AnnaF

I just took a leap of faith and purchased the above machine on Ebay from the Good Will store in Fort Wayne IN. Hopefully it is in good running order when it arrives! I so miss having a serger to do the side seams on the pillowcases I make..zig zag just doesn't do it for me...ok in a pinch but not my preference.
My old Kenmore serger no longer works and it was the bane of my existance, it was horrid to thread and finally the first thread carrier underneath just broke off. I have no idea where to find someone to fix it so gave up on that idea.
Anybody else still using that model Serger?

Innov8R

I owned one of these and had to beg the viking dealer to take it in trade for my Huskylock. I really like an inexpensive White 2900 I bought 13 years ago.

SingerCLA

Don't be afraid of this serger. Internals are the same drive as so many of the Janome/New Home machines. It does not have differential feed, but that simplifies a bunch underneath. It is a solid build. Expect that it will need a good oiling if it has not been done in a while. Removing the bottom cover will expose most of the oil points.

I recently oiled and tuned one of these up and found it to be quite easy and well behaved to dial in for proper tension and not picky about fabric thickness or type.

Threading on all these older machines... I read many complaints on how difficult it is. The lower looper is the only tough part. A pair of tweezers, follow the diagram, and 10 minutes is all that is required. Just be sure the lower looper thread lays over the upper looper 'crotch' when the needles are up, ready to stitch.

19cats

Here's a link to the manual http://www.singerco.com/uploads/down...4u44b,244b.pdf. Nice diagrams.

Alvie

I bought mine from Sam's when sergers were just appearing on the sewing horizon and it has never quit on my yet. Traveled on a bus with a drum corps one summer. Did all sorts of extraordinary things: replaced the sparkly lapels on right around 100 marching uniforms with satin fabric and satin stitched edges; built baby clothes; pieced a quilt top; made clothes for me; made uniforms and flags for that drum corps; repaired the tonneau cover for my husband's MGB. It is the serger with the black thread sitting right this instant on the table in my sewing room right next to the Husqvarna top of the line, white threaded one. Guess which one gets used most.

I love my 1440. Mechanical. No big deal gizmos. It gets cleaned and lubricated regularly. It gets the occasional new knife or a sharpened one as well as new needles. Singer still sells the knives. (Goodness, a supported machine. What a concept.) My machine gets taken to someone I respect for a now and then once over and tune up. There is nothing good enough to say about this machine has behaved and how it responds to having care by its owner.

The manual is complete and understandable. Yes, threading is a little arcane but once you use the tip of attaching your new thread to the thread already in the machine and pulling it through, it gets to be a piece of cake. Since I bought from Sam's there was no owner's class. Years later I discovered a Singer dealer who was giving "brush up" classes on it. Every once in a while I run into a class and I take it. Every time I do, I learn some more good stuff.

Do enjoy your new machine. And by the way, that baby/the drum corps member is now a 35 year old mechanical engineer, husband and father. I made our granddaughter's first quilt with it. 3 generations of service. Good machine.

birdlady1959

Back in the day when no one had an overlock, as they were called at that time, my mother in law and I both had a singer, made in Japan, brought through the factory where she worked. It had a seam allowance and overlocked the edge at the same time. I wish I still had that machine. On step sewing was wonderful and I clocked many hours on that machine. It was the devil to thread and when it got a hair crossways, I wanted to pull out my hair, however, nothing I have had since compares.