fix up

Jon

Sheluma

It's an early 66-1 or 66-3 back clamper. Notice that the presser foot attaches from the back. Only early 66s used this type of shank. These feet are hard to find and pricey, but you may have a good selection in the accessories box. I think I see a quilting foot and a guide bar, part of the binder, the adjustable hemmer in two pieces (might be fixable), parts of a tucker. I think there's more but I can't see.

A lot of people convert back-clampers to side-clampers by swapping out the presser bar with that from a side-clamping 66. I've seen the parts for sale. Another option is an adapter that screws onto the presser bar mount. If you convert it you can use the readily available side clamping feet and attachments. You're not going to find a back-clamping zig zag attachment or buttonholer -- they don't exist. But if you're not buying the machine for that purpose it doesn't matter.

This machine was originally a treadle or a hand-crank that was electrified. Check out the leather belt! Early! It doesn't seem to have been used much because belts don't last that long. The motor is an original singer, and might be good, or it might not. It's .6 amps, which may be adequate. An aficionado would convert this machine to a hand crank or treadle, as oneday said. Original hand cranks are hard to find but Chinese replicas are available for under $20, and I've heard they work well. (Check out sew-classic) And it's very easy to take the motor off and put a hand crank on. BUT, if you want to convert to hand crank, verify that the motor is attached to a "boss", and not just drilled into the pillar. The hand crank boss is a little protrusion from the pillar that is cast in the metal. I'm pretty sure I see it but I'm not positive. I think Sew-classic has the cords and controller if you want to use this motor. You could also ask her advice on whether to buy a new motor & controller all together or replace the cords and controller. Lately I've been pricing attachments and feet and she has great prices.

The decals are great, but I see some "crazing" and I'm not sure what that means. The machine has been well protected in it's case.

I think a collector who doesn't have a red-eye machine would buy this and convert it to hand-crank, and probably leave it as a back clamper. But that collector has more than one machine.

Keep in mind that any thrift shop machine you buy is going to need some tlc (cleaning, oiling, lubing at the least) because it has probably been sitting unused for decades. It's a bit of a project and not everyone is into it. But the craftsmanship and quality of the old machines doesn't exist today. You can find the threading diagram online and actually try to sew a few stitches, but if the tension discs need polishing it might give you trouble. It's a little hard to tell from the pics if there is corrosion or rust in that area.

Also, I would want to check underneath for rust, but one of the hinge pins has come out of the base, and that needs attention. If you try to tilt the machine back you might damage the wood. The way it is the top will not fit back on the base. It looks like you'll have to carefully put the hinge back into the wood (you'll need two people, I think -- one to hold the machine and the other to fiddle with the hinge) and then figure out how to fix it later.

Wow, am I long winded! In short, I think the value is there. Heck the feet are probably worth the price-- if you just need the straight stitch foot you could sell the rest and possibly get your money back! If you like tinkering and you're up for the project, and are willing to put more money into it for the controller/motor or hand crank, go for it. It doesn't hurt to try to get the price reduced.
--Sheila

PS - Okay, I know I've written a ton already, but I just looked at the pics again and it looks like the presser foot doesn't exactly line up with the feed dogs (in your pic labelled "bobbin"). It could just be the angle of the picture but check that out before you buy. Could be that the foot just needs to be screwed on more tightly. If the presser bar is bent or twisted and it's causing the foot to be crooked, well then you'd definitely want to convert it to a side-clamper, and hope that fixes it.

miriam

If it works it is less expensive than ONE visit to your service man with your newer machine. It WILL work as long as it isn't all rusted up... even then those old machines can be revived it's even a lot of fun doing so.