Bought a sewing machine - 1940s singer

oldtin wrote: The first thing I've sewn: . I'm happy with the base seam. The French seam is a little uneven on the stitch spacing. Probably related to speed. One side was done a lot faster than the other.

Thread tension probably has more to do with the uneven-ness and the appearance of pull through on the one on the right than the speed. Most machines are designed to be run at WOT.

Looking at the pic, I would assume that you sewed the seam with the side that we can see down, meaning that we are looking at the "underside" of the stitches. If this is the case than the top-side thread tension is too high, and it is pulling the bottom thread up through the material slightly. On certain materials (such as vinyl) this can cause the finish to crack around the seam edge. I would try again with a slightly reduced top thread tension (meaning don't change the bottom or bobbin thread tension) and compare. You may also want to make the stitch length a bit longer, which is a separate setting, but when experimenting I recommend only changing one variable at a time to truly see how it affects the final product.

That's the top side so I take it it could be more about the tension on the bottom/bobbin side? I did notice it was sort of stuck when trying to release everything. Although the interwebs suggest it's a feed issue

If you sewed that seam with the visible side up then yes, the bobbin tension is too high. It is often easier to adjust the top thread tension, and if the bobbin tension is perfect for all other materials I would leave it be and increase the top side tension. It is generally rare to have to adjust the bobbin tension.

One other thing to check is for lint, threads or other crud around the bobbin housing area, as this can cause issues such as uneven stitches. If you have a compressed air can like you might use for cleaning computers it works well for this too, or just remove the bobbin (and housing if your machine has a piece that the bobbin sits in that is removeable) and blow really hard in there.

Really smooth materials can also not feed properly due to reduced traction over the feed jaws.

yupididit wrote: This a good deal? $80

If it sews, I would say it is an OK deal. Not a "ZOMG" $20 deal, which I've seen similar ones go for at thrift shops, but certainly an OK deal, and that's probably a well built machine. The new Chinese stuff is not so good. Friend bought the $88 Singer at wally world. Useless. So, for $80 on that one, if it sews, I would say it was worth it and should do leather without problems.

yupididit wrote: This a good deal? $80

Looks like a 328P. Has an all-metal drive-train, so should be able to handle automotive upholstery fine. It uses "fashion cams" for fancy stitches if desired.

Thanks!

In reply to oldtin:

What are you using for practice material and where do you get it? If auto upholstery do you practice w/ backing?

Here's ebay sourced goat skin on my FLHT, before and after:

People around here want way too much money for those. I want one but I'm not going to pay through the nose for it.

In reply to fasted58:

I had a bunch of scraps of leather I was playing with. No backing material. Still need more practice and figure out a way to run a staighter line. I took apart some old tr4 seats last night to rebuild. I'll probably try vinyl first.

yupididit wrote: This a good deal? $80

Picking it up for 60 bucks tonight

congrats - that looks stout

Nice! For anyone else looking who has a Salvation Army nearby, they do auctions semi-often, and the last time I was at one, 3 sewing machines in/with cabinets (2 of them Singer), had a hard time selling at $50.

Saw one like the OP's in Goodwill about a month ago for $35. Nearly bought it to fix my Buick's upholstery (and because it was a very cool vintage piece of machinery), but it had several parts missing and there was an '80s era Singer right next to it for $23 complete. So I bought the newer model. Still haven't had time to disassemble the seat and fix the cover, but there's a lot of bargains out there.

I got it home and ran it. It seems to work pretty well. It's a Singer 328k, seems easy to use for a newb like me.

The seller ended up having a lot of cool stuff in his garage. I'm coming back to buy a vintage Pioneer record player. He restores old audio equipment.

Man, this reminds me of all the heavy duty sewing stuff my grandfather used to have. He was a cobbler, and had some heavy duty antique industrial machines. They would have been perfect for auto upholstery. Sadly, I didn't own a house when my dad scrapped it all when they had to sell my grandparents' house about 10 years ago, or else I would have taken it all. He couldn't give it away at the time; no one wanted it.

FYI, I have bought parts from these guys:

http://www.sewingpartsonline.com/

and they have videos on how to put them in. I had to put a new gear in the bottom of Dr.L's 70's vintage Singer and they had complete step by step destructions for it, including how to set the timing. Hint: No timing light is needed.

yupididit wrote: I got it home and ran it. It seems to work pretty well. It's a Singer 328k, seems easy to use for a newb like me. The seller ended up having a lot of cool stuff in his garage. I'm coming back to buy a vintage Pioneer record player. He restores old audio equipment.

Cool. Beware, old sewing machines can be addictive.

Something fishy is going on here...

Do you need a sewing machine for a fabric covered Canoe?

I suspect A_Sandro intends to deliver the setup and AlRoss908 intends to edit this to add a link.

A more GRM-appropriate link would be Hackaday's article on what to look for in used sewing machines. That's what I did - bought a 1970s era Singer at Goodwill for $30, had it overhauled by a sewing machine shop for $75. Yes, it'll stitch leather.

I know zombie thread, but has anyone heard from oldtin in a while?

we just re-inherited my wife's Grandma's old Singer Featherlite. This thing looks awesome. Her aunt had it restored and handed it off to us, with the understanding we're not allowed to sell it until she dies (which I usually dislike in a gift-giver, but in this case is fair if you want to hear the whole story). I'm excited to try it out as soon as I find something to sew. Maybe a winter project.  

Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:

I know zombie thread, but has anyone heard from oldtin in a while?

I was thinking the same thing a while back. No, I haven't.

For Covid summer I got th used 1990s Singer machine out that i bought 10 years ago  and got it going , 

Lots of youtube videos and I was luck there was one on this model , plus SINGER has tha manuals for free on their website , 

Doing the bobbin was the only hard thing , but its simple  once you know how , 

I made some covers for my EZ UP canopies , bags to put  recyling cans in ,  and shortened some work pants , 

As they say "Just do it"  and make stupid stuff so you understand it ,  you really cannot screw it up much , 

Have an old Singer Industrial Sewing Machine I'm trying to get rid of. Yes it works. And it's heavy. Most of the weight is the motor that you see under the table. Not going to use it anymore and don't have the room for it anymore. If anyone wants it come and get it.

In reply to mtn (Forum Supporter) :

My mom is an avid quilter and has a couple machines. She said those Featherlites are solid machines and are sought after and not cheap. We have my mom's old Bernina from the early 70's and it'll do anything we want to do with it.