Slightly, bit not too, O/T. I am in the process of making a half hood a la Surrey Dave from a slightly damaged Caterham hood I managed to get.

I hauled out from the loft an antique Singer manual sewing machine (used to beliong to SWMBO's granny) which seems to work as in the needle goes up and down when your turn the handle, but it is incredible hard to turn. I have tried adjusting all the knobs etc. I can find and have put some light oil on the obvious moving parts, but it's still the same.

Anyone got any ideas? Failing that, does anyone have access to a similar machine that I could use/do it for me, or know a place I could get the stitching done within a reasonable distance of Sevenoaks?

Cheers

Simon

[Edited on 24.01.2010 by Humbug]
Rescued attachment Picture 8.jpg

I struggled to get mine to sew anything else but leather......ended up using a local sailmaker to do the stitching. You really do need an industrial machine otherwise its very frustrating as the needle heats up and the thread breaks.
The caterham hood is of good strong leatherette cloth and the singer wont sew it well if at all. The toyota machine sewed the straight bits but corners were a dam struggle.
Strange thing is now the singer wont sew my new worx trousers
My mother in law used staples to shape the roof and the sail-maker just seamed it.

The first seats I made it sewed no problem they came out the rear of a volvo and were leather.
I used a electric bread knife to carve the foam.


cheers





this was prior to it going to the sail maker



[Edited on 24-1-10 by mangogrooveworkshop]

From the pic, it looks very similar to my singer, is yours a shuttle or bobbin ?
as i made all of my seats etc with my Mothers Singer (bobin) and never really got to grip with my shuttle model

If the machine is stiff, you really need to get rid of as much of the dirt cotton etc, i used the compressor to blow it all away, and then use sewing machine oil if you can still buy the stuff, its extremley thin, and works a treat

any good neddlework/sewing shop will know exactly what to use on your splendid machine

That looks exactly the same as mine!! Singer sell an own brand oil, all the bits need regular lubing.

Try look up the machine type in

http://www.singermachines.co.uk/Parts_&_Ser/indstbooks.htm

And check you've lubed all you should lube!! On mine there are a couple of windows you have to open to put lube in....

Ummm I think it's a bobbin machine as it has a bobbin under the plate on the base.

Ben - how do I know which manual I need? I previously Googled and found an America site that lists all the serial numbers. Apparently mine was made in Clydebank and is in a series of numbers issued in November 1928! (linky). It also lists a model number and you can downoad manuals, but the manual is for a different machine

[Edited on 24.01.2010 by Humbug]

im in Rochester i have got one you can borrow if you want to come and pick it up and drop it back when your done. if you want it u2u me and i will get it out tomorrow to make sure it still works.

it managed to sew leather fine last time as i used a proper leather needle.

I think I just looked at the manuals until I found one which looked the same as mine

They're not that complicated. Have you open it up from underneath (most of them are hinged at the back) and oiled the underneath bits?

Isn't it a Singer 127-3?

http://parts.singerco.com/IPinstManuals/127-3_128-3.pdf

Ben - it looks similar but it's not quite the same. Mine doesn't have the shuttle

Ash - I will see if I can get mine working first but thanks for the offer. I'll let you know.

Cheers

Simon

Definitely worth trying to repair these old machines. I did my entire hood with one just like it and it beat the hell out of a more modern plastic thing my housemate has got.

I got my fabric from here - great service and you can get samples before commiting to the material you choose (I used TG-10). I also used their 3M reflective piping in all the joins to make me more visible in the dark. It's brilliant!

Ed.

The bit under the plate is the shuttle, it can be a round one or a rocket (vibrating) shuttle. I picked an old 1950s electric machine up on the flea market for £5 and it sews anything, canvas or thin leather you just need the correct needle and thread for the job. We also have a couple of old treadle operated machines which do the job nicely, one looks a lot like that. As Stu says, get the bottom end cleaned up and use some penetrating oil on it then some 3 in 1 type oil. The wheel you turn has a knob in the middle you can unscrew to disconnect the drive, try slackening that off a bit.


[Edited on 24/1/10 by Peteff]

You will find on old, (ish) Singers that all the connections underneath are adjustable for wear, just a simple screw and split bearings, check that they haven't been overtightened, as that makes the machine stiff to opperate. HTH Ray

Thanks for all the advice an info. Following my use of oil yesterday, it seems to have freed up a lot now, certainly to the point where it would be manageable.

I'll let you know how I get on.

Little tip from my mum when sewing heavy material is to sew through greaseproof paper , it helps apparently.