MrsBoats

Re: The case... What about wallpaper? That's basically what's on there now, I think. You could find a snazzy pattern from the same era as the machine and paper the case, then varnish it.

miriam

I wonder what you strip it with. I peeled off the loose stuff. I don't want to ruin what is left... I was thinking about paint then decoupaging some old pattern pieces to the outside. What cleans up the hardware? - it seems to be riveted on. DH will have ideas about how to repair the wood piece. At least she stitches.

Suzi

Would anyone know where I can go to date a White treadle machine ....... I'm not having any luck. The serial number is 1330531. Thanks in advance

miriam

Yeah - fix her up! It is addictive though...

miriam

no clue. I betcha you will love it though.

miriam

U buy it and I'll ship it to U... U pay postage...

melinda1962

You are in a group of enablers. Obviously, fix it up, posting before, during and after pics. There are a host of folks here who can help you with any questions you might have. I have little experience with the older 66s but lots of others have a lot of info for you. Inspect the wiring first, before plugging it in. Good luck!!! :) :)

chris_quilts

Update: MY donor machine is also a 201 but needs cleaning badly. Caked on dirt and gunk - my favorite to clean off. It is frozen up. The hand wheel turns but nothing else moves and it may be missing a piece or pieces in the bobbin case although the case itself appears to be there. The poor old gal also has rust on her. After cleaning her up, I will compare both 201s to see whatr the new one is missing besides the bobbin winder tire.

Suzi

Just found out what I needed to know and thought if there were any White owners here they might want to "age" their older machines also............ the toll-free number is 1-800-446-2333 and the hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central Standard Time, Monday through Friday. I found that my treadle was manufactured June 7th., 1901 and she's about to be restored. She's a pretty little girl but is in desperate need of a spa treatment - you want to talk about GUNK???

miriam

You know it REALLY doesn't matter what kind of machine you are fixing up. New, old, electric, treadle, hand crank what ever. Check the cords if it has cords. If in doubt don't plug it in. That said... I usually clean off some of the 'patina' so my hands don't get all cruddy while I work. If the motor and wires are ok the next thing I like to do is see if it threads up and makes a stitch. If it does, clean that puppy up and sew something. If it seems to need more TLC I seem to gravitate to the worst problem... Some times it is the bobbin area, some times the tension... Some times the outside just grosses me out so much I do a lot of cleaning first. Sometimes the inside is grosser than the outside. Kerosene should melt down the dried up oils - I don't know about using it on decals. If you want to do an all out dis-assembly, you can go on Billy's tutorial. I tend to use a can with a bit of kerosene and paint the kerosene on the place I want to work on. I paint over and over. I stuff a paper towel in to collect. I try to keep it off me, my stuff and the part of the machine I'm not working on at the moment. I do it outside. If a machine isn't all gunked up - well, cheer! Some times things are a bit rusted. A piece of aluminum foil scrunched up sometimes cleans that up. Sometimes it is so rusted up you wonder if it will ever work. I've seen some pretty good clean ups on this board. I have simply replaced rusted parts for good parts because I have a few parts machines around. Not all machines are going to be in your area of expertise. Now days, if it is a new puzzle I try to find a service manual for what I need to fix, read the instructions a hundred times and dig in. I keep a big old muffin tin handy to put things in - put them in order they came off. Take pictures if your camera does close ups. Call DH to loosen the really tight screws - then shoo him out of there.... Brute strength is NOT always an advantage. Remember, if you can read a pattern you can do this.